I'm going to be straight with you. I'm the skeptic on this team.
Before PRESENCE, I spent years working in product design at tech companies. I know how products are marketed. I know the tricks—the flattering photography, the carefully scripted testimonials, the promises that only hold up in lab conditions.
That's why I'm here. Someone has to actually test this stuff and call out what doesn't work.
How I Test Products
Marketing copy is fiction. The only thing that matters is: does it work in real life?
When I test a product, I use it the way a normal person would. Not in ideal conditions. Not following the perfect use case the company imagined. I test it when I'm tired. I test it when I'm distracted. I test it when I've had a frustrating day and just want something to work without me thinking about it.
If a touch lamp requires 45 minutes of setup, I'm going to tell you. If the app crashes on Android but works fine on iPhone, I'm going to tell you. If the marketing says "stay connected anywhere" but the connection drops every time you leave your house, I'm going to tell you.
I'm not trying to be negative—I genuinely love finding products that work well. Those discoveries are the best part of this job. But I think you deserve honest information before you spend your money.
My LDR Experience
Eighteen months. San Francisco to New York. My girlfriend (now fiancée) got offered a role she couldn't pass up. I was mid-project at work. Neither of us could move.
The products that actually helped? Fewer than you'd think. Touch bracelets. Shared playlists. A countdown app. The products that disappointed us? Plenty. Too complicated, too gimmicky, or they just stopped working after a month.
That experience is why I test things so thoroughly now. I know what it feels like to be let down by a product when you're already stressed about the distance.
Background
- Background in product design at consumer tech companies
- Focus on user experience and usability testing
- Personally tests every product before we recommend it
- Based in San Francisco (now in the same city as my fiancée, finally)