2. Benchmarking Product #1- MyFitnessPal App
"MyFitnessPal is a smartphone app and
website that tracks diet and exercise. The app
uses gamification elements to motivate users.
To track nutrients, users can either scan the
barcodes of various food items or manually
find them in the app's large pre-existing
database"
• Vision: This product's visuals are focused on promoting healthy living. Exercises
are easy to follow along with because there are example pictures of how workouts
should be completed. Some workouts are done in full videos and video tutorials
and pictures of healthy foods can also be seen.
• Hearing: Based on features from the app, sounds can be heard through
completion of tasks and navigating through the app.
• Touch: App is usable through your iPhone or Android. Users will navigate
through the app using their fingers.
• Taste: There are no taste components involved
• Smell: This artifact should not emit a smell.
• Function vs. Form: This app is formatted similarly to other fitness apps where
you have a personalized account where you can track your progress and look up
various foods and exercises. Having it accessible as an app makes it a good form
for users because people go on their phones every day and this app will be on the
screen in from of them wherever they go. Fitness and health no longer needs to
be confined to a gym.
• Cost vs. Material: This product is made entirely online using software and coding.
The app is free to users but a premium version of the app with more functions is
available for purchase. Other than the cost of a person's smart phone, this is an
effective app for users that get high quality material at an affordable price.
• Styling: This app has a blue color scheme which intends to be non-intimidating to
users. Cool colors are often used to depict calming emotions which promotes a
positive outlook on fitness.
I. Visceral Design: Someone's immediate reaction to this app may be excitement to
have a place where they can put all their information and goals into for fitness. They
may feel security in that the app provides a structure for their plans and goals so that
even inexperienced users are not intimidated.
II. Behavorial Design: Users can easily track their progress in one place and control it
from anywhere that they have wifi or service, allowing users to reach their goals
anywhere. Positive workout videos and easy tutorials leaves users with understanding
of how to reach their desired goals and the tracking feature allows them to view their
progress.
III. Reflective Design: Having this app downloaded on your phone depicts power
through perceived expertise about fitness. This app makes users feel as though they are
making progress in their fitness goals and having the app makes them appear to be a
"healthy person."
Takeaways:
• I have used fitness apps before so I was fairly familiar with the function of the
app. Researching the specifics of what the app could provide to me that others
could not is an effective way to see what could be missing from the ideal fitness
tracking device or app.
3. Benchmarking Product #2 - Smart Watch
"We're a passionate team
dedicated to health and fitness
who are building products
that help transform people's lives.
While health can be serious
business, we feel it
doesn't have to be. We believe
you're more likely to reach your
goals if you're
encouraged to have fun, smile,
and feel empowered along the
way."
• Vision: Visuals on this product are very small considering it's on a watch. You can synch your phone
to your watch in order to get larger visuals and track progress easier but most of the
interaction occurs on the wearable device itself. Users can view the time, their heartrate and the
distance/duration of their workouts.
• Hearing: Based on features from the app, users will get a vibration notification for things such as
reminders or other pop-ups. An audible buzzing sound can be heard.
• Touch: The fitbit screen is a touch screen so users can use the functions of the watch anywhere at
anytime. Having it synched to a user's phone can also allow easy access through the fitbit app.
• Taste: There are no taste components involved
• Smell: This artifact should not emit a smell.
I. Visceral Design: Someone's immediate reaction this product is that it is sleek, stylish, and functional.
Users are excited to have a device that they can easily track their progress while also getting notifications
and reminders they set for themselves.
II. Behavorial Design: Users can easily track their progress in one place and control it from anywhere that
they have wifi or service, allowing users to reach their goals anywhere. Unlike other fitness apps and
devices, the fitbit doesn’t provide tutorials for workouts or recipes for healthy eating.
III. Reflective Design: A fitbit is not only sleek and stylish that can be paired with anything the user wears,
it's also a sign of wealth and health. Smart watches are known to be expensive so having one indicates that
a person is wealthy and given that these watches are designed for people who regular workout, one is
viewed as healthy because they have one.
• Function vs. Form: Similarly to other wearable technology the fitbit aims to
be a sleek and stylish design that users will want to wear constantly and can
easily match with any outfits. Compared to some watches, the fitbit is
customizable in terms of color, style, and watchband type.
• Cost vs. Material: The components used for this device includes
technologies (coding, UX designs, etc). At the cost of essentially having a
small computer on your wrist, and having customizable accessories, the
watches can end up being expensive.
• Styling: The fitbit provides several different types of watch faces,
watchbands, and colors so that you can build your perfect watch to your
style preferences. Unlike other wearable technology that only have one
style, the fitbit allows users to show their personality.
Takeaways:
• I don't have a fitbit or smart watch, so it was interesting to research the fitbit against its competitors. In
a world of increasing wearable technology the watch seemed like the logical place to start because you
can use the same technology that you use in a phone but scale it down to fit the screen and it's now a
device that users won't have to externally carry, it's already attached to them. Wearable technology is
important to research because of how many forms there are and how they all can be different shapes
and sizes.
4. Benchmarking
Product #3:
Smart Glasses
Smart Glasses:
These are smart glasses that have the functionality
to display certain information over the glass using
a microchip and processor. This wearable
technology appeals to people who would not want
to wear a watch and could easily be worn by
college students.
• Vision: This product is solely focused on providing accessibility to information through
your vision. Users would see things like maps, messages, and other notifications in their
field of view immediately.
• Hearing: Based on features from Intel's Vaunt smart glasses, there would be no
component of the glasses that would make a sound
• Touch: No physical action besides looking at a specified section of the glasses is needed
in order to access info.
