Gavin Lew invited to present User Centric's Apple iPhone research at UPA New Jersey Meeting

On January 23, 2008, Gavin Lew, Managing Director of User Centric, will present the series of User Centric iPhone studies to the New Jersey Chapter of the Usability Professionals' Association. User Centric's work on the iPhone has received a lot of attention as it was the first independent research conducted with iPhone owners in the United States. This presentation, entitled "Deconstructing Elements of the iPhone's Interface through Usability", will be the first opportunity to review and discuss our studies with American user experience professionals, product managers, and researchers. The chapter meeting will be held at 6:30pm EST at 131 Madison Avenue, Morristown, NJ.

Presentation Abstract:

The well-publicized launch of Apple's iPhone with its multi-touch user interface was the subject of a program of research conducted by User Centric. Many articles were written on the "wow" factor of the iPhone, but almost all reviews were based on opinion or anecdotal references. Our objective was to assess the iPhone's usability from a more rigorous user experience research perspective. In short, the goal was to assess performance, satisfaction, and usage employing quantitative and qualitative measures with actual users who were naïve to the testing objectives.

The results from this series of studies will be discussed in this session. With each study, key objectives were defined with specific measures, methodologies and participant groups to target device features and interactions. Each study will be described in detail with time for questions from the audience. The session will emphasize the text entry portion of the research and will include:

• Findings from studies with iPhone owners one week after the iPhone's U.S. product launch
• Findings from studies with iPhone owners after a month of experience
• Comparisons of performance with naïve / "walk-up-and-use" users
• Text input differences comparing the iPhone's touch keyboard, standard 12-button mobile phone keypad, and advanced mobile devices with a full QWERTY keyboard
• User preferences and attitudes toward the iPhone itself
• User performance with iPhone features

About Usability Professionals' Association

The Usability Professionals' Association is an international, non-profit, professional association with more than 2500 members in the US and 35 other countries. Members are specialists in evaluating and designing products that are easy to learn and use. The organization provides its members with a wide variety of professional services.

About Usability NJ (New Jersey Chapter of UPA)

Established in 2001, the New Jersey Chapter of UPA has over 350 members who are interested in usability and meet on a regular basis to network and exchange ideas and experiences. The chapter serves the New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania areas.

About User Centric, Inc.

User Centric is a global consulting firm that focuses on improving user experience. We apply our expertise to projects involving handhelds, web sites, software, medical devices, print, packaging, and telephony services. Experience, quality, value, global reach and outstanding client services set us apart. Our services include user research, user interface design consulting, information architecture, usability testing, user interface evaluations, eye tracking, and online surveys. Learn more about us at www.UserCentric.com.