What is Responsive Web Design?

Responsive web design (RWD) is a technique applied to to provide the best viewing experience to its users regardless of the size of the device being used.The term responsive web design is generally used to cover both adaptive and responsive methods.

Adaptive design Vs. Responsive design

An adaptive layout provides more control as it uses multiple fixed width layouts to display content at various breakpoints, however this assumes that certain devices will be optimised without consideration as to what future devices resolutions may be.

A responsive layout provides less control but uses fluid layouts so that the full screen can be used for all screen resolutions. This has the advantage that it will work for any future screen sizes however it provides less control over the design of the website.

Why your website should be responsive

Responsive design enables people on mobile phones, tablets and desktops to use a website in its optimal view. This means that the same content can be displayed on your website in different formats depending on screen space available, leading to increased usability.

Google has also recently make algorithm changes which means websites that are optimised for mobile devices will be rewards with a higher ranking than those that are built for desktop sized displays.

How Pilotbean use responsive web design to make better websites

At Pilotbean, we approach responsive design using the ?mobile first? technique, whereby we design and build with the smallest device in mind and then adjust the layout as more screen space becomes available on larger devices.

We build websites using both adaptive and responsive techniques depending on each of our clients requirements. If design requirements are strict then adaptive is usually the best approach whereas a responsive approach allows the website to be more flexible especially when content can be dynamic within a page template.