The Skeptics Guide to Low-Fidelity Prototyping Notes

• Low-fidelity prototypes, in particular, are rough representations of concepts that help us to validate those concepts early on in the design process
• Designing without introducing potential users to raw versions of our ideas is unsafe, uncomfortable and wasteful
• Low-fidelity prototyping helps us to find the middle ground between overspending and overthinking, between too little investment and too much user validation
• A prototype’s level of fidelity answers the question, How precisely does this represent the final solution?
• Low-fidelity prototyping has become popular because of:
• Design thinking advocates for “thinking with your hands” as a way to build empathetic solutions
• Lean startup relies on early validation and the development of a minimum viable product to iterate on
• User-centered design calls for a collaborative design process where users deliver continual feedback based on their reactions to a product’s prototype
• Prototypes have the following advantages:
• Detect and fix major problems early
• Build cheaply and easily
• Draw feedback that focuses on high-level concepts, rather than execution
• Iterate more willingly
• Carry and show them easily
• Types of prototypes:
• Paper based 2D
• 3D
• Quick-start guide:
• Define your goals: What will you show?
• Define the method: How will you show it?
• The level of detail will depend on what type of user will be exposed to your prototype and what resources are accessible
• Execute: Show it
• Test: How will you evaluate what you are showing?
• Learn: We've shown. Now what?