News24’s new look reviewed

After years of struggling with a cluttered and outdated design, News24 this week finally launched there new look… and, while not pushing any boundaries, the news is good.

Positive: Three columns

Firstly, and most importantly, they’ve followed in the footsteps of mg.co.za and thetimes.co.za – both of which were following international trends – by switching to a three-column layout. The result is a much cleaner and less cluttered look – something which immediately solves the sites massive overload problem.

Positive: The big picture

News24 also follows in mg.co.za’s wake by having a large picture on the front page. This is a massive improvement over the numerous smaller pictures they used in the past. For pictures to have an impact, they should be used large and prominently like this.

Positive: News you should know

One of the more interesting things about the new design, is the “News you should know” section on the front page. It has long been a problem with News24 that content can flow too quickly and that important stories can get buried in the flood. This new section is a good way of helping users find important content quickly.

Negative: Beneath the surface

Whereas the new look may create an impression of a better, deeper site, one soon realizes that not much has changed in terms of content. Generally the site still lacks depth and meaningful content beyond the pulse of wire stories. If this is a criticism of the design, it is that the design makes the site look better than what it is… which leads to the user feeling let down. It may look a bit like it, but it is not anything like the Guardian.

Negative: Lack of innovation

Just a minor gripe, but given how long the redesign has been in coming, one might well have expected something a bit more interesting. Whereas most of what was done was done very well, there is nothing new here to get excited about at all… which is just a little disappointing from South Africa’s leading online publisher’s flagship publication.

Conclusion

The better menus, the three-column layout, the “News you need to know” and the large picture, all makes for a much better, much less cluttered front page. Not much innovation then, but a hugely improved user experience. In fact, it boosts the visual experience to such an extent, that the shallowness of the content now is even more glaring than before.

Great job to the designers! But will the editorial side ever catch up?