Early this week, Jaguar unveiled a comprehensive rebranding initiative as part of its strategic shift toward an all-electric future.

This transformation includes a new logo, updated branding elements, and a refreshed corporate identity, all designed to align with the company’s commitment to innovation and sustainability.

The redesigned logo features a mix of uppercase and lowercase letters, with the “J,” “G,” and “U” in uppercase, creating a distinctive visual identity. The iconic “leaper” emblem has been modernized and is now set against a backdrop of 16 horizontal lines, referred to as the “Strike Through.”

Additionally, a new monogram combining the letters “J” and “R” has been introduced, symbolizing the brand’s heritage and future aspirations.

Jaguar’s rebranding is guided by the creative philosophy of “Exuberant Modernism,” which emphasizes bold designs and original thinking. This approach aims to recapture the essence of Jaguar’s founding ethos to “Copy Nothing,” making the brand relevant to contemporary audiences.

The rebranding campaign includes a 30-second promotional video featuring diverse models in vibrant attire, set against a futuristic backdrop. Notably, the video does not showcase any vehicles, focusing instead on slogans such as “Copy Nothing” and “Create Exuberant.”

This avant-garde approach has sparked mixed reactions, with some critics questioning the absence of cars in the advertisement and others labeling the campaign as overly “woke.”

This rebranding aligns with Jaguar’s strategic plan to transition to an all-electric lineup by 2026. The company plans to launch three new electric vehicles, starting with a high-performance GT model.

The next phase of Jaguar’s transformation is set to be unveiled at Miami Art Week on December 2, 2024, where the company will debut its “Design Vision Concept,” providing further insights into its future design direction and product offerings.

Jaguar Website

eBay has introduced the Evo Brand System Playbook, a robust, 280-page guide designed to unify and elevate its global brand identity while fostering flexibility across its markets.

The playbook, which reflects years of research and innovation, provides a detailed framework for eBay’s design and branding strategies, aiming to create a cohesive and user-friendly experience across all platforms.

What is the Evo Brand System Playbook?

The Evo Brand System Playbook is a dynamic resource that consolidates eBay’s brand identity into a single, accessible platform. It includes over 2,700 assets—spanning images, videos, and interactive tools—that guide teams in implementing eBay’s vision.

The playbook outlines principles for typography, iconography, colors, animations, and even custom illustrations, ensuring that eBay’s design philosophy remains consistent globally while adapting to regional nuances.

Core Features of the Evo Playbook

1. Market Sans Typeface
   The proprietary typeface, Market Sans, is a key feature, delivering a clean and modern aesthetic that is both professional and approachable.
2. Accessible Color Palette
   Evo introduces a fully accessible color system, ensuring inclusivity for all users, including those with visual impairments. The palette balances vibrancy with functionality, enhancing readability and user engagement.
3. Custom Iconography and Illustrations
   A rich library of icons and bespoke illustrations helps create a distinct and engaging interface, reflecting eBay’s values of being smart, spirited, and dependable.
4. Interactivity and Tools
   The Playbook offers tools for real-time exploration, such as the Color Playground, allowing users to experiment with combinations and designs before implementation.
5. Accessibility-First Design
   Incorporating the Include accessibility annotations Figma plug-in, the Evo system underscores eBay’s commitment to making its platforms inclusive for diverse audiences.

Why Evo Matters

The Evo Brand System is more than a design guide—it’s a commitment to improving the user experience. By aligning its visual and interactive elements, eBay enhances the way customers interact with its platform, making online shopping intuitive and enjoyable.

According to eBay, the Playbook serves as a bridge between creativity and technical precision, ensuring that its teams and partners can deliver a seamless brand story across touchpoints. It also empowers flexibility, enabling regional teams to adapt global guidelines to local markets without losing the essence of the eBay brand.

The Future of Branding at eBay

The Evo Brand System Playbook marks a transformative chapter in eBay’s journey, reaffirming its leadership in e-commerce innovation. With this initiative, eBay aims to create a delightful, inclusive, and inspiring experience for its millions of users worldwide.

