Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Gaming, Software, Odds and ends, Developer, iPhone, App Store
What's in an icon?
Gedeon Maheux has an post about how an icon is designed from the aptly-named Iconfactory (specifically the Frenzic app icon), and while I don't have any design skills to speak of at all, it's an interesting look into how those little snippets of art are made. Icons are increasingly important, especially on the iPhone and OSX, as Apple leverages icons more and more in their interfaces, from the Dock to CoverFlow to the iPhone's home screen. He sounds a little sheepish that they obsess over icons, but why shouldn't they -- every time you decide whether or not to buy or use an app (some might say the most important part of an application's lifeline), you're likely looking right at the icon.
There are a few things to take away here: they designed the icon not by itself, but right alongside all the other icons on an average iPhone screen -- in context, where people would see it. And they walked a thin line: while they wanted it to stand out as something you'd chose even among the apps you've already purchased, they didn't want it to be so bright or flashy that it broke the UI. Truth be told, Frenzic's icon still looks a little bright to me, but the lesson is good: the UI comes first.
Ged closes with a sentiment I've agreed with for a while: while there's a disturbing trend of adding "On Sale" or "New!" to icons in the App Store (not to call anyone out, but ahem) that doesn't serve the developers or their customers. An icon, just like your app, should be subtle and simple and beautiful. After all, isn't that why we're all using Macs in the first place?
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
ipodrulz said 8:42AM on 12-05-2008
I never download apps with ugly icons.
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Think Adrian said 9:05AM on 12-05-2008
Me either!
PSM said 11:02AM on 12-05-2008
I definitely am more likely to delete an app if the icon is ugly, or to look for a replacement app with a better icon. It may sound silly, but I also think it says something about the quality of an app and a developer if they make a hideous icon, especially one that breaks the UI standards. I'm sure some people might program a great app, but suck at making icons, but if they care enough about their app, why not find a friend or hire someone to make a nice one?
I also hate icons that look much better than the app's UI. That's always disappointing.
mark said 12:34AM on 12-06-2008
Neither do I. Frankly, the amount of pure junk (ugly icons and bad design in general) in the app store is depressing.
Also, these "designers" need to learn that putting the title of an app *in the icon* is ugly, redundant, and makes the icon look cluttered. And naturally, the designers who insist upon doing so often choose an ugly font with a hundred, different shadows and outlines.
There's even one in the screen shot of this very article. What purpose is served by having "Word Warp" plastered in the middle of the icon? That icon would be infinitely cooler without the text.
Another example is the app "Movies." There's a colorful, iconic image of popcorn -- which is great -- but then it's ruined by the word "Movies," emblazoned across the icon. I wrote the developer about it, months ago, but clearly he doesn't care.
Apps with ugly icons (or ugly app design in general) never make it onto my phone. That's just the way it is.... :-)
Kahnyl said 8:55AM on 12-05-2008
I don't think I've seen a good icon from Pangea yet.
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Brett Archibald said 9:05AM on 12-05-2008
Just to say, those icons with "On Sale" emblazoned on them only show up on the size of the icon that appears in the App Store (and also in your local iTunes), where arguably, it "needs to" (at least as far as the developer is concerned, not necessarily the user). The developer wants their icon to stand out from a million miles away when lumped together with everyone else's.
Thankfully, the smaller version of the icon that you see when you transfer the app to your iPhone does not include this.
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Travis Choma said 8:57AM on 12-05-2008
I think this article is right on the money. The homescreen was intended to look great on the iPhone and I much rather have a set of slick icons than ones that are littered with %60 percent off or On Sale labels. We also took this approach when we released our app Moods ( http://www.mogelli.com/moods ), we wanted to make it stand out, and we have received many emails from users saying they love our icon, and that they put it on the first page of their phone etc. Rather than glow we made ours circular which stands out among the squares: http://drop.io/obheqtj/asset/picture6 . I got the idea from looking at how the Mobile News app was just a hat with a transparent background.
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Lloyd Hobden said 9:10AM on 12-05-2008
'Truth be told', Frenzic is the only icon I like of the above.
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Bill said 9:21AM on 12-05-2008
I have a number of Apps on my iPhone with hideous icons. However, only iApps with cons that visually complement those of the native Apps make it onto my front page (and consequently get used more).
The quality of the icon generally says a lot about the quality of the underlying App. Did the developer take pride in his/her work?
