Voice UX
Designs interfaces used by voice, such as assistants, smart speakers, or car systems, where there is no screen or it is barely looked at.
What problem it addresses
Without a screen there are no menus in view: the person has to know what they can say and remember what they have heard.
Principles
Say what can be done
With no visible menu, the system has to tell.
A little at a time
What is heard cannot be read again.
Anticipate errors
Speech recognition makes mistakes; the system has to help correct them.
Applications in design
Use it like this
Write the dialogues and test them out loud before building them.
Avoid
Reading out long lists of options in one go.
Don’t fall for it
Always offer a way out: repeat, go back, or talk to a person.
Connections
Builds on
Authors and works
- 2016
Cathy Pearl
Gathered the principles for designing voice interfaces, from home assistants to the car.
Sources
Original sources
- Pearl, C. (2016). Designing voice user interfaces: Principles of conversational experiences. O’Reilly.
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