Usability inspection is the name for a set of methods where an evaluator inspects a user interface. This is in contrast to usability testing

Usability testing

Usability testing is a technique used in user-centered interaction design to evaluate a product by testing it on users. This can be seen as an irreplaceable usability practice, since it gives direct input on how real users use the system...

 where the usability of the interface is evaluated by testing it on real users. Usability inspections can generally be used early in the development process by evaluating prototypes or specifications for the system that can't be tested on users. Usability inspection methods are generally considered to be cheaper to implement than testing on users.

Usability inspection methods include:

• Cognitive walkthrough
  Cognitive walkthrough
  The cognitive walkthrough method is a usability inspection method used to identify usability issues in a piece of software or web site, focusing on how easy it is for new users to accomplish tasks with the system...
  
   (task-specific)
• Heuristic evaluation
  Heuristic evaluation
  A heuristic evaluation is a discount usability inspection method for computer software that helps to identify usability problems in the user interface design. It specifically involves evaluators examining the interface and judging its compliance with recognized usability principles...
  
   (holistic)
• Pluralistic walkthrough
  Pluralistic walkthrough
  The Pluralistic Walkthrough is a usability inspection method used to identify usability issues in a piece of software or website in an effort to create a maximally usable human-computer interface...
  
  

External links

• Summary of Usability Inspection Methods