FedEx Mobile on Android Android native client
Focus
Android Native
Responsibilities
Concept, Design, Coding
Timeline
Late 2010
Thoughts
In early 2010 while working on the Blackberry application I began to hear the drum of that other mobile OS: Android. I decided to take a week and put together a technical preview application for all of us to put our hands on. That product had many of the functional features of the final product after only a week. Coming off of the BlackBerry soul-crushing development experience I needed the boost. Android delivered.
Early the next year our newly-formed Mobile Development team began development using that POC as the base framework to the application. By the time the application shipped, though, it was time for me to create a refreshed UI design.
Design
The Android UI implemented many of the darker themes common to Android at the time. The lines were flatter and cleaner than other versions of our Tracking application and influenced many of my future designs including the iPad release this same year.
I was still pushing our Placard from platform to platform and it was, by this time, becoming a staple in the design language of FedEx in general. I was also resistant to over-styling. Android was known for over-the-top designs enforced by the carriers or installed by users. Fitting into those design concepts was an important intention.
A real team
By this time, the mobile idea was catching on in general. Due to this we were finally constructing a team to support development of these products. I became a team leader of an Agile development team.
