App Audit
Role
UI/UX Designer
Tools
Timeline
May 2023
DESCRIPTION
Improving accessibility within iMessage voice messages.
CONTEXT
I designed a concept for a better voice message experience by adding advanced playback and transcription features, abiding by iOS design guidelines.
Background
Voice messages in messaging apps have not only allowed people to form deeper connections by being able to hear each other's voices but also offer a more accessible way to communicate.
But what happens when the voice message is really long?
As of early 2023, iMessage voice messages have limited controls. Users who receive long voice messages have no choice but to listen to the entire message, which can be restrictive.
Research
User Interviews
I interviewed 4 subjects and synthesized the results into 2 key takeaways:
Users desire reasonable control over the playback of the voice messages they receive, especially long ones.
There is a need for a transcription feature that allows users to view the contents of the voice messages at their convenience.
User Persona
Competitor Analysis
There are related apps and built-in iOS functions that contain useful and relevant features.
Design
The main focus of this project was to improve on the existing voice message feature in iMessage with a nod to visual design and micro-interactions. A secondary design goal was to align with iOS design systems showcased through built-in apps and features.
Paper Wireframes
With existing mental models of how similar features work in voicemail and voice memo apps in mind, I created 4 variations of user flows:
The fourth design was selected as it contains both playback controls and the transcription feature in the main conversation page, giving a simple user flow and conversational context.
Solution
I created two user flows to address the issues of limited playback controls and the lack of a transcription feature. Through these features, users are able to both listen and read voice messages at their own convenience, thus eliminating the need for a quiet place to listen to voice messages as well an extreme amount of time to listen to long ones.
Playback Controls
Originally, the only way to control voice message playback was to press on the voice message bubble or manually scrub through the audio. This creates user friction as the design caused users to be prone to accidentally restarting the voice message, while the process for accessing the manual scrub option was also unclear.
The redesigned flow provides more options while reducing the number of steps. By clicking on the voice message, users are able to directly access a playback control menu that lets them do basic operations like rewind/forward and change the playback speed.
Playing voice messages
Rewinding the message with the press of a button streamlines the listening process.
Playback speed adjustments also allows users to listen to voice messages at their own pace, improving accessibility options.
Audio Transcription
Without a transcription feature, users are forced to listen to the voice message. This can be limiting as users may have to wait for a certain time and place. Users also have to replay voice messages in order to remember the contents when looking back in the conversation.
A transcription feature gives users the agency to view the contents of voice messages whenever they want. Transcribed messages within conversation also allows users to recall the contents with just a quick glance.
Transcribing voice messages
If users do not have ‘transcribe automatically’ on in the playback menu, they can transcribe individual messages by long pressing a voice message.
Having the transcription be performed inside the conversation gives the user more conversational context.
Auxiliary Issues: Long Messages
Transcribing long voice messages leads to another issue — how do we deal with extremely long columns of text? Users may want a way to collapse a long transcribed voice message to avoid scrolling for a long time to get to other texts.
Two different cases are accounted for:
Top & bottom
Users can expand and collapse the text bubble at the top and bottom, respectively.
Validation
This case study was completed in May of 2023. At the WWDC 2023 in June of 2023, Apple debuted improved features within iOS 17, including audio message transcriptions—showing that this was an idea worthy of implementing! Furthermore, the designs are similar, indicating that I achieved my goal of of abiding by Apple design guidelines.