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DZ said 10:03AM on 12-05-2008
Trivial Pursuit called and they want their pie tin back. ;)
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Galley said 10:13AM on 12-05-2008
Kiwi may not be the best Wikipedia app available, but damn, does it have a nice icon!
http://redromelogic.com/kiwi
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Rudy said 10:54AM on 12-05-2008
usually the apps with the uglier icons are pretty bad. its all about presentation. if you're app is shit at least make it look nice. it you half ass icon it seems to me that you don't care.
that being said, some of my favorite icons include duckshoot, newssrand, ocarina and delivery status touch.
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Jayson said 10:59AM on 12-05-2008
I only download apps with nice icons too. The only App I have with a crappy icon is Jaadu VNC because I can't live without that app. Some apps used to have crappy icons, but updates fix those. I also hate icons that have a black background.... those ones look weird on my black screen. I also hate icons with weird shapes or 3D icons that look out of perspective compared to the rest of them (Delivery Status, File Magnet, Pennies)... these icons would look good in OS X, but they don't match the iPhone icons.
I agree with the above poster. Usually if the icon is ugly, the App will be ugly or cheesy. I wish people would take more care in the design of the icon. Ugly interfaces also turn me off too. I want my 3rd party apps to feel as if they were made by Apple (Such as Wallet or Things).
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Caitlin said 11:13AM on 12-05-2008
I prefer the ones that are solid color with a white picture. Adds a bit of a universality to it.
iPod, Phone, Text... Facebook, TwitterFon, BeejiveIM.
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BT said 11:26AM on 12-05-2008
I think the Frenzic icon is spot on. It makes the app easily identifiable. That's not to say bright colors are the way to go, though. The pie shape and techno background all add in to the identity. So many icons are heavy-handed with the glossy highlight, forcing the identity to the back. I look through my screens to find something and see shinyapp, shinyapp,Calendar, shinyapp, iPod, shinyapp...
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Ryan said 2:34PM on 12-05-2008
With regard to the iPhone specifically, to my eye the name of the app is of almost equal importance. Not just for how it relates to the app itself (that's always the case), but in terms of it fitting neatly underneath the icon as is it's displayed.
The dotted center (ex: "MyApp...ere") or otherwise abbreviated name look is pretty lame, and could otherwise ruin a decent looking icon.
Frenzic got it right in both cases.
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Tice said 3:07PM on 12-05-2008
The real outrider for Icons are Susan Kare with the first icons for the first (commercial) GUI and Cesar Carrera with his original OS X icons.
Only one pic from C. Carreras 3D design:
http://blog.tice.de/beitrag.php?file=2005_11_30_2304&sprache=englisch
... and lots of his work (but also from others:
http://blog.tice.de/icons.php?sprache=englisch
Susan Kare's website (Mac portfolio):
http://www.kare.com/portfolio/03_apple_macicons.html
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David Moss said 3:28PM on 12-05-2008
I agree with the people who are saying ugly icon = ugly app. If u've built a great app, why not spend a fraction of the time it took to write the app to put a bit of effort into the icon too.
One example i can think of today was WiFinder, which was updated. In the update release notes they said the icon had been updated, which i though was cool because the old icon was pretty... err crap.
To me amazement the new icon is probably worse! they have just zoomed in on one bit of the icon and therefore looks very low quality (low res) and looks worse now.
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Sketh said 10:08PM on 12-05-2008
An icon makes or breaks an app.
As a graphic designer, and someone who has made a countless amount of application icons, I'll say this:
1. Especially in the Jailbreak community, icons are very important. I can't tell you how long I put off downloading some of the old school emulators because the icons were just bad.
2. Putting the title of your application IN YOUR ICON, is a huge faux pas. Not only is the application name right underneath the application on the spring board, the small fancy font never looks right, and always subtracts from the icons over all aesthetics.
3. Applications that have icons resembling the actual application are a lot more appealing than ones that have a random cropped picture slapped across a gradient background.
4. And finally, it's like people. Guys will look at a girl and see a pretty girl. We will like how that person looks, and even if we get to know the person and they turn out to be a blood sucking demon, they will probably still be physically attractive.
I have applications on my iPhone that I no longer use, if not because I sunk a few cents into them, because they just look pretty sitting there.
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Brett Archibald said 6:57AM on 12-16-2008
Pot calling the kettle black? I see the latest update to the Frenzic app has a SALE banner emblazoned across it...
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