Web/Mobile App Critique
The mobile application I have decided to review and use for this discussion is Tik Tok, one of today's most-used apps. The application is a video social networking platform that allows users to upload videos ranging from 15 seconds to three minutes in all varieties of genres like comedy, educational, or even duets, such as one favorite one uploaded by Ryan Reynolds featuring Will Farrel (link at the end). The platform has been popularized through different internet challenges and trends that go viral. Tik Tok made its debut in the Googe play store on July 9th, 2015, under the name Musical.ly. It was not until mid-2018 that Tik Tok took off. According to Wallaroomedia, Tik Tok now has over 1 billion active monthly users and has been downloaded over a 2.6billion times (2021). For this brief review, the focus is surrounding Tik Toks usability, design, and functionality.
To use Tik Tok, all a user must do is download the application from the Google play store or Apple app store, create an account, accept the Tik Toks privacy policy. Soon after these steps, the user will be presented with an unorthodox homepage compared to other social platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, etc. Right away, on the homepage, the user is smacked in the face with a video playing from genuine users that are organized between two different pre-made filters, "following" or "for you". The “following” tab is filtered by presenting a user a personalized news feed based on the users one may follow. Whereas the “for you” tab is a customized news feed of users one is not following, the “for you” tab uses an algorithm based on user interactions (likes, shares, etc.), video information (captions, sounds, hashtags), and finally, device and account settings (user set preferences). Making this application extremely user-friendly (Tik Tok, 2020).
Use the photo above as a reference throughout
Tik Tok has an extremely simplistic application design that creates an easy-to-use interface, allowing users to focus more on the content they care about versus stumbling around with complex interfaces that can be quite confusing. Once inside the application, a user is presented with five interactable tabs at the very bottom. Starting from left to right: The home tab takes the user back to the original screen discussed above. Discover allows a user to search up a specific genre, other users, hashtags, widespread internet challenges, etc., to find and enjoy content the piques one's interest. The middle tab represents a plus sign, and this is where a user can upload their genuine content to share with others across the application. The inbox tab gives users the ability to share messages privately. Finally, the last tab is the profile tab, where a user can control what information or content other users can see across the social platform. Overall, the Tik Tok application has a simplistic, user-friendly design that makes using the platform fun and enjoyable.
Tik Tok's functionality does not fall short due to the nature of its simplistic interface. This simple user face does not require insane advanced coding languages to function, allowing Tik Tok to focus more on the server and security side to ensure users' security of their information and that servers can support everyone's content. Users can only expect to find fast performance when clicking around as everything seems to function as intended with no hard-to-understand user interfaces. However, there is a lack of functionality regarding personalized settings retaining around the home page, which will be discussed on recommendations for improvements.
No comments:
Post a Comment