Foreigners' View on China's Mobile App UI Design Trends

This summer, due to work reasons, I moved from San Francisco, USA to Guangzhou, a southern city in China, and became a product manager for WeChat. As we all know, WeChat can be said to be one of the most popular IM applications in China. Going to a new country means a new life - getting used to a new language, food, consumption and travel. However, I didn't expect that in just a few months, I integrated into such a strange country that made me feel at a loss at first!

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I also got used to China's digital life. Learning to use the mobile apps commonly used by Chinese users was not only out of curiosity for professional habits, but also to integrate into the local atmosphere as much as possible. After getting used to it, I even turned a blind eye to these changes. One day, when I was free, I made a long list to record the apps I used and developed in the United States and the apps I used in China, and compared the two. The length of the list was much longer than I expected, so I decided to write a special article to conduct a systematic analysis.

1. Complex Chinese input

• Pinyin fuzzy matching

There are many different input methods for Chinese, ranging from pinyin, handwriting, radicals to the nostalgic nine-square grid input. Although users of different generations and different growing environments will choose different input methods, pinyin input is still the most commonly used one.

However, on Chinese websites and apps, none of the above input methods are required. Open the search interface of any operating system and simply enter Latin letters to get a large number of Chinese search results. With the intelligent error correction and fuzzy sound functions, even typos are harmless. Once you get used to this mode, you can't help but wonder: Why are apps in other countries not so user-friendly?

Chinese apps are even powerful enough to handle all kinds of Chinese input, which is really impressive. But few support fuzzy input for English, such as using stemming and detection methods to handle diacritical marks, punctuation, and capitalization, which is understandable.

• Voice messaging, voice search, and voice assistants

If voice can solve the problem simply and crudely, then why do we need to type? In IM applications such as WeChat, voice messages are used everywhere. In addition to eliminating the trouble of typing, it also brings convenience to the older generation who know nothing about computers and saves them a lot of effort. In fact, I am not keen on this communication mode. I always feel that it is far less convenient to stop the work at hand to listen to voice messages than to browse text. It is also uncomfortable to reply to voice messages from others, especially in public places, which seems to be quite pretentious.

However, in China, people seem to be accustomed to sending voice messages in public. People can be seen everywhere, holding the "record button" with their thumbs and talking to their phones with their heads slightly lowered. In addition, many applications also support voice search. Dr. Andrew Ng, an artificial intelligence scientist who joined Baidu in May this year, said in a recent interview that 10% of Baidu searches come from voice input.

• QR code scan the world

Before leaving for China, I conducted a survey on American user habits and preferences in San Francisco, and I took the opportunity to show them the QR code to see if they knew what it was used for. A female college student laughed and said, "Is this the kind of thing that can open some mysterious website by taking a photo with a camera?"

Others said they had tried to take a photo of the QR code using the camera app, but nothing happened, and they never used it again. "Maybe it's a shopping coupon or something," someone guessed, and even worried that their phone would be infected with a virus or something. I showed the video of these different responses to my colleagues, and everyone was more convinced that the United States would never be a fertile ground for QR codes.

Chinese people are definitely familiar with QR codes. In fact, they are everywhere - in advertisements, brochures, menus, business cards, and the all-too-familiar coupons, and even on the backs of train seats and the backs of toilet stalls. Most apps have a QR code scanning function. The QR code printed on an advertisement or brochure may only be applicable to a specific app. China's WeChat, Weibo, and other apps all have QR codes tied to specific links, but if you use an external scanner, it is likely that you will not be able to link to a specific app.

Below the QR code, there are often three Chinese characters for "Scan", which means scan. Every time I see these Chinese characters, I think of tricorders and medical equipment. Here, the QR code is not only a marketing channel, but can also be used to add friends, pay for goods or log in to the website, which is very convenient.

2. Crazy Red Dots

In China, many apps’ UIs often share the same unique element—a small red dot representing unread content. It looks similar to the red dots on the iOS system UI, but without the number logo. In fact, this element has never been used in the UI of American apps. These small red dots can be seen everywhere on the app menu, arranged from left to right and from top to bottom to form a unique landscape. Usually, if the user opens an app again after a while, they will be on every page.

