The UX of Mobile Productivity

The increases in mobility and connectivity over the last 8–10 years have facilitated a blending of work and personal time. Whether this is desirable (more flexibility in work hours) or not (expectations of working evenings/weekends/on vacation), new and better tools are needed to support the evolving culture around work and play.

While it’s easier and easier to get work done away from a desk, it’s still difficult to be both truly mobile and fully productive without carrying multiple devices, especially if your work involves spreadsheets, Photoshop, or presentations. We’ve explored this space with users, and time and again, we hear their desire for devices that help them better manage their work and lives.

Devices with screens that flip and fold are here or on the horizon, but until device makers take seriously the task of inventing new user experiences along with their new form factors, they won’t fundamentally change the existing relationship between users, work, and devices. The best device form factor invented can become useless when the greater UX of the device is flawed. UIs must account for the unique features of a device instead of relying on existing OS interaction models.

Elements that a single-device experience will need to consider include:

Information Triage

Helping users understand when information is worth their attention and when it can be ignored would make it easier for users to balance time spent working and personal time. Trusting the device to help surface critical information leaves the user free to focus on primary tasks rather than constantly wondering what they’re missing.

Review vs. Production

Work can entail different levels of engagement. A user reviewing a document has different needs than a user producing a document. A device that supports both modes, and helps users transition between them, would make working on a single device more efficient and seamless.

Until device makers take seriously the task of inventing new user experiences along with their new form factors, they won’t fundamentally change the existing relationship between users, work, and devices.

Collaboration

Work rarely happens solo, and working on the go often means working away from team members. A device/software that facilitates collaboration would make working on the go more efficient.

While device makers think about these experiences, it’s also necessary to consider the impact on mobile productivity beyond traditional devices. Technologies that enable new forms of interaction, such as multiple screens, changing screen sizes, screens projected on surfaces, or everyday objects becoming touch enabled, are becoming a reality. When any surface can be a UI, how many devices will users actually need?