UX Journal

 Maybe I'm just dumb when it comes to this one but my brother installed a string of LED lights on the back of the TV that just automatically come on when the TV is on. He's been gone for a few months and I have messed with the remote buttons so many times to try to figure out how to do basic things like just shut them off when I don't want them on and nothing works that would be intuitive to me. I like to think I am fairly component with electronic things and to me, the power button should perform the basic task of turning them on and off but it doesn't. Maybe it's because they are also connected to the TV and not just a power source but they flash and cycle and do fancy patterns and it's annoying when I just want to watch a movie or show. They could be cool to set a mood if they were more intuitive to work but I ended up just unplugging them entirely.  I think this design could have used some more testing or something so that the controls are easier to use if y...

 One of the most used and handy things I have come across recently is a small water bottle-sized blender that I use after working out at the gym. It's very user-friendly for people like me who mix up protein shakes often. The blender "blades" aren't sharp but they get everything mixed up well and I just push the button at the bottom and let it spin for a bit. It lights up when it is charging and spinning. It's easier than trying to just use a shaker to get it mixed and it cleans really easily. You charge it with a USB charger and it's good to go for a long time. If you wanted to just use it for water you could also and the measuring marks on the side also help with things that need to be measured out.

 My new favorite thing I didn't know I needed was an app for a car wash. I was gifted a monthly car wash membership for Christmas and everything from the app to the car wash itself is so user-friendly and easy that I go every day. When I first downloaded the app and set it up I just had to put in some basic information about my car and license plate number. Then, I don't really have to ever even open the app again unless I want to see where other of the same car wash locations are, add another vehicle, or change my payment method. I can look up the hours of each location as long as their phone number or email if I were to need to contact them.  When I wash my car, I just pull up to the "app" lane, it reads my plate, matches it to the type of car wash subscription I have, and I'm all set. I enter the car wash and it does everything I need it to do. I don't have to wait in line or worry about anything, I just pull up, go through, and am on my way. I think it...

 I recently got a new tumbler. I ordered it online and I must not have noticed what to me is a bit of bad design on something that holds liquids and is sort of meant to be taken with you. You will notice that the lid does not have any kind of way to cover the hole that you drink out of. All of my other tumblers or travel-type mugs have some way to cover that so you don't spill anything. I was very surprised this one didn't have anything at all. I expect that from a typical coffee mug, but not from something I bought expecting to be able to take with me to work, etc. I still use it but it's not quite as versatile for me as I had originally expected and I do have to be a little more mindful when using it.

 This week's bad design is one that has frustrated me ever since I got it but I like the lanyard itself too much to get rid of it. The issue is the clasp on the end where your keys are supposed to go. As you can see, it doesn't close all the way. I thought it was just a flaw at first but have realized over time that the metal isn't a very good, or strong quality that it easily gets bent out of shape just from everyday use which causes it to open up and my keys would constantly fall off. I resorted to just getting a keyring and attaching my keys a different way and not using the claps but now it also annoys me that I can't take the clasp off so it's just in the way even though I don't use it. I think a better quality material to make the clasp out of would solve the problem and avoid user frustration.

 An example of good design I saw this week is my grow lights for my plant shelf. The clamp and bendable "arms" of the lights, help me to position them quickly and easily near the plants that I want to target with the light. Since I have plants on every shelf, I can move the lights to wherever I want it, unlike a bar-type light that you have to mount on a wall or shelf and isn't really moveable.

 In contrast to my old pop filter, after that one became useless, I bought a different one. This one is just a foam-like cover and fits over the microphone itself so there is nothing to hold up. It works just as well, though you could argue it works better since it consistently covers the microphone like it should. This is a good design because you don't have to worry about it once it's on. It's out of the way and won't fall off or down.

 This week I was reminded about an old pop filter I had for my microphone. It is designed to help filter sound picked up by the microphone. The problem with this particular design though is that the filter itself is very heavy. I was surprised when I first got it just how heavy it was. It clamped onto the arm of the microphone and you could bend it to position it where it worked best. However, after just a couple of months of using it, it just wouldn't stay up anymore. No amount of trying to tighten it worked, it would just immediately fall down and not cover the microphone anymore. I feel like the design is bad because it didn't take into account how much weight it had to support or have another way of tightening it or holding it up, to help it stay up if this were to happen. I sort of re-attached it to my setup just so you can see it and get an idea of what it was supposed to do though I am still helping hold it up so it doesn't fall.

 Keeping with the weather app, I was really frustrated with the app that came already installed on my iPhone. I'm still a little new to the whole iOS thing but I couldn't for the life of me figure out if there was a way to see the hourly weather outlook on it. This app seems much less intuitive to me and seems more general in terms of what information it has.  I felt limited in what information I could find or even know if more information could be found on it somewhere. It seems to me you can just see a weekly outlook and a few general details about what is expected that day but I can't click on a specific day and get more information or anything like that which I expected to be able to do.

 This week I used my weather apps a lot and I downloaded this one from The Weather Channel because I specifically needed to see a more hourly outlook which you can easily access by clicking on the "hourly" button. You can also see the weather for the entire day or several days at a time along with radar. Everything is pretty self-explanatory and I found the information I needed within seconds of downloading and opening the app.