The red dots usually mean:

• New content has been successfully loaded: This is common in social media news, movie, music or shopping apps. It does not actually require users to perform special actions, nor does it have to display specific numbers. It just reminds them that new content has appeared.
• New features are launched: often accompanied by eye-catching red "New" or "New" words in the App.
• Appears when the user turns off all or part of the App's notification function. For example, when WeChat is muted, new messages are displayed as red dots instead of numbers.

Many apps use both red dots and numbers as notification modes. The options on the app menu are overwhelming, and users need such convenient designs to guide them. In fact, most developers think that digital reminders are too eye-catching, so this great idea of ​​surprise has become a must-have element for most apps. Interestingly, on QQ, if you drag the digital logo (not the red dot), they will disappear in a small puff of smoke.

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3. Simple beauty, portal website, platform

Richard Gbariel's classic paper, "The Rise of "Worse is Better," was the first to contrast two opposing perspectives on software design. The UNIX operating system and C language from Bell Labs exemplified the "Worse is Better" perspective, favoring small, simple, authentic tools that work well with each other. Common Lisp, Scheme, and Emacs, developed at MIT, exemplified the opposing perspective, "The Right Thing/Better is Better," favoring large, comprehensive solutions.

In the United States, apps tend to be highly centralized and extremely streamlined, which deeply interprets the idea of ​​"the worse is better", but Chinese apps are clearly the opposite. Almost all apps integrate more and more functions that seem to have nothing to do with their essence, sometimes they can be used as supplements, and it is not uncommon for them to be "completely unrelated" - I think this may be the strategy of developers who want to attract attention or expand their target user base.

Here are some examples:

WeChat is to WhatsApp what Emacs is to VIM. In addition to information editing, there are also video calls, news subscriptions, online payments, game centers (built-in games), searching for people nearby, Shazaam-style song matching, and collection functions similar to "Evernote". Jamie Zawinski, a famous American software engineer, believes that email is one of the essential functions of all programs, otherwise it will be replaced by other products with this function, and WeChat happens to have a built-in email client. In addition, WeChat's public accounts can even enable users to communicate with service providers without having to download the official app separately.

Baidu Maps can query weather, search for friends, provide travel guides and various payment services; Tencent Maps can send audio postcards. Both apps have QR code scanning functions, providing convenient services similar to "Gaopeng Group Buying".

The Chinese version of "Twitter" - Weibo is more powerful. It can "publish" long microblogs and has up to 10 different types of content such as music, files, restaurant reviews, etc., and of course it also supports payment functions.

Although Yahoo-style portals are all-encompassing, they eventually “died in the United States” in 2000. Similar websites such as Sina, NetEase, hao123, and Tencent News are booming in China. Although “regular” apps already have all the functions of portals, many portals have also launched their own apps, and quite a few of them are very popular.

• New surprises in the sidebar

Some items in American apps that are difficult to classify are often placed in the same category (such as "Settings" and "Help" options, etc.), and the forms are similar. Sometimes you can find them by clicking the Elipsis icon "More" in the upper right corner, sometimes they are classified in the sidebar (Hamburger Menu), and sometimes they are hidden under the "More" label in the sidebar like Facebook.

Some Chinese apps are similar to American apps, grouping small items under "Even More", but more often they are grouped under the second to last or third option, appearing as "Discover". The "Discover" icon is usually in the shape of a compass or a compass, and contains more interesting content. Although there is no reason for it to exist, it can serve as a useful supplement to the core function of the app.

• A variety of app stores

Many apps can jump to the download interface of other games or apps, such as linking to the iOS App Store, or simply download and install directly (OTA Install). This model of cooperation with popular apps has added a lot of popularity to many third-party app stores.

Android has more than 10 major app stores. An app's launch and updates are displayed in each app store. Even on iOS there are other options, such as I have seen ads for the so-called "Apple Helper", which requires a custom configuration file when downloading. Cydia is also widely used because of jailbreaking iPhones.