The Evo Playbook is now publicly accessible here, inviting designers, developers, and brand enthusiasts to explore eBay’s vision for the future of its brand.

When it comes to building a professional, polished online presence, Squarespace is a favorite website builder among creatives that consistently delivers.

As someone who loves design and innovation, I’m blown away by how Squarespace keeps pushing the boundaries of what’s possible, especially with their exciting advancements in AI.

Use code DEPOT10 to get a 10% discount! Valid until December 31st, 2025. Head over to Squarespace.com to redeem.

A Game-Changer with Squarespace AI

Let’s start with the star of the show: Squarespace AI. If you’ve ever struggled to write website content or faced the dreaded blank page, this is the tool you’ve been dreaming of.

Squarespace AI uses smart technology to help you craft polished, professional content—whether it’s website copy, email campaigns, or product descriptions—in no time at all. It’s like having a creative sidekick who’s always ready to help you get your ideas out there, sounding sharp and on-brand.

The magic doesn’t stop there. Squarespace AI integrates beautifully with the platform’s design tools, automatically populating your site with nearly-finished content that’s tailored to your needs. For busy entrepreneurs, it’s a lifesaver, helping you create a website that looks and sounds amazing without hours of tweaking.

Additionally, the AI analyzes user behavior and website performance to provide actionable insights for optimization, such as improving navigation or boosting search engine rankings.

Tools That Work Hard So You Don’t Have To

Squarespace isn’t just about gorgeous website templates (though let’s be real, their templates are stunning and some of the best in the industry). They’ve built an entire toolkit to help entrepreneurs sell, grow, and shine online. Here’s what’s got us excited:

• Squarespace Payments: A sleek, secure payment solution that makes selling a breeze. Whether you’re offering products or services, it’s easy to set up and works seamlessly with your site.
• Client Invoicing: Service-based businesses, rejoice! With intake forms, CRM tools, project tracking, and professional invoices that match your branding, managing your workflow has never been this smooth.
• Courses: Have expertise to share? The Courses feature—powered by Fluid Engine—lets you create beautiful online classes with video lessons, progress tracking, and more. It’s a fantastic way to add a new income stream.

Better Marketing and Scheduling Made Simple

Connecting with your audience is key, and Squarespace makes it easy. Their updated email marketing tools, with seasonal templates and automation, help you stay in touch and drive engagement.

And with improved Acuity Scheduling, your clients can book appointments effortlessly—whether they’re on desktop or mobile. It’s a win-win for everyone.

Use code DEPOT10 to get a 10% discount! Valid until December 31st, 2025. Head over to Squarespace.com to redeem.

Your Brand, Everywhere It Matters

Your website is just one piece of your brand’s digital puzzle, and Squarespace gets that. Tools like Squarespace Domains and Bio Sites Pro ensure your brand shines wherever your audience finds you.

Squarespace Domains makes managing everything from domain forwarding to bulk management a breeze. And if you’re active on social media, Bio Sites Pro is a customizable, professional link-in-bio solution that helps you stand out and even monetize your content.

Built to Grow with You

Squarespace isn’t just for solopreneurs and small businesses; it’s a powerful platform for larger enterprises too.

Features like single sign-on for added security, team-friendly collaboration tools, and specialized solutions like Tock for hospitality management mean Squarespace scales right alongside your business. From managing reservations to running global operations, it’s got the tools you need to keep moving forward.

Final Thoughts

Squarespace keeps raising the bar with its innovative tools, especially in AI. By combining stunning design, powerful selling features, and top-notch content creation capabilities, it’s a platform that truly helps businesses of all sizes succeed.

Whether you’re just starting out or ready to take your brand to the next level, Squarespace has everything you need to build and grow a fantastic online presence.

They’ve made it easier than ever to create something incredible—and that’s something I’ll always cheer for.

Use code DEPOT10 to get a 10% discount! Valid until December 31st, 2025. Head over to Squarespace.com to redeem.

Color Palette is a web application developed by Tobias Mønster Madsen, designed to provide users with a collection of curated color palettes for inspiration and design purposes.

