The worst volume control UI in the world (2017)

▲ The worst volume control UI in the world (2017)(uxdesign.cc)

57 points by andsoitis 3 days ago | 28 comments

▲ semolino 4 hours ago | parent | next [-]

How about the most depraved volume control design of all: the actual reddit web video player (at least the embedded player on old.reddit)?

The slider is hidden by default. Hovering the volume icon makes the slider appear. There is margin between the icon and slider, though, so you have to quickly "zip" your mouse across this gap/chasm before the slider disappears. If you make it over to the slider in time, your hover then preserves its visibility.

I know for sure the devs at Condé ain't dogfoodin' on that interface anymore!

▲ socalgal2 2 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

I get it's not the same thing but I wish iOS had lower volume settings. As it is, if 100% is max volume then the difference between 0 and unit above 0 on iPhones is about 30% volume. Like, in the middle of the night when everything is quiet, if I was the set it on the lowest setting and make some game sounds I could hear it 2 rooms away with doors open. But, Apple decided you don't need to set it below 30%. Maybe they're trying to force you to buy Airpods

	▲	shreddit 2 hours ago \| parent \| next [-]
		The same with brightness. I have a shortcut to lower the white point because the lowest brightness level is still far to bright in complete darkness.
	▲	reaperducer 37 minutes ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		the difference between 0 and unit above 0 on iPhones is about 30% volume. I have found that when playing audio to a HomePod, pressing Volume Up on the phone increases the volume by 1. But if you immediately press Volume Down, it goes down by 0.5. So, with two button presses you can get the half-step increase you wanted in the first place. It's like adding "a little" to a volume change command with Siri. `"Siri, turn the volume up a little" turns the volume up 0.5. "Siri, turn the volume up" turns the volume up one. "Siri, turn the volume up a lot" turns the volume up two.` In macOS, there used to be a modifier key to have the volume change in half-steps, too, but I've forgotten what it is. I think the only place that Apple has done a good job with volume controls is the AirPods Max. But even there, I'd like more granularity at the low end.

▲ sillywalk 2 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

I'd add the volume control for Quicktime 4. A dial that you had to use a mouse to use.

http://hallofshame.gp.co.at/qtime.htm

EDIT:

previously

763 points by yankcrime on July 13, 2021 | hide | past | favorite | 477 comments

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=27819384

	▲	pseudohadamard 2 days ago \| parent [-]
		Ah yes, skeuomorphic design, where you take something that's a physical artefact of the hardware and force-fit it onto an utterly different device on which it makes no sense whatsoever.

▲ nico 4 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Every now and then I get these hilarious volume control videos on TikTok. They show the most horrible ways for doing volume control

One example (you need to play tic tac toe to set the volume) https://www.tiktok.com/@vivancodes/video/7612511893340671240

It seems like that account has quite a few more too

	▲	sanjosanjo 4 hours ago \| parent [-]
		Tic Tac Toe is hilarious

▲ sph 3 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Beautiful, forgot about this one. The precursor to some of neal.fun's creations.

- https://neal.fun/not-a-robot/

- https://neal.fun/password-game/

▲ Dwedit 2 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Is there a list of these that are actually in real shipped software and not created as a joke?

▲ harvey9 4 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

I liked the one where you make a noise at the level you want to set the volume.

	▲	efebarlas 2 hours ago \| parent [-]
		I feel like that one’s actually pretty good, why should the ear calibrate to the device when it can be vice versa?

▲ Sohcahtoa82 4 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

> Should is interesting because of its subjectiveness. It’s a question that only makes sense to be asked in first person. And you have to know about much more than just design to be able to answer it — you have to understand about business, technology, culture, people. Answering the should question is a skill you only get after many, many years answering questions alike.

I wish more front-end designers would consider "should" more often.

"Oh, we can make the scrollbars in our web page auto-hide so PC users get the same experience as Mac users"

But should you?

No. Because one of the reasons I use a PC is because auto-hiding scrollbars on a desktop/laptop is a bug, not a feature, and I disabled that bug while I had a Mac because it's annoying.

"Oh, we can implement smooth scrolling in JavaScript!"

But should you?

No. Because browsers already do it. And your implementation will fail on at least one browser and cause scrolling to just be fucked up. If a user has disabled smooth scrolling, it's probably for a reason. Don't force it back on.

"We can create our own implementation of a drop-down box"

But should you?

No. You're reducing accessibility for literally zero gain. I hate when I'm entering my address, tabbing through the fields, reach the State, and pressing O then R doesn't bring me to "Oregon" or "OR", and instead brings me to Rhode Island. Side note: The order of entering an address is street address, city, state, zip code. If your form order is any different, you're a madman.

	▲	mananaysiempre 2 hours ago \| parent \| next [-]
		> The order of entering an address is street address, city, state, zip code. In the US. Most of Europe uses street address; postcode, settlement and optionally province; country. There are still enough occasional warts that you shouldn’t dictate the structre of the second line, though: e.g. in France you’ll usually see things like “75005 Paris” but large institutions that get separate deliveries may list addresses like “75231 Paris CEDEX 05”, where everything but “Paris” is a postcode-like routing instruction. Unless you definitely, absolutely know better, just let people type in whatever postal label they want.
	▲	vintagedave an hour ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		Yes — so much friction is introduced by redesigning when there should be refinement at most. Or doing nothing at all. It takes wisdom to do that, and it doesn’t justify a salary. So we get experimented upon by UX designers at every company. While the volume controls are fun, at this stage in the thread I’m struck by how few people have got to the point of the article at the end: the “should” question.

▲ RiskScore 4 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

I've seen this same thing like 100 times. I do not mind.

▲ c4pt0r 2 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

i know they will have alsamixer in this list.

▲ aa-jv 3 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

I once worked for a mainstream headphone manufacturer who added a volume control to a product that was so widely despised that a special firmware release had to be done to disable it completely, or else the returns bin would overflow almost overnight ..

So this had me chuckling so hard, having worked professionally in the pro audio world for decades - I can say that some of these 'solutions' would actually be accepted in certain market segments .. I especially love the designs which use a built-in accelerometer.

It seems the good ol' knob is not going anywhere any time soon.

▲ jibal 3 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

I just want to be able to get to 11.

▲ socalgal2 2 hours ago | parent | next [-]

I just want it to be able to be set between 0 and 1, because on iPhone

    0 = off
    1 = 30% volume
    10 = 100% volume

You are not allowed to set it between 0 and 1.

+ Mud flaps

▲ bigfishrunning 3 hours ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Just 1 more loud

▲ pseudohadamard 2 days ago | parent | prev [-]

Here you go, https://store.thodio.com/products/new-anodized-aluminum-a-bo...

▲

jibal 2 days ago | parent [-]

whoosh

▲

socalgal2 2 hours ago | parent | next [-]

How is it whoosh? Seemed exactly like what you where referencing. Knobs marked by up to 11 inspired by the same source, Spinal Tap.

▲

pseudohadamard a day ago | parent | prev [-]

Is that self-referential? I knew exactly what the OP was asking.

	▲	jibal 21 hours ago \| parent [-]
		Whoosh again. I'm the OP in this case.

▲ himata4113 3 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

Have seen this every single time, the iPhone one is my favorite. If you know, you know.

	▲	busymom0 2 hours ago \| parent [-]
		Can you explain that one?