A software prototype refers to a working model of a product, which encapsulates how the end product will look and function. A prototype doesn’t include all the backend work and is often built very quickly before the development is complete.
Prototyping is thus a must for every UX software development company in Perth who wants a design process to be collaborative, productive, and eventually successful. To do so, the development team needs to ensure clarity of requirements from the very beginning.
Prototyping gives a sneak peek into the proposed app or website
When working for a client, they also need to grasp what an app or a website will look like, the high-level features they should expect, and whether it is sure to match all the set specifications yet before the full-scale development process is launched. In such a case, prototyping is a perfect solution since prototypes are simulations that contribute to achieving goals and solving problems defined during the design sprints.
Prototypes are often used to collect early feedback and make necessary changes, rather than letting a development team fully code the application and try to deal with significant design changes after. If you are still determining whether or not your product may need prototyping and what actually for, rest assured that such simulations will be beneficial. Thus, we suggest figuring out why it is so and why prototyping is necessary.
4 main qualities of prototypes
The key main qualities of prototypes are:
Representation: The actual form of the prototype, like paper and mobile or HTML and desktop.
Precision: This signifies the prototype’s fidelity, meaning the extent of detail, polish, and realism.
Interactivity: The functionality open to the user are fully functional, partially functional, or view-only.
Evolution: The lifecycle of a prototype. Some are built quickly, tested fast, thrown away, and then replaced with an improved version. This process is called ‘rapid prototyping, while others may be built and improved upon, ultimately emerging as the final product.
Types of Prototyping
Here are two common ways to look at prototyping. These are:
High-fidelity prototyping: This realistically appearing and functioning prototype is built as similar to the actual product before launch. It facilitates interaction and provides meaningful feedback for demonstration in front of prospective investors or stakeholders.
Low-fidelity prototyping: This is fast, cheap, and often paper-based, enabling a quick preview of the product, which typically doesn’t allow for proper testing by users.
Prototyping tools are of incredible importance
Depending on your need, various types of prototyping tools are used by a software development company in Perth. Some focus on the front-end design with the wireframes, while others permit user testing and an actual demonstration of user flows. In contrast, others are fully integrated and will enable you to work with existing designs or wireframes from programs like Sketch, replicate realistic and rich user interactions, help you collaborate with your team, and test and generate code ready to hand off to developers. Which tool you intend to select will depend on the goals of the prototype, how quickly you need it available for user testing, who will be working on it, and how it needs to integrate into your workflow.
Need help building custom software? Reach out to us at Ebullient Services to explore how we can help you build a prototype based on your idea and transform it into an innovative software. Connect with us at +61 411358722 today!