Posts

More screens equal better interfaces

Posted by Jaan on December 6th, 2009 | Add your comment

I see more screens in our future. Screens with specific uses, like the Kindle or the Nook. And screen based “readers” for content from publishers like New York Times and Condé Nast. Or even screens created by publishers.

When screens are intended for a single purpose I’d like to think we will see better user interfaces. If devise X is made to access and interact with content Y, then interface Z can be well though through, highly functional and relevant. That’s what I am hoping for. Here are three reasons why I might be right, one for each category of stakeholder.

Audiences will have high expectations on a device that mimics something familiar, like a book or a magazine (the early feedback on the original Kindle was deservedly harsh).

Newspaper and magazine publishers can not afford to get it wrong (the clever ones will involve a UX team from day one to increase their chances of getting it right).

The relative simplicity of some of these screens will allow manufacturers to make improvements faster than they would on PCs or smartphones.

It could all still go horribly wrong. But for now I’d like to think it won’t.

Ronnestam also posted about this subject over the weekend. I recommend reading it.