COMPARISONS BETWEEN USER EXPECTATIONS FOR PRODUCTS IN PHYSICAL AND VIRTUAL DOMAINS Bahar Sener, Pelin Gültekin, Çigdem Erbug Department of Industrial Design – BILTIR / UTEST Product Usability Unit Middle East Technical University, Faculty of Architecture, 06531 Ankara, Turkey Tel: + 90 312 210 4219 - Fax: + 90 312 210 1251 bsener@metu.edu.tr - pelin.gultekin@gmail.com - erbug@metu.edu.tr This paper focuses on the expectations that users form when they are confronted with audio products. It presents the results of a comparative study conducted with twenty users to reveal similarities and differences in their expectations for products in physical (i.e. hardware) and virtual (i.e. software) domains. The results are suggested to be valuable on two accounts. First, for the design of products that can mediate between increased technological possibilities and increased user demands. And second, in relation to methodological issues, for the systematic assessment of user expectations for new products. Introduction In the past few years, developments in digital technologies have emerged to create an almost immediate impact on user lifestyles, leading to new ways of interacting with products at home, on the road, and at work. The prevailing effects of the developments in digital technologies are not limited to the transformations they bring into everyday life, but also to changes in the way users interact with products, and their expectations from them. Consumers are increasingly embracing digitally integrated everyday products, such as audio devices, video recorders, and microwave ovens. From a design perspective, the quality of the interaction between such products and their users is highly dependent on designers having a firm understanding of the triangular relationship that exists between users, products and the environments in which they are utilised. This paper focuses on the expectations that users form when they are confronted with audio products. It presents the results of a comparative study conducted to reveal the similarities and differences of user expectations from portable audio devices versus audio player computer applications. The study is targeted at contributing to the advancement of knowledge about expectations and preferences of users during the process of buying and using a new product. Elicitation of user expectations Data collection method. Initially developed in the clinical psychology field by Kelly (1955), the Repertory Grid Technique (RGT) represents a widely used set of tools for studying personal and interpersonal systems of meaning. Because of their flexibility,