Reflection Point: Product Design

Products have inserted themselves into our lives probably back when human ancestors discovered fire. Contrasted with today, products still exist but they come in many different forms, physical and digital being the most common. There are many ways to categorize a product: useful, great, bad, terrible, irresistible, etc. I wont go into what makes a product bad, but rather, what makes a product good.
What Makes A Product Good?
A product that is good will bring value to the user. The term good can vary from product to product and user to user but having value to a user is what is important. Value can be measured in many forms such as providing happiness, is memorable, or is functional. I don’t believe that a good product is perfect as a perfect product does not exist. A good product will not replace another similar product but can be used in conjunction. It is designed to be practical. It is designed to provide a pleasant experience. So what product do I consider to be just good?

Google Maps is one such product that fits my definition of being a good product. The idea of google map is simple: to provide a digital map that can provide navigation, suggest point of interests, and functions as a traffic guide. The goal was to replace previous GPS standalone devices such as the TOM TOM by providing a similar experience but straight from your mobile phone. It is designed to be as intuitive as possible so instructions are not needed. Aesthetically, google maps looks exactly what it is suppose to look like, a map. Thats a huge plus.
Now why is Google map considered to be just only good? In my opinion, this app is not a perfect map solution and has a few drawbacks. The first problem is that navigation is not always accurate. The app may navigate to the correct destination but I have encountered situations where it has taken me on a longer or unusual route. Another issue is that if cell service is not available, you may not have an accurate map. For instances where I need real-time information about traffic or road incidents, I had to use another app, Waze, in conjunction with google maps.
What makes a product Great?

A great product provides great value to the user. It is intuitive and simple. It is designed elegantly. It solves a problem where an existing product would been able to solve. The product injects itself in the users daily lives without them thinking twice about it. If Google Maps were to go from being a good product to a great product, this is what it would take. Google maps would have to be the sole product that will replace all other map application, gps devices, and old physical maps. It will blend in seamlessly to the users daily life without them ever questioning any design choice or functions. It will work as the user wants it to work without any hassle, distractions, or problems. It will work even if you have no cell signal and will not give you rouge directions.
Google maps will never become a perfect navigation solution, as I stated before, there are no perfect product. Yet these changes will push Google maps to become closer to the idea of being a perfect product.