Tables of contents show mobile users an overview of the information on the page and allow them to easily access the piece of content that is relevant to them. Two possible implementations involve in-page links and accordions.
Applications native to smartwatch operating systems get used the most. Just because a new smartwatch app could offer basic functionality, it does not mean that users will find it valuable.
Smartwatches are for more than just receiving notifications and tracking steps. They afford at least 6 different types of interactions that users find useful.
Decorative images should not be used on mobile, as they lengthen the page and make it load more slowly. Use images only if they add informational value to your page.
Mobile-first web designs cause significant usability issues when viewed on desktop. Content becomes overly dispersed across long scrolling pages with expansive white space and enlarged images and fonts, making it difficult for users to consume and understand the information.
Accordions provide an overview of the whole page and mitigate the problem of long mobile pages, allowing users to directly access the content of interest.
Dark mode is popular, but not essential. Users like dark mode but maintain similar behaviors without it. They think about it at the system level, not the application level. If you choose to support dark mode, test your design to avoid common dark-mode issues.
Users who are blind or have low vision prefer dictation over typing with a keyboard whenever possible. Screen readers on touchscreen devices are restricted to a well-defined set of gestures which makes interaction more challenging than on computers.
Use word of mouth to recruit research participants who rely on screen readers. Conduct the study in person to help participants feel comfortable, and plan to record the screen-reader output.
Using a screen reader on mobile is challenging because users must access information sequentially and they cannot easily scan page content. Screen-reader users do not consider accessibility menus helpful.
Our Beijing-based user research team conducted a field study in automated restaurants that serve diners with no staff. Current designs have some advantages, but the UI is too complicated for customized ordering.
Unsure where to start? Use this collection of links to our articles and videos to learn how to write and present information that aligns with users’ needs and online behaviors.
Infinite scrolling through long lists of homogeneous items can lower interaction costs, but is less suited to support specific tasks such as finding a particular item.
Fifteen years from the original iPhone, the quality of mobile user experience has stabilized. Mobile standards have emerged and the lines between the mobile web and native apps are becoming blurrier.
Before users can use an AR app, they must often calibrate it first. Usability studies find many big problems in calibration designs that can prevent people from ever getting into the actual AR experience.
Tables of contents show mobile users an overview of the information on the page and allow them to easily access the piece of content that is relevant to them. Two possible implementations involve in-page links and accordions.
Decorative images should not be used on mobile, as they lengthen the page and make it load more slowly. Use images only if they add informational value to your page.
Accordions provide an overview of the whole page and mitigate the problem of long mobile pages, allowing users to directly access the content of interest.
Our Beijing-based user research team conducted a field study in automated restaurants that serve diners with no staff. Current designs have some advantages, but the UI is too complicated for customized ordering.
Infinite scrolling through long lists of homogeneous items can lower interaction costs, but is less suited to support specific tasks such as finding a particular item.
Before users can use an AR app, they must often calibrate it first. Usability studies find many big problems in calibration designs that can prevent people from ever getting into the actual AR experience.
No matter your screen size, some data tables will be too big for the screen. This problem is particularly common on mobile devices. Simple interaction techniques can help, but you may need to offer users more advanced features for information hiding and column reordering.
How to familiarize users with new user interfaces? Onboarding techniques include feature promotion, customization, and instructions. All must be kept simple.
Onboarding instructions that users must digest before they start using an app or other product require attention and effort and thus reduce usability. They should be avoided as much as possible.
Form filling and other user input on mobile devices such as smartphones can be awkward and error prone, but by taking advantage of the strengths of the phone, designers can improve the usability of these tasks substantially.
Virtual reality (VR) user interfaces are currently more difficult for users to manipulate than a traditional GUI, partly because of more degrees of freedom and partly because VR is still new, so people have less experience using it. Advice for how to employ usability studies to alleviate this problem.
Sliding hero images that rotate through a set of promotions, news, or the like on the top of web pages are often annoying to users and are definitely error prone, unless they are designed according to usability guidelines.
Simplicity depends on the capacity of the information channel and what's simple for one device, can be primitive or intricate for another, since screens are information channels with a limited capacity. When you're designing for multiple devices, don't go by common cliches like "simple is good."
App permission requests are an important part of the overall user experience, yet they are often neglected by app designers. Here are 3 tips for designing them well: get content, timing, and decision reversal right, or users will just say NO.
Social features (like online communities and experience sharing) are very popular in Chinese apps. This video offers examples and tips for adding social features to your product.
Applications native to smartwatch operating systems get used the most. Just because a new smartwatch app could offer basic functionality, it does not mean that users will find it valuable.
Smartwatches are for more than just receiving notifications and tracking steps. They afford at least 6 different types of interactions that users find useful.
Mobile-first web designs cause significant usability issues when viewed on desktop. Content becomes overly dispersed across long scrolling pages with expansive white space and enlarged images and fonts, making it difficult for users to consume and understand the information.
Dark mode is popular, but not essential. Users like dark mode but maintain similar behaviors without it. They think about it at the system level, not the application level. If you choose to support dark mode, test your design to avoid common dark-mode issues.
Users who are blind or have low vision prefer dictation over typing with a keyboard whenever possible. Screen readers on touchscreen devices are restricted to a well-defined set of gestures which makes interaction more challenging than on computers.
Use word of mouth to recruit research participants who rely on screen readers. Conduct the study in person to help participants feel comfortable, and plan to record the screen-reader output.
Using a screen reader on mobile is challenging because users must access information sequentially and they cannot easily scan page content. Screen-reader users do not consider accessibility menus helpful.
Unsure where to start? Use this collection of links to our articles and videos to learn how to write and present information that aligns with users’ needs and online behaviors.
Fifteen years from the original iPhone, the quality of mobile user experience has stabilized. Mobile standards have emerged and the lines between the mobile web and native apps are becoming blurrier.
AR features in mobile apps are plagued by usability issues such as poor discoverability and findability of items with AR, low-visibility instructions, or vague icons and signifiers.
Instructions for calibration should be clear, high-contrast, descriptive, and augmented with unambiguous visual examples. Users should be given explicit feedback about the results of their actions and about the progress of the calibration.
Mobile apps using augmented reality benefit from interactive walkthroughs that guide users through a simple AR experience. These walkthroughs should include information about what to expect, how to handle the device, and how to prepare the environment.
Whether you’re running in-person or remote research on AR apps, ensure that the test is safe for study participants, the task wording is easy to understand, participants know what to expect in advance of the session, and your recording equipment can capture the participant’s screen and their movements.
Unmanned restaurant services are gaining varying degrees of adoption in China. Still, there are glitches in the whole self-service flow and areas where human services cannot be replaced.
The Duo is a two-screen foldable mobile device that enables users to use two applications side by side, but most apps do not take advantage of the two screens. Support for information transfer from one app to the other is limited and multitasking within the same app is at times confusing.
Ecommerce AR tools are relatively new, so must be highly discoverable and easy to learn. Calibration issues run rampant, and users must dedicate focused attention to interact with this unfamiliar feature.
