Improving the iPhone

 

Returning Calls
When in "Recent Calls" or "Visual Voicemail" view, the user has the option to view the caller’s details by pressing the arrow on the very right of each listing. This allows the user to view additional contact information and to see which phone number the contact used to make the call. Knowing the source is a handy bit of information especially if you have multiple phone numbers listed for a single contact.

For example, if my brother calls me from his cell phone during the morning commute and I return the call in the evening, I know he won’t be able to accept the call from his cell phone because it doesn’t get reception at home.

If I decide to return the call from the "Recents" or "Voicemail" screens the only bit of information the iPhone displays to me is the contact’s name. Clicking their name will place the call to the originating number even if I don’t want place it to that number. I can find out the source number used to make the call by clicking the arrow to the right of their name, where the iPhone handily highlights it. But that extra click gets annoying fast after frequent use.

One can take a gamble and click the name right away to make the call. The preceding screen labels the source number being dialed. But if it’s not the number I intended, then it requires a hang up and a search for the desired number. An easy resolution to this issue would be to display the source directly in the "Recents" and "Voicemail" screens. The "Favorites" screen already does this. And one might assume this would’ve been implemented in the other two screens had there been enough space. But clearly, there is not. This is where a symbol or icon can be useful. Even though the space is limited, it still allows for the small footprint of an icon to be added without the need to remove any of the existing important information.

 

 

 

 

Improving Predictability and Call Placement

 

I understand the iPhone is more than simply a phone. It has many other amazing functions that all work tremendously well. And they all deserve their respective attention. But placing a phone call from the iPhone can actually be quite burdensome. It’s kind of ironic, given its name.

From the moment the phone is removed from the pocket until the moment a conversation begins, the iPhone can require up to 7 steps of interaction before one can begin talking. Let’s review how. 

1. Click the Sleep/Wake button at the top or the home button to activate the phone.
2. Click and slide to unlock the phone.
3. If the home screen isn’t visible, click the "home" button to leave the current application. (This only applies if the user put the phone to sleep in a mode other than "home screen" or "phone". For example, waking it up to another application such as Safari.)
4. Click the phone icon.
5. Click the contacts tab (if not already active).
6. Locate and click the name of the contact to be called.
7. Click the desired number to place the call.

That’s a lot of interaction just to be able to use a product for what it was originally intended for—talking to someone. But the larger issue is the predictability of the wake function. The 7 steps isn’t always required. In fact, if one is lucky it can happen in as little as 4 steps, depending on the last mode the used by the iPhone. In order for one to be "lucky" it would simply require the user to have last used the device in "Phone" mode and left it in the "Contacts" screen. But relying on luck for efficiency, and ultimately, to make your users happy is by no means best practice.

 

Predictability and Repeat Tasks
Because the iPhone "remembers" the last-used function when going to sleep, the user is presented with that same screen when it’s awoken from sleep mode. The longer the iPhone sits in one’s pocket, the more difficult it is to remember what mode was last used and what’s going to appear on screen once it’s unlocked. This is important because it unwillingly forces the user to orient himself to the interface and react accordingly. While a simple click of the "home" button can quickly reorient the user, it still requires time to interpret the display of unexpected information and to make a decision.

Alternatively, if the interface remains consistent every single time the device is reactivated, no additional time is required to determine whether the current screen can be used or should be dismissed. The user can predict what will appear and over time memorizes where buttons are placed, along with their respective functions. What this means is that one can always expect the phone icon to be on the bottom left and quickly gesture towards that area of the screen every time the device is unlocked. A user can generally perform routine actions more quickly if all variables remain the same and without requiring much thought.

“The simplicity and regularity of the program make it easier to learn, easier to remember, and easier to apply correctly when a quick decision is required. ”

Kevin Mullet and Darrell Sano, Designing Visual Interfaces: Communication Oriented Techniques

Of course, the argument stands that the iPhone is handy enough to remember the user’s last function and conveniently displays that screen when unlocked. This becomes extremely useful if one needs to quickly use both hands to grab balance on the subway and get back to writing that important email once it has been regained. And there are clear advantages to this convenience beyond the example illustrated above. So which is the correct one? I won’t attempt to resolve that question here. I’ll simply attempt to increase predictability and reduce the number of steps of interaction.

 

A Step Towards a Solution
One way to provide predictability would be to place a "Contacts" (or Address Book) button on the home screen, similar to the iPod touch. Only in this version there would be no subsets/tabs like there are in the "Phone" mode—it would simply display all contacts. Doing so could provide some expectable behavior compared to the unpredictable mode of the "Phone"— a button click jumps around between the five tabs: Favorites, Recents, Contacts, Keypad, and Voicemail, depending on where the user last left the mode. This "Phone" mode can still retain all of these tabs, including "Contacts." The difference is that the "Contacts" button on the home screen would add the ability to place a call from its global list. Doing so would yield 4 steps of interaction and a certain sense of predictability in response to the "jumping tabs" experienced in "Phone" mode.

I was reminded by reader Josh H. that Apple has already implemented a feature to decrease the steps of interaction. The current version of the iPhone software introduced a preference setting allowing users to reach their "Favorite" contacts in very few clicks. Double-click the "home" button while the device is awake and from within any application it will redirect to the user’s list of "Favorite" contacts. One additional click will place a call. This also yields 4 steps of interaction. There are some limitations with this, though. First, one must have the iPhone already unlocked and active. Second, the listing is only a subset of a user’s contacts, not all of them. Of course it’s always possible to label everyone in your contact list as a favorite so they all appear on this screen, but that defeats the purpose of the category (and how long would that take to do, anyway?). A convenient option would be to allow the double-click to be mapped to the entire contacts list via a preference setting, in addition to the "Favorites" option. Unfortunately, this would increase the steps of interaction to 5.

 

The Power of 3
Four steps isn’t too bad and is certainly an improvement over seven, but I think it can be improved further. One of the great features introduced into the iPhone is the ability to double-click the "home" button to access iPod controls while the device is asleep. It keeps the interface simple yet increases the functionality all while retaining the same amount of buttons (less is more).

While I understand this is useful and that the iPod is part of the "Holy Trinity" (music, phone, and internet communications device), it can afford to take a back seat slightly for the purpose of improving call-placement. Rather than double-clicking for iPod controls, let’s use it to display the user’s contacts. In this mode, the phone is still locked except for some very select few functions (much like the iPod controls work today). One would still be able to flick and locate the desired contact. Clicking on the contact’s name will expand to reveal a list of phone numbers. Preceding each phone number is a familiar "slide to unlock" button. Sliding the button of the desired number will unlock the phone and place the call.

 

 

So let’s retrace the number of steps in the example I proposed above.

1. Double-click the home button to activate the phone. 
2. Locate and click the name of the contact to be called.
3. Click and slide to place the call and unlock the phone.

This solution yields a total of 3 steps. That’s over 50% a decrease in steps required to place a call compared to what’s sometimes required today if one is "unlucky". In addition to the decrease in steps, it also introduces something that’s currently missing altogether—predictability. And if the you really miss the iPod controls feature, it can always be made available with a click-and-hold of the "home" button.