ExperienceLab

Nike +… pain or gain?

I recently ran the 10km Bupa run in Central London and I couldn't have completed the run on event day or done as much training as I did without my Nike+ device. 

This device comes in two parts; one that plugs into the end of your iPod and the other part is a sensor that fits onto your shoe. So it is basically like a pedometer that you can control through your iPod. This is a fantastic device that records your distance, time, and calories burnt and other pretty useless but fascinating information about your run whilst you listen to music to spur you on. It even has a congratulations message from Tiger Woods when you record a personal best – feel free to take that as a positive or negative feature!

However, there are aspects of the Nike+ device that irritate me. These are usability defects that probably would only occur in a running situation, but given it’s designed to be used in just that way it doesn't really bode well! 

Dyson instructions not a design strong point

Trying to hurry up and finish household chores over a weekend isn't much fun, especially if your  tools aren't working as they should. In our case we noticed our Dyson hoover was not cleaning properly. We contacted Dyson, who identified the problem over the phone and sent us the necessary replacement parts. We were assured the parts would be easy to replace ourselves.

The parts arrived boxed up but with no instructions, except this:

   So we were presented with the task of working out how to detach the current hoover parts and replace them with new ones.  There were three parts we needed to fix to the bottom of the hoover.

iPad Launch: The Queue

On Friday the 28th of May, at 8am, the iPad was finally available to buy in the UK. On Thursday evening I went to the Apple Store to see who was already in the queue and to find out why they were so excited about getting an iPad. There weren't that many people waiting but when I returned on Friday morning the queue had turned the corner of Regent Street and hundreds of people were waiting, eager to buy an iPad.

Watch the video below to see what people thought of the iPad shopping experience and why they couldn't wait to get their hands on the iPad.

(Watch this space for part 2 of this blog, where we'll be reviewing our very own iPad!)

When you can't judge a book by it's cover

Whilst on holiday last week I came across Mokoto Rich’s NY Times article In E-Book Era, You Can’t Even Judge a Cover. Rich discusses how changing reading habits since the advent of Kindles and iPads begin to make the book cover obsolete, making it less easy to learn from what others are reading and demonstrate your own reading tastes.

Silver Sat Navers

Over the holidays it was the ideal time to visit friends and relatives, as everyone seemed to be on a break. My Mum and Nan, in particular, wanted to visit family in west London. So, not wanting to be the family’s permanent chauffeur service during my time off… I handed over the satnav.

While identifying the main roads wasn’t going to be an issue, the destination was in an unfamiliar part of town, and so that’s where the satnav was to come into play.

 

 

With mum at the wheel, they headed off from East London on the A406 towards some random part of Southall, using the satnav but not really paying closer attention until they had to locate the specific address. When it was time to make the return journey they set the satnav to go home…except now here’s the problem.

They wanted to return via the same route used to get to their destination because they knew the main roads that they needed to get to. However, a journey that should have taken maybe an hour, took three hours.

The satnav unhelpfully programmed itself to drive through central London. Mum didn’t think she needed to check the details of the route the satnav had planned for them as it took them through the A406, which was the ideal route, and just started driving. As they were unfamiliar with the destination area they trusted the satnav to take them home. What they really wanted was for the satnav to remember the route.

Why can’t satnavs be programmed to remember routes? Why can’t I save a journey? Why can’t it remember the route I want to travel by? Consequently, Mum's driving home, now even more confused when following the satnav, not realising until it’s too late that they will end up central London with a diabetic Nan in the car cursing the satnav. That’s an awful long time especially when it’s not expected.

Although, I am quite reliant on my satnav, it would be great if I could save a route. I just want it to take be somewhere and bring me back the same way. At least that would help me remember the route too...it’s just not as simple as I want it to be.

Apple's iPad Tablet - Take Two

Well earlier this week I was speculating about the price of the Apple tablet, hoping that it would be somewhere between iPhone and Macbook pricing. Well it looks like it will be reasonable value after all. Or will it?

Windows 7 Startup won't let me be me!

I bought a cute little Windows 7 startup netbook over the holidays. I only really need it for surfing the web and iTunes and that sort of thing. In all honesty, whilst shopping around I would have much preferred to buy a Mac, now that I use one for work. However, the netbook suited my budget.

Now that I have it, the most irritating thing that Windows could possibly do is to prevent me from personalising my desktop. What’s that about? One of the first things most people - well I - do is change the background so its more ‘me’! I have Googled the problem and I know there is a work around but why should anyone have to do that… Windows. Grrr!!!

Just in case you're interested...I'd have this piece of cuteness as my desktop background:

 

Apple Tablet - a difficult pill to swallow?

In a few hours Apple are likely to announce a new category of product - the iTablet. Or iSlate or iPad depending on who you believe.  Whatever the name the device is generating a lot of excitement even before any announcement. Lots of commentators are speculating about the likely design and the potential functionality. Will it be a media player, an internet browser, an e-reader, a games machine or all of these things. What kind of screen will it have, LED or OLED? How big will it be? Will there be a range with several models available?

This is all very interesting but I am beginning to worry about one detail in particular. The price. You see if the rumors of a $1,000 price point are true, and let's face it that could mean £1,000 in the UK, then I think there is problem. It seems to me that the acceptable pricing range is defined by two other types of Apple device already on the market - the iPhone and the Macbook laptops. In the UK the iPhone 3GS can be purchased for about £400 and the Macbooks start at around £800. I would expect the tablet to cost more than an iPhone but I would also hope that it does not cost more than the available Macbooks. If the price is close to or even more than the fully-functional (and portable) laptops Apple also sells then the value of the tablet device could be difficult to get across to potential buyers.

As I say it is a worry however I will still want one because I have that certain Apple / Mac illness and there is no known cure.

What will TV be like in 2020?

The rapid changes in consumers’ viewing habits brought about over the last decade by such services as Sky+ and Freeview show what can change in a short period in the TV domain. VOD and IPTV services through a set-top box have also emerged over the last decade but have been slower to make real changes to viewing habits. However, their impact is set to accelerate over the next decade. User interest in VOD is definitely present (as high usage of BBC iPlayer suggests) but ‘discovering’ content in broad VOD libraries, particularly on a TV screen, (or even thinking to consider VOD content instead of on broadcast channels) requires a substantial change in user behaviour. This change will only be brought about by UIs that really take account of user needs and so facilitate this change.

Touching designs

I recently bought a new lamp (like the one in the picture) that might have been inspired by the latest generation of touch control interfaces.

You see there is a very easy way to turn the lamp on – you simply touch the base. In fact, repeated touches allow the brightness to be changed and the lamp to be turned on and off.

I like the simplicity of this. A lot. I also wonder what other types of products and devices in our lives could respond to touch. Instead of using switches and fumbling over buttons perhaps we could change the way we interact with a range of things so that they respond to touch and gestures?

What about remote controls and televisions? Hi-fi equipment? Kitchen appliances? Which devices could lose the buttons? Alternatively are there devices that need to keep the buttons? Let us know.