Usability is a term that describes how gratified a user is with a product, both in terms of its competence and pleasure derived from using the product. ISO 9241–11’s three factors of usability have recently become five in by ISO 25010’s quality in use factors:
-Effectiveness
-Efficiency
-Satisfaction
-Freedom from risk
-Context coverage
Why it is Important:
A good design is the result of a decision informed by well-analysed data gotten from both the quantitative and the qualitative methods of research. The world is all becoming very “Data-driven”, and an efficient way to evaluate what is satisfactory to our users is by carrying out these pragmatic and hedonic tests. This is a sure way to find out if one is designing a better user experience or not.
There are several ways and metrics in carrying out usability evaluation but to decide a particular method, one has to determine the specifics to be measured.
Finally, we can all agree that technology is changing at such a rapid pace that it seems almost impossible to keep up. However, the interesting thing about usability tests is that the underlying principle of measuring user experience is consistent irrespective of any new update that comes with newer technology.
