XM Satellite Radio

Before XM was XM, it was AMRC – one of two companies that secured the licensing for satellite radio in the US. AMRC's first step was to enlist some mega-partners, and launch two geosynchronous satellites to enable digital transmission to the US.

To generate interest and lure investors, AMRC asked Smart Design to develop a "concept car" – to help envision what a satellite radio in an truck or automobile could look like. We developed this design (below), simultaneously considering the on-screen interface and the physical design - incorporating identifiable buttons and a spatial layout that would help drivers control the radio without looking away from the road.

The first concept for AMRC (XM radio)

Notice three things:
1) the large screen's ability to display the information capable of being beamed down by XM's satellites, providing an easy-to-scan graphic display.
2) the tactile qualities and physical positioning of the controls, allowing access by touch when driving.
3) the XM logo - at the time, a quick placeholder for the unnamed company.

These capabilities were based on previous research I conducted on driving and "look-away" time. Drivers look-away time will typically last just over a half of a second. Look away longer than that and driving risk increases rapidly.

In this original design, channel categories (rock, blues, classical, news, etc.) are arranged vertically in virtual space, selected using the up/down buttons. Within each category the different channels are arranged horizontally, selected using the left/right buttons. It's not unlike a computer spreadsheet - up, down, left and right get you around, and (importantly) establishes a virtual spatial relationship. The large main control is "feelable". Function buttons are arranged in an arc for ease of identification. Convex/concave shapes reinforce tactile feedback, and the 10 pre-set channels below the screen are arranged, positioned and shaped to be easy to locate by touch.

The XM name and logo: Preliminary models of new designs always look more real when logos are included. Our "concept car" satellite radio model for AMRC was a non-working model created to help them lure investors. But it lacked a name and a logo. Short of a name, and knowing that "AMRC" was a temporary name for the company, Clay Burns at Smart Design came up with "XM" – "There's AM and FM, what about XM?" "X", as in "Extreme Radio." It was conceived as a placeholder. We made a quick logo with the letters "XM," showing satellite beams coming down. Looking uneven, we added the same beams going up. It looked more "satellite-like" (even though XM's satellites, in reality, only beam down towards earth, not up. We never considered XM would become the final name, and logo, for the company. That decision was made many months later.

Delphi SKYFi - the first true statellite radio: Fast-forward a few years later. The XM service launched, but with more traditionally designed radios. Consumers were skeptical about spending $10 a month on the service, and AMRC's stock (and the whole enterprise) was being closely watched by Wall Street. The first radios, developed by companies like Sony and Pioneer, were disappointing. Difficult to use and navigate, with a single line of poorly-lit type, they turned navigation through XM's 120 channels into a confusing, difficult, frustrating event. Remembering our early concept radio, and our original discussions about intertface posibbilities, XM contacted Smart Design again.

We responded by convincing XM they needed to focus on the power of satellite. The radio itself was, in a sense, secondary to what subscribers were after, which was access to the channels. The radio can't be a weak link. We needed two components to succeed – a large screen, and a large round click-dial. Anyone, novice or expert, simply needed to turn the big dial – a concept that was actually retro. Remember those plastic bakelite radios from the 1930's?

The SKYFi XM Satellite Radio

The new Delphi SKYFi / XM Satellite radio was launched at the end of 2002. A review in the Wall Street Journal the following January stated that "With the new SKYFi hardware, XM Satellite Radio is a great service." Subscription took off.

Through an interesting course of events, when Sirius radio launched moonths later, their interface was identical. XM and Sirius, it turns out, had some manufacturers in common, and they simply cloned our XM interface - and configuration - for Sirius radios (the Sportster, below, is an example, not designed by us).

The Sirius version. following the SKYFi's lead

It does however mean that this interface established the standard for satellite radio in the US. The interface and design configuration are being used by both XM and Sirius on their new radios today.

Dan Formosa, January 14, 2009