One Way,
Your Way

In addition to the visibility, interesting illustrations are standing out. How was this fun element created?

The One UI 4 Weather app has been modified for the newly changed weather icon to stand out. Designers gathered ideas to add new and witty elements that are uncommon in standard weather apps to emphasize this area. As a result, illustrations were added.
We also thought about the smooth transition from weather icons to illustrations. The idea of cracking an egg or a thermometer turning into ice cream emerged during the process of reflecting various ways of best expressing the intention of each illustration. Additionally, we tried to fully implement realistic movements into illustrations with natural objects such as fruits, plants, and birds as motifs.

The Calendar app has also been organized to easily see the date and schedule. It must have not been easy to implement a basic yet sophisticated look. Which part of the design did you focus on?

A screen without a schedule was designed not to look awkward based on data that most users register one to three schedules a day. Paying attention to key information such as the month, day, and schedule was made possible by replacing the previous gray background to a clear white. The text is centered for a stable layout, and horizontal lines were added for a clear view of information sorted by week. A function that allows easy event registration by simply entering a subject, as if sending a quick message, has been added to the bottom of the Calendar app. Time does not need to be registered separately since it is automatically recognized when written in the title, allowing a more efficient use of the app.
The color behind the text was also adjusted to an overall soft tone when registering an event. It is harmonious even with multiple colors on one screen, reducing visual fatigue in Dark Mode.

The Samsung Health is an app that displays various health information. Since there is so much content, it must have been difficult to classify the hierarchy of information. What criteria did you work on?

There are various indicators for health and exercise data, and their unique characteristics are clear. There is always a conflict when deciding whether a common basis will be effective or a separate basis will be necessary for the way information is presented. Information is prioritized according to its characteristic and a strong visual contrast to the dominant indicator is provided. After minimizing the expression of the remaining low-priority information, the information hierarchy is reviewed for any issues. When additional information is needed, the designers continued to discuss and verify whether it should all be shown at once or if simplifying is possible.

What kind of efforts were made to effectively arrange various figures, such as graphs and text, without looking complicated?

Samsung Health contains three main types of functions. A bar type is simple when range, progress, or status information is important, such as number of steps, heart rate, stress, or blood sugar level. Information such as food intake, sleep state, or water consumption is expressed as a symbol type since cumulative data is more important than progress. There is a text-only type that displays text without a graph in other cases when recognizing the number itself is important.
The importance of information is shown by the difference in text size, and colors are minimized to clearly deliver data except graphics such as symbols and charts. This design system becomes an important standard for designing a consistent visual for various Samsung products, such as Galaxy Fold and Galaxy Tab.

Delivering concise and accurate information seems crucial for the newly introduced Samsung Wallet since it contains important user data, such as credit cards and photo IDs. What did you mainly consider?

We tried to create a design that shows users the data they need at the right moment by observing situations when Samsung Wallet is used. The Quick Access tab, the first screen of Samsung Wallet, is divided into a stacked view and expanded view. A clearer visual component was needed for the unfolded form since the space that exposes each card information was reduced. For example, since card information is shown by a 35% ratio within overlapping cards, the logo is placed on the upper left corner while the text displaying card properties is placed on the upper right. Information with similar characteristics on each card detail page was grouped together for an easy search, while functions and information with different features such as usage history and tasks running were separated visually.
We concentrated on the visual interaction when scrolling to provide users a pleasant experience in terms of both functional and emotional aspects. Although every card simply moved at once in the initial part of design, a parallax scroll effect was the final decision for the cards after prototyping with feedback from various departments.

How were the design details come together for Dark Mode?

We tried to find an appropriate level of darkness to enhance visual comfort without compromising the aesthetics and striking features of the app icon. Various color tests were conducted to reflect the illuminance and usage environment. As a result, we determined the current darkness level that naturally and uniformly tones down the entire app icon color, prevents glare from white metaphors, and satisfies the visual balance between home screen elements.

What do you focus on to ensure that various Samsung devices can be smoothly and comfortably used together or individually?

