Uxample - Sketching User Interface Ideas More Conveniently

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#1

I’m working on a prototype for a physical product: A pack of magnetized smartphone sized dry-erase whiteboards (each pack would contain 8 whiteboards).

Whiteboards are magnetized, so that they can be stick on bigger whiteboards helping you easily visualize user interface flows.

If the product sells, next step would be introducing tablet and/or desktop sizes.

The pack contains a fine point correctable maker, so that it’s easy to write copy or any interface element on your sketches.

This is the 0.6 mm correctable marker that has given me the best results in my initial tests:
http://www.staedtler.com/en/products/markers-refill-ink/universal-pens/lumocolor-correctable-305-non-permanent-dry-erase-pen/

And here you can see some pictures of my initial prototypes: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/5opvxvejbyhopza/AABvLAvnqj2oT58QcmWBaEZ2a?dl=0

What do you think? Could this product help you in your app design workflow?

Thanks a lot for your feedback :smile:

#2

It’s an interesting idea. I personally would probably not buy the product, but I can understand the appeal.

Have you seen your big :slight_smile: competitor? http://uimagnets.com/

If you pursue it, I’d suggest a Kickstarter (and talking about your kickstarter to design/Apple sites). Design products can really take off there. Why not, at least as an exercise, make a few more prototypes of different sizes, spend some time to get a good handle on production costs and shipping costs, and think how you would price different Kickstarter tiers? If the Kickstarter route doesn’t appeal, definitely consider marketing to design firms/app companies. People there have the luxury of spending other people’s money on design tools such as this.

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#3

Yeah, UIMagnets, as I see it, are better suited for the “presentation to client” scenario.

I think that my product is (at least in his actual shape) is more targeted to “working in your desk” (during the sketching phase), and “sharing the application flow with your team” (when you stick different screens together in a bigger whiteboard).

I totally agree that a product like this could work well on Kickstarter. I’ve found some related products doing really well (for example).

Thanks for the ideas about trying to sell to firms or agencies. My actual plan is try to sell a first batch of 20 units and see from there which type of customer has more interest on it.

The Kickstarter would probably be the following step, since at that moment I will know better who is more interested in the product, how are they using it and where it’s more valuable.

If you want to be informed about the progress, @steve , just send me your email address through a direct message and I’ll get in touch when I have more details about the next prototype, pricing…

#4

You need to make them bigger. Way too small to be usable. Maybe the size of a sheet of regular paper.

I would consider buying them if they were that size.

#5

This is something I could see myself use. Although I don’t really work on mobile apps much, so I’d be more interested in just plain old square (A4?) magnetic squares, for sketching up websites. I like the idea of a fine marker too (maybe several colors?).

Now, why *wouldn’t *I buy?

  1. It will probably cost more than I can justify spending on something I use sparingly (I don’t work on UX).
  2. It isn’t a necessity (more of a niece to have), again given my needs, compared to just using pages of a notebook.
#6

Thanks for your feedback @howtogeek !

What do you think about the size used in http://uimagnets.com?

#7

Got it @manuelflara. Maybe something like this would suit better your needs.

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#8

Well those uimagnets are awesome, but I think that’s probably more about group brainstorming.

When I’m sitting at home working on a design for my website or something like that, I usually just pull out a piece of printer paper, draw out the frame of the browser or phone, and then draw my interface on it. Sure, there are tools out there to help with that, but I’ve never found one I really liked. Was planning on trying out the Surface Pro 3 that I bought to see how easily I can draw interfaces on there… I should use that tablet for something at least.

So I could see it being useful for somebody doing design that likes to sketch things out.

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#9

OK, I see @howtogeek .

When I’m sitting at home working on a design for my website or something like that, I usually just pull out a piece of printer paper, draw out the frame of the browser or phone, and then draw my interface on it.

That’s exactly my workflow, and the reason I came out with this product idea.

Would it work for you a real-size desktop (let’s say 13" screen) whiteboard?

#10

I like the idea, the magnetic and erasable part is a great addon. I would buy if I would work on more mobile projects, but that’s not likely in the near future.

#11

Thanks for the feedback @kowdermeister. Which type of projects are you working on?

#12

Mostly web applications, I usually start sketching on paper, then assemble the final wireframes with some tool, like Balsamiq or Google docs.

#13

Got it. Considering the type of projects you work on: Does it sound useful/appealing a pack of 8 desktop real size dry-erase whiteboards?

#14

I tend to keep my wireframing digital using Wacom tablet and Sketchbook Pro so I can share them on the web or turn them into click-through prototypes. It would be cool if your whiteboards came with a mobile app that turned them into digital images along the lines of RocketBoard, though it would be a fair bit of extra work. The whiteboards could have shapes in a distinct colour in the corners so the app can crop them and remove the perspective.

#15

@markh For the moment I want to focus on the physical product. There are already some apps that do what you mention. For example:

These app users could be my my initial market.