AC Remote Redesign: Case Study by Dhvani Patel

01 — The Problem

Too many buttons, too little logic.

AC remotes are devices everyone uses but nobody fully understands. What should be simple — temperature, airflow, comfort — ends up feeling like a spacecraft console. Most people just press buttons until cold air comes out.

We redesigned the remote to be clean, smart, and stress-free — then tested it with real users to prove it actually works, not just for the tech-savvy.

02 — Process

A standard design loop, closed by real users.

We followed a five-stage design process, then validated the result through structured usability testing rather than assumption.

Empathize

Define

Ideate

Prototype

Testing

Usability testing:

Target group

Screening

Usability testing

Analysing

🧠

Expectancy Testing

Users guessed what each button does — just by looking at it.

👤

Scenario-Based Tasks

Real-life situations, to see how the remote gets used naturally.

💬

Think-Aloud Protocol

Participants narrated what was going on in their head as they used it.

❓

Probe Questioning

Follow-up questions dug deeper into choices and moments of confusion.

👀

Observation & Feedback

We watched what they did, how they reacted, and noted what they said.

03 — Understanding the Users

Young, tech-comfortable, and short on patience for confusing controls.

Mostly college students in shared living spaces, using the AC often, and expecting quick, clear, minimal controls.

Age 18–21 Moderate–high tech comfort Shared apartments & family homes Frequent AC use

Aarav Nair

Engineering student · 21 · Pune

Lives with his parents and sister; uses the AC daily while studying and relaxing. Tech-savvy himself, but the remote is shared at home — it has to work for everyone, not just him.

Needs

Quick access to key functions
Timer & sleep mode without hassle
A remote simple enough for the whole family

Frustrations

Too many unnecessary buttons
No clear feedback after pressing
Hard to read the screen at night
Icons not universally understood

AC usage behaviour

Power use

Mode changes

Fan / Swing

Voice control

04 — The Redesign

One remote, built to be understood at a glance.

Every core function stays — mode, temperature, fan, swing, timer, turbo, sleep, and voice control — organized around clarity instead of clutter. Try it below.

Power anchors the layout

One large, central button — the first thing every participant found, no matter their age or tech comfort.

Icons over labels

Mode changes read at a glance instead of requiring users to parse text in low light.

The screen always confirms

Temperature and fan speed stay visible on-screen, so an action never feels unconfirmed.

Fan & swing get dedicated buttons

The two most-used controls after temperature no longer hide inside a menu.

COOL

Set temp

23^°C

Fan speed

HIGH

Timer off Turbo off

Timer

Swing

Voice command“Change to cool mode, AC Remote.”

05 — Putting It to the Test

Testing with real people, not just design intuition.

Three participants, four real-life scenarios, one question: could someone use this remote without instructions?

COOL

Set temp

23^°C

Fan speed

HIGH

Timer offTurbo off

Timer

Swing

Triangular +/− buttons were instantly understood for temperature.

The power button was clearly recognized and used without hesitation.

The Cool icon was understood immediately and often the first mode selected.

Dry and Auto icons were unclear — some read the droplet as “humidity.”

The voice button surprised users; they weren’t sure how to trigger or disable it.

Swing icons caused confusion — one user said “the air’s moving differently” without knowing why.

Sleep mode’s function was unclear — a timer? a gradual change? users weren’t sure.

Expectancy test: what users guessed right — and where they froze

Before any scenario, participants were asked to guess what each button did just by looking at it. Hover the dots on the remote for what we found.

Worked as expected Needed rethinking

Task 01

Change to ‘Dry’ mode

“You're working from home and the air feels thick and humid. Walk us through what you'd do.”

Turn on AC→ Press Mode→ Reach Dry

Worked

Mode button was easily found and cycled
Cool icon read instantly, chosen first

Needed work

Dry icon confused 2 of 3 participants
Unclear what Dry mode actually does

Task 02

Feeling too cold

“You're not stuffy anymore, but you feel very chilly. What would you do next?”

Raise tempor Lower fan speedor Switch to Auto

Worked

+/− temp buttons identified via clear icons
Cool → Auto switch was quick and confident

Needed work

No beep or vibration to confirm a press

Task 03

Fan and swing

“You've moved to the sofa across the room. Make the airflow feel better from here.”

Adjust Swingand/or Adjust Fan speed

Worked

Dedicated Fan/Swing buttons got frequent use
Toggling fan speed felt easy and intuitive

Needed work

Swing icons didn't clearly map to direction

“Think twice… ummm… the swing button.”

Task 04

Voice assistant

“It's the middle of the night and you're too hot, but don't want to open your eyes to find a button.”

Press voice button→ Say the command

Worked

Participants were comfortable with the concept
Interest in it being fully integrated

Needed work

Side placement made the button easy to miss

“I would add voice recognition.”

06 — What We Learned

Small friction points, clear fixes.

The fundamentals held up

Power, temperature, mode-switching, and turbo were all instantly usable across every participant — validating the core layout and the decision to give the screen constant, visible feedback.

What remained was iconography and confirmation: Dry mode and swing direction need clearer symbols, quiet actions like Sleep need a one-line explanation somewhere discoverable, and every press deserves a small beep or vibration so users never have to guess whether it registered. The voice assistant validated itself as a feature people want — it just needs to be seen.