Currently, the site is in development, with plans to expand its offerings by adding more color palettes, styles, and features in the future. Users are encouraged to share their feedback or suggestions, which will help shape the platform as it evolves.

The intuitive interface of Color Palette allows for easy navigation, making it a valuable tool for anyone looking to experiment with colors or find harmonious combinations for graphic design, web development, or artistic projects.

Whether you’re a professional designer or a hobbyist, this tool aims to simplify the often complex process of color selection, providing inspiration and functionality in a straightforward and accessible format.

https://www.colorpalette.dk

The Popover API and element are two of my favorite new platform features. In fact, I recently [wrote a detailed overview of their use cases] and the sorts of things you can do with them, even learning a few tricks in the process that I couldn’t find documented anywhere else.

I’ll admit that one thing that I really dislike about popovers and dialogs is that they could’ve easily been combined into a single API. They cover different use cases (notably, dialogs are typically modal) but are quite similar in practice, and yet their implementations are different.

Well, web browsers are now experimenting with two HTML attributes — technically, they’re called “invoker commands” — that are designed to invoke popovers, dialogs, and further down the line, all kinds of actions without writing JavaScript. Although, if you do reach for JavaScript, the new attributes — command and commandfor — come with some new events that we can listen for.

Invoker commands? I’m sure you have questions, so let’s dive in.

We’re in experimental territory

Before we get into the weeds, we’re dealing with experimental features. To use invoker commands today in November 2024 you’ll need Chrome Canary 134+ with the enable-experimental-web-platform-features flag set to Enabled, Firefox Nightly 135+ with the dom.element.invokers.enabled flag set to true, or Safari Technology Preview with the InvokerAttributesEnabled flag set to true.

I’m optimistic we’ll get baseline coverage for command and commandfor in due time considering how nicely they abstract the kind of work that currently takes a hefty amount of scripting.

Basic command and commandfor usage

First, you’ll need a or a button-esque along the lines of or . Next, tack on the command attribute. The command value should be the command name that you want the button to invoke (e.g., show-modal). After that, drop the commandfor attribute in there referencing the dialog or popover you’re targeting by its id.

<button command="show-modal" commandfor="dialogA">Show dialogA</button>

<dialog id="dialogA">...</dialog>

In this example, I have a

element with a command attribute set to show-modal and a commandfor attribute set to dialogA, which matches the id of a element we’re targeting:

Let’s get into the possible values for these invoker commands and dissect what they’re doing.

Looking closer at the attribute values

CodePen Embed Fallback

The show-modal value is the command that I just showed you in that last example. Specifically, it’s the HTML-invoked equivalent of JavaScript’s showModal() method.

The main benefit is that show-modal enables us to, well… show a modal without reaching directly for JavaScript. Yes, this is almost identical to how HTML-invoked popovers already work with thepopovertarget and popovertargetaction attributes, so it’s cool that the “balance is being redressed” as the Open UI explainer describes it, even more so because you can use the command and commandfor invoker commands for popovers too.

There isn’t a show command to invoke show() for creating non-modal dialogs. I’ve mentioned before that non-modal dialogs are redundant now that we have the Popover API, especially since popovers have ::backdrops and other dialog-like features. My bold prediction is that non-modal dialogs will be quietly phased out over time.

The close command is the HTML-invoked equivalent of JavaScript’s close() method used for closing the dialog. You probably could have guessed that based on the name alone!

<dialog id="dialogA">
  <!-- Close #dialogA -->
  <button command="close" commandfor="dialogA">Close dialogA</button>
</dialog>

The show-popover, hide-popover, and toggle-popover values

<button command="show-popover" commandfor="id">

…invokes showPopover(), and is the same thing as:

<button popovertargetaction="show" popovertarget="id">

Similarly:

<button command="hide-popover" commandfor="id">

…invokes hidePopover(), and is the same thing as:

<button popovertargetaction="hide" popovertarget="id">

Finally:

<button command="toggle-popover" commandfor="id">

…invokes togglePopover(), and is the same thing as:

<button popovertargetaction="toggle" popovertarget="id">
<!--  or <button popovertarget="id">, since ‘toggle’ is the default action anyway. -->

I know all of this can be tough to organize in your mind’s eye, so perhaps a table will help tie things together:

command	Invokes	popovertargetaction equivalent
show-popover	showPopover()	show
hide-popover	hidePopover()	hide
toggle-popover	togglePopover()	toggle

So… yeah, popovers can already be invoked using HTML attributes, making command and commandfor not all that useful in this context. But like I said, invoker commands also come with some useful JavaScript stuff, so let’s dive into all of that.

