LG ThinQ App Redesign:
Improving search and typing experiences with a simple keyboard
About the LG ThinQ App
The LG ThinQ app is a mobile application developed by LG. It is designed to work with LG’s smart home appliances and devices, including LG smart TVs, refrigerators, washing machines, air conditioners, robotic vacuum cleaners, and other connected appliances.
The key features of the app include:
- Remote Control
- Smart Diagnosis
- Energy Monitoring
- Voice Control
- Multi-device Management
The app serves as a central control hub for managing and monitoring these smart devices.It is intended to make daily life more convenient and efficient for users by connecting and controlling various LG smart appliances through a single interface on their mobile devices.
Issues with the Remote Control feature
One of the primary challenges I noticed with the app was the cumbersome search and typing functionality of its remote control feature.
Users are required to navigate and select characters individually using directional buttons, creating a laborious, time-wasting and inefficient process for searching and inputting text.
This not only hindered the user experience but also negated the app’s core functionality as a remote control hub for LG smart appliances.
Gathering Insights on the Problem
As a UI/UX Designer, I needed to gain a comprehensive understanding of this issue, so I conducted user research through surveys and in-depth interviews.
The feedback from survey and interview respondents was unanimous in highlighting the tedious nature of the search process. Users expressed frustration with the lack of a traditional keyboard input method, which they deemed essential for efficient interaction with the app.
Whenever I need to use the search function on the installed tv apps e.g Netflix, I have to use the navigation buttons on the LG ThinQ to select letters displayed on the tv app. It’s really frustrating as it takes a while to select enough characters using this method — App User
This feedback underscored the need for a significant improvement in the search and typing functionality to align it with users’ expectations and requirements.
User Expectations
I noticed that users’ frustration with the search function was due to their expectations for a remote control application.
They anticipated an intuitive and efficient typing and search experience. The lack of a standard keyboard input method disrupted the seamless and convenient experience they sought, leading to a growing sense of dissatisfaction.
Redesign Goal
In response to these user insights, the redesign of the LG ThinQ app was driven by a clear objective: to enhance user experience and align the app with users’ expectations.
Design Recommendation
What I’ve noticed a lot of times in design is that simple solutions can make a great impact on user experience and increase product usage, resulting in a better product for users and the business alike.
In this case, drawing from user expectations I’m proposing a native keyboard in the remote control interface. This is consistent with search and typing experiences in mobile apps, and as users are already familiar with this experience, there will be minimal adoption stress.
However, in my redesign I opted to place the keyboard where the numeric keypad currently is. To retain its functions, the keyboard will be an alphanumeric keyboard that enables users type text strings, as well as input numbers using this component.
Benefits of this Redesign
The redesign introduced a standard alphanumeric keyboard input method, providing users with an intuitive and familiar interface for text input.
This simple but effective change eliminates the tedious and cumbersome process associated with the previous navigation and selection-based text entry.
Conclusion
After my redesign, I “tested” with a few of the user survey and interview respondents, talking them through the design. Their feedback was encouraging, as they were pleased with the new experience.
By implementing this simple but much needed feature, LG Electronics can transform the search and typing experience of the ThinQ app into a swift and user-friendly process, ultimately enhancing its overall usability and appeal.
