Jakob Nielsen

iPad app usability better, but issues persist: report

A year ago, Jakob Nielsen’s firm, Nielsen Norman Group (NNG) looked at the usability of apps on the world’s hottest new computing device, the iPad. What it found: problem areas that create “significant user confusion.” The three most prominent: low discoverability, low memorability and accidental activation of UI elements.

At the time NNG conducted its study, the iPad was new, so it wasn’t unexpected to see that iPad apps were still rough around the edges usability wise. The tablet is a decidedly different device, and with no best practices yet developed based on real-world observation, developers of iPad apps were sort of left to experiment.

Mobile usability tips from Jakob Nielsen

Jakob Nielsen’s latest Alertbox post contains some useful tips on mobile usability, using a Korean pop music site as an example and making ten design changes to improve it. 

These changes provide some useful tips for mobile sites in general, but are especially relevant publishers and aggregators like NewsNow to make their mobile interfaces more appealing and clickable to users. 

User testing reveals iPad usability flaws

The iPad is selling like hot cakes. Already, Apple has sold more than 1m of the tablet devices.

But how does the iPad stack up in terms of usability? According to a
study conducted by Jakob Nielsen and his firm, Nielsen Norman Group,
there’s room for improvement.