HP Mac Scan Experience
Enhanced usability, boosting App Store rating from 2.9 to 4.8.
Project Type
Revamped Mac Scan experience + new design system integration
Team
Product Development, Research, Analytics, Mac Catalyst Development Team, and Quality Assurance.
Deliverables
Product Strategy, User Research, Wireframes, Design System Contribution, UI/UX Design and Prototyping
Problem overview
In 2024, users frequently complained about the scanning process. Mac users were frustrated because they were getting an experience built for iPads, which made no sense on a laptop. The linear approach was so outdated and seemed like it would never end. Most users were unaware of advanced capabilities like adjustments, enhancements, or document manipulation in HP Smart. I sought to simplify the scanning flow while aligning with the new HPx design system.
Our next steps involve identifying opportunities to the Scan experience through quick, light improvements for Mac, while also exploring larger, long enhancements across various platforms. This approach aims to boost NPS, increase usage—especially for ADF—reduce complaints and generate more positive feedback in reviews.
Quantitative data research:​
of HP Smart app users were scanning from a Mac
48.8%
40
million active users per month
85.5
million scan jobs via printer
187.7
million pages were scanned in one month
99%
of desktop scans are via printer, not import
Double Diamond Design process
Let's build the right thing
Let's build the thing right
Idea or the Problem?
Discover
Define
Design
Develop
Solution
Problem?
Needs?
Challenges?
(Workshopping session)
Select problems to solve.
(Viable assessment
Pitch deck)
Create range of ways to solve.
(Wireframes
Mockup
Prototypes)
Deliver solutions we intend to develop.
(Product Application)
Wireframes
As key initiatives have been established, I created essential workflows to outline the core Pre Scan to Post Scan processes as our foundation.
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Moderated Usability Testing
Objective:
To understand if the Mac Catalyst Scan flow matches users' expectations, and to determine if certain features are intuitive and useful to users.
Research Goals
-
Does this design match users’ expectations of a Mac scan experience?
-
How do users feel about the options available to them?
-
Are users noticing the buttons (Save, Share, Print, etc.) in the top right corner? Would they make any changes to these buttons?
-
Do users understand the pop-ups for discarding or starting a new scan?
-
Do users understand the Shortcuts function, and would they use it?
-
Do users notice the button to enable Thumbnail view, and do they understand its functionality?
​
Methodology
The testing involved a total of 5 moderated sessions, with each lasting 30 minutes. Participants went through the entire Mac Catalyst Scan flow during these sessions.
Primer
Before the testing began, participants were informed that they had just finished setting up a printer and were now interested in using the HP Smart app on their Mac to scan documents. The moderators then shared their screens to show a developed version of HP Smart and guided the participants through the scanning process, asking for feedback on various functions along the way.
​
What we tested
Results
Executive Summary - Key results
All participants had a positive experience and thought the flow was user-friendly. The main concerns from users were the visibility of the Top Right Scan/Share/Print buttons, how Shortcuts worked, and what the New Scan function was.
Half of the participants did not notice the Top Right Buttons. The primary reason for this was because of having gray buttons on a gray header
6 participants did not think the New Scan icon was clickable, pairing it with the ‘Scan’ title. Other participants cited that the File icon was generic.
Only 1 participant was able to successfully identify the Shortcuts menu based off of the icon.
Most participants noticed the option to enable Thumbnail View, and all of them had a positive view of the feature.
​
Most participants would consider using the Shortcuts feature, although there was confusion about what it actually did.
All 10 participants were able to view the import image function, and recognize the add icon
Typography
Forma DJR Regular
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 ! @ # $ &
Color
• The new reskin is utilizing the new HPx app Design system color semantics.
#4759F5
#E0E1EE
#FFFFFF
Design solutions
The scan process is now user-controlled, where the editing functions auto-update on the same screen, disabling presets and displaying clear processing visuals. (no more iPad experience)
Added a drag-and-drop functionality for importing photos
Users can drag to reorder images while maintaining Mac’s default interactions.
Users can now switch from Gallery view to Thumbnail view and continue to add multiple scanned images.
Users can also perform bulk actions such as rotating images, reordering, deleting, and sharing.
Users can effortlessly add images to their scan job or choose Batch scan from the presets.
Editing features like Crop, Adjust, Filters, and Markup are visible for enhancing single images.
The most important thing! Once the scan is complete, users can quickly choose an output option like Save, Share, Print, Fax, or upload to cloud services like Dropbox and Google Drive.
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Post-launch attitudinal research
Steven Cutler
The recent software update is much more intuitive. The menu provides visibility on all the settings. Scanning is now a one-click operation, compared to the previous version's four-click process. Well done, HP!
Laura Manchester
As a small business owner, I want to emphasize that capital is not constant; there are many variables involved. From a cost perspective, having access to copy, fax, scan, and photo printing services offers significant advantages. So far, I have found the scanning feature to be the best multipurpose tool I have used, and it works better across the Mac OS platform than it did before. Happy customer!!!
Adra Emerson
I have tried several scanners, but nothing beats the Mac HP SMART app for scan. Very practical when you work with various applications!
Mac Scan store reviews (July 2024)
Store rating improved from 2.9 to a peak of 4.8.
