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Expert design reviews
This is useful for quickly identifying potential user problem
areas in your design. It can be applied to any stage of your
design, from mockups to prototypes, and is usually done before the
design has been frozen as the intention is to find and fix problems
before release.
It is quick and more affordable because it does not involve users as
in a usability test. Instead, our experts will review your
design in
areas such as fit, feel, comfort,
safety, access, ease of understanding, design semantics, sequence of operations, user
interface interaction, potential user errors and consequences,
efficiency of operation and system performance. Design reviews
are more comprehensive than usability testing as more time is spent
reviewing the design in more detail. The drawback is that it
is not good at telling us how big the problem is or how many users
will encounter the problem.
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Usability testing
This is useful for identifying design
problems and the extent of those problems. It is also useful
for comparing between design alternatives for the purpose of selecting the best one. Tests usually involve 4-16 representative target users interacting
with the design to perform a representative set of tasks in a lab or
room environment where they can be observed. Users may
be asked to complete questionnaires, rating scales and interviewed
for their comments and suggestions about the design.
As with design reviews, the purpose is to identify and fix problems
before release so the tests are usually done on design
prototypes. Typically, there will be 2 or more tests spread
throughout the development cycle, timed to when certain parts or
functions become available. These are tested as soon as they
have reached an adequate level of implementation for users to
interact with it, so as to get early feedback.
The drawback of usability tests compared to design reviews is that
it usually takes longer, costs more and tests are time-limited.
Users get tired, fatigued and less motivated if the tests drag on
too long. As such, only some of the functions and features can
be tested within the test duration. We can help you to plan
and design these tests, facilitate it and
analyze the results.
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