📖 Notes
LESSON 20 OF 26
Mobile Design — iOS & Android Guidelines
Two Platforms, Two Sets of Conventions
Apple Human Interface Guidelines vs Material Design. Platform conventions, safe areas, and touch targets.
Platform Guidelines
Human Interface Guidelines vs Material Design
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Apple HIG
Apple's Human Interface Guidelines favor depth, blur, and content-first minimalism.
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Material Design
Google's system uses elevation, bold color, and motion to communicate hierarchy.
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Safe Areas
Reserved screen zones avoiding notches, home indicators, and rounded corners.
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Touch Targets
Both Apple and Google recommend a minimum tappable area of roughly 44-48px so fingers can hit targets reliably.
Designing for Both
A back button sits top-left on Android's Material Design but is often a swipe gesture on iOS. Respecting each platform's own conventions — rather than forcing one identical UI everywhere — makes an app feel native instead of foreign.
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Don't ignore safe areas
Content placed under a notch or behind a home indicator gets clipped or becomes untappable — always design within the safe area guides your tool provides.