Usability in SMS Sending Interfaces

Jayvee writes over at Cellphone9 that he’s now thinking of choosing phones based on how the SMS editor handles error messages.

No. I want to resend the message. I swear, choosing a phone based on failure messages is actually something I’m considering now. Sony Ericsson phones send an error message asking if you would like to save the message in a draft folder to be sent later. But network behavior dictates that a failed message could mean that the network was down. So no, I don’t want to save the message in a draft. I want to resend it.

Maybe mobile phone software manufacturers should take into account a priority list of options that a guy with a phone would instinctively want to choose in only one button press.

I agree with Jayvee that this is one big factor to consider, especially with the growing popularity of SMS. I do know of some mobiles that do not even display any error message even if your message wasn’t properly sent (due to network congestion, weak signal or even account problems). Some phones would automatically save your message back in the drafts list. Some would have an error messange linger for a few seconds before reverting back to the message editing interface.

The point is that cellphone manufacturers should consider usability in the way they display these error messages, and possibly take into account user preferences. Should an error message be displayed until a user presses a key to close it? Should a user be asked if the phone should attempt to re-send the message or just save it in the drafts folder for the meantime?

I’ve had my share of miscommunications due to un-sent or mis-sent SMS messages only to learn later on that my phone was unable to properly send. I sometimes have this habit of just stuffing my phone back inside my pocket when I click that “send” key without waiting if the message had actually been sent already. Lately, I’ve been relying on audible alerts from my SmartPhone–I’ve set the “error” and “sent” alerts to be different so I can resend in the event of errors. Sadly, my phone still doesn’t have an intuitive interface for re-sending messages that were unsuccessfully transmitted. I’d have to manually go to the “sent folder” re-edit the message and send again. Not so smart for a SmartPhone, eh?

August 12th, 2006 Posted by J. Angelo Racoma in News, Tips and Tricks at 5:26 pm Comment Now! »
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