Indesit MOON
From: Tom Martin
I know it’s hard to get excited about a washing machine but I just saw the Indesit MOON and was amazed it only had FOUR buttons.
It also has this little ring that works like a progress bar, so you can just glace and see how long the cycle has left.
You should spread the word that washing machines have become simple!
Simplicity In UX
From: Shawn Oster
Thought you’d enjoy this as Kynan Antos also subscribes to the less is more school of thought:
4. Remove everything possible (this will be controversial, expect to work outside your comfort zone) (Things to remove – text, iconography, features, unnecessary configuration, or settings, etc…)
He’s also posting his early UI prototypes for the WHS project, nice to see the evolution.
Bad product design in everyday life
From: Jeff Patterson
Interesting thread on poor product design at Straight Dope.
There were many things there I had never thought to be irritated about, and now I am. Well done, SDMB.
News Corp.
From: Nate Rosenberg
A recent quote about NewsCorp in the Wall St. Journal [via TP] reminded me of something you all wrote in a recent post.
Unlike typical big companies, News Corp. isn’t known for crafting and pursuing detailed, long-term business strategies. Instead, Mr. Murdoch follows his instincts, grabbing opportunities when they arise and sometimes giving them up just as quickly.
Sounds like 37signals...
Just as we don’t believe in functional specs for software, we don’t believe in functional specs for companies.
The screamers
From: Jorge Bernal Ordovás
I was reading about building an Open Source business and arrived at Luis Villa’s blog. I think this quote reflects quite well the Getting Real spirit…
Remember, the pissed off people scream — the happy people just go on with their lives. So you can’t just say ‘more people screamed than thanked us’ — that isn’t a useful metric.
The 10th Dimension
From: The Colonel
Other than being a really simple, interesting way to present multi-dimensional theory, I found the information design [here] to be wonderfully clear.
How To Blow Your Mind: The 10th Dimension
Have an interesting link, story, or screenshot for Signal vs. Noise? Contact svn [at] 37signals [dot] com.
Ryan
on 22 Aug 07Only four buttons is nice, but looking at them I have no idea what they mean or why I would select say, the beaker button over the feather one.
Matteo
on 22 Aug 07Ryan, the meaning is quite simple: washing temperature in celsius degrees and kind of clothes/fabric or duration. The real problem imho is that there is not a 90° C washing program… So what, if I want to wash my underpants?
ChrisFizik
on 22 Aug 07Yeah.. re: washer buttons … what is going on there?
Shouldn’t it somewhat echo the usual washing instruction logos? or are we trying to replace that ancient set of symbols …..hmm
Bob
on 22 Aug 07It also doesn’t help that their logo is almost the power on/off symbol, but doesn’t seem to be used as the power on/off button.
Ryan
on 22 Aug 07Matteo, so if all that is needed is the temperature, then aren’t the symbols unnecessary?
Daniel
on 22 Aug 07I agree with Bob, that the weirdest part is the seemingly duplicate on/off buttons. Besides, the on/off button is functionally different from the mode-selection buttons, yet it’s grouped in the same circle as the mode buttons. It’d be nicer to have the center of the thing be the on/off-button instead of reserving it for the (somewhat confusing) logo. Then you’d be working your way towards the center, when you select a mode and then turn the thing on. This would be similar, in a way, to other interfaces of this kind, where modes and settings controls read left to right with the “do it!” button being the right-most button. As for the symbols: They make ok sense to me, really, but only because there’s also a temperature mentioned. And I must admit that the beaker-and-Charlie-Brown’s-shirt-symbol is lost on me. Seriously, what is that beaker doing there?
re: News Corp.: Despite him being an obvisouly sussessful businessman, I’d be a bit queasy about being compared to Rupert Murdoch… probably very queasy, actually.
Richard Medek
on 22 Aug 07Oh, I was going to jump in here about the buttons but everyone else beat me to it.
I’m sick of the trend thinking less is always more. Less buttons does not equal more simple. More simple equals more simple. Instead of twenty buttons that do twenty things, we have four buttons that do twenty things—how does that simplify anything?
Then again, context is everything…the iPod’s click wheel design is a perfect example.
Darrel
on 22 Aug 07Simple is a knob. We need more knobs. Enough with the buttons and lights:
http://mnteractive.com/archive/where-did-all-our-knobs-go/
And why does a washing machine need a power button? Doesn’t picking a cycle by default turn it on?
Daniel
on 22 Aug 07@Richard: I agree that few buttons with many functions are indesirable. But the washing machine actually is that simple (or so it seems in the picture): 4 programs, 4 buttons. The only “overloaded” button seems to be the on/off-button, which looks like it could be used for locking the machine somehow. And yeah, that button is not all that clear.
