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PERSONAL TECHNOLOGY

PC designers take aim at feel, usability

With addition of new features and devices, computer makers ensuring = that=20 machines' beauty is more than skin deep

By Dan=20 Zehr
AMERICAN-STATESMAN = STAFF
Monday, January 21, 2008

Computer makers have been jazzing up their consumer products with = laptops in=20 colors such as "flamingo pink" and "arctic bloom" and other design = features. But=20 beyond the cosmetics they are also coming up with more subtle touches = that add=20 substance =97 what the industry calls the "user experience" to the = style.

All of these additions could have an important effect on how = consumers feel=20 about their computers, long after the buzz of the hip new color fades. = And they=20 could make a difference in the fight for the next computer purchase. =

=20

DELL INC.

(enlarge=20 photo)

Dell's XPS One has a proximity feature engineered = into the=20 panel that lights up the buttons only when a user's hand is nearby. =

=20

GATEWAY

(enlarge=20 photo)

The multimedia keys on the Gateway P-Series FX = edition are just=20 above the standard keyboard.

=20

ACER INC.

(enlarge=20 photo)

Acer's TravelMate business computers have a curved = keyboard=20 layout to make it more ergonomic and comfortable to use. One product = manager=20 called it the 'smile keyboard.'

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California=20 RB Scott has Horns, Buffs on hold

"You can't do one or the other," said Stephen Baker, vice president = of=20 industry analysis at NPD Techworld. "You have to have a really good = experience,=20 but that doesn't give you license to sell somebody a brick. Design and = eye candy=20 have to be a piece of it, because that's the world we live in."

But with so many computers that "look pretty good now," he said, the = features=20 that improve a user's experience will separate one brand from another. =

Apple Inc. wrote the playbook on this approach by combining sleek = style with=20 usable software and easy interaction between all those hip gadgets.

Apple's success hasn't been lost on competitors. Though the colors = and=20 exterior designs of their latest models drew most of the attention, Dell = Inc.,=20 Hewlett-Packard Co. and other Windows-PC makers have put a renewed focus = on=20 usability, reliability and the full experience.

"We call that experience design," said Michael Tatelman, Dell's vice=20 president of consumer sales and marketing. "It's not just design. The = marriage=20 of that digital experience to the physical experience is really = important."

Dell and H-P have reshaped their design operations in recent years, = combining=20 once-separate teams. The changes have resulted in some clever touches to = the=20 hardware but also different software features designed to help = differentiate=20 their systems from other Windows-based computers.

"There are so many companies that do design to catch the eye or = attention,=20 and then it's gimmicky and short-lived," said Satjiv Chahil, senior vice = president for global marketing at H-P. "The next step you take, you're = left high=20 and dry. (They're) small details, but all advance the usability, the = usefulness,=20 and that creates a long-term relationship with the customer."

Take H-P's new Pavilion desktop computers. Designers reshaped the top = of the=20 PC tower to make it more like a tray, where users could set digital = cameras or=20 other devices. Then they coated it with a rubbery surface so those = devices won't=20 slide off if they're jostled. Similar thought went into H-P's latest = convertible=20 tablet PC, designed so the speakers face the user regardless of how the = screen=20 is situated.

"We're users, too. We're thinking about how we use it, how our = friends and=20 family use it," said Kevin Wentzel, technical marketing manager for = H-P's mobile=20 products. "It seems obvious when you get it, but not everyone comes up = with=20 those things."

As they started work on the new XPS One, Dell's designers realized = that=20 consumers might use the all-in-one PC as a television as much as a = computer. The=20 company's research revealed that TV users often are bothered by lit-up = buttons=20 while watching programs or movies. So Dell engineered a proximity sensor = into=20 the panel, so the blue lights illuminate only when a user's hand is = nearby.

Acer Inc. has reconsidered one of the most basic features of a = computer: the=20 keyboard. In an effort to alleviate the cramped typing on many = notebooks,=20 designers came up with a curved keyboard =97 what marketing manager = Kristin=20 Markworth called the "smile keyboard."

But the design considerations don't stop with changes to the = hardware, said=20 Markworth, who oversees marketing for Acer's U.S. notebook business. = Computer=20 makers are adding more software features, too. Acer and most of its = rivals now=20 have one-touch buttons and software programs that help manage security, = data=20 backups or multimedia applications.

"The customer experience over the long term is a marriage of hardware = and=20 software," Markworth said. "If you have a bad experience, you sour on = the brand,=20 but you also tell five other people."

That has been the not-so-secret sauce for Apple for the past three = years,=20 analysts said. By controlling both the hardware and the software =97 and = bridging=20 how it works across the iPod, Mac, iPhone and all the other gadgets =97 = the=20 company has created what many experts consider a superior overall = experience.=20 And that, as much or more than any hardware design alone, has propelled = its=20 resurgence, said Roger Kay, president of Endpoint Technologies = Associates Inc.=20

"Steve Jobs is smarter than the average bear, but he understands what = the=20 average bear is like," Kay said. "If you actually do have your finger on = the=20 pulse, then the best person to consult is yourself. But that's a very = risky road=20 to go down."

There's no Steve Jobs equivalent among Windows-PC makers. But by = working=20 closely with Microsoft and contract manufacturers, they're developing = things=20 Apple can't boast, either.

Advanced Micro Devices Inc. created AMD Live Ultra, a portal home = users can=20 use to pull in digital content from any device anywhere.

"We're not necessarily getting into the software business here," said = Patrick=20 Moorhead, AMD's vice president of advanced marketing. "What we're doing = is=20 getting a little bit more serious about the experience. You have our = customers =97=20 H-P and Dell and folks like that =97 starting to segment their markets, = and we=20 want to make sure we're providing them the technologies to help them be = able to=20 do that."

Gateway's P-series FX edition includes multimedia keys that are just = above=20 the standard keyboard.

Lenovo Group Ltd. targeted a higher-end audience with its recently = launched=20 IdeaPad line of consumer laptops. The new models include a Web camera, = which are=20 increasingly standard on notebooks, but Lenovo also added Veriface = software. The=20 combination of the hardware and software makes the user's face his or = her=20 password. Veriface allows access to the right face, but it also monitors = and=20 shows pictures of people who try to log on without permission.

The Y710, aimed at gamers, has a separate gaming keypad and a switch = that=20 allows users to flip from regular to overclocked higher speeds, = essentially=20 allowing the processor to run faster than what it is graded for.

"It's not just about painting or skinning the thing a little bit = different,"=20 said Scott Di Valerio, president of Lenovo's Americas group. "It's about = building up a truly differentiated set of products."

dzehr@statesman.com; 912-5932

Advertise Online=20 or in=20 Print | Subscribe=20 to the Newspaper |

Presented by The Austin=20 American-Statesman. Cont= act=20 us. Careers. Corre= ctions.=20 Site=20 Requirements.

Please read our Privacy=20 Policy. By using this site, you accept the terms of our Visitor=20 Agreement.

Business

PC designers take aim at feel, usability

With addition of new features and devices, computer makers ensuring = that=20 machines' beauty is more than skin deep

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