WHAT TELEPHONES CAN TELL YOU ABOUT GOOD DESIGN

Summary from the TLDR Design newsletter

Bell Labs designed the touch-tone phone keypad in the 1950s to increase accuracy and reduce connection time. The layout aligned with natural writing patterns and placed frequently used keys for optimal hand positioning based on Fitt's Law. This design, used around 40 trillion times, has saved approximately one million person-years and underscores the importance of understanding user preferences and cognition in product design.