Simple Code II Saphire Smartwatch Face by Alex Pan Yong is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2020 Bronze A' Design Award in Interface, Interaction and User Experience Design Competition Category.
BronzeInterface· 2020
Simple Code II Saphire Smartwatch Face
Client: Artalex
Bronze A' Design Award Winner in Interface Category
Verified Award Winner
Verify Award Status for #93223The Design
About Simple Code II Saphire Smartwatch Face
The design of Simple Code II is to target as many aspects of life as possible. The three colour combinations, blue/black, white/grey, and brown/purple, not only cover the users of different ages and gender but also suitable for pairing business and casual outfit. The layout is targeted to provide a smoother user experience. In the middle of the dial, the month, the date and the day form a line that cut through the watch face in half conveys the visual balance.
The Recognition
About the Bronze A' Design Award
Simple Code II Saphire Smartwatch Face is a Bronze A' Design Award winner, a highly prestigious recognition granted to outstanding designs distinguished by creativity, ingenuity, and astuteness. Bronze winners are amply skillful and strikingly creative artifacts that authenticate the vast experience, imagination, and resourcefulness of their designers. Simple Code II Saphire Smartwatch Face is expected to be a highly regarded, admired, and cherished object that is notably professional and innovative. This Bronze A' Design Award-winning design incorporates best practices in art, science, design, and technology, and is excellent for its attention to detail. Simple Code II Saphire Smartwatch Face splendidly satisfies needs, touches desires, charms feelings, and appeals to curiosity.
Interviews
Design Interview
What is the main principle, idea and inspiration behind your design?
The design is inspired by the very first watch face I did for my first smartwatch. It is called "Simple code". It is just a prototype for a test. It does not even look like the Simple Code II now. However, the prototype gave me the inspiration. For example, the date number is to be at the center of the watch so that the user does not need to look for where the date is.
What has been your main focus in designing this work? Especially what did you want to achieve?
The main focus is to make the user check the time, date, and other information more easily. Check the date of the current month without aiming where the date number is, besides, the date at the center does not occupy other space so the dial does not look crowded.
What are your future plans for this award winning design?
Maybe more color combinations will come out. Make it a flagship category of my future designs.
Grand Interview
Your innovative approach to component positioning in Simple Code II Saphire Smartwatch Face, particularly how elements shift to avoid hand overlap, represents a significant advancement in smartwatch interface design - could you elaborate on the technical and creative process behind developing this dynamic feature?
The dynamic positioning of elements in Simple Code II Sapphire was both a technical and creative challenge. The goal was to maintain readability without the user needing to adjust their wrist or interact with the watch repeatedly. The hands’ rotation was programmed to activate a subtle yet precise shift in key components, such as the date or steps count, to ensure that information is always legible, regardless of hand placement. I achieved this through careful testing of rotational angles and distances, which allows for a seamless transition without interrupting the minimalist aesthetic.
The translucent blue sapphire hands in Simple Code II Saphire Smartwatch Face create a striking balance between aesthetics and functionality - what inspired this specific design choice, and how did you arrive at the perfect level of transparency to maintain both visual appeal and readability?
The translucent sapphire blue was chosen to harmonize with the digital screen, creating a visual that’s rich and elegant yet functional. This choice was inspired by the need for clarity; the transparency allows users to read the information beneath the hands. The level of transparency was fine-tuned by adjusting the opacity in small increments, balancing visual allure and readability so that the hands complement, rather than obscure, the data display.
As the recipient of the Bronze A' Design Award in Interface Design, how does Simple Code II Saphire Smartwatch Face's central date placement and linear arrangement of month, date, and day information reflect your broader philosophy about user-centered design?
The date-centric arrangement reflects my commitment to user-centered design, especially for quick readability. By positioning the date, month, and day linearly in the center, users can quickly grasp the essential calendar information. This layout emerged from my broader philosophy that smartwatch interfaces should be efficient and focused on user needs without excessive distractions. Winning the Bronze A’ Design Award further validated this minimalist, user-first approach.
Behind the Design
Press Kit
Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.
- Unique Properties
- Simple Code II has a unique feature that the components, such as weather and step count, shift their position to avoid overlapping the blue hands. It is an easy-to-read watch face. The blue translucent hands not only shows the beauty, but also maintain the readability. The date is the center of the whole dial so that user can find out what the date is in a glance. In the middle, the month, the date and the day form a line which cut through the dial in half to create the visual balance.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- Smartwatch face, 400 x 400px. Support Android watch and Samsung watch. Available for download from Facer app and WatchMaker app.
- Tags
- stylish, modern, precise, casual, business, calm, sapphire
- Production Technology
- It's from the first version of a prototype called Simple Code which was done in WatchMaker app. After a few trials and changes, the ideas are getting more and more confirmed. Eventually the ideas became the second version, Simple Code II.
- Design Challenge
- The biggest challenge is to convey the modern beauty, the comfort for eyes, the hands cannot block the information behind yet still have good looking.
- Research
- Started with a very simple idea: make it easy to read. That's why it's called "Simple Code". After done the first prototype, put in more ideas such as translucent hands and still with ease telling time.
- Inspiration
- The Simple Code II is from the first version which is just a prototype. The idea is to put the date in the center of the dial, so user can find the date effortlessly. That's it. That's where inspiration came from. After that, for further convenience, the hands became translucent so that they will not obstruct the other information behind them. Every effort is for readability while still maintain the neat.
- Project Duration
- I started designing the prototype in May 2018. It was done in June 2018 in Singapore.
- Operation Flow
- The dial is in dark tone with pattern as background. The hands are in translucent blue sapphire colour. The entire watch face gives a calm, modern and stylish feeling. It fits both casual and business outfit.
- Patents
- Copyrights belong to Pan Yong, 2019.
- Team Members
- Pan Yong (myself)
- Image Credits
- Image #1: Photographer Pan Yong,
Image #2: Photographer Pan Yong,
Image #3: Photographer Pan Yong,
Image #4: Photographer Pan Yong,
Image #5: Photographer Pan Yong,
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