User testing in the early stages of the design process is essential for validating concept effectiveness. While prototype fidelity plays a crucial role, the surrounding environment also significantly influences user evaluation. However, replicating realistic usage contexts in physical spaces poses practical challenges. Virtual Reality (VR) offers a potential solution, but its effectiveness compared to physical prototypes and its ability to support contextual evaluation remain underexplored. This study investigates how prototype presentation conditions (physical vs. VR) and the presentation environment affect user experience and feedback. Thirty participants evaluated three product concepts across three conditions: (1) a physical prototype in a realistic environment, (2) a physical prototype in a non-realistic space, and (3) a VR prototype presented in a realistic virtual environment. Participants completed the User Experience Questionnaire, post-experience survey, and a semi-structured interview. The results showed that VR prototypes achieved user experience ratings comparable to those of physical prototypes in ideal environments. Compared to non-realistic environments, the VR condition received significantly higher ratings for environmental realism and was more effective in prompting participants to recall the intended usage context. While there were no major differences in the content categories of feedback across conditions, participants in the VR condition tended to offer more engaged, user-centric comments. These findings suggest that VR can be an effective and practical alternative for evaluating early-stage concepts, particularly when physical context replication is limited.
Taoka et al. (Thu,) studied this question.