S60 Open to new features

There has been a lot of discussion about user generated content in both the web and the mobile already for a couple of years. Websites like Flickr, YouTube and MySpace have become extremely popular: Flickr has over 2.5 million members (half of the population in Finland!) and YouTube gets over 40 million video views everyday [2]. Whoa, that really is a lot!

People love telling about themselves, their lives, interests and they are also keen on browsing through material other people have created. This need is a really powerful one, as it can be seen on the success of above mentioned services and others like them. In addition to the web services, there are also lots of mobile applications and companies satisfying this need: Mobile Entertainment magazine lists altogether 57 of them in its latest number [2]!

Some of the listed mobile services support the existing hits and others are creating user networks on their own. For example MySpace has a mobile extension (that works only in the States) and in Nokia’s newest N-Series phones (N73 and N93) there is an in-built feature that allows easy picture transfer to Flickr.

Sun is shining; summer vacation is around the corner, some difficulties to keep up the tempo… And suddenly idea about perfect summer application came up my mind. What sort of application would be the ideal one? For Finns, like me, the summer application of 2006 could include the following features at least: Those of you who didn’t know the summers can be quite rainy and time spent in summer cottages (usually without luxuries but still the most common way to spend holidays), could be… let’s say challenging (hey 2-4 weeks with your family in small cottage :). So let’s include massive entertainment package (games, internet access, mobile TV and music) and services that makes life little easier.

I had a discussion with my friend about music. I asked him why he stuck to CDs, why he didn’t listen to MP3s and other similar stuff? As a true friend of music he said that the MP3 music does not have the same high quality as his CDs. This I could accept, but he also had another point that I started to think about more carefully. He had borrowed his friend’s iPod for a while and bought music via iTunes. The computer broke, but he was happy to have all his music on the player as a back up. However, this happiness did not last a long time. He realized that the music could not be easily transferred from the player back to another computer…that it would be on the player until it was deleted. While he had also intended to transfer the music to his mobile phone and see how that worked out, he gave the iPod back at that point and took an even firmer grip of his good old CDs.

I know that this is just a single case, but I think this friend of mine is not alone with his problems. The need to listen to music, also in a mobile context, is there but the practise with all different file types and devices is way beyond smooth and happy for an average user who simply wants to enjoy the music. It is also annoying from the user’s point of view if the content (in this case the music) is stuck on only one device. The users are willing to pay for the music – once – and after that they want to use it in various contexts and, most likely, with various devices.

I know there are many issues with the DRM that make this whole sharing and storing thing much more complicated than e.g. it was/is with copy-right protected CDs – but I’d still dare to speak for separating the device and the content. The user should be able to view and interact with the content (s)he has bought via different devices – one of them being a mobile phone.

All in all, I think that the User Experience of mobile music is not so much affected by the user interfaces of the different players, but the bigger picture of purchasing, buying, converting, transferring, organizing and finally enjoying the music with different devices – and the complexity of this process.

Another good template for all of you creating S60 Themes. In addition to the previous Photoshop template, Forum Nokia released brand new Adobe Illustrator template that is highly useful for many of you with lots of creativity but no will or time to spend learning a quite complex method of creating Themes. With this file you can start experimenting with Theme creation even if you are not using a PC. What is exeptionally good in this new release is that now you can start creating SVG and other vector graphics based Themes!

If you have ideas to make it better, please give us feedback and post them here.

...even when they have mobile devices?

I'm on vacation in the US right now. The other day I was with some friends--they were complaining about the phone company and how they were having major problems installing phone lines in their new home. I asked why they bother with landlines--why not just use their mobile devices as their phones. The wife said: What am I going to do, carry my mobile with me all around the house, into every room? The husband said: That seems silly, to have separate lines for one family.

I thought: true and true to both answers.

I could not stop thinking about what the wife had said. How could I have missed that as a User Experience specialist? It makes sense that users don't want to carry their phone around from room to room, from upstairs to downstairs. Do you know why I missed this one? Coming from Finland, where most of the people I know and most of the users we talk with have smaller homes (often one story) compared with the McMansions in the US. This is not to say Finns don't live in large spaces. I also know some people living in Finland who do have at least two story homes or have a large floor plan spread only on one story.

