“When it comes to mobile innovation, the gap between developed and developing countries is not much of a gap at all. Mobile innovation in the West, largely technology-lead, sits in contrast to that in the developing world where combating the geographic, economic and cultural constraints of users is considered a more sensible way to go. This explains the emergence of the torch phone, for users who live in areas with little or no regular light, or multiple phone books for users who share their phones with family members. On the heavyweight side, a plethora of financial applications have hit the streets, with Safaricom’s m-Pesa service getting by far the biggest press to date. Regularly used by hundreds of thousands of Kenyans, you often hear it described as the “Kenyan Debit Card”, allowing users to transfer money through their mobile phones to help out family and friends, or to buy and sell goods and services across the airwaves. For the tens of millions of Kenyans without bank accounts, m-Pesa represents both a revolution and a revelation. It is now being rolled out in other countries, with Afghanistan next on the list.”

Link: Africa’s grassroots mobile revolution – a traveller’s perspective (vodafone.com)

Related:

• Mobile as computing platform (again)
• Mobiles and Development
• The next generation of mobile interface technology

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Bruce Nussbaum summed it up quite well: “The problem from the very beginning was that this is a Western educational concept encased in a beautiful little childrens’ laptop designed by Westerners (Boston-based Continuum and fuseproject’s Yves Behar) for non-Western children and non-Western cultures and educational institutions. The education ministeries in India, China and elsewhere saw OLPC as a challenge to their authority and their abilities. After all, the rise of China and India and the lifting of half a billion people out of poverty in the shortest period of time in history is based on their existing educational institutions. They argues that with US companies chasing Chinese and Indian school graduates, why change their systems to conform to some Western ideal of learning?”

Dual display ultraportable computer: interesting. Dual display ultraportable computer that bridges the digital divide and creates better learning experiences for the impoverished: very questionable.

Link: First Look: OLPC XO-2 (laptopmag.com)

Related:

• OLPC Human Interface Guidelines
• OLPC “Sugar” UI on your PC
• Mobile China

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“The HandSolo is the first ultra-portable handheld device designed to streamline the way you use mobile technology. It comes complete with advanced mobile features such as an optical camera, unlimited expandable memory storage, and 24 hour battery life.”

Link: Handsolo – The Future is at Hand (handsolomobile.com)

Related:

• Forrester on mobile device trends
• Samsung on the future of mobile UI
• Motion sensing in mobile devices

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“Consider scenarios such as accessing phone keys in a darkened theater, waiting for a call in a noisy environment, or trying to operate your phone during an emergency. In these cases, tactile markings on the phone, vibrate mode, and voice dialing benefit anyone who might find themselves in situations of impairment (vision, hearing, speech, cognitive or dexterity) temporarily or for longer terms.”

Link: Universal Design (att.com, via)

Related:

• Example design process for elderly
• Emporia simple phone
• Phones for idiots

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Each subsequent presentation published on Future Perfect seems to become more and more elliptical, but there are some great pictures of the Nokia team’s research through Asia.

Link: Insight & Innovation: Design Research (janchipchase.com)

Related:

• Nokia research on ‘shared use’ phones
• Nokia Mobile TV research report
• Nokia futures video

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“Does this mean the UI should be completely replaceable? I think so. There are smart UI designers outside of Microsoft, and I don’t see why arming them with the ability to create innovative UIs would harm the brand. Microsoft could still create standard UIs, and people could choose to use them, but flexibility would enable third parties to drive the product into more niches than Microsoft by itself might manage with its rigid UI structure.”

Link: Free the Windows Mobile UI (zdnet.com)

Related:

• Windows Mobile design guidelines
• Microsoft licensing the Office 2007 UI
• 12 Myths of mobile user interface design

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The only benefit NeoKeys offers above a dual screen configuration is the haptic response of the keys and the ability to easier target the buttons (but haptic technology is not far away from becoming a reality on touchscreen consumer goods). They’ve done a good job showcasing the invention on the site that boldly claims the system is “a new way to do everything”.

Link: NeoKeys: A New Way to do Everything (neokeys.com)

Related:

• One-handed touch screen interaction
• Pros and cons of non-mechanical buttons
• Fitt’s Law for mobile devices

Share on Facebook | Save to del.icio.us | Small Surfaces is published by Gabriel White.