Usability and Human Computer Interaction (HCI) Analysis of Amazon

One of my Advanced Software Engineering sub-modules at university is HCI and we’ve been given a practice assignment to assess the HCI aspects and usability of a publicly available website.

I shall be taking a look at Amazon – specifically the homepage, a product page and a purchasing page.

Amazon Non-personalised Homepage

Amazon Non-personalised Homepage

Amazon Product Page

Amazon Purchase Page

The questions are as follows and shall be linked to the answer when I’ve written them:

Using Nielson’s Usability Principles devise an evaluation plan to assess the ‘quality’ of the site. Your answer should clearly identify where improvements can be made.

Consider how the site supports user understanding. Identify good and poor aspects of the site.

Are there elements of the site that could provide user frustation? Justify your statements with examples and recommend improvements as necessary.

Is the site designed for accessibility? Justify your statements with examples and recommended improvements as necessary.

Related posts:

1. An Analysis of Amazon against Neilson’s Usability Principles
2. User-Centered Interaction Design
3. User-Interface and Design Evaluation
4. Current Geek Reading List
5. What is search conversion / captology / usability optimisation?