NY Times: "To Win Over Users, Gadgets Have to Be Touchable"

When we equip a Brandstand with some sort of mobile kiosk solution, we often debate whether the interface should be a touchscreen or should it be a ruggedized keyboard/mouse. Certainly, a touchscreen kiosk solution is a sleek way to capture marketing information. A keyboard and a mouse, however, can be useful when a registration or signup process is lengthy and more complicated.

Today, the decision about which solution is better is now being influenced by the abundance of touchscreen devices now on the market. Androids, iPhones, e-readers, BlackBerrys, tablets, and iPads are all shaping what a user's expectations are when they interact with a touchscreen interface.

The NY Times recently pointed out in an article:

And so device makers in a post-iPhone world are focused on fingertips, with touch at the core of the newest wave of computer design, known as natural user interface. Unlike past interfaces centered on the keyboard and mouse, natural user interface uses ingrained human movements that do not have to be learned.

“It’s part of the general trajectory we’re on in the computing industry — this whole notion of making computers more open to natural human gestures and intentions,” said Eric Horvitz, distinguished scientist at Microsoft Research.

What's most important -- even more than the device iteself -- is that the user can easily complete the task required. Whether it's signing up for an email list, registering for a sweepstakes, or completing a self-service purchase, marketers need to assure that both the hardware and the software solutions work together to provide an easy user experience.