Web and mobile prototyping: What have you evaluated, actually used and reason selection?

If you have evaluated and selected any type of rapid prototyping for web and mobile apps, I would like to know your experience. Which applications did you evaluate? select? pros/cons?

http://www.justinmind.com/
http://www.invisionapp.com/
http://www.axure.com/

? something else?

I have been using https://www.omnigroup.com/omnigraffle the last 6 years or so. It's good for quick stuff but looking for more power and ability to collaborate.

Tools that you mentioned here are good ones, especially InvisionApp which recently got a lot of attention in UX designers community. I would also add Balsamiq, which is a simple wireframing tool. The reason that I like Balsamiq is you can quickly explain what you have in mind for stakeholders. I personally use the combination of Balsamiq and InVision, using balsamiq for the times that I want to propose a concept for stakeholders and my teammates, and using the invision when I know that I'm gonna test that with real users. I used to also test my balsamiq wireframes, but it wasn't as helpful as invision, since people need to get some real feeling about the product and using real mock up would help more.

The other interesting thing about balsamiq is, everyone who worked with computer, can use this app. So you can pass your balsamiq file with your teammate with any level of design background and see how amazingly they will edit your file to make it a more usable product.

There is also 2 other tools, Flinto and Proto.io, I have used them, but they are not as great as invision in quality, also they don't give me great usability test features that I can get from Invision. You also mentioned Axure, to me Axure is a time consuming tool for making prototypes, so I would say if you want to have a RAPID prototyping, that's a wrong choice, I used to use Acure and comparing to the combination of Balsamiq and InVision, I'm spending way less time. Also here is an interesting practice, you can create balsamiq pages, and then make an invision prototype out of it, which recently I started to do and it's amazing.

I wear a lot of hats...

"The solutions and answers provided on Experts Exchange have been extremely helpful to me over the last few years. I wear a lot of hats - Developer, Database Administrator, Help Desk, etc., so I know a lot of things but not a lot about one thing. Experts Exchange gives me answers from people who do know a lot about one thing, in a easy to use platform." -Todd S.

LVL 6

Ali EslamifarUXCommented: 2015-12-11

Experts Exchange Solution brought to you by

Your issues matter to us.

Facing a tech roadblock? Get the help and guidance you need from experienced professionals who care. Ask your question anytime, anywhere, with no hassle.

Start your 7-day free trial

LVL 58

Scott FellDeveloper & EE ModeratorAuthor Commented: 2015-12-11

Thanks Ali, thats great info!

You're welcome Scott. I would also add, my preferred quick tool is always paper and pen, I also sometimes use Paper Prototyping technique which is an interesting way for testing the flow of your app.

For my graduate study, I've also proposed a magnetic wireframe tool which is a great way for doing team wireframe. I proved that it's an empathetic way for design user experience in web and mobile apps.

You can check that thesis here.

I have a client that will not do anything unless we go to restaurant and create everything on paper napkins and work with "classically trained" (they old) designers that always start out with pencil and paper before going to the computer.

Yeah, I like it. When I used to work in agencies, that was my favorite thing to do! Sitting with the client, try to remove all the hesitations and ask them to draw stuff, in the beginning it is hard, but in the second or third practice, they are feeling way better about drawing on papers. So the advantage in my magnetic wireframe tool is they don't want to even draw something, they are just picking any size of the magnet that they want and placing that on a magnetic whiteboard, then just write down the name for each box and done...

Web and mobile prototyping: What have you evaluated, actually used and reason selection?

Who is Participating?