To bring the ventilator and the radio closer together (look), I started to work out a new stand for the ventilator. It has the same rounded edges as the radio (comparison here) does and will soon also be painted white.
Tag: radio
Video Documentation: Radio User Tests
Video Documentation: Radio User Tests from Jones Merc on Vimeo.
And finally some video material from the last user tests. Main focus lies on showing the problem with the volume adjustment (imaginary rotary knob). The video shows a part of a discussion where another proposal for the volume adjustment was brought up. It also shows a first implementation in use.
Radio 2.0
New and simpler shape.
New Radio
After revising the shape of the radio, I came up with a more reduced and simpler appearance. The current progress is visible in the pictures above. A wooden block as a core and only few controls attached to it. To make the speaker covering, I had to come up with a clever idea how to generate a dot-pattern in illustrator.
This script emerged from this. Check it out.
User Tests with Radio Prototype
And at some point he (the programmed assistant) asks questions like «Did you know that other gestures exist?» That’s where I would like to answer, but no answer is expected by the machine. … That’s also confusing.
During the first complete user test with the music player a lot of interesting feedback came together. Beginning with things, which seem quite easy to resolve like the point above — the solution would be not to ask any questions, if the user can’t answer via gesture — going over to other simple statements («The music was too loud») and ending with more complex things like the question if and how much visual feedback is required to generate a pleasant user experience.
At the moment visual feedback is non-existent but substituted by acoustic feedback. Sounds for swiping, changing the volume and switching it on and off are provided. Still they are much more abstract, because the user first has to link a sound to a gesture or to an action respectively. Paired with faulty behaviour of the leap motion tracking device this leads to a lot of frustration. Some of it maybe can be replaced by redesign the assistant and it’s hints. (Maybe even warnings that the tracking is not 100% accurate).
Further user testing will give more insight if and how much the assistant should intervene.
Also, a deeper analysis of the video recordings taken from the test, will help improving the user experience.
Further notations:
- Text display sometimes too fast
- Sounds not distinguishable from music
- Swipe is the clearest sound
- Not clear why something was triggered
- Inaccuracy (maybe light situation was not perfect for leaps tracking)
- Assistant mostly taught the gestures correctly, sometimes the would not trigger due to technical constraints
- On/Off gesture was not found by chance (in comparison with the lamp where almost all users found the exact same gesture to switch it on or off)
Radio Lasercut Frame
To get a roundish — almost cute — shape, I lasercut slices to achieve a very organic form. I intend to stick them together and sand the edges down until I obtain a smooth surface. The shape will then stand on for small posts. The look will be similar to the one of the small foam model.
Radio Miniature Model
The shape for the radio object should be like the one in the model. Or at least similar. Very few controls, to not confuse the user about functionality (few controls = few gestures). I’d like the shape to be roundish, a little like the colored iMacs. The object should not feel too technical, because there is already a big step between the current radios and gestured controlled radios – which is based on technical changes. By making the object rounder I intend to increase the feel of talking to something «smart», something alive.