4. Account and Login Interface

• Login with mobile phone number and verification code

There are usually two login modes for US websites and apps: one is to use the traditional email as the username and enter the password to log in; the other is to use third-party accounts such as Facebook or Google to authorize the login. Recently, it is common to see some Facebook-like social apps in the US asking users to enter their phone numbers and get a verification code via SMS to log in.

In China, almost all apps support logging in/registering using mobile phone numbers (among other options), including websites that do not have mobile apps.

• QR code login

Many websites also support QR code scanning to log in to the corresponding App. After the QR code identifier is scanned by the mobile App, it can automatically log in to the account. I heard that in the past many people used public computers in places such as Internet cafes, and the risk of encountering keyloggers or spyware was greatly increased. QR code login is obviously more convenient and safer than typing in passwords on the keyboard.

• Third-party account login

Many apps also support third-party account authorization login, such as using WeChat, QQ, Sina Weibo and Renren accounts. The mobile interface usually automatically jumps to the third-party app, and you can log in after authorization. On the website, traditional login, third-party account authorization and mobile app scanning QR code can all be used.

• More safety measures

General bank websites and third-party payment platforms such as Alipay require the installation of a special browser plug-in to protect password input. Many banks will issue customers a USB flash drive with a secret key, but I really can't figure out how to use this thing, so I can only put it aside.

Apps and websites in the United States only require users to enter a verification code when registering, while in China, verification codes are usually required on both the registration and login screens. The security requirements are relatively uniform, and some mobile applications even have verification code input options.

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5. Common UI for Chat

• Public Account

Similar to Internet Relay Chat, AIM and SmarterChild chatbots, “official accounts” provide a platform for brands and public figures to communicate with the public. WeChat has made them popular in China. Banks, mobile operators, blogs, hospitals, shopping malls and government agencies all have public accounts, and many organizations have even given up on developing standalone apps or mobile websites to focus on running their own public accounts.

Users can send any form of information, such as text, pictures, and voice, to the official account, and will definitely receive an automatic or manual reply. Although the user interface is similar to that of ordinary chats, there is a menu at the bottom of the page that is different. It not only lists the many functions provided by the account in a simple and clear manner, but also allows you to switch to ordinary chat mode.

In addition, public accounts have all the functions of ordinary chat mode. WeChat can even automatically convert voice into text before the public account's third-party server receives the message. Media use public accounts to regularly push fresh content to subscribers. For many users, the interface looks similar to RSS readers.

The chat UI of the official account was so successful that it was imitated by the official accounts of Sina Weibo and QQ, as well as many apps, but in slightly different forms. Not only that, it can also be found in the "user center" of many apps. A startup called Grata has also developed a white label version of the UI that can be used by any app.

App developers not only understand that it is a wise choice to adopt a familiar UI, but they also put the concept into practice and copied all the elements of the UI - the layout of the three menu options at the bottom of the page and the "multi-media" news pushed regularly are exactly the same.

• Emoticons and emoticons

Before emojis became widely used, most emojis available in Western apps were directly converted from traditional text emojis, with about 15 commonly used. However, QQ, which is well known to Chinese users, has had a set of standardized emojis for a long time, with a total of 80, which are rich and expressive, comparable to emojis. In addition to some basic emojis, there are also some emojis like [[124038]] , [[124039]] and [[124040]] that even have their own applicable time and place.

In China, any app with a chat function will have similar emojis. The classic emoji set created by QQ was later adopted by WeChat and "borrowed" by countless apps. Later, some large-sized animated emojis also became a unique landscape, but compared with American users, Asian users are not as obsessed with animated emojis as I expected.

6. Online shopping via apps

Online payments in China were initially hampered by red tape set by banks. To link a bank card to a website, a credit card account is not enough - users have to choose their bank from more than 30 banks and fill out complicated forms. Each bank obviously has its own set of procedures, and websites have no choice but to passively accept them. This is why third-party payment platforms such as Tenpay and Alipay are so popular.