The question from me, to those users out there: Do you carry around your mobile phones, even after you come home from work or school, everywhere you go throughout your home? If not, if you leave it in one place, do you find yourself running to answer your calls? Do you get tired of hearing different ringers go off throughout your home (especially if you have a spouse and children old enough to have their own mobiles)?

Then to address the husband's comment from above: Do you mind that you and your family members have different phone numbers? What about for those older users, who have grandchildren...who's number does the grandchild call?! On a personal level, unless my parents were at work, I could not imagine calling my mom's mobile number over my dad's. What if they took it personally? (Note: They still, and probably always will, have a landline.)

So what's this got to do with S60? I'm just assuming that there are already answers, solutions, or ideas available for my friends (via products/applications/accessories). So, bottom line: is there anything that S60 can offer to this couple and people just like them who are reluctant to give up their landline phones?

As you know there is an endless debate going on: should it be User Experience or Usability. My question is: does it really matter? If the user’s needs, satisfaction and requirements are met and fulfilled, the whole issue is irrelevant. In this case the user-centered design has proved its place. It could have been some spontaneous feeling that hit the target but in most cases we are not this lucky. Some people just have the hunch and probably they are billionaires; unfortunately this isn’t the case always. Anyway, to be able to execute these issues in project work and to make the ideas come true it is strongly recommended that there is some kind of available definition. This could even save some time (money, in other words) and make the cooperation between different experts more enjoyable … :) However you can begin to ponder the issue with an excellent article on Usability News. Hey, isn’t that great that someone really measures these two separately.

My personal opinion is that there is and should be a clear difference between these terms: for me, usability is part of User Experience. The experience could be really subjective (or not) but as we know you can create standards in the usability world. Is it really possible to standardize the experiences that people are gathering? I’m afraid not. If the term is understood broadly the thin line between market research and user experience research is almost gone or, at least, it could be. The methods, study objectives, tools etc. are pretty much the same. It’s just our habits and working practices that keep these two on different sides of the table. Does it really have to be like this? I know…there are some differences between the perspectives but still, it’s always the same: before you try to satisfy client, end-user, or someone else, start to satisfy the person!

So, is it experience or usability that makes the difference? Hmmm, it could be the case that a not so usable or easy-to-use product hits the big time. Think about the famous iPod: let your grandmother use it and ask her whether it easy or observe how traditional PC user gets familiar with iTunes! Still, we’re witnessing one of the greatest success stories in this decade. I’m not saying that usability does not matter at all, just the opposite. In my ideal world it’s the combination: an application that will inspire me and which is easy-to-use. This isn’t always a compromise.

I have seen the light with some Flash applications: well-known and standardized UI logic, boosted with innovative and good looking UI design. So what we need is a well-working platform which allows developers to release their creativity. The S60 is on the right track, when the platform supports an economy of scale (provides the possibility to make scalable applications and remove the need to tailor every piece), we are almost there.

Being able to extend a phone with 3rd party applications is often seen as the key benefit of the S60 platform. It’s easy to understand why this characteristic has become so popular in marketing the S60: who would not want to have a phone that suits your needs and daily tasks even better?

From the user’s perspective there are, however, a couple of steps in the purchasing-installing-using process that make the utilization of these applications harder than it should be (this is based on my experiences as a researcher and user– and not on any particular research). These steps include:

1. Finding these applications seems to be quite hard for most of the potential users. The applications are just “out there” and only some people with special knowledge about technological things find their way there. Applications that an average user most probably finds are the ones on the Seiska's back cover (a gossip magazine in Finland).

2. When the user wants to change her phone, the problems begin: Will I be able to move these applications, themes etc. (that I have already payed for) to my new device? How can I do it? Where are the installation files? On my phone’s memory, on the memory stick, as a attachment in a message or have I deleted them?

I have met users who have simply accepted that they can’t utilize the applications they purchased because they don’t know if it’s possible or how they could do it if it were possible.

I think the following things could be done in order to enhance the User Experience of 3rd party applications:

1. Organizing and storing files should be more intuitive in S60. Most people store and organize files in folders, why could this not be the case with S60?

2. In each application there could be a built-in option like “Move this application to another device”.

Naturally there are ways to handle these issues (like the PC suite and File Manager), but it does not seem to be intuitive enough for an average user...

