On the effect of visual refinement upon user feedback in the context of video prototyping

Abstract

There has been extensive discussion and research surrounding fidelity or refinement of prototypes in paper and software form, especially focusing on how the nature of prototypes influences the feedback that this prototype can help elicit during user testing. We extend this debate to the domain of video prototypes, where use scenarios are acted out on video. This study examines how the visual refinement (a.k.a. visual fidelity) of design representations presented in such videos impacts user feedback. An experiment was performed where two video prototypes were compared, one where the product is portrayed with high visual refinement and the other looking rough and sketchy. Our results could not identify any significant effects upon the number or type of comments returned by users. This finding contrasts widely held contentions relating to fidelity of software and paper prototypes, though it agrees with similar experiments done with non video prototypes. In practice our results support the validity of testing with low fidelity videos and suggest that the choice of visual fidelity in video prototypes should be based on pragmatic project concerns, e.g., whether the video should be used also for communication and the resources that are available for prototyping.

Using Video Prototypes for Evaluating Design Concepts with Users: A Comparison to Usability Testing

“…The video thus created can be described as a low-fidelity video-prototype; higher fidelity would mean that the more visually refined graphics would be used for filming which would be not very distinguishable on the video from the actual application. We note here that earlier studies suggest that high and low representations in video prototypes yield trigger similar feedback by viewers regarding user acceptance of the concept and also regarding how critical their comments are over the concept shown [2].…”

The EDIT UX Framework: A User-Centered Approach to Effective Product Redesign

“…High-fidelity prototypes are more likely to elicit detailed and critical user feedback, which is instrumental in the final stages of design refinement (Sauer, 2009;Jensen, 2018). On the other hand, low-fidelity prototypes are valuable for early concept exploration, facilitating swift iterations and foundational design validations (Bojic et al, 2011;Dhillon et al, 2011).…”

Designing Interactive Public Art Installations: New Material Therefore New Challenges

“…High-fidelity prototyping of installations in a large scale or for a big or busy public space is often costly and challenging, if not impossible. Video prototyping allows the designers to create simulation of the installation and the interaction using simple materials and equipment [21].…”