IOS App “Today” screen Content and Format

[MarkInCentralTx]

Greetings All ...

On September 24th 2019, I created a rather verbose post called “iOS App “”Today”” screen” in the Feature Suggestions Community page. I offer commentary and observation of my personal experiences with the new app look, and suggestions for app enhancements that should fit within the scope of the current app architecture.  It was my hope to help the developers alleviate some fo the growing displeasure and unhappiness with its user base.  It has not garnered much attention or votes, I think, because most FitBiters are unaware it exists, or unable to find it there due to the large number of similar posts, or, not automatically knowing to look in the Feature Suggestions Commiunity pages 

The link is: iOS App “Today” screen

For the benefit of others, I’ll copy (cut-n-paste) my comments made there, to this thread in hopes you will go to the link above, and VOTE if you agree this would benefit the FitBit user community.  

=== original post verbiage ===

I am beginning to like the layout and look of the combined "Activity", “Health & Fitness Stats” and “Challenges” found in the new “Today” tab, however, with that said, I have the observation of poor space utilization. More importantly, screen space on mobile devices is precious real estate, and this new "Today" screen layout can make more efficient us of that space.  

In addition, I have a growing dislike for the constant item reordering, specifically the auto insertion of new challenge invitations, between the “Activity” and first “Health & Fitness Stats” item.  This auto insert now requires constant user edits each time a new challenge appears... and in my case, to reorder all the “Health & Fitness Stats” above all “Challenges”.   

The “MANAGE ACTIVITY ITEMS” table is an example which supports adding/removing and reordering of list items, and creates a single “Activity” item in the “MANAGE TODAY ITEMS” list, which can be reordered as a static item, on the “Today” screen.   All eight “Health & Fitness Stats” are separate items on the “MANAGE TODAY ITEMS” list, and are then pushed down in the list as new challenge invites appear.   This dynamic listing style requires constant and unnecessary scrolling to find the particular item.  In addition, the user is returned to the top of the "Today" screen after viewing an item, again requiring unnecessary scrolling to find the "last window" position before tapping that item.

In Summary:  I would like to see all “Health and Fitness” items included in one impenetrable table or list, call it “Activity”, with inclusion and order options as currently permitted; Followed by all “Challenges”, in either an auto sort method similar to pre iOS version 3.x app, or in a user specified sort order as described in bullet 2 in the Feature Suggestion post linked above. 

[MarkInCentralTx]

Here are the suggestions for improvements:

The following suggestions may help to alleviate some of these “Today” tab order and item issues.

1. Move all eight of the “Health & Fitness Stats” in to the “MANAGE ACTIVITY ITEMS” table, maintaining the adding/removing and reordering choice as currently exists.  

  a) Leave the ‘primary’ circle icon size and text placement unchanged;

  b) Make the ‘secondary’ circle icons slightly larger with text inside circle, in 3 rows of 4 icons, if all “Activity” and “Health & Fitness Stats” are chosen.  

2. Create a new “MANAGE CHALLENGES ITEMS” table, with “Auto-Sort” = ‘on’ or ‘off’ options, with that table being called “CHALLENGES” in the “MANAGE TODAY ITEMS” list and:

  a) if "Auto-sort" = ‘on’, then use the restored challenge auto-sorting functionality, as used in the legacy “Challenges” tab; or

  b) if "Auto-sort" = ‘off’, then enable and present user specified subcategories of “Pending”, “Active” and“Completed”,  providing the same adding/removing and reorder user options (as in the “MANAGE ACTIVITY ITEMS” table).

  c) The icon size for these is appropriate at one challenge per line ... although, can me made slightly shorter height, allowing 5 challenges to be visible on one screen.

3) Restore "Return to last screen position" functionality upon exiting from "Activity" or "Challenge" item to "Today"home screen, to reduce constant and unnecessary scrolling. 

Finally, I am offering my experience in beta test services to aide in testing updates and new releases prior to release ...  

[LostEchoes]

@MarkInCentralTx 
Hi.
Just wanted to mention that this issue you are referring to, is not only iOS specific. It's a global design (for both iOS and Android) by choice. It's intentional. Don't ask me why. I will just quote myself (from that topic) to express my frustration:

How on earth is a virtual challenge called "Valley Loop" or "Daily Showdown" game more important than our Resting Heart rate, our weight, our Sleep info ?

Anyway, just FYI (and please support this, if you can),
I have described the issue here : https://community.fitbit.com/t5/Android-App/Order-of-the-information-in-the-Fitbit-app/m-p/3812521/h...

And there is also a Feature Suggestion here (that was suggested to me) : https://community.fitbit.com/t5/Feature-Suggestions/Option-to-move-the-new-Challenge-tile-App-Dashbo...

[MarkInCentralTx · Accepted solution]

Greetings sir ..  You bring up a valid point, and upon which I completely agree...  it is not OS specific.  I perhaps should have added the caveat of “on my hardware ... iPhone SE ... “ etc. to my original post, but, I believe FitBit developers understand the need for platform independent app’s. ..  which may be part of the problem here.    I can’t help but think back to the early days of consumer products (i.e. home computers) and the race to dominate between DOS and APPLE, and Unix based OS’s.   Cross platform coding is/was a nightmare, and may still be for 3rd party app developers ...  Example: FitBit is still not directly transferable between FitBit and apple Health without another e3rd party app ...  I don’t think it because Apple database access, protocols or formats is unknown ... there are lefty of apps that do ‘sync’ with Apple ...  ah, but this extends well beyond the scope of this issue.     

@EdsonFitbithas merged the original suggestion "iOS App""Today"" screen" with another thread ...  < here > which IMHO is only vaguely similar in that it discusses 'Challenges', but not the same issues as in my, or your, posts and comments.     I suppose it'll be okay if IT GETS the attention of the developers ...    and of course, the link tables are updated as well, so even if someone readying this post under iOS App community, they'll still find 'ours' ...   

[MarkInCentralTx · Accepted solution]

Greetings sir ..  You bring up a valid point, and upon which I completely agree...  it is not OS specific.  I perhaps should have added the caveat of “on my hardware ... iPhone SE ... “ etc. to my original post, but, I believe FitBit developers understand the need for platform independent app’s. ..  which may be part of the problem here.    I can’t help but think back to the early days of consumer products (i.e. home computers) and the race to dominate between DOS and APPLE, and Unix based OS’s.   Cross platform coding is/was a nightmare, and may still be for 3rd party app developers ...  Example: FitBit is still not directly transferable between FitBit and apple Health without another e3rd party app ...  I don’t think it because Apple database access, protocols or formats is unknown ... there are lefty of apps that do ‘sync’ with Apple ...  ah, but this extends well beyond the scope of this issue.     

@EdsonFitbithas merged the original suggestion "iOS App""Today"" screen" with another thread ...  < here > which IMHO is only vaguely similar in that it discusses 'Challenges', but not the same issues as in my, or your, posts and comments.     I suppose it'll be okay if IT GETS the attention of the developers ...    and of course, the link tables are updated as well, so even if someone readying this post under iOS App community, they'll still find 'ours' ...