Design Review: Warby Parker Virtual Try-On
Online retailer Warby Parker recently unveiled a feature that has been in the works for several years: virtual try-on. Overall, the feature is impressive and easy to use, with one major hangup being that it is exclusive to iPhone X users.
First Use
I was expecting to be introduced to the new feature a bit sooner in the process. Perhaps there was a good reason to sequence the pop-up after some initial binary decisions have been made by the user, but I was so eager to start “trying stuff on” that I didn’t care whether I was wearing sunglasses, “Men’s” glasses, or glasses for dogs. Additionally, the pop-up is only informational, in that it doesn’t bring you to the next step in accessing the tool. Maybe some of these flow decisions were made knowing that a large percentage of users wouldn’t have access to the feature, but couldn’t they detect the phone model in advance?
With that said, it’s only two taps to receive the pop-up, so it’s not that big of a deal. After dismissing the pop-up, “All Eyeglasses” are presented to the user to scroll through, search, filter, shop by collection, whatever your heart desires as a method of discovery. I’ve had my eyes on the new Leith collaboration, so I went to “Collections” first.
The first thing I notice is the use of blue to indicate action. The top blue space allotted, reading “Pull down for Virtual Try-On,” is aided by the visual cue
( — ) on the rounded card. These are subtle ways of introducing gestures to the user that may need to be learned.
The user is met by a “Quick note” on privacy and camera access, which I think is written in a way that matches the WP brand and effectively gets the message across.
Virtual Try-On
Okay, I’m obsessed. The wait time for the glasses to appear on your face is practically nonexistent. The AR rendering is really convincing, and the ease at which you can switch glasses is delightful. I really dislike the process of physically picking up and trying on glasses in stores, so the ability to see all my options without having to worry about dropping the glasses, smudging them, or waiting for someone else to step away from the mirror is much appreciated.
Plus, I can screenshot any glasses I am considering as options, which saves me the embarrassment of trying to take multiple selfies in public. The screenshot has the name of the glasses underneath, so there’s no looking back through photos and wondering, “What were those frames called?”
UPDATE: I just realized that there’s a camera icon in the top righthand corner, that takes the photo for you and then prompts you to share it. This is a lot easier than taking a screenshot, and the image retains the product name. I think the location of the icon could be closer to the other actions, and it could have more visual prominence on the screen.
Another aspect that I appreciate is the image depth/ability to view the arm detail of the glasses. It breaks a little if you turn your head too far, but that didn’t really bother me.
One critique I have about the accessibility of the experience is the size and spacing of the color options. I think the color choices could be larger and have more space between each to make tapping easier for users with larger hands. This also applies to the heart/favorite function.
Conclusion
I think Warby Parker nailed it with this feature, and after so much time developing and testing it, I kind of expect nothing less. The experience is delightful and exactly what I want from a company that is primarily an online retailer (I’m spoiled in Boston with access to three retail stores). I’ve already shared several frame options with my Mom and partner to get feedback on their favorites.
If Warby Parker could make some small tweaks to address the tappable areas of the color selection and heart, I think this would be an A+ experience. That, and making the feature accessible to users sans iPhone X.
What are your thoughts on the experience of the Virtual Try-On feature? Are there any glaring UX/UI problems that I missed?
