Our March 2021 archive described five qualities that help a mobile app remain useful beyond its launch. The list focused on the experience of using and maintaining an app, rather than on adding fashionable technology.
Clear navigation; responsive, stable behaviour with sensible battery use; dependable core functionality and accessible support; useful behaviour when connectivity is poor; and regular maintenance. These qualities work together: a feature has little value if customers cannot find it or the app fails before they finish.
Offline support should match the task, with clear explanations of what can be done without a connection. Updates should address defects and evolving user needs. The original article treated these as recurring characteristics of successful apps, not a guarantee of commercial success. They remain a practical way to organise product discussions and identify gaps in a release plan.
This May 2021 article argued that a shopping app should be judged by how easily customers complete their tasks. Adding more features can distract a team from the basic journey of finding products and completing a purchase.
The April 2021 article considered how AI-assisted testing might support healthcare app development. Its starting point was the importance of reliable behaviour when an application collects or displays health information.
The February 2021 archive explored why a convincing digital face was only one part of a humanlike video-call experience. It described the difficulty of bringing several technologies together in real time.
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