An app that only works well on an expensive phone shuts out many of the people who need it most. In Ghana, many users have entry level Android phones with small screens, limited memory and little free storage. Some have poor eyesight, some use large text, and some use a screen reader. Building for all of them is good engineering, and it is something employers and clients increasingly expect.
Designing for modest phones
- Keep screens simple. One clear main action per screen. Fewer widgets also means less work for a slow processor.
- Use lists that build lazily, like
ListView.builder, instead of building everything at once. - Be careful with images. Large photos use memory and data. Use small, compressed images and show a placeholder while they load.
- Avoid heavy animations that stutter on older phones. A simple fade is fine; a constant animated background is not.
- Respect storage. Users often delete apps to free space. A small, light app is more likely to stay installed.
- Test on a real low cost phone. Borrow one from a family member if you need to. The emulator on a laptop hides slowness.
Touch targets and thumbs
Fingers are less precise than mouse pointers. Android and Material Design guidance recommend touch targets of at least 48 by 48 density independent pixels (dp). Flutter's standard buttons and already meet this, but custom icons and small text links often do not. Leave space between tappable items, and put the main action where a thumb reaches easily, usually near the bottom of the screen.