Adobe xd: designing and prototyping user experiences (legacy status)
Adobe XD was a popular vector-based design platform for creating user interfaces (UI) and user experiences (UX), developed and published by Adobe Inc. It allowed designers to create wireframes, mockups, interactive prototypes, and share design specs with developers, integrating tightly with the Adobe Creative Cloud ecosystem. However, it’s crucial to note that Adobe has announced it is no longer actively developing new features for XD, placing it in maintenance mode. While still usable, its future is uncertain amidst fierce competition, notably from Figma (ironically, a planned Adobe acquisition that fell through) and Sketch. Despite its legacy status, understanding its past capabilities and challenges remains relevant for many teams still using it or migrating away.
The challenge: competition and market evolution
One of the primary challenges XD faced was the rapid rise of collaborative, cloud-based design tools like Figma. While XD offered coediting, Figma’s real-time collaboration features and cross-platform (web browser) accessibility gave it a significant edge, especially for distributed teams. XD’s plugin ecosystem, while present, was often seen as less mature than Figma’s or Sketch’s. This competitive pressure undoubtedly contributed to Adobe’s decision to scale back development. The UI design software comparison is essential when choosing the right UI/UX design tool.
Prototyping capabilities: simplicity vs. complexity
XD offered solid basic prototyping tools, allowing linking between screens, creating simple transitions, and auto-animate features. This was sufficient for many use cases. However, for highly complex prototypes with advanced conditional logic, variables, or detailed state management, specialized tools like Axure RP offered more power. Other tools like InVision were also often used in tandem for deeper user testing or developer handoff, although XD improved its own sharing features over time. These capabilities fall under Online prototyping tools.
Integration within adobe ecosystem vs. openness
XD’s strength lay in its integration with Photoshop and Illustrator, enabling easy import and editing of assets. However, for teams not heavily invested in the Adobe ecosystem, or requiring deep integrations with non-Adobe tools, this could be less of an advantage. Cloud-based tools like Figma often offered more flexibility regarding APIs and third-party integrations. Linking design assets (vectors from Adobe Illustrator or rasters from Adobe Photoshop) was a key feature.
Design system management
XD allowed for the creation of reusable components and Creative Cloud Libraries to manage design system elements (colors, typography, UI components). However, managing very large, complex design systems, syncing them with code, and ensuring consistent adoption by large design and development teams remained challenges, as with most prototyping and design tools like Balsamiq (for low-fi).
Brandeploy: managing marketing content *informed* by xd designs
Brandeploy does not directly intervene in the UI/UX design process carried out in Adobe XD (or Figma/Sketch). Our role lies downstream. Once the UI is designed and validated in XD, Brandeploy helps create the *marketing and sales collateral* that promotes that app or website. UI elements designed in XD (icons, illustrations, styled screenshots) can become managed assets within Brandeploy (centralization and control of brand assets) and incorporated into templates (content automation) for creating ads, landing pages, presentations, etc. Brandeploy ensures this derivative marketing material adheres to the overall brand governance platform rules.
While Adobe XD is in legacy mode, its UI/UX design principles remain relevant. To manage the marketing content that stems from your UI/UX designs (regardless of the tool), explore Brandeploy. Discover how we ensure brand consistency in your derivative collateral. Schedule a demo.
