Metro Design

Metro is a typography- and geometry-focused design language created by Microsoft primarily for user interfaces. A key design principle is better focus on the content of applications, relying more on typography and less on graphics (content before chrome). Early examples of Metro principles can be found in Encarta 95 and MSN 2.0. The design language evolved in Windows Media Centre and Zune, and was formally introduced as ‘Metro’ during the unveiling of Windows Phone 7. It has since been incorporated into several of the company’s other products, including the Xbox 360 system software, Xbox One, Windows 8, Windows Phone, and Outlook.com under the names Microsoft Design language and Modern UI after Microsoft discontinued the name ‘Metro’ supposedly because of trademark issues.

Figure 3: An illustration of different components in Flat Design

Figure 2: WordPress theme showing the use of Metro Design