Design Critiques

What makes some designs good and others bad? Why do some designs work while others don’t? Posts in this category offer thoughtful design critiques of modern digital interfaces, with commentary inspired by Don Norman’s “The Design of Everyday Things.”

WeChat's Red Packet

Design Critique: Red Packet by WeChat (iOS App)

WeChat, a super app developed by Tencent, eventually became China’s app for everything in the last decade. Not only can users chat with others through texts and videos, but they can also share posts, subscribe blogs, hail taxis, pay utilities, order food deliveries, make medical appointments, shop online, transfer payments, etc. Among all those features, […]

Design Critique: Red Packet by WeChat (iOS App) Read More »

Libby icon, girl immersed in book

Design Critique: Libby (iPhone app)

Libby is a free app for borrowing and reading ebooks, magazines, and audiobooks from public libraries. With the app, users can input their library card information to borrow and read library books directly on their smartphones, tablets, or kindles. In this article, I will specifically critique the usability of the Libby iPhone app using theories and principles from Don Norman’s book, The Design of Everyday Things.

Design Critique: Libby (iPhone app) Read More »

Design Critique: TCGplayer (Desktop)

TCGplayer is a popular collectible card-purchasing marketplace, enabling people to buy and sell cards from various games like Magic: The Gathering, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Pokémon, and more. This critique will focus on the desktop experience of buying Magic: The Gathering cards, utilizing design principles from Don Norman’s The Design of Everyday Things.  Let’s start by defining my

Design Critique: TCGplayer (Desktop) Read More »

Design Critique: Luminary (iOS app)

The Luminary app is designed to take the same subscriber-based model popularized by Netflix and Spotify and apply it to the podcast industry. Launched in 2019, Luminary’s model promises subscribers an ad-free experience where they can listen to Luminary exclusive content as well as the podcasts they’ve listened to on competitor apps.   Onboarding Through

Design Critique: Luminary (iOS app) Read More »