One UI 4 applies a single visual language to various products such as smartphones, tablets, smartwatches, and PCs. Devices can be used comfortably through unified elements such as icons, rounded corners, components, menu style, layout, etc. even when changed. One UI 4 also provides a natural and seamless experience when connecting or switching between various devices. For example, data stored in the Samsung Notes is automatically linked to other devices, allowing the user to use their PC or tablet to continue working on notes and sketches made on the smartphone. One UI 4 delivers an efficient user experience, such as using the tablet as the main screen while the smartphone is used as a work pad.

How did the concept develop from the initial idea?

It began with a small idea of having ‘hidden emotions’. At first, we thought of the feature in which hidden emotions appear when interacting with an emoji, or a hidden message is revealed when the emoji is turned over. We needed to materialize these concepts according to keyboard features and implement them in the interface. We considered the method of long-pressing then drag and dropping the emoji, but there was a limit to preloading over a thousand emojis. The concept was realized by allowing users to choose two from the selected emojis and having the first emoji serving as a cue to the following paired emoji.

The concept has been expanded from ambivalence to complex emotions. What was the reason?

We tried to create animations that express emotions in various styles to bring life to emoji combinations. When the first concept was ambivalence, we reviewed the situation where Emoji Pair was used while creating animation ideas. We decided that the situation of combining emojis with similar emotions without opposition should also be considered, since forcing the user to create emoji combinations is impossible. That’s why the scope of the concept has been expanded from ambivalence to complex emotions. Animations suitable for conflicting emoji combinations along with amplifying emotional expressions with similar emoji combinations have been produced.

The sophisticated movement of AR Emoji and witty gestures catch the eye. How are these motions made?

We try to stay up to date on the latest trends in dance moves and motion through various channels such as social media. Simple movements and expressions are carefully worked by animators one at a time using the key frame method. More complex motions, such as dance, are produced with motion capture in a professional studio. They also collaborate with famous artists to create high-quality motions such as professional dance moves.

How do the preferred AR Emoji stickers differ by country or age?

AR Emoji stickers were produced from votes on sticker motion preferences in four countries: South Korea, Brazil, the United States, and the United Kingdom. There was no significant difference in overall performance among the countries, but there was a slight difference in the age groups. People in their twenties preferred more caricature and exaggerated stickers than those in their thirties. Most users wish to give a funny and pleasant impression rather than being serious when using stickers. I wanted to exaggerate laughter when laughing and not be too serious when sad.
The reasons for choosing the preferred motions also slightly varied by country. ‘Because it was fun’ was chosen the most in South Korea and Brazil, while ‘because it best expressed my feelings’ was said the most in the US and UK.

Is there a new type of AR Emoji you would like to create as a challenge in the future?

We want to create a more simplified avatar or a new style that does not resemble a person, such as animals or robots. We believe it would be fun if AR Emoji appeared in a virtual reality, chatting with colleagues through emojis, joking around, and bragging my fashion sense.

What are some standards or systems you refer to when designing various watch faces?

The design system was built by referring to the types and designs of Indexes, Hands, and Sub Dials of real analog watches for consistency between the watch faces. The color of the strap and surroundings were selected as the primary color to blend with the Galaxy Watch strap, and the remaining colors were made based on the international color system.

Please share some behind-the-scenes stories on designing watch faces.

The classic watch face was derived from the characteristics of an analog watch. Particularly, the Premium analog watch face can be customized with one’s initials where the logo is usually placed on top of the watch. The watch face that uses 3D characters is receiving positive responses from users by providing fun animations based on certain situations, such as low-battery notifications or when music is playing. The extinct animals watch face with the engraving style illustration was improved by discussing details with artists.

One UI 4 widget gives a neat impression overall. Which part did you focus on?

After continuous consultation and effort, changing the widget shape collectively within Android became possible. The One UI visual language was applied to both Samsung and third-party widgets to enhance visual perfection. We concentrated on making the overall feel appear minimal while utilizing style elements to strengthen the visual identity of Samsung widgets. Work was carried on in way that strikes a balance between complex elements and simple designs.
The area is not wide compared to the information provided by the widget. It was designed to provide visual contrast for information to be seen at a glance while focusing more on what needs to be emphasized. The minimalism was maximized and content immersion was enhanced by changing the background color 100% white.