There was some uproar when accommodation rental service Airbnb launched their redesigned website. Most people talked about their strange new logo, but the real users were concerned about different issues – the issues of usability.
These usability bugs are still present and are confusing to even long-time users such as me.
Bug no. 1 – These dates are no longer available
You have confirmed and paid for the apartment rental. Now you want to see the details again, so you log in to the Airbnb website and check and you see this: “These dates are no longer available.”
Airbnb usability issue after confirmation
I don’t have to tell you it is just slightly disconcerting to see “no longer available” message for the property you booked and paid for and even received a reservation confirmation (see below).
Airbnb – usability issue – it’s been confirmed … wait what?
Bug no. 2 – Airbnb is very suspicious, they see phone numbers everywhere
This one is less tragic, but still confusing, especially to the new users. You search for the apartments in your preferred location, then click a map to see the street address detail and you see this:
Airbnb sees phone numbers everywhere – even in the street numbers or ZIP codes
I understand the need to hide the phone numbers in the user profiles but to hide street address or ZIP codes in the map view? Have the Airbnb phone number deletion algorithm become too greedy?
