"Reaction [beta]"
iPhone: Out of touch? 16 Jan 2007
Is a button-free interface really a good thing?
From Access 2.0's Paul Crichton:
"Apple's new iPhone has got people salivating about how sexy it is. However, it is hard to imagine anything that could make the iPhone less accessible than replacing the keypad with a touch screen -- a move that has interestingly brought quite a lot of praise for improving usability. That's fine while there is still choice in the market, but if this becomes the standard mobile, then what will that mean to everyone that has trouble using a touch screen?"
From Dan Saffer at Adaptive Path:
"I do have my reservations, however, mostly around, well, buttons. The new device has only one physical button, and while the simplicity and flexibility of having one/no buttons and only using 'soft' digital buttons is nice, I wonder how well that will work over time. As others have pointed out, 'non-mechanical buttons actually reduce the user experience rather than enhance it. Often because...static buttons are not used in a correct context and [they] lack two important things: tactile and haptic feedback.' I wonder if the iPhone will attempt to compensate for this, much like the Wii's controller slightly vibrates when you roll over a button. Without buttons, it's really just a smooth slab of plastic."
From Jason Fried at 37signals:
"There's an interesting tradeoff presented by the iPhone. While the phone can do more, and it's interface is fluid, in some ways it widens the gulf between human and computer.
"When you touch it, it doesn't touch you back.
"That may prove to be a good thing. It may prove that what we think we need we don't really need. The tradeoffs may payoff. But we've certainly lost the tactile feedback humans are used to when dealing with things that are right in front of us. Now the connection is simulated. Rich textures have been replaced with androgynous glass.
"How can you dial the iPhone without looking at it? How can you reach in your pocket and press '1' for voicemail? How can you orient yourself with the interface without seeing it? With a traditional phone or device with buttons you can feel your way around it. You can find the bumps, the humps, the cut lines, the shapes, the sizes. You can find your way around in the dark. Not with the iPhone."
From Roger Johansson at 456 Berea St:
"Whenever I use my mobile phone to write a text message or enter a phone number, the tactile feedback I get from the physical keys is quite important. It gives me that assuring feeling that 'yes, I did press that key'. Tactile feedback also makes it possible to operate a phone without looking at it all the time by feeling your way around the keypad, like when typing a text message while walking or during a meeting.
"I have two eyes that work reasonably well, so for me the lack of tactile feedback isn't a problem I can't overcome. But what about people who are not as lucky? If this phone is 'revolutionary', it should also work for people who can't see or are using it in less than ideal conditions, right?"
What do you think?
Related: Multi-touch vs. multi-gesture.
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7 comments so far
David Airey 16 Jan 2007 11:47 AM
I for one am happy with my current Nokia.
Yes the iPhone is sexy, but at the end of the day it's another gadget. If it brings people closer together that's great. I bring myself closer to people by face-to-face contact.
The amount of buzz over this device is staggering. Apple must be loving it!
Phil Bradley 16 Jan 2007 12:02 PM
I doubt that Apple would have removed the buttons had they done more research in European markets.
They seem to have missed the fact that people send millions of "secret" text messages every day - entering them by touch alone in classrooms, churches and business meetings while their device remains concealed from view. (My nephews can send texts without the device ever leaving their pockets!).
These types of covert manouevre will be impossible using an iPhone.
steve 16 Jan 2007 12:28 PM
The NYT's David Pogue - one of the few people outside of Apple to have actually laid his hands on an iPhone - says that typing on the iPhone is difficult because you don’t get any tactile feedback.
Emile 17 Jan 2007 05:56 AM
Ultimately, I would tend to agree with the most of the reviewers that the lack of tactile/haptic feedback is disconcerting. But it's an evolutionary step in phones and mobile device interfaces. More interesting, but less publicized are some of the gestures that make the device resize photos with a pinch of the fingers, scroll with momentum, etc. This kind of "gesturing" or creating symbolic shortcuts is what skyrocketed popularity with the Palm Pilot as such a neat mini device was capable of doing so much. The stricter black box nature of managing the software and the OS has become the undoing of that platform so it will be interesting to see what happens next with the Apple iPhone.
Simon 17 Jan 2007 03:00 PM
@David: Yes, the importance of the iPhone has definitely been overstated. At the end of the day, it's just another phone (albeit a very nice looking one!).
@Phil: You're right, the role of secret messaging has definitely been overlooked, which is interesting as it's probably worth millions to the telco industry.
@steve: There are plenty of examples of touch screen technology breaking down too. You only need to try the touch screen quiz machines found in most pubs to see this in action ("Aaargh...I can't press 'C'!"). I hope the iPhone is made of stronger stuff.
@Emile: The gestural responsiveness is certainly sexy and will no doubt drive up sales ... but the same accessibility issues remain. Does that make this "evolutionary step" a positive one? Over to you ;-)
I'm sure that Apple will see a voice-based UI as the answer to these types of problem, but that's questionable (it certainly won't afford blind users the ability to send messages in secret, for example!).
As you say, it will be interesting to see how the iPhone's black-boxing issues play out over time.
Sebhelyesfarku 18 Jan 2007 11:09 AM
Multitouch = two hand operation only.
kevstelo 11 Jun 2007 12:30 PM
I think I've read something simillar a few days ago. I don't remember where, might have been on digg.com or slashdot.