• Single sign-on mobile payment model

Nowadays, many mobile apps act as bridges between banks and other apps, so users don’t have to worry about the complicated binding process.

Speaking of this payment model, I have only experienced it once in the U.S. At the time, I was at the airport and was worried about where to stay for the night. Fortunately, I was able to use Venmo (a U.S. mobile payment app) to prepay the room fee on HotelTonight (a hotel booking service app), eliminating the complicated credit card information input and binding procedures.

But in China, third-party payment is very common. The key is that many apps already have built-in payment functions, so users don’t have to go through the trouble of downloading third-party payment software.

• Every App has an online payment function

The “Wallet” page in the app covers all payment methods, and there are other options on the page:

1. Purchase other services on the App, such as purchasing items from a local service App.
2. In real life, you only need to scan the seller's QR code to purchase the product. Or vice versa, let the seller scan the QR code on the buyer's phone to complete the payment.
3. Distributing "red envelopes" to friends is similar to China's traditional customs, but it is done online.
4. There are a wide variety of payment options. For example, most apps with payment functions can be used to buy airline tickets, lottery tickets, movie tickets, taxis (Uber in the United States and Didi Dache in China), top up mobile phones, pay utility bills, etc. Tencent App also has a mini version of JD.com (a well-known online shopping website in China), and can also buy Tencent's virtual currency Q coins.

Most apps with payment features have a similar three-column layout of colorful icons representing different services. In fact, many bank apps have a similar layout, allowing users to pay for goods directly.

• Shield on the road, safe payment

Any app that involves payment functions is very concerned about transaction security. There is usually a large shield icon in the app, which stands prominently on the "Security Center" page. American online shopping websites also adopted a similar model, but after 2000 (remember "Hacker Safe"?) they switched to a more covert approach.

In fact, there are quite a few apps that are specifically designed to speed up your phone, clean up caches, improve security, and even resist malicious attacks... more or less reminiscent of the gadgets that Windows XP once developed to resist malware attacks. Of course, since the "shield" is everywhere, such apps are less useful.

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7. Positioning, positioning, positioning!

Whether it is automatically filling in "your city", displaying local weather or opening the local service page, many apps always ask for the user's geographic location without changing their expression, almost to the point of being omnipresent.

In China, contacting strangers nearby is one of the common functions of many apps. In fact, American apps such as Highlight and Skout have launched this function, but it is not as successful as in China - cultural attitudes, population density and urbanization level may be factors of impression. In any case, it is an indisputable fact that this function is so widely used in China.

• Apps for making friends with strangers

Momo is an app that specializes in making friends with strangers. It has more than 60 million monthly active users and is about to go public. Momo not only allows you to connect with strangers nearby, but also allows you to discover interesting activities, discussions, games, etc. Similar apps include Weiju and Bilin.

• Apps for daily use

This type of independent app is all the rage right now, but what’s most noteworthy is that every app used by Chinese people in their daily lives includes this function.

WeChat and QQ are two of the most widely used social apps in China, and both allow users to search for "people nearby". Users will see a list of nearby strangers and can browse the photos they have sent to their news feed. Of course, you can also choose or not to appear on other people's lists. Users can accept friend requests as long as they are still browsing the stranger list.

The difference between Weibo and Twitter is that it allows you to see content sent by nearby users, popular music, movie and TV apps, and find many popular accounts and groups.

The "cloud map" in Baidu Maps is also great - it updates in real time, can show the population density of different neighborhoods, and is drawn based on the real-time geographic location information sent by users to the server.

My intuition tells me that if mainstream apps in the United States add all or only some of the above features, they will definitely be exploited by some interest groups and become an excuse for horror stories and venting dissatisfaction on evening news broadcasts.

8. Download Everywhere

Many companies' apps support offline use, such as music apps (QQ Music, Duomi, Baidu Music, etc.) and video apps (iQiyi, Tencent Video, Baidu Video, etc.). You can always see people watching videos and listening to music on their phones on the subway... This kind of scene is rare in the United States, mainly because people in the United States do not have the same download rights as Chinese users.

