French Internet research company Miratech has published research on how users interact with media presented in a physical newspaper versus an iPad. Miratech used eye-tracking technology to determine how users approached each medium and tested their memories to see if there was a difference in information retention.
Newspaper readers finished articles slightly quicker than iPad readers, who were more likely to skim content than to read it fully. Newspaper readers also had better retention, with 90% remembering what they read on paper compared to 70% of users of the iPad. See some of their videos after the jump.
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Miratech said participants in the study were already iPad users so there would not be any bias in learning how to manipulate content on the device. They were allowed to fully interact with the media, by scrolling and pinching with the touch interface.
Here is the video of eye-tracking with an iPad:
And a physical newspaper:
Google did some eye-tracking research of its own in 2009 and found that most users stayed on the top of the page when viewing search results and followed an F-shaped pattern down the page.
For developers, publishers and advertisers looking to get some user experience information through eye-tracking, a startup called YouEye can provide eye-tracking through Web cams. The startup was at the LAUNCH conference in February and is still in beta.
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