User centric mobile design and innovation with people
The mobile world is evolving quickly. As the devices are getting better, the user expectations are also growing - as well as the risk of frustrating the user with bad design. Idean was the first mobile design company in the world to utilize users as an integral part of mobile design processes. It’s actually quite logical: if you want to innovate the next big thing for the user, you need to incorporate the user as part of your innovation and design process.
Mobile application UI design
We design applications for various mobile devices and platforms, for example, S60 and S40. Designing for different mobile environments needs careful understanding of platform-level conventions and how people are using their existing devices. You can design a UI to a Motorola device, but the same design can’t be applied to S60 device - and vice versa.
Case: User centric mobile concept innovation
Basics
Our client had the need for information on meeting market desires the need for optimizing the user experience of their product. A user needs study with 12 users globally was conducted and resulted in follow-up workshops with the client and defining the user experience criteria.
Challenge
- Identify users’ current use patterns and their future needs in order to launch more desirable and unique products next year
- Create user experience requirements for all products in the future roadmap
- Bring the user data alive with innovative visualization
Actions
- Selected method: ”Moving with a magic thing” (user observation and participatory brainstorming in user’s own environment)
- Expert evaluation of client and competitor products
Results
- Reports and presentations describing and illustrating the users and their current usage and future needs
- Analysis of the user experience pros and cons of client’s own products as well as analysis of good and poor benchmark products
- User profiles – bringing the different users alive in the product development
- Multifunctional concept creation workshop, where some 20 concepts were created
- As a result, 12 concepts were put into preproduction and 5 of them will reach markets in two years
