Navigation deficits are increasingly being recognized as important early indicators of cognitive impairment in Alzheimer disease and other forms of dementia. Accurately measuring these deficits is critical for early diagnosis, intervention, and management of the disease. The widespread adoption of mobile technologies presents a unique opportunity to integrate more efficient and accurate methods for detecting navigation deficits. However, for a technology to be accepted by patients and incorporated into clinical workflows, merely developing a battery of tests to assess navigation ability is insufficient. To truly succeed, usability testing should be a core component of development and needs to include both patients and clinicians from the very beginning. Focusing on usability can translate innovation into a userfriendly technology that is reliable, efficient, and secure. Here, the development of a tablet-based game, Spatial Performance Assessment for Cognitive Evaluation, is used to illustrate how insights from research into human-computer interaction can guide and support the design of effective clinical tools. The authors argue that for these tools to be clinically viable, they must match the sensitivity of gold-standard neuropsychological tests and fluid or imaging biomarkers. When it comes to usability, there is no such thing as universal design since the needs and abilities of individuals differ greatly across age groups. Further, when transitioning from the lab to the clinic, modularity is essential because it enables rapid assessment and collection of feedback on different features that can shape the final product. Ultimately, it is important to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of the new technology by comparing it against existing clinical standards since a user-friendly and reliable tool alone is insufficient if it is unable to alleviate some of the burden in the health-care system.