Bad User Experience in daily life and how to solve it
Guess what? Even big companies like Apple and Netflix aren’t flawless. Let’s explore 6 bad UX that lead to frustrations, how designers could make it better, and what lessons we can learn from these.
1. Multiple accept calls buttons on Apple
Imagine you’re in the middle of an important call when suddenly another call comes in. How do you react? In my case, I’m instantly distracted. I’m struggling to concentrate with the person I currently talking with. It’s like being in the game show. I have to decide quickly whether I should accept or reject the incoming call.
How to solve it? Understand what users’ really need in this situation, instead of bombarding them with some options. Giving fewer options to users would help users to choose faster.
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2. TV remote
After a long day of work or study, all you want to do is chill and watch TV. But your TV remote makes you think about what button to click. Why does it look more like a rubric cube than a simple device to change channels?
How to solve it? Designers can prioritize commonly used functions. This can get rid of unnecessary buttons. Later, do usability research to validate and get users’ feedback on what to improve.
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3. Autoplay in Netflix
I clicked a movie that I might be interested in watching. Then suddenly “BAAAM” the trailer of a horror scene shows up with creepy music. I jumped from my seat, completely shocked. My nightmare just started.
How to solve it? Let’s not forget about users with anxiety disabilities. Unexpected loud noises can trigger distress. So, giving users control over what users see and hear could create a better experience. By adding a play button, we can decide whether we watch the trailer or not.
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4. Delete sent message feature on Whatsapp
After you send a message to someone on WhatsApp, you realize “whoopssss” you sent it to the wrong contact. You immediately delete it, but that contact can see that you sent them a message. They question what did you just sent them. Now you both are in an awkward situation.
How to solve it? Make sure this feature’s function matches with users’ expectations. Users might want this feature to allow them to delete messages without any trace for the users and the recipient. But again, user research such as usability test or survey could help to improve this feature.
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5. Miss Universe annoucement
In 2015, a famous incident happened live on TV during Miss Universe pageant. The presenter, Steve Harvey accidently announced the wrong winner. Was it a human error? yes. But this human error was caused by a bad design of announcement card.
The card showed information that was not easy to understand. Lack of hierarchy.
This scenario might happened during the announcement. The presenter didn’t see the winner part:
How to solve it? Use hierarchy in the announcement design. By adding hierarchy on text size, text weight, colors, and maybe icons.
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6. Apple TV remote
At the start, I mentioned how I can get frustrated with using remote TVs that look like rubric cubes. Now, let me complain again (whoops) about my experience using Apple TV remote.
Simple and classy look? yes. It’s much much more simple and classy with its glossy look. But I still get frustrated to use it.
First, when I watch a film in a dark living room, I hardly see the button labels. Secondly, I often hold the remote upside down since the size is symmetrical, so I often accidentally press the wrong button. Third, its small size and slippery surface. There are some moments when the remote slips through my grasp or suddenly disappears between the blanket and the couch.
Oh, I won’t forget how sensitive the button is. When I enjoy watching a film and I accidentally press a button. The movie can suddenly stop or unexpected action happen on TV. Therefore I need to put the remote far from me to avoid these accidents. But hey, it’s not practical to put the remote far huh? Oh gosh, I have too many complaints about this product. Annoying experience yet funny tho.
How to solve it? Good design is about helping users. What’s the point if it’s simple but confuses users? With their big budgets and many UX researchers, I’m pretty sure Apple can improve this remote. They could maybe improve it by making the size bigger so that it’s easy to grasp.
Alright, that’s all about my complaints, the examples of bad UX, and how we might solve it.
I will write more articles about UX/UI here on Medium. Cheers.
#apple #whatsapp #ux #badux #userexperience #netflix
