The 5 seconds usability test...a magical weapon!
Felix Kranert
Director Offer & Segment Marketing @ Schneider Electric | Maschinenbau | Automatisierung | Industrial Usability
When companies ask me how they can determine if there HMI (Human Machine Interface) is good or not, I always tell them the same thing:
The 5 second usability test
It's that simple! Really!
With this method it is possible to find out within only 5 seconds whether an HMI is good or not. Ok, to be honest 5 seconds per screen, but still after that answer everyone is amazed.
You want to know how it works? I'll show you!
Step 1: Select the screen you want to test
Select a random screen of your user interface or HMI solution
Step 2: The test
Now comes the test. Show a random person the previously selected screen for only 5 seconds.
You should make sure that the screen is approximately the same size as in the real environment. Ideally, of course, you should show the screen on exactly the device where it is normally displayed.
Do not tell the person before, that you are going to ask them for feedback afterwards.
After 5 seconds the screen is covered so that it is no longer visible
Step 3: Analysis
Now ask the following questions to your test person:
- What is the purpose of the screen?
- What are the most important elements you can remember?
- Who do you think is the target group?
- Did the design look trustworthy?
- What was your impression of the design?
Step 4: Use the feedback
With the feedback you get out of this test it is very easy to find out what is wrong with your designs. Use the feedback and create the next iteration of your screen. You can then run the test again. But it's best to do it with someone else who has never seen the design before.
Good luck and have fun trying it out! :-)
A personal request to you...
If you got value out of this article it would mean a lot to me, if you leave a like, comment or share this article on your LinkedIn profile!
Thank you very much!!!
Business Owner at Simotronics
5 年That's a neat way of testing the HMI. Should be used when buy cars in my opinion, since cars are now evaluated by the screen! On the Tesla it's the only interface apart from the steering column and pedals so it better be good!
ETCS Expert Field Operations Electrical Engineer at Alstom
5 年Very interesting. It is good to have a valuable guide line while designing the user interface. What we can retain from your article is that we need to focus on intuitive aspect of user interface usage
Coaching & Communication: creating clarity and simplicity
6 年Probably a good way to get some insights for system design
Head of Sales Specialist at Siemens Oy
6 年Great test !
Kreative Wirtschaftsingenieurin | Curious Mind | sharing what I learn along the way | Strategien, Unternehmenswerte und Bücher visuell auf einer Seite zusammengefasst | Gründerin der Visual Memos Academy
6 年The headline made me curious ?? Great instruction and easy to apply ????