Idea Concept - Moodboard: Intelligent Homescreens
Story
With smartphones in our pockets we have a device at hand that is constantly with us that supports and connects us in our daily lifes.
It can also change with us, a new model, a new wallpaper, a new case. Depending on our changing moods, styles and needs, we optimise our phone with gadgets and apps. Sometimes just to make it feel new and exciting again, just like as we first unboxed it. It’s a tool, a statement piece on our meeting tables. But when it comes to apps, I personally tend to try out new things, deinstall it when I recognise I don’t use it that much as intended, reorganise my app, create folders, clean up my app screen. Make it tidy to help declutter my mind.
One thing I ask myself is, why does the UI or app selection and organisation not change with my needs? Why do I have to get by with the ever same app layout everyday, even though my activities and needs change over a single day. There are certain routines in a regular work day which would have different requirements on my phone and also I have different needs on the weekend, or when I am travelling, I am on an airplane or when I am in a certain mood.
Idea
Rather than organising everything new, searching for that one specific app when I am on vacation - why not create “Moodboards”, a state of your phone with the specific apps you need for that one occasion, maybe also with a different wallpaper and additional features. To create more focus and more flexibility to your needs in different situations.
Examples
Daily Commute
Which apps do you use on your commute? Music, Entertainment, Reading a medium article or playing sudoku.
Why not have a screen that only focusses on these apps, you can choose what you want to achieve on your daily commute.
Want to be productive? Hide all distractions. Want to relax? Just keep music and mediation.
Vacation
What are your most used apps during vacation?
Kindle, Maps, Translate and other travel guide apps - and of course…Instagram ;-)
What you might not need, if you want to digital detox a little, are email apps, or everything that reminds you of work.
Work
Why not keep only all work-related apps? Hide all distractions and get a little more focussed throughout your work day.
Bad Mood?
Let’s bring up all the self care apps and hide all apps that put pressure on you and don’t do anything for you.
Execution
Since this is a rough concept prototype (to try out Figma) rather than a final design, the possibilities would need to be explored far more. Finding out the demands of different people is crucial and would lead to a better result.
I could also imagine that this would be better as a native OS feature than an extra app, so I kept the rough design quite native and simple.
In addition it should be possible to let the tool do it’s magic by interpreting the apps you have, categorise and create the moodboards for you.
Let me know what you think about this concept!
If you are a developer and your fingers tickle while reading this - please write me, I’d love to bring this to life.
Thanks for reading!