# 165: When People See a Button

- Show: [Embedded.fm](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm)
- Published: 2016-08-16
- Length: 1h 08m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2016-08-16-165-when-people-see-a-button
- Listen: https://makingembeddedsystems.libsyn.com/165-when-people-see-a-button

## Summary

Shimona Carvalho, UI Manager at Fitbit, discusses the complexities of designing user interfaces for resource-constrained embedded systems, citing her work on devices like the Fitbit Surge and Blaze. She details the technical challenges of internationalization and localization, including font handling for Asian character sets and cultural QA processes. The conversation also covers the importance of user research, the tension between expert flexibility and ease of use, and the shift from individual contributor to management.

## Chapters

- [0:06](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2016-08-16-165-when-people-see-a-button#t=6) Introduction and Lightning Round
- [6:12](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2016-08-16-165-when-people-see-a-button#t=372) Defining Embedded Systems and UI Challenges
- [10:03](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2016-08-16-165-when-people-see-a-button#t=603) Designing for Safety and Usability
- [15:15](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2016-08-16-165-when-people-see-a-button#t=915) User Research and Mental Models
- [27:02](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2016-08-16-165-when-people-see-a-button#t=1622) Engineering Constraints and Designer Collaboration
- [35:03](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2016-08-16-165-when-people-see-a-button#t=2103) Internationalization and Localization Technicalities
- [42:36](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2016-08-16-165-when-people-see-a-button#t=2556) Asian Markets and Character Sets
- [50:56](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2016-08-16-165-when-people-see-a-button#t=3056) Management Transition and Photography Hobby
- [1:00:25](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2016-08-16-165-when-people-see-a-button#t=3625) The Value of UI and Future of Embedded

## Topics

- [Industrial & consumer product design](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/industrial-design)
- [Embedded firmware](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/embedded-firmware)
- [Careers & education](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/engineering-careers-and-education)
- [Sourcing & supply chain](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/sourcing-and-supply-chain)
- [AI & machine learning](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/ai-and-machine-learning)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- Fitbit (company)
- Texas Instruments (company)
- Qualcomm (company)
- Apple (company)
- Code Composer (tool)
- Perforce (tool)
- Git (tool)
- Microsoft Paint (tool)
- Photoshop (tool)
- Cortex M0 (chip)
- Canon 70D (product)
- Getty (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [The Importance of UX Design for IoT Adoption | Velavu's Rob Shudra & Dominic Peters | Internet of Things Podcast](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/iot-for-all-podcast/2023-10-24-the-importance-of-ux-design-for-iot-adoption-velavus-rob-shudra-dominic-peters-i) (IoT For All Podcast)
- [An Interview with Kerry Scharfglass](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2020-04-06-an-interview-with-kerry-scharfglass) (The Amp Hour)
- [TDD for UI](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-pragmatic-embedded-podcast/2023-06-23-tdd-for-ui) (The Pragmatic Embedded Podcast)
- [125: Pikachu Phone Cases](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/thoroughly-considered/2025-07-08-125-pikachu-phone-cases) (Thoroughly Considered)
- [An Interview with Elecia White - Wirewove Worshipping Wookieist?](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2014-03-05-an-interview-with-elecia-white-wirewove-worshipping-wookieist) (The Amp Hour)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2016-08-16-165-when-people-see-a-button. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to Embedded.fm.