Listening to commands with JavaScript

Invoker commands dispatch a command event to the target whenever their source button is clicked on, which we can listen for and work with in JavaScript. This isn’t required for a element’s close event, or a popover attribute’s toggle or beforetoggle event, because we can already listen for those, right?

For example, the Dialog API doesn’t dispatch an event when a is shown. So, let’s use invoker commands to listen for the command event instead, and then read event.command to take the appropriate action.

// Select all dialogs
const dialogs = document.querySelectorAll("dialog");

// Loop all dialogs
dialogs.forEach(dialog => {

  // Listen for close (as normal)
  dialog.addEventListener("close", () => {
    // Dialog was closed
  });

  // Listen for command
  dialog.addEventListener("command", event => {

    // If command is show-modal
    if (event.command == "show-modal") {
      // Dialog was shown (modally)
    }

    // Another way to listen for close
    else if (event.command == "close") {
      // Dialog was closed
    }

  });
});

So invoker commands give us additional ways to work with dialogs and popovers, and in some scenarios, they’ll be less verbose. In other scenarios though, they’ll be more verbose. Your approach should depend on what you need your dialogs and popovers to do.

For the sake of completeness, here’s an example for popovers, even though it’s largely the same:

// Select all popovers
const popovers = document.querySelectorAll("[popover]");

// Loop all popovers
popovers.forEach(popover => {

  // Listen for command
  popover.addEventListener("command", event => {

    // If command is show-popover
    if (event.command == "show-popover") {
      // Popover was shown
    }

    // If command is hide-popover
    else if (event.command == "hide-popover") {
      // Popover was hidden
    }

    // If command is toggle-popover
    else if (event.command == "toggle-popover") {
      // Popover was toggled
    }

  });
});

Being able to listen for show-popover and hide-popover is useful as we otherwise have to write a sort of “if opened, do this, else do that” logic from within a toggle or beforetoggle event listener or toggle-popover conditional. But elements? Yeah, those benefit more from the command and commandfor attributes than they do from this command JavaScript event.

Another thing that’s available to us via JavaScript is event.source, which is the button that invokes the popover or :

if (event.command == "toggle-popover") {
  // Toggle the invoker’s class
  event.source.classList.toggle("active");
}

You can also set the command and commandfor attributes using JavaScript:

const button = document.querySelector("button");
const dialog = document.querySelector("dialog");

button.command = "show-modal";
button.commandForElement = dialog; /* Not dialog.id */

…which is only slightly less verbose than:

button.command = "show-modal";
button.setAttribute("commandfor", dialog.id);

Creating custom commands

The command attribute also accepts custom commands prefixed with two dashes (--). I suppose this makes them like CSS custom properties but for JavaScript events and event handler HTML attributes. The latter observation is maybe a bit (or definitely a lot) controversial since using event handler HTML attributes is considered bad practice. But let’s take a look at that anyway, shall we?

Custom commands look like this:

<button command="--spin-me-a-bit" commandfor="record">Spin me a bit</button>
<button command="--spin-me-a-lot" commandfor="record">Spin me a lot</button>
<button command="--spin-me-right-round" commandfor="record">Spin me right round</button>

const record = document.querySelector("#record");

record.addEventListener("command", event => {
  if (event.command == "--spin-me-a-bit") {
    record.style.rotate = "90deg";
  } else if (event.command == "--spin-me-a-lot") {
    record.style.rotate = "180deg";
  } else if (event.command == "--spin-me-right-round") {
    record.style.rotate = "360deg";
  }
});

event.command must match the string with the dashed (--) prefix.

Are popover and the only features that support invoker commands?

