This still doesn't feel like an Android app
While not nearly as disappointing as the Windows beta, this Android version of 1Password 4 is still quite disappointing.
Don't get me wrong; most of the basic functionality is there, and it works (multiple vaults being the gaping exception).
But as an Android user, it's frustrating to see what should be a top-tier app just completely ignoring the platform's design standards.
Google has done a tremendous job of creating boatloads of excellent documentation, not to mention ensuring that their own apps are shining examples of those standards.
So why has 1Password made so many specific, intentional decisions to eschew those standards?
Things like:
- The colours are all wrong.
- The icons are all wrong.
- The type sizing is all wrong.
- The item spacing is all wrong.
- The navigation is all wrong.
How would you expect your OS X users to react if you moved the minimize and close buttons to the upper-right corner, or rendered everything in Comic Sans?
Respect the user, respect the platform. Meet expectations. Don't do things differently just because you think you "know better." This would be a much, much, much better app if somebody over there were to read the Android documentation, and revise the app to match.
Comments
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Thank you for taking an interest in the 1Password beta and taking the time to try it out. I can tell from your post that you are very passionate about the Android platform. Are there any specific concerns that you would like to highlight?
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I thought I was pretty specific.
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I think he is asking for a little more information other than "all wrong". I literally just got my invite today and loaded it up and at the very first couple of screens I could tell that it didn't fit with the current Android Holo feel (gradients need to go away). I can be more specific once I get past linking it to my Dropbox. Currently, it says I have an invalid master password, but I verified that it was correct on my Mac.
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i quite like the design.
i just downloaded the app today and if i had to pick something which struck me as odd in the design would be the unlock keyboard. it could really improve it just looks dated. perhaps a flatter design.
likewise goes to the top menu bar. its alright but it could be flatter as well.
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The first-time flow stuff was a little strange looking. I can't necessarily second the rest of the objections, though. The toolbar is properly sized, the three-dot menu appears in the upper right corner, just like the Data Usage menu in settings, the backgrounds in the application are "suitably" flat. The toolbar has a soft gradient on it, but certainly not anything I'd describe as "foreign." I don't have a super keen eye for typography, but it appears they're even using Roboto for the text in lists.
There was one small, kind of specific thing: the use of the ' < ' in the upper left to denote the slide-out menu as opposed to the three-bar handle (as found in Google+ for example) kind of threw me off. Might be worth considering.
(Also, Holo doesn't outlaw gradients. You can see one in the background of Settings, for example.)
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On the whole the app is incredibly better than what is currently offered. I am extremely excited to see that it is FINALLY getting the update that it needs and as I continue to work with the updated app, I realize that I am going to nit-pick. But, that is why agilebits is doing a beta. They want feedback. So if I can fit it in, I will.
That being said, add the hamburger (3 dots) to the top left instead of the <. Also, soften up the gradient across the topbar. If I get some time later I may throw together a quick mockup to illustrate what I mean.
I really love 1Password though. Can't wait to see this thing released to Google Play.
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Thank you everyone for your feedback! What I'm hearing from you is that you would like to see a flatter design with less gradients (in particular on buttons and the action bar). I also understand that the back arrow doesn't convey the right message when navigating at the root level. I've passed on your votes for the hamburger and for a flatter design to our design team.
@guardianfx, you are correct that the beta is a great time for us to gather feedback. As such, nitpicking is entirely welcome. Feel free to keep the suggestions coming!
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What I mean by "all wrong" is that there's been almost no effort to apply the Holo theme and/or stick to native Android elements anywhere in the app. Again, it's a case of the app's design thinking that it "knows better" than the established and/or documented standards, resulting in an appearance and layout that, more often than not, is different than the user expects.
Here are a number of specific examples, though this list is by no means exhaustive:
- The PIN lock screen really should match the Android lock screen. People interact with the Android lock screen dozens of times daily; at that point, muscle memory kicks in. The 1Password lock screen has the numbers shifted down and smaller, backspace where enter should be, and enter where backspace should be. Every time I enter my PIN, I hit backspace instead of enter. It's frustrating.
- What's with the custom 0-9 buttons on the unlock screen? Not only are they ugly, but they provide no visual feedback when pressed. This is just one of several cases where sticking to defaults would have provided users with superior functionality and appearance, and developers with less design and implementation work.
- Where did you get those menu bar icons? There are standard icons, please use them.
- The colours and the gradients. Oh, the gradients. Please, stick to a theme and use colours for emphasis! There are plenty of ways to work in your branding, but unless your brand identity is 2004-style grey-blue gradients at all costs, maybe you can strive to find more attractive ways to work in your trademark hue of blue.
