Changing Color

Observational research

The original remote control was the starting point for this redesign project. To evaluate the usability of the remote, participants were invited to complete several assignments in a special set-up room.

First, they were asked to explain the meaning of the different buttons on the remote control. This gave insight into what concepts with regards to color and light they were already familiar with, such as brightness, but also what was unclear such as saturation.

Next, they were asked to perform specific tasks under observation. Although the assignments in themselves were simple, the participants experienced a lot of difficulties.

• Understanding of the difference between hue and saturation

• The functionality of the different buttons

• Difference between the upper set of buttons and the lower set of buttons

• Losing track on where they are in the color spectrum

• Unable to efficiently navigate to the correct color

Concepts

After the first round of ideation, 3 concepts were developed and evaluated with participants using a cognitive walkthrough.

The concept that passed user evaluation with the best results was the 'Play' (version 1) concept. It was designed to resemble a game controller and encourage playing with color and light. This concept was innovative due to its two physical discs that had a small overlap in the middle. The color in the overlapping area matched the color output of the lamp. This solution made it very easy for the user to determine what action needed to be taken to get the desired outcome.

During concept evaluation, there were also some improvement areas identified. Although the playful look was appreciated, the participants indicated it would be more convenient if the remote control could be used with one hand. The memory function was not clear, but also not seen as an important requirement due to the ease of selecting colors with the new design.

Final concept

After another iteration of testing and redesign, we delivered our final proposal to the client.

Key improvements:

• The brightness button is integrated with the on/off switch. In functionality it compares to a dimmer switch used on regular lamps already known to most users

• Physical overlapping discs provide clear information to the user on what color and saturation light to expect and how to navigate to the desired color

• Effect of changing saturation clearly communicated

• Color segments instead of gradual colored transition to inform the user the color transition is not smooth

These results were obtained while keeping technology simple and relatively cheap which was one of the project requirements.