Voice-based input and User Experience
Voice-based input has many significant advantages but also many downsides. Therefore I would like to address that topic today!
Voice-based input has many significant advantages but also many downsides. Therefore I would like to address that topic today!
Voice is a relatively new input method for the general public. The most common usage are smart assistants. Let's dive deeper into voice interfaces today! I'm your host, Chris, and this is the UX Globals Podcast!
The main reason why we, as UX designers, should consider voice as an input method is that it is really intuitive. No user has to learn something. Everyone can simply begin talking, and the system will answer. Another advantage is that we can use this input method while doing something else. We can create a visual design on our computer and can simultaneously talk to the smart assistant. And these basically were the two benefits of these assistants. So even if there are only two real benefits, these two are significant, which make voice as an input method something we have to consider whenever we create a new interface.
There are, however, quite some downsides with a voice input. First and most essentially: The speech recognition must function correctly. If the assistant does not get what a user said every second or third time, the user experience will decrease significantly. Therefore the solution will not be used for very long as it does not deliver any advantage to the user. This is closely related to the fact that there must not be any background noise. Depending on the smart assistant and the speech recognition, the sound can be filtered. Still, from my personal experience, I can say that background noises influence the user experience with a speech-based voice assistant significantly!
Another problem related to this one is the usage in big rooms or offices. Imagine having an office with forty people or even just ten people inside, and every one of them is talking to his or her smart assistant all day long. That will be catastrophic. No one will have a time when there is silence in the office. So, therefore, the situations a smart assistant can be used in shrink again.
And the last downside of voice-based input I would like to address today is that it, even today, can still be embarrassing to speak to a digital device. There are still some people out there that might hate at you for doing phone calls in public! I experienced it myself last year, and it can be even more distracting for others and embarrassing for yourself if you speak to your assistant in public. But this has something to do with every users' personal comfort zone. Based on these two positive aspects and all those downsides, I would still advise everyone to go for speech input as the benefits are significant. Another advantage that not everyone can relate to is accessibility. Visually impaired people, love smart assistants as they can use them without seeing them, so this is another pretty good one, too!
Even sighted people use voice more often today. Simply think of voice messages or dictation. If you do not want to use that small keyboard on the smartphone, you can start using your voice, and your mobile device will convert it into text!
Join the UX Globals Community on Facebook, and remember to always keep pushing! Have a good one!