According to Open UI, invokers targeting additional elements such as

were deferred from the initial release. I think this is because HTML-invoked dialogs and an API that unifies dialogs and popovers is a must-have, whereas other commands (even custom commands) feel more like a nice-to-have deal.

However, based on experimentation (I couldn’t help myself!) web browsers have actually implemented additional invokers to varying degrees. For example,

commands work as expected whereas commands match event.command (e.g., show-picker) but fail to actually invoke the method (showPicker()). I missed all of this at first because MDN only mentions dialog and popover.

Open UI also alludes to commands for , , , , and fullscreen-related methods, but I don’t think that anything is certain at this point.

So, what would be the benefits of invoker commands?

Well, a whole lot less JavaScript for one, especially if more invoker commands are implemented over time. Additionally, we can listen for these commands almost as if they were JavaScript events. But if nothing else, invoker commands simply provide more ways to interact with APIs such as the Dialog and Popover APIs. In a nutshell, it seems like a lot of “dotting i’s” and “crossing-t’s” which is never a bad thing.

---

Invoker Commands: Additional Ways to Work With Dialog, Popover… and More? originally published on CSS-Tricks, which is part of the DigitalOcean family. You should get the newsletter.

The WordPress 6.7 release, named “Rollins” honors jazz legend Sonny Rollins, renowned for his improvisational mastery and innovative contributions to jazz.

His iconic compositions, like “St. Thomas” and “Oleo,” reflect his bold, exploratory style, paralleling WordPress’ mission to empower creativity and innovation. This update embodies Rollins’ spirit of pushing boundaries, offering new features and enhancements to inspire digital expression.

Twenty Twenty-Five Theme

The new default theme, Twenty Twenty-Five, is built to offer unparalleled flexibility for various website types. Whether you are creating a personal blog, a portfolio, or a professional business site, this theme provides robust design tools that leverage the full power of the block editor.

It includes multiple pre-designed block patterns, diverse style variations, and rich color palettes, allowing users to create visually stunning and functional websites quickly and easily.

Zoom Out Mode

Zoom Out Mode is a revolutionary addition to the site editing experience. It allows users to view and edit their website from a broader perspective, making it easier to arrange and modify entire sections and patterns. This feature is especially useful for managing complex layouts, giving users a clear overview of their site’s structure and design while streamlining the process of making adjustments.

Dynamic Content Integration

WordPress 6.7 introduces the ability to connect blocks directly to dynamic content sources, such as custom fields, from within the editor.

This new functionality simplifies the creation of dynamic websites, such as portfolios, blogs, and ecommerce stores, without requiring extensive coding knowledge. It also enhances compatibility with popular tools like Advanced Custom Fields (ACF), making it easier to create and manage dynamic content.

Advanced Typography Control

The advanced typography settings in WordPress 6.7 give users greater control over text design. With the ability to create and manage custom font size presets, as well as utilize fluid typography for responsive text scaling, users can ensure that their websites look polished and consistent across all devices. This update also enhances the overall design flexibility and user experience.

Performance Enhancements

Performance improvements are a highlight of WordPress 6.7, focusing on speed and stability. Block patterns and templates now load faster, and previews in data views have been optimized for efficiency. Compatibility with PHP 8 and higher versions has been improved, and the HTML processing engine has been refined for faster rendering and better performance overall.

Accessibility Improvements

Accessibility has been a major focus in this release, with over 65 fixes and enhancements aimed at making WordPress more inclusive. These updates include improved keyboard navigation in the editor, better labeling and instructions for various interface components, and fixes to ensure that assistive technologies can interact with WordPress more effectively.

HEIC Image Support

WordPress 6.7 adds native support for HEIC image files, a format widely used by iPhone cameras. This update makes it easier to upload and use high-quality, space-efficient images across all blocks, expanding the platform’s media capabilities and providing more options for visual content creation.

Query Loop Block Refinements

The Query Loop block, a powerful tool for displaying dynamic content, has been refined for ease of use. Automated default settings simplify the setup process, while key customization options have been consolidated for greater clarity. These improvements make the Query Loop block more accessible to beginners while retaining its flexibility for advanced users.

