Ironhack Exercise 03 — Design in Daily Life
Pre-work exercise for the UX/UI Lisbon Bootcamp April 2020
For my third and last pre-work exercise, I was asked to pick my top 3 best and worst user experiences with digital and physical products or services. Then I would have to find in those experiences the presence or absence of the design principles. So, in each case I followed the “10 Principles of Good Design”, by the designer Dieter Rams.
Best Experiences
Bic Lighter
Whenever I need to buy a lighter, I always go for the Bic. Even if I stop at a store and they don’t have Bic, I prefer to keep looking for one. The reason I do that is because Bic lighters are the most reliable lighters. I already bought cheaper and low quality lighters, and even Clipper lighters, which are pretty famous, and most of then will broke before the fluid is over. Besides that, Bic lighters also have the most steady flame, what makes then much more safer than the others. They are cheap, lightweight and fits perfectly in my hand (Zippo is reliable, but is heavy and expensive).
The simplicity of the Bic lighter aesthetic is also something that I really like (Bic lighter was in the exhibition “Shaping Modernity: Design 1880–1980”, displayed at MoMa). And, if good designs has to be long-lasting, Bic lighters have the same design since it was created, in 1973, only adding a few safety items. It’s innovative, useful, understandable, pretty and simple.
McDonald’s Self-Order Kiosk
The definition of “shut up and take my money”. There is a Medium article that says why the McDonald’s Self-Order Kiosk is a UX disaster. I disagree. For me, it is easy, intuitive, and self-explanatory. It’s so nice to actually see what you can buy and add (and for the business, that means more money in each order). Kiosks makes everything faster, and you can take your time to make your order.
Lately I always choose for the self-checkout service, not only in McDonald’s. But the reason I specifically chose this example, is because other self services are not so easy to use, like the Lisbon Metro Kiosk, that can be really confusing.
Eco Bottle
Eco is a movement that consists in using water refill stations with reusable bottles. Besides all the environmental advantages, like reducing emissions in the production and transport of bottles, and the easy to use refill system, the Eco Bottle itself has a really good design. It comes with a handle to make it easier to hold, that is really good especially for the 3 liter bottles (there is also a 1.5 liter version). Also there is a nice grip to hold the bottle from the side, when you are actually drinking the water. The material used has a UV filter, which “protects” the water, and the bottle can be cleaned. And, of course, being a refill system, it’s much more cheaper than regular water bottles.
Worst Experiences
This door lock at my Hostel
While I wait for the bootcamp to start, I’m working as a volunteer in a hostel in Lisbon. And the lock of the main door at the hostel it’s pretty confusing. I’ve lost track of the number of times that guests have problems with this lock. Often they try to push the button forward, when you actually have to slide to the left. Many guests also try to push the light switch next to the door. In my first month in the hostel, I was using the key to open the door from the inside, until one day I saw the owner of the hostel just sliding the button to the left. Definitely it’s not the most understandable lock.
The Brazilian ID
The Brazilian ID is too big to fit in the wallet, so If you want to carry around, you have to put in your pocket or backpack/purse. The problem with this is that is really easy to damage the ID, because it’s made of paper. It has a plastic cover that doesn’t help much and also gets damaged with time. It’s really common to see people carrying the Driver’s License instead of the ID (which are also made with paper, but are smaller and fits inside the wallet). But if you don’t have the driver’s license, or if you are a kid, you have to pay for an authenticated smaller copy of the ID. Even so, there are some places, like nightclubs, that doesn’t accept this authenticated copy, only original documents. Not really innovative or useful.
Instagram Browser Version
The browser version of one of the most used apps in the world it’s not the most useful tool. The IG browser doesn’t allow you to use the DM neither watch live videos. In order to do that you have to download Chrome extensions or the Instagram PC version. The browser version also doesn’t allow you to upload pictures directly from your computer. To do this you have to follow some really weird steps, like inspecting the page to open the developers window and manually switch to the mobile version, which solve the problem but it’s not really a solution for everyone, since many people not even know that this is possible.
Want to learn more?
If you’d like to become an expert in UX Design, Design Thinking, UI Design, or another related design topic, then consider to take an online UX course from the Interaction Design Foundation. For example, Design Thinking, Become a UX Designer from Scratch, Conducting Usability Testing or User Research — Methods and Best Practices. Good luck on your learning journey!
Thanks for reading :)
