Design Fault or User Fault?

Before I begin this blog post, allow me to introduced myself for a bit.

I'm currently working at Epicentre as a Mac Evangelist selling iPhone, iPad and computers. My workplace is at Marina Bay Sands. Apple is known for their minimalistic and clean design, taking the minimal approach in designing their product. Apple has boasted that their products is easy to use and is user friendly to many first time user. So this is what I have encountered when I sold one of the iPad Air 2 to a customer from China.

The customer requested to download some applications to her new iPad. But being a first time user of iPad, she would need to set up a new Apple ID account in order to download apps onto her new iPad. The iPad was set to Mandarin already, she knows how to read and speak Mandarin. But at the first page of the set up page, she was stunned. It is like she is seeing a foreign language or some alienated language. I asked her to follow the instructions prompted from the screen and fill in the necessary personal details for her Apple ID. But she doesn't know how, she doesn't know where to press and what to do to what she is seeing. Obviously the user is feeling the frustration of not knowing what to do. Apple has created a great User Experience in all their products except for the Apple watch. 

So I observed her for a moment. Does the user blame herself for not knowing what to do with the iPad or is the User interface not easy enough for comprehension.When people have trouble using technology, especially when they perceive that nobody else is having the same trouble, they tend to blame them self. The more trouble they face, the more helpless they may feel. Believing that they are technologically inept. Or they may blame the product for bad user interface resulting in a frustrating user experience. Remember that Apple has boasted how easy it is to use their products to even first time user. But why is this customer having trouble with it? Even changing the iPad language to her own mother tongue. Is she just that technology idiot and just wanted to play candy crush or whatever they play in their iPad? Are they too lazy to fill out their own credentials because of the long list of items to fill up? Are they too lazy to crack their brain to fill up the blanks? So who is at blame here?


Reference: The design of everyday thing by Don Norman