So easy a 4 year old can figure it out!
Okay, so maybe it’s not that surprising that my 4 year old figured this out. Our kids are so much smarter than us. But still…
The other morning I woke up around 5am with a sense that something was awry. I immediately noticed that the hall light was on so I investigated and also discovered the light to my 2 year old’s bedroom had been turned on. I quickly turned it off hoping she wouldn’t wake up when I heard a faint noise from my 4 year old’s room. There was Kyla, lying on her bed with my iPad propped up in her lap. When she saw me she proudly exclaimed “Dad, look what I found! I’m watching Monster’s Inc.” She was streaming Monsters, Inc. from Netflix!
Now, the interesting part: Kyla had never used my iPad, nor had she ever watched me use my iPad except to read her a book (twice). Retracing Kyla’s steps demonstrates several hurdles she overcame, and some that I may not even be aware of:
- 1. She found the iPad
- 2. She opened the cover and turned it on. No big deal here – she regularly uses and plays with an iPhone, so she does have that experience to leverage
- 3. She selected the Netflix icon
- 4. She browsed Netflix and somehow found Monster’s, Inc. It was NOT in my Instant queue. I don’t want to consider what she might have seen while browsing Netflix…
- 5. She figured out how to begin playing Monsters, Inc. Remember – she can’t read.
All in all a fairly arduous task for a 4 year old, yet Kyla seemed completely relaxed and quite proud of herself when I found her. I let her enjoy the rest of the movie and got in bed next to her.
Looks like Apple and Netflix both have passed the 4 year old “ease of use” test! And now I know where various mysterious charges may be coming
Tweets that mention So easy a 4 year old can figure it out! | User Interface Trends -- Topsy.com
Jun 7, 2010
4:27 pm
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Giridhar, Russell Wilson. Russell Wilson said: New post: So easy a 4 year old can figure it out! (http://bit.ly/aNc9OV) http://bit.ly/aNc9OV #apple #ease_of_use [...]
Lindi
Jun 9, 2010
6:27 pm
And this is why I’m investing in Apple… Just think about what’s going to happen to the technology world when these kids grow up innovating the latest and greatest UI’s. I can’t hardly wait.