- Search should be available everywhere.
- What's with the checkmark to submit my search? I guess you didn't use the default Android widget, which would have given you more consistent functionality and appearance and would have allowed you to enable voice search very easily.
- The font size in the Options menu and the Settings screen is too large.
- The Settings screen should be accessed via the Options menu, not the navigation panel.
- In the settings screen, secondary text should be used for status, not description.
- Most of the lists are extremely squished. Kudos for attempting to achieve a consistent 48dp rhythm, but two-line and three-line items should nevertheless be taller than one-line items.
- You probably don't need a navigation drawer at all. It's recommended only when you have more than three top-level views. Fixed tabs or a spinner would probably be more appropriate.
- If you do keep the navigation drawer, brush up on Up vs. Back.
- The correct place for the Favourite and Delete actions on an item is in the action bar once the item is opened. This functionality need not be duplicated with the weird pop-up menus in the lists.
- The Cancel/Save actions in the Action Bar when editing an item should be buttons, not just disembodied text; they should use standard Android icons; the Back caret should go away during this time; and the Save button should be on the right, Cancel on the left. Try editing something in the Calendar app for an example of this in action.
I find it a bit disheartening that such detailed feedback is even necessary. The Android Design documentation is well-written and easy to understand, the Android User Interface developer documentation is detailed and thorough, and the pack-in Android apps offer shining examples to follow. It shouldn't be up to users to point out the enormous number of places that the design and development of 1P4 have failed to follow standards or comply with ingrained user expectations.
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...It's very difficult to see, at least on my (awful) monitor, but the above post is very liberally peppered with reference links to the Android documentation that should hopefully prove helpful.
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aaronadams - Thank you. A thousand times yes! I am not a developer, but I know Holo when I see it and the gradients were the first thing that really threw me. Second only to the fonts and the lack of consistency.
Google+ community solely for sharing Holo apps in the event that other readers don't fully understand the design guidelines. Great examples.
https://plus.google.com/communities/1121109966716974546800 -
Again, it's a case of the app's design thinking that it "knows better" than the established and/or documented standards
Not even Google is consistent in the application of its own guidelines. For instance in the Design Guide on Settings it specifically says Provide access to Settings in the action overflow, but if you look in the Google Maps app it has some slide out menu on the left that provides a "Settings" menu item. And that slide out menu has a whole different look than for instance the 'action overflow' menu in the Gmail app. Do the Google Maps Android developers think they "know better" then all other Android developers from Google?
I don't know, but assuming that's the attitude of the AgileBits Android developers is a little harsh. Personally I think they have tried to create a common look and feel across all their 1Password implementations on all platforms. For an app that's generally used on more than one platform by a given user that does make sense.
Having said that I too would have preferred a more Android specific look (as specified by the Design Guide) and feel. But as long as the feel is sufficiently Android-like I'm not too concerned about the look. Especially as a consistent look on Android is far from common with all the Samsung/HTC/Motorola/Sony/LG/etc specific skins/themes.
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aaronadams is on to something.
great post!
the android holo and flat design is extremely popular. whilst i understand 1password might want to have its own identity and be familiar to people coming from a different platform it would be great if it could resemble the current android theme whenever possible.
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Aaronadams is 100% correct. It's disappointing to see that the new version of the Android app is still not a first-class Android application that follows the Android design guidelines. I can't really blame Agilebits, because they have historically developed primarily for Mac and iOS, but you really need to invest the time to learn the Android design patterns or hire someone who does and has experience developing first-class Android applications.
Aaronadams just gave you a huge list of things that are wrong about the current version of the app, with helpful links to the Android design documentation that explains why they are wrong. These may be subtle differences, but they absolutely matter to the user experience. They are the difference between your application feeling like one that is built for Android vs. one that is ported over from iOS (what it pretty much feels like right now).
Please read up on the specific examples he gave you and on the rest of the Android documentation. If you want a good example of an app with similar functionality that does a much better job of adhering to the Android standard, look at the recently-updated Dashlane. Its app isn't perfect (there are still places in the UI that feel a bit off), but it feels like much more of an Android app that the current version of 1Password does.
I haven't gotten into the Windows beta yet, but the one thing that is preventing me from switching back to 1Password from Dashlane is the existence of high-quality, native applications for Android and Windows that are on par with (in terms of functionality and UX) the OS X version of the app. Unfortunately, it still looks like you guys have a ways to go.
P.S. For another example of an app that made a near-perfect transition from iOS to Android, take a look at Level.
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On the subject of the location of Settings, I actually think it makes sense in the navigation panel – and I've noticed that a lot of Google apps have just started to move it there in the last couple of weeks, too. It's just a matter of what users are accustomed to.
