Are ‘easy-to-use’ products always better?

Interesting read about the ‘seductive, destructive appeal of ease of use’: the belief that “ease of use” is somehow conflated with better products. I always hear that complex tools and apps being not implemented because user research proved that it was ‘too difficult to use’ but is this costing us in the long run?

One great example the article talks about is the tricycle/bicycle analogy. “It is clear that for an unskilled user, the tricycle is much easier to use. But, as we know, the payoff from investing in learning to ride on two wheels is enormous.”

Related: building tools around workflows