Looking Good Android! Discover Our Shiny New Android App And The People Behind Its Conception

Deezer 6 min read
As the saying goes, out with the old, in with the new! 2016 is on our doorstep and we’ve decided to make a few early resolutions happen like revamping the Android app. We’ve aligned its design with our other apps, namely the iOS app, helping to create a homogeneous experience across all devices. Here are some of the changes we’ve made to make your listening experience even more desirable, easier and enjoyable.

HOMEPAGE

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The former burger menu has been replaced by an easy to understand and use tab bar, consisting of 4 entry points, which guide you directly to the music you love. All your personalized mixes are now even more visible on your homepage, meaning you have instant access to music and no longer have to waste precious time trying to find the perfect music for whatever it is you’re doing or hosting. Discovering new sounds has never been easier.

MY MUSIC

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No more faffing around, all your favorite music is now available on one page, making navigation even easier. And that’s not all; we’ve streamlined all our pages (artist, album and playlists) so that now you can simply scroll down to find what you’re looking for instead of changing tabs. Finally you can open Flow with the tap of a finger on the big blue play button. Setting the mood for your party/candlelit dinner/workout just became a piece of cake (AND you can wave goodbye to awkward silences and coughs at the office party when trying to find the music).

But really who better to talk about the fabulousness of the new and updated app, than the brains behind its production. Meet Alexandre Croiseaux, (VP Product) and Vincent Elgrishi (Head Of Product Design) who give us more insight into the Android app makeover.

INTERVIEW

Alex C                           Vincent E

Alexandre (VP Product)                                  Vincent (Head Of Product Design)

Why redesign the Android App?

Vincent: Our main goal is for you to dive into the music you love and discover new songs everyday. Our aim is to build a better music experience and conform to the design standards of Google apps. Our mission is to unite performance and quality. In order to  make that happen we have to start by listening to what users have to say, what they want and what they expect from us. We have to keep it simple and logical, but it’s actually not as easy as it sounds.

What are the main changes?

Vincent: The improved app, allows you to enjoy music more quickly and easily. You can access your music collection instantly, find your listening history and browse music faster than before.

How can the user benefit from these changes?

Vincent: We’ve boosted the user’s Flow significantly, improved interactions and therefore enhanced the overall experience. We’ve also improved the way we present artist pages, albums and playlists on Deezer.

What was the overall feedback regarding user experience?

Alexandre: We created several focus groups around the new Android app to understand our users and work out how they could access their favorite music more easily with the new app. After gathering the feedback from our users and after several discussions regarding the new version, we finally reached a point where the app began registering very satisfying results by testers.

Vincent: We met with many users and gathered a fair amount of input before designing the new app. This led to the redesign of the navigation options. We then asked the users to test the beta version. It took a while as we had to go through a lot of testing to make sure we were designing an app capable of meeting all of the users’ demands. So far users are very happy with the new app, we are now working to improve it by introducing new features.

How do the changes help users find their favorite music on Deezer?

Alexandre: An efficient and clear tab bar has replaced the burger menu so that users can quickly switch from one tab to another i.e. Discovery/Favorites/Search. We’ve created a listening experience which makes sure that whatever mood you’re in, you can easily discover new talents or stick to the tunes you love.

How does this set you apart from your competitors?

Alexandre: The new app aims to get to know the users’ tastes to make their experience as personalized as possible. Thanks to Flow and the listener’s custom mixes, unlimited music tailored to the user’s taste is just a  tap away. Deezer helps you find all the music you love, just simply lean back and enjoy. If you’re a heavy music consumer, you can also create your own virtual record shelf by organizing your music into playlists and managing your favorite tracks. This app aims to cater for demands of every user while remaining easy to use.

What are your long term goals for this change?

Alexandre: We are already working on new amazing features that will adapt perfectly to the new app. Stay tuned.

Vincent: That’s the fun part of designing Deezer, it’s a constant work in progress, we keep improving the apps as technology evolves. For example, we are in the midst of designing new features that should be available very soon.

Why did android app update take longer than iOS?

Alexandre: Whilst fully revamping the app, we had to stick to the Android design specs. Meaning each and every page had to be changed. We also took advantage of the situation to optimize the app code and include new features. We decided to launch the transformed app all in one go unlike the iPhone app, which was rolled out gradually over several months.

Vincent: The new Deezer Android app required more work than the iOS app. We had to rebuild it from scratch, meaning it took a bit more time to get it out there.

 

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