I’ve always wanted to stay up to date on the latest design and prototyping tools, testing them shortly after they launch, just to see if any of them might improve my workflow and enable me to achieve better results. In the beginning, a few years ago, I think it was easier than it is now to decide whether a new tool was useful. Nowadays, apps are being released every day, and it’s kind of difficult to give them all a proper try.

My list of prototyping tools: I swear it was much shorter in the beginning!

In a desperate attempt to become more conscious about each prototyping tool’s features and characteristics, and to better decide which to try next, I started to compile a short list of prototyping tools. Gradually, as I added more and more items to the list, it got out of control — a reliable sign that too many solutions exist.

Perhaps it’s because of this situation that, quite often, after having presented at a conference or taught a class, some of the attendees would ask for my advice, wanting to know which is the best tool out there. Honestly, I don’t feel capable of giving a straight answer, because, as with choosing a pair of running shoes, the “best” often depends on your needs at that particular moment and on what outcome you want to achieve.

I guess after a while, I have developed a kind of sixth sense for design — an ability to understand (or, at least, believe — I’m not Superman, after all) whether a given tool is worth trying just by giving it a quick look.

Luckily for you, you don’t need a sixth sense or any other superpowers in order to choose a prototyping tool. There are other, more objective means of choosing one. It all depends on your current priorities, so let’s start there.

1. Learning Curve

The most effective methods of learning take advantage of previous knowledge, so that we don’t have to start from scratch. This is what we call “knowledge transfer”: applying previously acquired knowledge to a new situation. It is also useful when you’re learning how to use a new prototyping tool: The ones with a familiar interface and a familiar set of tools will probably be easier to learn than ones that are new in every aspect.

This is especially true for Adobe’s suite, in which every app is designed to resemble the others. You know where the panels and dialogs will be, and the similarities make it easier to learn new apps within the suite or to switch between apps — for example, from Illustrator to Photoshop.

But also compare how much time you expect to invest in learning a new tool with how much time you expect to actually be using that tool in your design process. The ideal situation would be to dedicate a little time to learning a tool that you will use frequently or even every day.

2. Support For Teamwork

I need my prototyping tool to consolidate feedback from clients about my designs, so that I can use the information to improve my work and then share a new, better version.

With InVision, gathering feedback and comments about a design is easy.

To achieve this, I’ll usually upload my design screens to InVision, where the client can add comments about a particular feature in the exact spot they’re referring to. Then, I’ll have a chance to reply to the comment or close it if the issue has been resolved.

But if you work in a company, then not only should the client feel like a part of the team, so should your fellow designers. It’s important to have a tool that enables your workmates to share and upload their own versions of your design screens, so that that everybody stays on the same page while contributing to the project. Tools such as InVision present the general activity of a project in a kind of timeline view, so that you can stay up to date and keep track of all changes.

3. Level Of Fidelity

From day one, when we have only a basic idea of what a product will be, our prototype starts to evolve, fueled by learning. That’s why we design in iterations, and in each phase we test different things according to our priorities.

For example, at the very beginning, when we don’t know whether an idea is valid, it is not advisable to focus on design details, such as color palette or grid system. Instead, we should be prototyping. And the prototyping tool we choose will depend on the fidelity we’re aiming for (i.e. how close the prototype should be to the intended final product).

Fidelity can build incrementally: low when we simply want to test the idea (the tool should allow navigation from one screen to another), medium when we’re focusing on layout, information and interaction design (the tool should be capable of more precise design), and high when the most important things are visual design, animation and micro-interactions (the tool should be capable of adding motion and transitions).

Each tool should help us to achieve the prototype we need — and perhaps not much more — and then enable us to move quickly to the next stage, where that tool might not be needed anymore.

LOW FIDELITY

When I merely want to test the idea for a digital product, an app that gives me a lot of control over the design is not convenient, because I will easily get distracted by details that are not relevant during that stage. More important is being able to navigate from one screen to another, without wondering about whether elements of the interface have the proper size or layout. (Yes, I know it’s difficult to resist the temptation to align elements, but believe me, it’s not crucial at this point.)

While many prefer to do their conceptual work digitally, there’s a freedom in putting an old-school pencil to paper.

When I have just come up with an idea and go straight to the computer, I often find myself asking questions such as what size should the design document be or what colors should I choose — when I don’t even know whether the concept is on the right track. That’s why, in moments like these, I prefer to use the oldest and most basic option: pen and paper.

The idea is not new:

“But why should we start with sketching?” you might ask. The reason is because getting caught up in pixel-precision this early on in a project by going straight to digital is just too easy, and it’ll cost a bit of time in the long run.[…] Dropping back to pencil and paper is both a fast and easy way to get your ideas out so that you can start iterating.

Using pen and paper, I won’t be worried about any of the design-specific details that I mentioned before. Instead, I can focus on the idea.

Using pen and paper during the early stages of the prototyping process.

I can quickly draw a design to commit what I have in mind, and then, using a tool such as Marvel or POP, take pictures of it to build a working prototype that includes gestures and transitions, in order to test some basic flows. The good thing about prototyping in this way is that if the concept fails (but you have to continue working on that million-dollar idea), you won’t feel attached to your work, and restarting with a different approach will be very easy.