I see in almost all audio players, there is the ability to adjust the volume in the audio player. iTunes does this along with other apps like Podcast.
My question is, if you can control the volume with hardware on an iPhone and Android, why do we need the volume controls in the audio player?
Answer
4 Reasons:
- The hardware buttons are low-res step-wise controls. If you want to go super-soft to super-loud or vice versa, the sliders are much more useful. Also, to fine-tune the level, you need to use the slider - sometimes the steps of the hardware buttons take you neither here nor there (particularly the case when listening on headphones in a noisy environment).
- The slider is more accessible when the device is not hand held, like when on a dock or on a stand. Using the slider means there's no need to grab the device to counter the force applied on the buttons.
- Lastly, the function of the hardware buttons will be ambiguous for some - most of the time you change the ringer level; upon entering certain apps, they still change the ringer level unless you play some media - only then the hardware buttons alter the level of the media. So you can argue that there is a benefit in providing a level control that is not ambiguous - the slider within the app. After users have learnt the behaviour of the hardware buttons, these can be seen as somewhat 'expert controls'.
- A few weeks ago a friend of mine had an egg splash on her iPhone; the result - the volume buttons are now stuck and these volume sliders prove to be very useful. But I don't think this is taken into consideration by app developers.
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