@Darrel: Knobs are definitely good and I would like to see them used more as well. However, in this case, the machine is, as mentioned, simple. Knobs are good for analog or pseudo-analog settings, but in this case, there are only so many programs, and you can’t really interpolate between them, so a knob would would have to snap to a setting anyway. Of course, a knob could still be used because it by design excludes choosing another setting simultaneously, but in a choice between 4 buttons or a knob with 4 positions, neither solution has a really definite advantage.
Whether the power button is necessary is also debatable, but it’s probably a good thing, that you can change your mind about a setting before the machine starts. Also, had it been a knob that was used to choose a setting, an on/off-button would be necessary, so the machine wouldn’t start every time the knob was turned past a setting.
Mostly, it’s a question of whether or not you’d want a washing machine with only 4 possible settings or not.
Phil McThomas
on 22 Aug 071) The lights on the dial don’t tell me how long is left. They tell me what percentage of the way through the cycle is. My Sears machine has a 2-digit display that really tells me how long is left.
2) About my Sears machine:
It has a button to switch off the end-of-cycle beeping, which is good because it’s in a room upstairs inbetween my two kids’ bedrooms.
However, even when that button is set to ‘silent mode’, every other button you push when you’re setting the cycle STILL MAKES A LOUD BEEPING NOISE.
Every time I use it at night I curse the designers who didn’t think that one through.
Richard Medek
on 22 Aug 07Dang…well, I stand corrected on the Moon—I just saw on the website that it’s a one-push, totally automated procedure. I saw all the icons/temperatures on the buttons and assumed they all had a function.
Of course, that in itself says something about the design… ;)
Brian Dainton
on 22 Aug 07I absolutely loved that Tenth Dimension video. Beautiful and inspiring, imho.
Anonymous Coward
on 22 Aug 07“had it been a knob that was used to choose a setting, an on/off-button would be necessary, so the machine wouldn’t start every time the knob was turned past a setting.”
Seems that this conversation is bleeding into the conversation about ‘stealing’ design. ;o)
Well, on every washing machine I’ve ever owned, it’s been a knob. Turn to the time setting you want, push it in. The knob, itself, is the power button.
Admittedly, this system requires a second toggle switch for the 3 temps (hot, warm, cold).
While it’s two distinct widgets, I’d argue it’s actually a simpler concept to grasp, as each has been given a finite task.
I’m not necessarily against this particular design, just that i’m definitely not against the tried and true knobs.
“Mostly, it’s a question of whether or not you’d want a washing machine with only 4 possible settings or not.”
True. Though, for the most part, my machine only has 4 settings as well. But each setting can be analogoly (is that a word?) adjusted for duration via the same knob.
The biggest gripe I have with our new oven is that the knob is gone. Before, I’d turn the knob to a temp. This would turn the oven on. Turn it back to off, now it’s off. Simple. Now I have to physically pick a temperature with up and down buttons, then a start button. Then an off button. Of course, because it’s not a knob, it’s not obvious that the oven is on, so we always forget to turn the oven off. Hey hon? Isn’t it hot in the house right now? Oh crap. THE OVEN!
I keep joking here at work that we need to have out tech writers develop a user’s manual for the digital light switch system in our conference room. While the switches look cool, no one has a clue how to use them. In comparison, the ol’ dimmer knobs seemed to have worked well these past several decades. ;o)
Justin Reese
on 22 Aug 07Nice. My wife and I have put a new washer purchase on hold until we find a front-loader that doesn’t have as many buttons as a cockpit. The Moon looks perfect. Now why can’t it be offered in the US?
Re: the icons, they are very poorly-designed, though it only takes one tutorial to master them. Moving clockwise after the power button, they are: hot, good for white cottons and deep cleaning; warm, good for colored cottons and synthetics (note the “stripes” on the shirt); cold (with or without spin, depending on if you press it once or twice), good for delicates and wools; and a cold, 30-minute quick wash.
I’d like to see it come to the US, and Consumer Reports get their hands on it.
Darrel
on 22 Aug 07Wow. I just visited the Indesit site. Ironically bad UI. Flash intros, pop-up windows, mystery meat navigation…
Daniel
on 22 Aug 07@Anonymous (I’m guessing Darell): Ah, I’ve only used washing machines that had knob/dial-type controls (or a single control) for the temperature and duration setting, and then a separate on/off button (probably a European tradition in washing machine interface design, since, now that you mention it, most of the American machines I’ve seen use dials you push). Pushing the knob to turn the machine on is of course also a solution.
As for your oven: Yeah, that does sound an odd way of turning on an oven. I myself would definitely much prefer a knob for that.
Still, a knob that’s also the on/off switch works well for an oven, because the oven doesn’t start doing anything right away, really. Even if it turns on when you turn the knob a little, you can keep turning the knob while it’s heating up, and you can change the temperature later as well.
