SoonGuide

Every Apple buyer asks the same question: should I buy this now, or is something better coming? Release cycles are well known but never certain, rumours contradict each other, prices are high, and buying a week before a refresh feels like a mistake you can’t undo.

The answers are scattered across rumour roundups, YouTube videos and buying guides that go stale. People don’t want another article. They want a verdict.

• A verdict before an explanation: the answer must be clear at a glance, with the reasoning there for anyone who wants it.
• Words, not scores: a 7.2 invites arguments; a clear label doesn’t.
• Trust: the advice has to feel independent, not like a retailer’s sales push.
• Freshness: verdicts change around Apple events, so people need to see when each one was last reviewed.

I reduced the decision to a four-state tag on every product: Recommended, Neutral, Wait and Avoid. Wireframing the product page around that tag kept the hierarchy simple: product, verdict, one-paragraph reason, then price, availability and the date it was last reviewed.

I designed the system in Figma on a consistent grid so the same card works in a browse list, a product page and the landing site. User flow prototyping covered the two main journeys: browsing a category, and checking one product just before buying.

SoonGuide covers 40 products. The home screen shows what’s trending and what’s about to go on sale, each with its verdict. A product page leads with the tag and a short, plain explanation, such as “A refresh is close. Let early reviews come in first”. Upcoming Apple events appear across the top, and a “Which should I buy?” helper guides people who aren’t sure where to start.

SoonGuide is live at soonguide.com and app.soonguide.com, and the work now is growth: reaching people at the moment they’re about to buy.

What I learned: simple outputs hide complex work, since a one-word verdict needs a careful method behind it. And timing is part of the product, because interest peaks around Apple events.