font size for small screens at a distance
9 Jun 2006 - 11:42am
2 replies
1663 reads
jstanford
2003
Hello,
I am working on a design for a small screen on a conference room phone which
is obviously not handheld, but will be seen at a short distance (imagine
sitting at a conference room table with the phone about an arm's length
away). Is there any research that has been done on font size at that
distance on a small screen device?
Julie
_____________________________________
Julie Stanford
Principal, Sliced Bread Design | www.slicedbreaddesign.com
<http://www.slicedbreaddesign.com/>
650-799-7225
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On Jun 9, 2006, at 9:42 AM, Julie Stanford wrote:
> [Please voluntarily trim replies to include only relevant quoted
> material.]
>
> Hello,
>
> I am working on a design for a small screen on a conference room
> phone which
> is obviously not handheld, but will be seen at a short distance
> (imagine
> sitting at a conference room table with the phone about an arm's
> length
> away). Is there any research that has been done on font size at that
> distance on a small screen device?
>
> Julie
Punchcut presented a paper at DUX 2005 on typography considerations
when designing for mobile (or small devices in general). It is
available through the AIGA's site:
http://gain.aiga.org/content.cfm?
ContentAlias=_getfullarticle&aid=1684218
Some of the research and findings in our paper may be helpful to you
in this case.
Nancy Broden
Interaction Design Director
PUNCHCUT // http://www.punchcut.com
228 Grant Avenue, 5th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94108
+1 415 445 8855 office
+1 415 445 8857 fax
>Is there any research that has been done on font size at that distance on a
> small screen device?
There's actually a formula for font size at distance:
"Visual Angle, Viewing Distance, and Character Size Calculation - These
parameters can be measured and calculated using simple algebra. Visual angle
(A) is defined in degrees. The size of the visual angle depends on the size of
the object being viewed (H) and its distance (D) from the observer."
For details:
http://www.hf.faa.gov/Webtraining/VisualDisplays/text/size1a.htm
Bret Hekking
Sr. UX Designer | Applix, Inc
Westboro, MA
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