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Astera Technology

Stock comparison table or mobile record cards?

Retain row-to-row quantity comparison while making one-item actions usable on a small screen.

Choose against the task constraints

A clerk compares expected and counted quantities for three items. Another clerk handles one damaged item while standing at a shelf. In this worksheet each item has one unit, so quantities are comparable within its row; totals across mixed units would be misleading.

Decision worksheet
ConditionComparison tableRecord cards
Compare columns across itemsAligned columns expose differencesRepeated labels preserve meaning but spread comparisons
Act on one itemKeep row action associated with item identityGroup its fields and action in one record
Small-screen accessUse a bounded scroll region for essential columnsDo not omit unit or exception status
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Keep a table for the comparison task and a focused record surface for the single-item task. Cards are not an automatic mobile upgrade: they must retain the fields that make an action safe. A horizontal table region must not force surrounding instructions to scroll sideways.

Keep units beside the differences

Synthetic task cases
ItemExpected / countedDifference
A; pieces20 / 18−2 pieces
B; boxes7 / 70 boxes
C; metres12 / 13+1 metre
Download editable CSV ↓

Can the screen show an overall difference of −1 without units?

Show the worked answer

No. Pieces, boxes and metres cannot be combined into that quantity. Retain each row’s difference and unit regardless of table or card layout.

Check the chosen interaction

  • A keyboard user can reach and scroll the table region.
  • The card shows item identity, unit, count and exception.
  • Changing layout preserves every decision field.

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