© 2023 Copyright
Phoebe Ng



Embrace the future of living with a Smart TV as the central hub of convenience and delight. The SmartThings TV App integrates effortlessly with home automation systems, offering users the magic of a connected home at their fingertips.










Background

Business
Samsung and SmartThings have partnered to introduce the first-ever connected smart device experience by integrating the SmartThings hub into all new TVs. This collaboration aims to leverage the growing TV market and bring smart home capabilities to millions of households.

Users
The Internet of Things (IoT) is still a relatively new concept for many people. By examining customer insights and major segments, we identified a significant opportunity for SmartThings to become the brain of the smart home. Through home monitoring, automation, and entertainment solutions, SmartThings delivers convenience, control, and peace of mind.

Our Goal
Our goal is to bring smart home technology to millions of households by making the TV the central hub of the home, connecting hundreds of smart devices to work together seamlessly and providing home solutions that are useful, delightful, and magical.




Psychographic Segments

When we initiated the project, the Internet of Things was unfamiliar to the majority. We embarked on a thorough examination of user segments to delve into their psychological needs, obstacles, and incentives concerning smart home technology. Our aim was to pinpoint the primary influencers in their domestic settings that could prompt the acceptance of smart home devices. Consequently, we identified Frontiers and Carefree Gadgeteers as potential early adopters of our TV app product within the realm of Smart Home technology.







Design Principles



TV App Design & Prototypes

The SmartThings TV app design comprised several key areas featuring intricate and dynamic interactions. These encompassed the setup process, notifications, and shortcuts for integrating a IoT baby monitor, as well as offering users a choice between two customizable dashboard options.





















Other Explorations







Impact

My hands-on design contributions and leadership have significantly enhanced the design quality at SmartThings and Samsung. This project introduces the first-ever IoT hub integrated into a TV, setting a new industry standard. This innovation enables Samsung and SmartThings to reach millions of households, positioning them as leaders in the connected smart home market. By ensuring seamless integration and user-friendly interactions, this initiative not only elevates the user experience but also solidifies Samsung's and SmartThings' dominance in the smart home industry, paving the way for widespread adoption and significantly impacting how users interact with their connected environments.





Samsung SmartThings

TV App (IoT)

UX, TV UI, Consumer Product, Mobile

My Contributions and Impact

I was looking for design projects that would make a bigger impact on people’s lives. My passion in both Industrial Design and User Experience drove me to join SmartThings to work on the Internet of Things (IoT). Shortly after I joined, I took the initiative to revamp the TV app. The design of the previous TV app was neglected and designed without thinking about the end user in mind. SmartThings could not ship the first version of the TV app because of the poor user experience. A week after my first design proposal (M2 Design) was presented by me to the CEO, he flew to Korea and presented the proposal to Samsung VD Executives. Not only did I help gain Samsung’s confidence in the TV app design, I also helped regain the trust in SmartThings where it was lost with the previous TV app design. Since then, I have been the UX champion for the SmartThings design team. I worked along side the CEO and being the goto designer for our development teams.

There were many challenges along the way in the design and development process. Unlike designing a mobile or web application, TV hardware and native codes have a lot of limitations that required different design thinking and treatments. The use of a remote control as a input device also creates a very cumbersome experience. Syncing with the mobile app to reduce duplicated workflows and improving latency issues were also part of the design thinking to reduce cognitive overload for users.

Given these limitations, I adopted an interactive approach to explore design solutions, utilizing prototypes to assess perceptions of various designs and interaction patterns that incorporate audio and visual feedback. These prototypes were tested with users through multiple rounds of studies and refinements. This eye-opening experience enabled me to create a comprehensive digital solution from the ground up, while gaining valuable insights into new interaction patterns involving remote controls and multimedia dynamic interactions.

I have contributed tremendously to this project and also elevated the design quality in SmartThings and Samsung. Not only is this going to be the first ever IoT hub in a TV, it will also allow Samsung and SmartThings to get into millions of households and become the leader in the connected smart home.




Contribution

  • Design research
  • Concept generation
  • TV app UX flows
  • Mobile app UX flows)
  • Information architecture
  • Wireframing
  • Visual design
  • Icon design
  • Interactive prototyping
  • Presentation to CEO