A video about a project out of IBM’s research labs aimed to better support mobile email triage. Help is sorely needed in this area, and while this project definitely shows some research-labs rough edges, it’s got some interesting ideas for rethinking mobile email.
Link: Triage and Capture: Rethinking Mobile Email (youtube.com)
The Aurora browser concept piece from the folks at Adaptive Path has lots to like about it. But overall I struggle with the idea of the web browser as a universal tool for doing things on devices, especially mobile devices. The web browser is great in that it’s a networked standard way of easily accessing information and services (in the same way Gopher) was so popular before it). It’s easy to get scale, because everybody has the same client and rendering engine on their PC.
But if there’s one thing that’s demanded by mobile devices, it’s that the things you create are highly optimised for the context of use. And this is exactly what a web browser is not. So it’s no surprise to me that people are racing to use the native iPhone applications for Facebook or Twitter rather than going to the iPhone-specific web versions.
Link: Aurora Concept Video (adaptivepath.com)
An interesting partnership with Yamaha. Click the thumbnails across the bottom of the page to look around at the different concepts.
Link: AU Design Project (kddi.com, thanks Matt)
Smashing Magazine describes some future UI concepts, including several for mobile devices.
“Below we present 10 recent developments in the field of user experience design. Most techniques may seem very futuristic, but some of them are already reality. And in fact, they are extremely impressive. Keep in mind: they can become ubiquitous in the next years.”
Link: 10 Futuristic User Interfaces (smashingmagazine.com)
“I must say that it’s been surprisingly difficult, in various conversations with folks not immersed in the IxD space, to get across the essential distinction between context-aware applications and location-based services (LBS)...Mac Funamizu has actually nailed two separate things here. The first demonstrates precisely what I, at least, mean when I use the words “context aware”: but for some residual core of basic functionality, the device’s capabilities and available interface modalities at any given moment are largely if not entirely determined by the other networked objects around it. If you pair the device with a text, it’s a reader; at the checkstand, it provides a friendly POS interface; aimed at the skyline, it augments reality.”
Link: Worth a thousand words, etc. (speedbird.wordpress.com)
Aza Raskin demos a nice, simple concept for Firefox Mobile. My favorite quote: “Trying to type on mobile is like trying to remove a contact lens with a cotton ball; it’s just not fun.” It looks like a strong concept, though I’m not sure of the value of the ‘tab’ space like he describes – I don’t believe that user-organised zoom spaces on mobile are better than system-organised ones.
Link: Firefox Mobile concept video (azarask.in)
Cool stuff.
“I wanted to try to take advantage of spatial reasoning and spatial memory to make it easier to find and navigate stuff. Let the user see the scope of information available. Start by showing the big picture. When it makes sense, let it behave more like real-world objects. You can normally pick up objects where you left them off. They don’t move when you are not watching, something digital objects often do. (Insert your favorite joke about spouse here.) Over the last couple hundred thousand years our brains has developed a fantastic ability to take in and store where stuff is in our immediate surroundings. Since mobile screens are a part of our immediate surroundings, we should try to take advantage of this ability. It might sometimes make user interfaces a bit less confusing.”
Link: Flat Music Player version 2 (sender11.typepad.com)
Nokia ships 1 million new handsets every day; along with the clothing industry, the mobile phone business is the pinnacle of continuous conspicuous consumption: people buy new phones just to have something new.
Nokia has released a concept that is at least heading in the right direction here – a handset that’s made completely from recycled materials.
“In remade, recycled materials from metal cans, plastic bottles, and car tyres are used beautifully; whilst helping reduce landfill and preserving natural resources. The concept also addresses cleaner engine technologies, and energy efficiency through power saving graphics.”
One of the major challenges for the mobile handset business on the sustainability front is to shift people’s thinking about phones from being disposable fashion objects to something that’s to be kept and treasured (Nokia’s Vertu subbrand, perversely, is probably the only company that does this).
I’m glad that Nokia, as the biggest handset manufacturer, is engaging in this conversation. Hopefully more good stuff will come out of this.
Link: Nokia remade (grignani.org)
Link: Remade concept (youtube.com)
“Morph concept technologies might create fantastic opportunities for mobile devices: Newly-enabled flexible and transparent materials blend more seamlessly with the way we live; Devices become self-cleaning and self-preserving; Transparent electronics offering an entirely new aesthetic dimension; Built-in solar absorption might charge a device, whilst batteries become smaller, longer lasting and faster to charge; Integrated sensors might allow us to learn more about the environment around us, empowering us to make better choices”
Link: Nokia Morph Concept (youtube.com)
Link: The Morph Concept (nokia.com)
Some fun mobile concepts from RCA students.
Link: In pictures: Mobile design competition (bbc.co.uk)
Nokia concept video demonstrating adaptive form factors. Also a nice example of lo-fi video concepting.
(for those on the RSS, click the link for the video)
Link: YouTube – Nokia 888 Design (youtube.com)
It irons, it toasts, it even inflates your bicycle tyres.
(For folks on the RSS, click the link to see the video)
Link: YouTube – Sumsing Turbo 3000 English Version (youtube.com, via)
Published by Gabriel White.