I'm frustrated by how prevalent this sort of thing is in design articles.

this approach [...] surprises users

...

A button that turns from gray to fully colored is an unexpected change that makes users wonder what just happened

...

As the disabled button transitions to its enabled state, the new appearance won’t catch users off-guard

These are all definitive statements - but there is no evidence presented to support them. This is exceedingly common when discussing design, both on a large and a small scale.

If these statements are backed by research, then I think that would make them extremely compelling. But as far as I can tell, they're not; rather, they're probably just one designer's opinion, presented as fact. I'm not even disagreeing with this opinion, necessarily. But if you are presenting your opinion in writing, I feel that it's important to make it clear that it is your opinion. And If you are presenting research-based findings, by all means provide the research.

"Why You Shouldn't Take Authoritatively-toned Articles At Face Value"

At this point, I consider every article from this website spam.

This article doesn't show any evidence. It's just opinionated.

A good demonstration would be to show results, like "we tested the form with the gray button, 66% of the users thought X". Instead, it bases all the premise on the author bias, therefore, you are reading their logic. Like the greatest book ever: "Everything is obvious", your common sense is not the same as mine.

There was plenty of articles talking about putting the CTA button on the top, green color over red, and other people proved this was a false, logically biased premise. I've read blog posts about CTAs at the bottom converting better than at the top. This is the problem with UX articles, they're based on logical fallacies and not conclusive data.

Generally, disabled buttons are not good practice. Transparent disabled buttons are not an improvement by any means.

The article is nonsense, and should be removed. The biggest problem with it is that it's based entirely off an incorrect idea.

Form buttons should not be disabled at all. They should remain enabled, so that when a user clicks the button, there is the opportunity to display information for the user to complete the required fields in order to proceed.

A transparent button blends into the background more, while a gray one remains in the foreground (unless the background is gray).

blends into the background - rendering the text unreadable. Awesome.

Foreground elements are more noticeable to users. They tend to view them as interactive, which means they’re more likely to interact with a grayed out disabled button.

Users are supposed to be encouraged to interact with a form button. That's entirely the purpose of a form button. Once a user reaches the button, they should interact with it. And if they try to interact with it before completing all required fields, you should check to ensure you have enough signals to indicate what is, and is not a required field.

That simple form usability guideline aside - just look at the contrast on the disabled button from this article! Talk about accessibility failure.

Button-contrast

Users can easily mistake a grayed out disabled button for a secondary call to action. Or, worst-case scenario, they can mistake it for a poorly designed button with low color contrast.

So you're aware of contrast, and how it works - yet you are suggesting a transparent button that blends into the background?... Wow

By following this technique, you’ll make your disabled buttons look disabled without giving users any surprises. Instead, the only surprise they’ll get is how smooth and seamless your interface is.

I hope people do not follow this technique, and instead take advice from websites like nngroup, or sites like this or this

All I'm seeing in the comments is that you're presenting personal experience and opinions as facts and that you should have some sort of evidence. I don't even think that's the main problem. I am used to reading articles from random designers as 'opinions' or 'thoughts' anyway. I think that what you're saying is one option of dealing with this problem, but not the only way.

The problem is that you come across as a bit of an arrogant prick to anyone that disagrees with your article or the way you're presenting it. From all these comments here and on your article there's probably a combined total of 100 years of experience.

From every test I’ve ever ran users will try and click on the button when they think that’s the next choice for them regardless of style. If the action isn’t clear or they’re frustrated they key on the label — not the styling. I would put more stress on the importance of consistency within a visual system. If you dim disabled buttons then dim all disabled buttons. Same w greying.

As a side note I've learned from previous mistakes designing sign up forms that disabling buttons is generally less understandable than letting the user click the button and then showing them any form errors that need correction. Because of this the examples in this article aren’t great.