Since users will now be accustomed to finding Settings in the nav panel, leave it there! I take it back.
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RE: ErikSwan's post, that's a good point – it's an attitude adjustment. The Windows app is straight-up embarrassing, and the fact that 1P4 for Windows isn't revamping that user interface terrifies me a bit. You can't ask for people's money if you're not going to go the extra mile.
You're on the verge of something great, you've just got to get there! Hopefully you'll take all of this in the spirit that it's intended – constructive criticism from somebody who's dying to implement 1P4 across entire organizations. I want to give you my money! Piles of it! You just need to get the apps there first (and before someone else does).
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Good points all round. One addition I'd add is that it looks like the designer took an old Android template.
Some of the buttons look like pre Android 4.0. The new Android is completely flat.Easy fix to make.
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@aaronadams: Thank you for your detailed list. I've reviewed your comments with our design team and we recognize that you have several valid points. As we move through the beta period, we shift our focus to different aspects of the app. At times we are more focused on user interface and other times we are more focused on the underlying functionality. Your comments - and those of everyone else in this thread - are helpful in bringing our focus back to the user interface.
Even though they are quite comprehensive, there are going to be times when we are going to deviate from the Android design guidelines. Although there may be a number of reasons for deviating from the guidelines, we do recognize that these deviations should have a good reason behind them. We will be reviewing differences between our design and the guidelines with this in mind. In fact, this process is already underway. Stay tuned for user interface improvements in upcoming versions of the beta.
Once again, thank you all for your comments and suggestions!
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That's great news.
I absolutely agree that guidelines are just that – guidelines, and not hard-and-fast rules. You said it best: if there's a good reason, deviate! If there's no good reason, don't!
Thank you for listening, and for all of your efforts so far.
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I feel like I should reiterate a bit of what aaronadams said in addition to my own observations.
Reorganize Navigation
Do away with the "Categories" view altogether. The first time I opened the 1Password beta I felt completely lost, and it was not a good first impression. What I expected was to see a list of my data, not a full-screen navigation view. I can't think of any other app that's organized that way.
- Make either "Logins" or "All items" the default view.
- Remove the "Categories" view altogether and move its contents to the navigation drawer.
- Change the navigation drawer button symbol in the action bar to three horizontal lines (see Play Store, Play Music, Google+, Foursquare).
- Don't push the main view over when displaying the navigation drawer. Have the drawer slide over it instead, and modify the action bar accordingly.
Navigation Grouping
There should be four groupings in the navigation drawer:
- "All Items"
- The categories
- "Favorites" and "Folders"
- "Settings" (pinned to the bottom)
Use Spinners for Fine-Grained Control
One thing that bugs me is the abundance of nearly-empty categories. This seems unnecessary, as most of those are just wallet items.
- Merge all of the wallet categories ("Bank Accounts", "Credit Cards", "Driver's Licenses", "Identities", "Social Security Numbers", etc.) into a "Wallet" category.
- Use a spinner to filter the types of wallet items. (see Play Music's "All Music / On Device" spinner and Google+'s circles spinner)
Currently, when you selecting "Folders" from the navigation drawer, 1Password displays the folders as a view. Instead, they should go in a spinner and the items of the currently-selected view would be displayed.
Reopening Behavior
When unlocking, return to the previous category, not necessarily the default. Right now it seems to throw you back to the "Categories" view. If I had previously been viewing an item in the "Passwords" category, bring me back there.
However, when reopening before 1Password has fully re-locked, it should still return to the previous item like it does now.
Fix Copying
When viewing an item I expect to be able to tap and hold on a piece of data to copy its contents. Instead there's a completely alien-looking dropdown widget all the way to the right which displays a menu with a single item ("Copy") when tapped. This seems completely inconsistent to the rest of Android.
Notifications
Rather than a sync success/failure notification, why not have an option for a persistent notification when 1Password is unlocked? It could even provide the option to lock 1Password directly (like the snooze button in Calendar notifications) without needing to bring the app to the front.
Search
- As long as I'm in a category (read: not in "Settings"), I should always be able to search.
- Tapping the hardware search button should select the search field.
- The keyboard should show the magnifying glass icon in the lower-right corner when a search field is selected.
- What's up with the checkmark next to the search field? That seems completely nonsensical. When I'm typing on the keyboard I'm expecting it to be finalized from there, not from where the text is going.
Add vs Sync
The "Add" icon in the action bar should be a higher priority than "Sync". When in portrait orientation on my phone, however, it's the other way around.
Additionally… it doesn't make sense to have sync placed to the left of the search button. It feels weird that a button disappears like that.
Icons
They're too large and gradient-y.