Mainstream news apps can also download up to hundreds of articles in advance, and users can choose to read them when they are free; mainstream map apps can also download offline maps of the user's city or even the entire country; Chinese-English translation apps such as Baidu Translate and Youdao Dictionary can also download offline dictionaries and materials, making searches faster and more convenient, but the translation quality is slightly inferior.

Offline downloading has become one of the selling points of many apps. In China, when downloading a movie or a song, users can set the picture and sound quality, see the data flow and memory used by the download, with the figures accurate to KB, and know the remaining space in the device memory; in contrast, American apps at most show a fuzzy progress bar, or simply show nothing.

9. There is a whole new world in the circle of friends

When discussing the development trend of App UI in China, we have to mention WeChat's "Friends Circle" or "News" section. When I first saw it, it felt like Facebook's news feed was forced into a Picasso-style weird icon. But after using it, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the Friends Circle is a great idea and has a unique style compared to Facebook's news feed.

• No filtering and reordering: The status of friends in the Moments is not subject to filtering or reordering. Of course, users can block those annoying "status maniacs", and the status of the blocked person will no longer appear.
• More privacy: When you comment or like a friend's status, no one else can see it except you two and your shared friends, which is very similar to Facebook. This setting means that only the person who posted the status knows how many people liked or commented on their status, providing more privacy.
• Don't show public account news push: When you follow a company or news website's public account, the content they push will not appear in Moments. Of course, your contacts can also intentionally forward these push links in Moments.
• Third-party apps need user permission to send status: Third-party apps can send status to Moments, but they must obtain user permission. Usually the phone will automatically jump to the WeChat interface, and the status will only be displayed in Moments after obtaining user permission.
• No Games: Tencent made a fortune from Zynga-style social media games, but on WeChat, they wisely chose to include all games in the "Game Center", taking care of the feelings of non-gamers.
• No photo filters: Although Moments can be used to send a variety of statuses, there are no photo filters like Instagram - this is to allow users to send the most original photos quickly and instantly.

The perfect integration of these creative design elements with WeChat has made the public fall in love with Moments. Checking messages and refreshing Moments, commenting, liking, and posting status updates... this is the daily routine of Chinese WeChat users.

10. Others

• Assistive Touch

Almost half of all iPhone users have Assistive Touch turned on. Although this small square floating on the screen can be annoying at times, it can also be useful - for example, it acts as a virtual Home button and enables multi-touch functions, the latter of which allows operations that originally required multiple fingers to be completed with just one finger, allowing people with disabilities to operate without barriers.

But why would people with healthy limbs and normal brains choose to enable such an ambiguous setting as Assistive Touch? No one can give a decisive answer. Maybe people have different ideas... Some people are afraid of damaging the Home button at the bottom of the phone, and some people may just have nothing to do.

• Various cute cartoon characters

Various cute cartoon shapes will appear on the loading and error prompt interfaces of different apps.

• Pollution Factor Widget

Some apps also include the function of quickly querying and updating the local environmental pollution index.

• Ad splash screen

Quite a few apps will have full-screen ads that don’t need to be loaded in advance before opening. They are automatically loaded in the background before the app is opened, or even built into the app. Sometimes they are in-app purchase ads, sometimes they are promotions or publicity for special events, etc., and there are also some ordinary ads that can be seen everywhere on billboards or subway stations.

• App themes are colorful

It has become a trend for mainstream apps to provide users with a variety of themes/skins to choose from. I can’t imagine that American iOS apps will follow this pattern.

• Android ROM

Although Google is blocked in China, it is unnecessary for Chinese users to get a Nexus device and enjoy the pure Google experience. However, in China, the official original ROM is as scarce as in other places. In order to fill this gap, some alternative products based on the original Android system have emerged, such as Xiaomi's MIUI, Alibaba's YunOS, and Smartisan of Hammer Technology.

Source: Dan Grover's Blog

Compiled by: Zhang Xinhui