Ask HN: Is the UI/UX in sci-fi usable?

They would be usable if the world's entire data (websites etc) would be stored as data (without any visual information) in classified databases and the interface would query the said databases. Then you would be working with streams of data and the UI would work as a set of filters, manipulated by the user in accordance with the desired outcome.

This would work similar to the UI in Oblivion and the interface to do the above would somewhat resemble it.

Most of the UI/UX you see on movies are made just to appeal to your eyes. I've used the same models of some movies and they were increidble useless. They are made just for seconds of filmming not for daily use. They don't scale at all.

What's not usable (besides some accessibility concerns) in "Computer, get me this", "Computer, do that"?

I've always found the Sentry Gun UI in Aliens (1984) to be one of the more realistically usable ones.

They're mostly appealing, yes. The question of usability should be changed to "Is it researchable?".