Reconsidering the user experience in the age of connected devices

How Is UX for IoT Different?

Designing for IoT comes with a bunch of challenges that will be new to designers accustomed to pure digital services. How tricky these challenges prove will depend on:

• The maturity of the technology you’re working with

• The context of use or expectations your users have of the system

• The complexity of your service (e.g., how many devices the user has to interact with)

The following sections summarize the key differences between UX for IoT and UX for digital services. Some of these are a direct result of the technology of embedded devices and networking. Even if you are already familiar with embedded device and networking technology, you might not have considered the way it shapes the UX.

Functionality Can Be Distributed Across Multiple Devices with Different Capabilities

IoT devices come in a wide variety of form factors with varying input and output capabilities. Some may have screens, such as heating controllers or washing machines (see Figure 1-1). Some may have other ways of communicating with us, such as flashing LEDs or sounds (see Figure 1-2).

Figure 1-1. The Honeywell evohome connected radiator valve has a basic LCD screen (image: Honeywell Environmental Controls)

Some may have no input or output capabilities at all and are unable to tell us directly what they are doing. Interactions may ...