• Taste: There are no taste components involved
• Smell: This artifact should not emit a smell.
I. Visceral Design: Someone's immediate reaction to glasses that obstruct your
vision could be that it's annoying or bad because naturally humans
II. Behavorial Design: When reading a review on Intel's smart glasses, the
reviewer said that you had to look at a specific point in the glass to bring up
notifications. This could potentially lead to missing information because we are
used to seeing notifications appear on our phones. Initially the reviewer thought
this was a bug.
III. Reflective Design: Based on the fact that these are glasses, this wouldn't
necessarily signal power or status, such as that of airpods unless there was
something that made it distinct or it was widely known in society that these
glasses were smart glasses.
• Function vs. Form: A lot of the smart glasses look like protective gear, which was
probably a decision that the designer had to make in order to implement the technology
and fit it into a thick-framed glasses frame.
• Cost vs. Material: This product I would assume was using products with a little more cost
associated so that these glasses could be protected from being dropped, getting slightly
damp, etc. Additionally, the components used are mini-computers.
• Styling: The glasses look like almost protective glasses which was probably not the aim,
but it is compensating for carrying a computer, essentially, inside glasses.
Takeaways:
1. I hadn't had much experience with understanding the
different types of designs of a product and how humans
can interpret them unconsciously or make meaning
symbolically.
2. I think all aspects of analyzing the product are super
important because they look at different aspects of the
product where other analyses might let something fall
through.
5. The Look of this ring is sleek,
mimicking elements of the attractive
look that an iPhone (the preference for
many users) has. The Sound of the
ring differs from other devices because
it itself cannot display an app; it
cannot give flashy, noisy, and
altogether disturbing notifications,
creating a more positive user
experience. The Touch appears to be a
smooth metal, ideal for comfort and
practically (opposed to a rough texture
that could catch on clothing, for
example). I expect that the Taste and
Smell of the product is more or less
nothing, and that it does not greatly
impact the user experience.
Benchmarking Product #4: The Motiv Ring is a wearable tech
that tracks "fitness" (as opposed to just steps) and sleeping habits. The
ring is waterproof, making it ideal for resisting sweat and rain. This
product is interesting to compare to our design because of
its simplicity, attractive form, and adaptability relative to a watch design.
I. Though a ring is not reflective of a Visceral Design, the way the ring interacts with the user is. The ring notifies the
user viscerally with a dim light and through the connecting app (on a different device) rather than using a noisy tone or
vibration. Though the physical product works well, the connecting app needs adjustment in this area.
II. The Behavioral Design works well with the ring in that it's small and forgettable, perfect for its function, which
requires no human engagement while in use. The ring simply does its job in the background of life.
II. The Reflective Design in this device also works well, because it mimics design features of the attractive and widely
popular iPhone, in terms of color options, metallic look, and sleek curvatures.
The Function of the ring is to track overall fitness through your day (and night). Because it is to be used throughout
your entire day, it should be something that you do not have to give any of your attention to, or it would otherwise
make for a stressful product. The Form of a ring is good for this idea of being forgettable. Many people wear rings
already, so they have already learned to forget about that type of form. Since the ring is so small and the technology
within it fairly common these days, Costs for the physical form of the ring are probably fairly small, and costs are
instead higher for the corresponding app. The Material of the ring is a common metal with a now fairly common
technology, however, as already mentioned the material mimics the Styling of the popular iPhone, giving the ring an
added prestige that a material like would or silicone simply could not provide.
6. Benchmarking
Product #5: Lose
It Calorie Counter
App
Benchmarking Product #5: The "Lose It!" Calorie counter app is an
application that tracks products you purchase at stores, helps you create a
healthy weight loss plan, and scan items to see their nutritional value.
This app/design is interesting and different compared to ours. It is similar
due to the scanning feature.
It is an organized and well structured app that gives you realistic eating
goals and advice.
•Vision: This product is focused on providing information and makes individuals
accountable for what they are eating and encourages him/her for a healthy
lifestyle. Users see goals for them as well as habits they should start.
•Hearing: Based on the features of the app, the only way to make sound is via the
notification feature on the app.
•Touch: Only downloading the application from the app store and touching/scanning
products is the only way to access nutritional information.
•Taste: There are no taste components involved
•Smell: This artifact should not emit a smell.
•Function vs. Form: A lot of other applications look sleek, modern, and very
simplistic. The designer had to make a decision in order to implement the technology
and make it functionally for all smart phones.
•Cost vs. Material: The components used for this app includes technologies (coding, UX
designs, etc). The app would be costly to produce, as the company has to hire multiple
engineers, and CS engineers, UX designers in order to create the app.
•Styling: The application looks like other weight/healthy eating apps, but the only
difference is how the application organizes its information and how users can access it.
I. Visceral Design: Someone's immediate reaction to the application would
be that it is a little clustered with a lot of information organized into
categories. They could be overwhelemd with the amount of information
they ask you upfront about your health, lifestyle, and eating and exercise
habits.
II. Behavorial Design: When reading a review on Lose It!'s app, the
reviewer said that scanning is sometimes irritating as it might not recognize
the barcode or doesn't pull up the correct food item they scanned. This
could potentially lead to missing information or incorrect information.
Initially, the reviewer thought they scanned the item incorrectly.
III. Reflective Design: Based on the fact that this is an app, this could be
improved by not having to pay for certain parts of the app that could be
most helpful.
Two takeaways I had include:
1. I had some experience with understanding the different types of
designs of an application and how we can interpret them and
organize features.
2. I think all aspects of analyzing the app are super important
because it allows the app to differentiate itself from others in the
market.
