ANSWERED
The new redesign is indeed terrible.
This comment in the Product Feedback accurate and eloquently elaborates on WHY the new redesign is so terrible:
https://community.fitbit.com/t5/Product-Feedback/Able-to-return-to-previous-Fitbit-app-version/idc-p...
And, because that comment was to good, so thorough, I'm copy/pasting it here:
This guy is right, but let me point out the specifics of WHY he's right in a way to help the developers and PMs know what it is we are actually looking for.
1.) The user never wants to see LESS data. You accumulate that data for a reason, and that reason is in service to the user. The new interface went from being able to show 5 metrics to 4.
2.) Labels are GOOD actually. Iconography is always a bit dodgy and presumes a unified cultural intuition that is simply not going to be there. Taking the time to label data is a good thing and useful. Iconography isnt bad, especially on an established interface, but this isnt that.
3.) Fitness is a LIFESTYLE which means that it is a habit. It needs to be RELIABLE. We need to know what to expect when we look at the interface, which IM guessing most of us do several times a day. Releasing this on us with no "beta" testing would have quickly let you know that this is almost exactly what we DO NOT WANT. Make SMALL changes to apps that get used that frequently. Take a cue from google. Its looked the same since what ...1995? and for good reason.
4.) You lowered the metrics displayed from 5 to 4 and we got NOTHING in exchange. Why? Why are you deliberately WASTING that screen real estate? Users LIKE being able to see data "at a glance" and up to an extent, the more, the better. Editable displays are excellent, and I can appreciate that simplicity is valuable, especially for new users, but solving that problem by (informationally) handicapping the experienced users isn't the win here, nor is giving us more blank space where we know data can already comfortably fit. Blank space serves clarity, but must be used sparingly. This isnt art, where Blank (Negative) space is meaningful composition. These are WORKING apps. Daily Drivers. We need them to WORK before we need them to do anything else. The new interface allows the icons to be infinitesimally larger, but again, its showing less data and adds NO clarity. They were "big enough" before.
4b.) Come to think of it, if you were really worried about the usage of Screen real estate you could put MORE data on the screen (almost always a plus, especially for a dashboard....cuz thats what dashboards are for) by columnizing around the central metric.
5.) There needs to be consistent iconography. We can translate Egyptian hieroglyphs BECAUSE there is consistency within the icons. Changing them wouldn't be so bad if the labels were useful and present, but without the words to accompany them, then changing the Icons means we have to essentially grope and suss out a new language. What's the payoff for this? If I'm making the effort to learn this new iconography, what do I get in exchange for my effort? More clarity? More information? If your answer is "Neither. We just thought it would be fun/pretty" then you have made a terrible decision. There's a reason that the "save" icon is still a floppy disk 20 years after people stopped using floppies. Its because we know what it means.
6.) The Today screen is the GATEWAY into the app. If anything that needs to be the MOST familiar, and least "fiddled" with. It is as much a part of your brand as you diamond of circles Logo. Why do this?
7.) Any PM or developer who doesnt understand the above points needs further training on the matter. It is my supposition that this new UI went through several meetings, code/design reviews and stages of testing. How the HELL did THIS get through? No one thought that MAYBE this was a bit to minimalist to the point of decreased functionality? I dont know what yall were TRYING to do here, but a simple schematic on the information flow here would have prevented this. This is something that could have been fixed TRIVIALLY just by looking at the information flow in and out.
8.) I understand that more was rolled out in to the app than just the Today screen. I understand code must be updated. I understand users sometimes like a "fresh look" as we see this screen several times a day, but please, in your pursuit of "better" try to avoid destroying/damaging what is already GOOD.
Thanks,
Nymdok
p.s. in an attempt to show you the problems (as this is a visual informatic issue) I have included 2 pics to show contrast, examples, and alternatives.
Best Answer
Regarding an app fix, it doesn't matter to me anymore, it's too late, I'm done after 9 years with my various Fitbits (4 total).
Prior to the app update, I'd get 5-7 days of battery life and I'd remember to charge it when I swiped down on the app's home page to check my battery level BECAUSE I COULD SEE ITS PERCENTAGE
Now I can't see the battery percentage in the app and it drains without any warning. As recently as this morning I noticed my sleep data didn't update and when I pressed the side button, it was dead. When I set it in the charger, the onscreen display shows 40% battery level. This is the pattern now for the last month, it's dying after 3 days. This Charge4 was replaced 18 months ago by Fitbit due to a defect in my previous one, it's not that old.
I was holding out for a Fitbit ring for the past few years, but even if they came out with one now, the app is garbage and they're oblivious to the relentless feedback requesting the battery indicator be returned. My guess is planned obsolescence and removing the battery level indicator makes more money for Google somehow.
Knowing me, I'd come back to it after a few days or weeks and give it another chance, so I decided to make it permanent. Off to Circular, Ringconn, or Ultrahuman I go.
Best Answer
