Updated 14-Sep-2023
Zurb's 21 Responsive Design Trends That Will Shape 2017 is useful reading. Of course not everyone will agree on 21 trends, and 21 isn't actually helpful to focus on. Nonetheless, many of these should/will need to be dealt with in 2017. Here are the one's I found most useful:
Split Screen
- Divide a site into two parts, possibly with distinct navigation
- Evaluation: Maybe just a niche thing, but might be interested on sites that have task accomplishment (ecommerce, elearning)
Live Product Preview
- This might not be any more than video, otherwise we are dealing with looping animations, truly annoying
- Evaluation: More video to show and tell, also free/trial use of offer, lower barrier to adoption
- Vertical menus? Maybe, or just some other thinking
- Evaluation: vertical is still horrible on mobile, but think about nav innovation, some is needed
Cards
- Yes, cards
- Evaluation: yes, cards
Video headers, backgrounds
- Not sure about this, but likely gonna happen
- Evaluation: Everything gets a head, background, and icon these days
Large Screen Design
- Damn right
- Evaluation: came up with the same conclusion 6 months ago
Flexbox
Atomic Design
- Modules, that is not comprehensive design, can be faster, and better
- Evaluation: can cause overhead, slowness in terms of implementation, but a well-thought out modularity (in terms of visual components), may be effective.
App-Influenced Design
- Not sure if this is a great thing, but it definitely does exist
- Evaluation: As long as usability, navigation ease, and task completion are high, should remain an aesthetic issue
- Sure makes sense. Again, as long as usability is maintained.
- Evaluation: Again, as long as usability is maintained.
Gradient Backgrounds
- Why not
- Evaluation: Why not
Responsive Images
- Still a thing
- Evaluation: Yes, and make it better