• Describe something you bought that it is difficult to use at first You should say:
• What you bought
• When and why you bought it
• How long it took for you to figure out how it is used
• And explain why this thing was very difficult to use at first

Right, I’d like to talk about my Kindle, which is the product that I found hard to use at first.

I purchased my Kindle several years ago so it was an old version, which means, it was quite immature in many designs and it bothered me for quite a while.

As an e-reader, the main job of Kindle is to provide the best experience of reading e-books. But my Kindle obviously didn’t win my heart at the beginning. On the first day I received it, I wasn’t able to connect it to my WiFi which means I wasn’t able to download any books from the internet. And then, after being helped by the customer service, I finally got it online and had my own account. But when I was about to pay for the books I purchased online, it told me that I was not allowed to use Alipay on this device 一 I had to log on the web on my computer and scan the QR code via my phone which was totally stupid and confusing. So I stopped using it until recently it got updated and was improved.

So, the reason why I thought it wasn’t satisfactory was because I’d had very high expectations when I bought this Kindle and I had another e-reader before, which was from another brand and it was very user-friendly – everything was easily-understandable. So compared with it, Kindle didn’t impress me, or, even worse, it let me down. So that’s quite disappointing really.

PART 3

1.Is there anything that is difficult to use at first?

High-tech products must be on the list. For those who know nothing about technological products, learning to use high-tech products at first is supposed to be a torture since they are not interested in the innovative functions of these products at all. But after being familiar with these objects, they tend to feel ok with those smart machines.

2.What should companies do if they have designed products difficult to use?

The companies can do several things to make up for what they have done. Firstly, it is considerate if they can make proper improvements regarding their present products, such as updating the current version or sending the new products after revision to the customers for free. On top of that, they are supposed to make thorough adjustments on the previous design to avoid certain drawbacks next time.

3.Why do people buy things that they will never use?

There are several reasons for that. On the one hand, it is likely for people to buy the things that they don’t need at all on impulse. When they are bombarded with excessive advertisements, they tend to buy these useless things unconsciously. On the other hand, sometimes people buy products they never use due to emotional factors. For certain group of people, their behaviors are easily influenced by personal sentiments. As a result, when they are down in the damps, it is common for them to buy unnecessary things as a means of venting anger or other negative emotions.

4.What kinds of products do young people think are useful but old people may not?

The digital devices like Xbox and PSP are favored by the youngsters since they are really fond of playing video games nowadays. These products can bring them strong senses of satisfaction and pleasure especially when they are plagued by tremendous pressure at school or in the workplace. While for the elderly, they are likely to turn to other ways to entertain themselves, such as taking trips with friends, instead of seeking for pleasure online. As a result, these digital devices may seem useless for the old generation.

5.Do you think product instructions are useful for users to use products better?

It really depends on whether these instruction manuals are reader-friendly or not. Like if there are practical tips included and the words are easy to comprehend, then they absolutely play a vital role in helping users use products well. But if they are written in a complicated way, then they might pose understanding problems for the users, which tends to hinder the whole using process. For instance, I once bought a printer abroad and the instruction manuals were originally in English and then had been translated into Chinese, which were so awkward that I had no idea about what it really meant. In such a case, users might use the products in a more favorable way without instructions.