Preview Dropdown Extensions

Developers now have the ability to extend the preview dropdown menu with custom preview options. This feature enables users to test and view content in new contexts, such as specific device sizes or custom configurations, providing greater flexibility and control over the content preview process.

Background Customization

Enhanced background customization tools allow for the application of consistent styles across a site. These global settings ensure a unified design aesthetic while offering greater creative control over the appearance of pages and individual blocks. This feature simplifies the process of maintaining cohesive site-wide designs.

Site Editor Page View Enhancements

The Site Editor’s page view has been enhanced to include advanced filtering options, enabling users to display specific categories such as Published, Draft, or Scheduled pages. This update improves navigation and organization within the editor, making it easier to manage content effectively.

Template Registration API

The new Template Registration API simplifies the process of creating and managing custom templates. It allows plugins to introduce custom templates independent of themes, supports theme overrides, and enables the creation of templates tailored to specific categories or content types.

Expanded Design Tools

WordPress 6.7 expands the range of design tools available for individual blocks. New options, such as shadows and borders, give users more creative control over block appearance. These tools enable the creation of visually distinct and professional-looking websites without the need for external design software.

Interactivity API Improvements

The Interactivity API has been updated with new capabilities for robust state management and improved integration with JavaScript. These enhancements make it easier for developers to build dynamic, interactive web experiences while addressing previous bugs to ensure smoother operation.

WordPress 6.7 is a testament to the platform’s commitment to continuous improvement and innovation. It provides tools and features that cater to a diverse range of users, enabling them to build more functional, visually appealing, and high-performing websites.

Download WordPress 6.7 “Rollins” here

A recent survey by Santa Cruz Software reveals that artificial intelligence (AI) is significantly transforming the design sector.

Among over 400 U.S.-based graphic designers surveyed, 98% report AI has altered their workflows, and 91% note a positive return on investment (ROI) from adopting AI tools. Creative directors (72%) view AI as a collaborative assistant that enhances creativity without replacing human input.

To stay competitive, 93% of designers have pursued AI training. Designers commonly use AI tools for image and video generation (67%), content creation (51%), and AI-powered design software (45%), showcasing AI’s role in boosting efficiency and innovation.

However, ethical concerns remain. While 65% view AI as ethical, 24% disagree, and concerns about copyright (55%), originality (46%), bias (34%), and privacy (41%) persist. Most designers (81%) are restricted to employer-approved AI tools, reflecting companies’ recognition of the need for ethical standards.

Designers favor AI for specific tasks like generating ideas (74%), client communications (51%), and repetitive tasks (43%), but 68% prefer human oversight for final design decisions.

Preferences for human vs. AI-generated designs are evenly split (46% each), with junior designers more inclined toward AI. Regarding attribution, 59% are comfortable taking credit for AI-assisted designs, though 38% express discomfort.

See the full infographic below…

Do you subscribe to Piccalilli? You should. If you’re reading that name for the first time, that would be none other than Andy Bell running the ship and he’s reimagined the site from the ground-up after coming out of hibernation this year. You’re likely familiar with Andy’s great writing here on CSS-Tricks.

Andy is more than a great writer — he’s a teacher, too. And you’ll get to see that in spades next week when his brand-new course Andy is more than a great writer — he’s a teacher, too. And you’ll see that in spades next week when his brand-new course Complete CSS is released one week from today on November 26.

As someone who also runs a front-end course, I can tell you it takes a non-trivial amount of time and effort to put something like Complete CSS together. I’ve been able to sneak peek at the course and like love how it’s made for many CSS-Tricks readers — you know CSS and use it regularly but need to ratchet it up from good to great. If my course is for those just getting into CSS, Andy will graduate you from hobbyist to practitioner in Complete CSS. It’s the perfect next step for narrowing the ever-growing learning gaps in this industry.

Early bird price is £189 (~$240) which is a steep cut from the full £249 (~$325) price tag.

---

Complete CSS Course originally published on CSS-Tricks, which is part of the DigitalOcean family. You should get the newsletter.

