Study Says iPhone Twice As Slow to Text as Blackberry, Wh...i..ch..is Tot..olee Totally.. Un...Tr..weu Untrue
User Centric, Inc., a usability consultancy research group, has published a study finding that iPhone's virtual keyboard is nearly twice as slow to enter text compared with devices that have fixed hardware buttons.
The study gave iPhones to 20 participants who were asked to send text messages and emails using the device, while UC searchers monitored their actions. Hilarity ensued. The group found texting on devices with fixed keys to be fast and accurate. On the iPhone - slow and clumsy.
Now, I am in no way a statistician, but there are a number of flaws in this study. For starters, none of the particiants in the study own iPhones...but all owned QWERTY devices, which skews results dramatically. These users were already accustomed to fixed QWERTY keyboards, giving those devices an unfair advantage in the study.
Second, as I have already mentioned numerous times, you become increasing acclimated to iPhone's virtual keyboard with usage. After one month you'll find text input on iPhone to be every bit as credible as a fixed keyboard. Even faster. I make just as many input errors on iPhone as I do my Treo - the difference is iPhone's spelling correction covers my errors, which speeds input dramatically.
As with all studies, take these findings with a grain of salt and a shot of Bourbon.
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It would be my guess that some unnamed fixed button smart phone manufacturer commissioned the study. And before you say that I am cynical ... I used to work for a software industry analyst in Boston and know of what I speak!
Figures don't lie, but liars figure.
I would bet we need not look farther than the 'palm' of our hands to figure out who might be behind the study and methodology used. But ... I ... might be wrong ...
Cheers,
Mark
I agree with you Kent P. I used to have a Blackjack and I thought I typed fairly fast for a QWERTY pad. About 6 months later, I got an iPhone and I admit that I was typing fairly slow. In fact, a LOT slower than my Blackjack. After about a week or so, I started to type just as fast as my Blackjack. After a month, I started to type about twice as fast.
Point is that the iPhone is in fact slow for 1st time user. I'm willing to bet that some of those users that study might have actually even been intimidated by it since they can't feel anything (as far as buttons). They should do a test on iPhone owners as well as Blackberry owners. I think the iPhone owners would beat them by a good amount.