Item Menus
The Delete / Favorite / Open in Browser / Copy menu is totally non-standard. Why can't that just a standard text dropdown?
Additionally, the copy option here seems misplaced. The behavior of that is unpredictable.
Set Folder View
There are three buttons in the action bar: return, "Save" and "Cancel". The behavior of the return button is unpredictable.
What is the purpose of the "Remove from Folder"… thing at the top? It seems to only provide a duplicate function. There are standard ways to provide a "check all" and "uncheck all" function.
Exit
Huh? Why?
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+1, especially the idea of merging the Wallet categories – which, if I'm not mistaken, is something the old Android app actually did?
Also, while I didn't mention the Exit button, it certainly is a strange thing to find in an Android app. There's a back button for that – although in the case of 1Password, I would expect the functionality to be "Lock" instead. And I love love love the idea of a persistent notification indicating when 1P is unlocked, with a "Lock" button.
I also wonder if, like the Mac version, it would be possible to lock 1P with screen lock, rather than every time the app loses focus, and/or after a certain amount of time. I don't know if there's an Android API for this, but it seems logical that 1P should lock with my phone, and stay unlocked in the meantime.
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When viewing an item I expect to be able to tap and hold on a piece of data to copy its contents. Instead there's a completely alien-looking dropdown widget all the way to the right which displays a menu with a single item ("Copy") when tapped. This seems completely inconsistent to the rest of Android.
This is my biggest issue with the beta so far: it consistently takes me several tries to hit that dropdown widget because the target area is so small. Personally I'd prefer the whole field be tap-to-copy because copying is the only reason I'd be tapping on a password field outside of edit mode, but I could see someone arguing that a long-press helps avoid leaking passwords onto the clipboard as a result of mis-taps.
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Given the auto-clear of the clipboard after a period of time, I wouldn't say that leaked passwords from mis-taps is a huge risk.
That said, there's also the reveal function. I'd lean toward tap for reveal and long press for copy. Which would you prefer?0 -
@ericeatsbrains: I was having trouble with that too, and while I continue to agree that it's an abomination, the trick is that the little arrow is actually at the bottom-right corner of a much larger, completely invisible button.
Press-and-hold would certainly be both easier and more Android-like. Here's hopin'.
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Though I wouldn't have presented my points the same way as Aaron, I agree with the substance. Though I was initially ecstatic about the beta, it needs a lot of polish to make it feel like an android app. I'm confident this team will get there but I thing before it's released it needs to be a true android app. When I compared it to the recent dash lane release the dash lane ui seemed far superior, though I still use 1password. I think Aaron had provided a lot of useful guidance.
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I was about to start this topic as well but because of your detailed and great answer @aaronadams and @rspeed there is nothing to add. So I will just leave a +1 and my support here. Thanks for that.
Hopefully as announced, there will be "greatly improved UI and colour palette" in the next beta version.0 -
Wow! Thanks everyone for your continuous feedback, especially @aaronadams and @rspeed for going through every corner of the beta. I will be passing on all of the concerns, comments and suggestions brought up in this discussion to our development team. Your feedback is really important to us, and we really appreciate the time and effort our beta testers have been contributing to help make 1Password better on Android!
Our development team is currently working on some user interface changes. I know there are some concerns surrounding the detail view, navigation, and lock screen. These are just some of the areas we will be focusing on in the next few updates. Beta 10, released yesterday, includes some changes like new icons. Please expect more changes to the UI in other updates. :)
We also received a lot of requests to have quicker access to search and view all items. This is an area that's being reviewed at the moment.
Thanks again for all the comments. Let me know if you have any questions.
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Another +1, while some of the points that were brought up here are fairly minor on their own it all adds up!
Really great job to put down these lists of the things you found to be wrong, I had not really been able to put my finger on what was bothering me.
The main things that I have primarily noted myself is how the interaction to copy (probably the single most important thing for this app!) is strange, that search (also really important for this app!) behaves a bit strange as well as the font sizes being all over the place in different views/menus.0 -
Thanks for your feedback. We are currently working on improving how copy is triggered in the detail view. Please keep an eye on this in an upcoming update.
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I would agree with @aaronadams in large part. The beta is far and away better than reader in terms of functionality, in that regard I LOVE it! However as others have said... it does feel like an iOS app port. I use windows, android, OS-X and iOS (as well as a few linux distros) and while I understand that the focus, and major market for 1PW is mac, i would love to see the android app updated with a more android like look/feel closer to the design standards (where possible).
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We are always looking to improve 1Password and your feedback is greatly appreciated! Thank you. We have a couple of design changes targeted for beta updates. Please keep an eye out for them! ;)
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