Yet, despite its widespread adoption, modern users are increasingly frustrated. Why? Because the once-revolutionary approach is failing to keep up with the evolving demands of today’s digital landscape.

In this article, we’ll dive into the limitations of responsive design, explore why it often falls short for modern users, and discuss how developers and designers can adapt to address these challenges.

The Promise of Responsive Design

When Ethan Marcotte introduced the concept of responsive web design (RWD) in 2010, it was groundbreaking. The methodology relied on flexible grids, fluid images, and media queries to ensure that a website could gracefully adapt to different screen sizes.

At its core, responsive design sought to enhance usability across devices, eliminate the need for maintaining separate mobile and desktop websites, and future-proof websites against new screen resolutions and device types. The approach was a perfect solution for its time, addressing the fragmented device market and providing a unified codebase for developers. However, as technology and user behavior evolved, cracks began to show.

Where Responsive Design Falls Short

Device Diversity is Outpacing RWD Frameworks

In 2010, developers primarily worried about three types of screens: desktop, tablet, and mobile. Today, the landscape is far more complex. Foldable phones with dual screens, smartwatches with minuscule displays, large-format monitors and ultrawide screens, and smart TVs with built-in browsers have all entered the market.

Responsive design frameworks often rely on breakpoints—predefined screen widths where the layout shifts. But how do you define breakpoints for devices with vastly unique form factors? This rigidity makes many responsive websites feel awkward or unoptimized on newer devices.

Performance Issues

Responsive design is frequently implemented with the philosophy of “designing for the smallest screen first and scaling up.” While this approach (mobile-first design) has its merits, it can lead to performance issues on larger devices.

Many websites load unnecessary assets, scripts, and styles meant for high-resolution screens, even when accessed on mobile devices. The result is websites that are bloated and slow, particularly in regions with limited internet bandwidth.

Modern users demand speed, and when responsive sites fail to deliver, frustration sets in.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Responsive design’s primary goal is to create a consistent experience across devices, but consistency can sometimes come at the cost of usability.

Navigation menus designed for desktop often become cumbersome on mobile. Call-to-action buttons that look great on a phone may appear oversized or intrusive on a tablet. Typography scaling can render text too small to read comfortably on certain devices.

Instead of creating truly optimized experiences for each device, responsive design tends to settle for mediocrity across all platforms.

Lack of Context Awareness

Modern users’ needs extend beyond screen size. They’re influenced by device capabilities (e.g., touchscreens vs. keyboard and mouse), connection speeds, and bandwidth limits, as well as user intentions (e.g., quick information lookup vs. in-depth reading).

Responsive design doesn’t account for these nuances. For instance, a user on a mobile device might prefer simplified content or fewer images to save data, but a responsive site often delivers the same content as its desktop counterpart.

Accessibility Challenges

Accessibility is a crucial part of modern web design, yet many responsive websites fail to meet basic accessibility standards. Issues such as poorly scaling elements that break screen reader compatibility, over-reliance on hover states for navigation, and improper contrast ratios that become unreadable on certain screens are common.

While these problems aren’t exclusive to responsive design, they’re exacerbated by the “one-size-fits-all” mentality that responsive frameworks encourage.

The Rise of New User Expectations

Modern users are not just browsing the web; they’re living digitally integrated lives. Their expectations have evolved, shaped by experiences with intuitive apps, fast-loading progressive web applications (PWAs), and AI-driven interfaces.

Users now expect personalized experiences that cater to their preferences, location, and behavior. Responsive design, by focusing solely on screen size, doesn’t inherently support personalization. A generic layout fails to address users’ individual needs.

Websites are no longer static pages; they’re dynamic, interactive experiences. Parallax scrolling, 3D animations, and complex interactions often break or degrade on responsive sites because these elements weren’t designed with device-specific capabilities in mind.

Additionally, the rise of voice assistants and gesture-based navigation (e.g., swiping on phones) means users interact with devices in ways that traditional responsive design doesn’t consider.

