iPhone: Testing the Limits of Usability
Ok, maybe I missed the whole iPhone hype by a couple of weeks, but I'm beginning to feel that I can't even claim to be a usability specialist without having an opinion on Apple's latest wonder device. The fundamental problem is that, as a technology guy, I'm kind of a luddite. I'm too practical to be an early adopter; I want something that works, not a gadget to impress my friends. That said, early word on iPhone usability is certainly solid, and that's good news, especially given the lousy interface design and even more heinous software on most cellphones.More generally, though, the iPhone reminds me of a question that comes up every time I see a new smartphone, Tablet PC, or other multipurpose device: when is usability a factor of design and when is it fundamentally constrained by the system? On the one hand, we've generally got plenty of room for improvement when it comes to device interfaces, and, while I'm no Apple fan-boy, they get a solid B+ for effort. I have an iPod and love it, primarily because it's just so darned easy to use.
On the other hand, there's just so much you can pack into a palm-sized device. The iPhone tries to do a lot, and much of it appears to be successful, but ultimately a 3.5" diagonal screen isn't something I want to surf the web or watch movies on. It'll work in a pinch, but it's not going to replace my laptop. At the extremes, this borders on being a usability issue; the usability of a device is fundamentally constrained by our biology. Technologically, a device the size of the iPhone will, over time, get a faster processor, faster internet connection, higher resolution screen, and longer battery life, but my hands are going to stay roughly the same size and my vision probably isn't going to improve. Ultimately, this means that any pocket-sized device, cellphone or digital watch is going to be limited by (1) its input device, and (2) its screen. Great design can push the limits on both of those, but I have yet to see a tiny keyboard or tiny screen that really gets the job done.
Dr. Pete
· Thursday, August 2There are, admittedly, interesting alternatives on the horizon. I think we'll see something like that with display screens, eventually: either an eyepiece-based system or an externally projected system, such that a small piece of technology can reproduce what looks like a large display. That technology is in its infancy and has to be refined, but it'll hit the market eventually.
A bunch of people have experimented with so-called "chord" keyboards, where a few buttons (one for each finger, basically) can be combined to form all of the keystrokes. They're small and relatively efficient, but the learning curve is just too high for most people. As badly designed as our current keyboard is, it'll be a long time before we give it up, practically speaking.
10th_life
· Thursday, August 2It's not Apple who is doing it, and you probably know about this already, but one of my students did a report on virtual keyboards--keyboards that will be projected and then work like a kiosk????? I'm not sure the ETA on such devices. Her report, though, compared many different options for keyboarding with portable devices (portable keyboards that unfold, on screen keyboards, etc), and she recommends this, when it is ready.