The washing machine on the other hand just starts when it starts. And if that machine only has 4 settings period, then I’d still say 4 buttons plus an on-button is preferable to a knob you push.
But I admit, that this is bordering on triviality :)
Lastly, does that dimmer switch you mention look anything like this one (which this blog has linked to once)?
Andre De Pape
on 22 Aug 07The UX tips are so complex it’s ironic it’s discussing simplicity.
Darrel
on 22 Aug 07Ha! Yea, it’s a switch in that same family. Again, a knob just works. Turn left for dimmer/off, turn right for brighter/on.
I agree, the specifics of the washing machine being knob vs. buttons is rather trivial. Admittedly, these buttons are about as simple as using the traditional knob interface.
Andy
on 22 Aug 07I hate to be a stickler here, but I count 5 buttons. The four wash settings and the power button, right?
Morning Toast
on 22 Aug 07RE: Screamers “When you do things right, people won’t be sure you’ve done anything at all.” – from Futurama
Szymon Błaszczyk
on 22 Aug 07Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away. — Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Igor
on 23 Aug 07It looks like the the buttons backlighted. If they are, the choice of color couldn’t be more wrong. The symbols are visible because they are darker than the background. So what if you look at them without studio lighting? The background will be much darker, the buttons lighter. Contrast will evaporate. Result: invisable symbols. I own a cellphone that is designed the same way and it drives me crazy. Besides: the human eye has a resolution for the color blue which is way much lower than any other color. In other words: we can see blue not nearly as sharp as any other color. This UI looks merely like eye-candy to me….
Andy
on 23 Aug 07I’ve got a Moon, and it’s great! I bought it because it solves the two gripes I had with previous washing machines.
One, there is only the 4 buttons for wash cycles (there is (literally) a couple more wash options which basically determine whether it spins or not, for handwash type items). My previous machine had 11 or 14 cycles. I can honestly say I never used most of them – and that was after having the manual that came with it on top which explained the different cycles. We pretty much just used a 40 degree wash cycle for almost everything. I’d be interested to know how many of you actually use more than a couple of the wash programmes your machine has. If so, you clearly have more time and interest in clothes washing than I do. As long as they get cleaned and don’t get ruined I’m happy and the Moon does that without me having to read a manual to try and decide which cycle to use each time.
Two, the detergent dispensers are on inside the of the door so they get cleaned out by the machine automatically as part of the cycle so I don’t have to clean the trays out.
@Bob/Richard,etc: I agree about the power button and the indesit logo. They could have removed the outer power button and just used their logo in the centre for the power switch.
@Igor: The buttons are backlit but they are perfectly clear when they’re not lit up, plus you’re only going to look at them when the machine is on and then they’re lit.
Nic
on 23 Aug 07Re the Moon: and when I want to rinse-and-spin and article of clothing? “Sorry, this is a washing machine, please select a wash program…”
Our mechanical Bosch machine has a dial for cycle choice (which by nature you can move to any point in the cycle) and another dial for temperature. It just works.
Igor
on 23 Aug 07@ Andy: I’m happy that the backlight works on the ‘Moon’. Here’s an example how it sometimes doesn’t work: http://www.livelygrey.com/2007/08/backlight.html
shofr
on 24 Aug 07@ Andy
I agree, its more than 4 buttons! But from here, the center looks a button too, which makes it 6.
That’s like saying my car only has 1 button and then pointing at the dashboard, insinuating its all one big button. The number of buttons doesn’t matter AT ALL. Would you buy a telephone with 3 buttons? Would you buy a TV with only volume up? Its about what you do with the buttons that matter.
Look at the iPod shuffle. There is a good example of simplification. Not this wash machine.
Scott Meade
on 25 Aug 07re: The 10th Dimension
I ran across the “Flatland” book back in college. In it, inhabitants of “lineland” can’t imagine a two-dimensional space and have simple explanations for everything they observe. Their explanations make sense and work for them, but those that know about two dimensional space are frustrated that the linelanders cannot imagine, or have no need for, a second dimension.
Inhabitants of the two-dimensional world – “flatland” can’t imagine a three-dimensional space and also have a simple explanation for everything they observe. (For example, as sphere passes through flatland, it simply grows wider then shrinks narrower.) And it goes on like that to other dimensions beyond 3rd.
The book’s an interesting thought experiment on seeking other possibilities instead of accepting the simplest explanation that “works”. Sort of an anti-”Occam’s razor”.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flatland
Scott Meade
on 26 Aug 07Watching the 10th dimension video and realizing I’m going to need either more brain cells, more time, or both to understand the topic. The great thing about the video though, is that it is clean, enjoyable, and I agree with The Colonel that it is well-done. The design of it makes me want to watch it and understand it.
Nate
on 27 Aug 07My washing machine lets me upload mp3s to customize the ringtone
This discussion is closed.