Moving Beyond Responsive Design

To meet the demands of modern users, web design must evolve beyond the limitations of traditional responsive frameworks. Adaptive design offers a way forward by creating multiple fixed layouts tailored to specific device types. Instead of relying on fluid grids, adaptive sites detect the user’s device and serve the most appropriate version.

This approach offers more control over the user experience on each device and reduces unnecessary elements, optimizing performance. However, it requires more design and development effort and can increase maintenance complexity.

Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) blur the lines between websites and native apps by offering offline functionality, lightning-fast performance, and a more app-like experience. By focusing on the capabilities of the device rather than its screen size, PWAs can deliver a more tailored experience.

Another approach involves prioritizing content. Instead of cramming all desktop content into a smaller screen, designers should focus on delivering only the most relevant information based on context. Techniques such as progressive disclosure, which shows essential content first and hides secondary elements behind expandable sections, and conditional loading, which serves lightweight versions of content for users on slower connections, can enhance usability.

Context-aware design, which uses data like location, device type, and user behavior to adapt the experience dynamically, is another promising direction. For example, displaying a map when a user accesses a site near a physical store or offering larger touch targets for devices without a keyboard or mouse can greatly improve the user experience.

Accessibility-first design ensures that all users, regardless of their abilities or devices, can navigate and interact with the site effectively. This includes testing designs with screen readers and keyboard navigation as well as implementing scalable typography and flexible layouts.

Finally, component-based design systems like React or Vue allow developers to create reusable, modular elements that adapt dynamically. Components can respond to both device size and capabilities and load selectively to optimize performance.

A Call to Action for Designers and Developers

It’s clear that the future of web design requires more than just “making things fit.” Designers and developers must embrace a mindset of adaptability rather than rigid frameworks. They must prioritize user-first thinking that considers context, behavior, and preferences, while leveraging new tools and technologies to address the limitations of responsive design.

Responsive design isn’t dead, but it’s no longer enough. By acknowledging its shortcomings and building on its foundations, we can create experiences that truly resonate with modern users.

Responsive design has served us well, but the digital world has changed. It’s time for web professionals to look forward and design for the future, not just for the screen.

You’ve played Flexbox Froggy before, right? Or maybe Grid Garden? They’re both absolute musts for learning the basics of modern CSS layout using Flexbox and CSS Grid. I use both games in all of the classes I teach and I never get anything but high-fives from my students because they love them so much.

As widely known as those games are, you may be less familiar with the name of the developer who made them. That would be Thomas Park, and he has a couple of CSS-Tricks articles notched in his belt. He also has a horde of other games in his CodePip collection of free and premium games for learning front-end techniques.

Thomas wrote in to share his latest game with us: Anchoreum.

I’ll bet the two nickels in my pocket that you know this game’s all about CSS Anchor Positioning. I love that Thomas has jumped on this so quickly because the feature is still fresh, and indeed is currently only supported in a couple of browsers at the moment.

This is the perfect time to learn about anchor positioning. It’s still relatively early days, but things are baked enough to be supported in Chrome and Edge so you can access the games. If you haven’t seen Juan’s big ol’ guide on anchor positioning, that’s another dandy way to get up to speed.

The objective is less on-the-nose than Flexbox Froggy and Grid Garden, which both lean heavily into positioning elements to complete game tasks. For example, Flexbox Froggy is about positioning frogs safely on lilypads. Grid Garden wants you to water specific garden areas to feed your carrots. Anchoreum? You’re in a museum and need to anchor labels to museum artifacts. I know, attaching target elements to the same anchor over and again could get boring. But thankfully the game goes beyond simple positioning by getting into multiple anchors, spanning, and position fallbacks.

Whatever the objective, the repetition is good for developing muscle memory and the overall outcome is still the same: learn CSS Anchor Positioning. I’m already planning how and where I’m going to use Anchoreum in my curriculum. It’s not often we get a fun interactive learning resource like this for such a new web feature and I think it’s worth jumping on it sooner rather than later.

Thomas prepped a video trailer for the game so I thought I’d drop that for reference.

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Anchoreum: A New Game for Learning Anchor Positioning originally published on CSS-Tricks, which is part of the DigitalOcean family. You should get the newsletter.