Touchscreens Out - Display Keys In

One of the influences that drove me out of the communications field and into usability was my experience with the first Xbox. I was very comfortable with the original Nintendo and the Sony Playstation, but the Xbox came with a big, bulky controller. For someone with small hands, it was difficult to hold for more than a few minutes – heavy, awkward, and I wondered why a controller needs more than a couple of buttons. I haven’t touched an Xbox in about five years because of the negative experience with the original controller. Perhaps I’m partly to blame for not researching if a smaller controller is available but my opinion was set in stone. The Xbox seemed to be developed for the adult male, women and children not allowed.

Recently, I received my August copy of Appliance Design magazine with a drawing of an Xbox controller on the cover. It was a little different and not branded as Xbox or Microsoft and I was curious. Remembering my disdain for large controllers, I hoped this article was discussing new game controller designs. Perhaps they would change the shape just a little bit, just enough for me to grab on and play for hours and hours.

This post seems like it will discuss the ergonomic aspects of the Xbox controller, but really it will do just as the enticing Appliance Design cover did – lure me in but discuss a completely different topic. Actually, the article didn’t have anything to do with the shape and size of the product. I was just lured in by memory and recollection of a past situation. Don’t blame the magazine for my sudden blog post topic switch. Blame me.

The topic of the article was actually intriguing and one of interest to me as a user research analyst. Richard Babyak discusses the idea of embedding displays on buttons and keyboard keys. His point that designers have spent a lot of time trying to push consumers on touchscreens reminds me of the appliance study I worked on with Anind. The reality is that while as designers, we want to push the limits and not force people to keep doing what they’re used to, if we don’t consider what works well about the present design, the future design may fail. What works with traditional button design is the tactile feedback. Touchscreens don’t offer that.

The Appliance Design article, Keys to Engagement discusses the innovation of United Keys’ concept of “display keys”. Babyek talks about use for this design for the restaurant industry. In fast food, often there are special cooking buttons. Press chicken sandwich and the oven knows what temperature and how long to cook the chicken. When the restaurant adds new food options, it can be an expensive hassle to change the system. With display keys, the change could happen remotely. Someone would program the new display and through a network update, the button would show a new label or icon. Chicken sandwich could become fish sticks or cheeseburger, or any other oven-task.

I love the idea of keeping the tactile feedback of the button but using display labeling. The added benefit I see with this concept is that labels won’t rub off, stickers won’t slough off, and the image could glow to be visible in low-light situations.

Image courtesy Gary Anderson.

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