Assigned reading: https://developer.android.com/wear/design/user-interface.html
> A new form factor deserves a new UI model. At a high level, the Android Wear UI consists of two
main spaces centered around the core functions of Suggest and
Demand. Your application will have an important role to play in both of these
spaces.
Predictability and responsiveness are two most important elements in the wearable wars. The need for a unified look and feel has never been more paramount.
Tablets and phones are more tightly managed than traditional desktops. In the same trend, wearables will need to be even more tightly managed. System resources are a concern on desktop and notebook computers. They are even more of a concern with handheld tablets and phones. However, nothing matches the concern that comes with wearable devices. I assume the system will tightly manage all system resources for applications. This will be difficult, but it has to be done. Nobody wants a wearable device that they have to recharge every four hours or that weighs more than a phone.
Suggest: The Context Stream
> The context stream is a vertical list of cards, each showing a useful or timely piece of
information. Much like Google Now on Android phones and tablets, users swipe vertically to navigate
from card to card for a brief and comprehensive update about what's important to them. Only one card
is displayed on screen at a time, and background images are used to provide additional visual
information. Your application can create cards and inject them into the stream when they are most
likely to be useful.
It is clear that the architects of Android Wear see that the context stream is important. It is what the user sees when they want to interact with the device. It is important to anticipate what the user wants at any given time. Providing the right information at the right time will be critical. There is a lot of ways to do it wrong and only a few ways to do it right. It is important to remember that there is only one card that gets focus at any given time. We must have a high confidence that the card we present is relevant to the user at that moment. As the design principles say, Android Wear experiences are contextually aware and smart: timely, relevant and specific. Furthermore, the design principles draw attention to:
- Glanceability: Short, sharp, immediate.
- Low Interaction: Gestural, simple, fast.
- Helpful: Efficient, respectful, responsive.