Peggy Salz writes about customer segmentation in the mobile market (Mobile Communications International Issue 31, May 2006). She notes that operators tend to neglect a very important market segment: people over 50 years old. The senior market segment is huge - and untapped.

I would, however, not bundle together everyone over 50. There are significant differences in the needs and consumption patterns of these people. Curiously enough, in the same story, Salz explains that age cannot be the segmentation criteria! Instead, lifestyle should be used as the differentiating factor.

Salz offers good examples about products that have appealed to the older segments. In Japan, a product called Raku Raku Simple Keitai has a piece-of-mind feature which automatically sends a message to the family members of the user every time his/her phone is plugged in to recharge. This might be nice for everyone...including, for example, lovers living in different cities.

So, let's start observing the grey panthers! New ideas with great implementation and business potential may emerge.

During my first long stay in Finland, from 1999 to 2000, I was already very impressed by the mobile phone prevalence (even among young kids). In the US during that same time, mobile phones were really used by those who travelled and commuted for long periods of time and for safety reasons (this latter reason is similar for many users around the world).

I remember riding on the tram and watching people use their mobile devices. I was struck by how active people were in communicating with their friends, family etc., i.e. they were often typing something or reading something. I soon came to discover that many of them were simply playing games on their phones. I, of course, didn't get it.

However, just a few weeks ago, I was waiting for my husband in a cafe. I found myself playing with my mobile phone, checking my emails, sending some messages, looking at some photos. I realized what I was doing: I was masking my "aloneness" by doing things on my mobile. Nobody actually knew what I was doing...I just looked busy and, with any luck, important!

It got me thinking about the capacity to be alone; are young people these days unable to be alone, not comfortable with it? Do they fear it, can they stand it? Do they reach for their mobile devices as soon as there is no exterior stimulation? But, even if these young people are not comfortable with being alone, does it really matter? What would a psychologist or a sociologist say about individuals and society, respectively?

We could make an argument that this need to "look busy" is nothing knew. Perhaps it is similar to when we waited in a doctor's office, we read magazines, books etc. We usually did not sit around and stare at the walls or other people. So perhaps it is not that different from the past (!). Only now, we have a different way to look busy and preoccupied.

Perhaps the change is good in some ways. Now people, instead of reading magazines or jotting down notes to fill their time waiting, are often communicating with others with their mobile phones (talking, texting, emailing). Many users often explain how they've become more social and active with their mobile devices. Their mobile devices have offered more flexibility to reach people and to be reached. Shy, outgoing, tired, busy...the mobile life offers the solution for all. And, since we often don't know what people are doing on their mobile devices, it offers the possiblity of looking connected and, with any luck, important!

I, together with my wife, spent a wonderful weekend in a five star hotel. The experience was unbelievable; no children, excellent food, time to read the morning papers … The only thing that wasn’t so superb was our Sunday breakfast. We waited for over 15 minutes to get any coffee and when it finally arrived it was carried with a sour face. This wasn’t the experience that I was expecting in a five star hotel. Anyway, when I mentioned this to another waitress she handled the situation in a very professional and gentle way: we were very pleased again. After this episode I started to wonder whether is it possible in application business to make big saves like this. And in my opinion, it’s impossible. You have to make it work perfectly at once. The bad experience is not violating your business only; unfortunately it will harm the whole industry. So, how can you make it work perfectly when the playground is as fragmented as it is? The answer is very simple and I’m sure that you are familiar with it: let your customer be your developer. With the right kind of tools it wouldn’t be very expensive. It’s much more expensive if you are betting on the wrong horse at this point.

Something important that we have not yet appropriately addressed here in this blog is the issue of context. At the heart of user experience research is context. Many of the complexities related to gathering data about mobile technology use emerge from the fact that the real life is “out there”– it’s not enough to gather information in a fixed environment. The physical movement and ever changing geographic location found in the modern mobile lifestyle suggests the need to use a more fluid, hence less static, method of analysis. Hence, the user in context.

Basically, those research methods which hold the most promise for mobile usage and user research are those conducted with the actual use context in mind (IMHO). As we follow and observe users within their everyday environments, e.g. driving to work, eating lunch, meeting a friend at a café, we may be able to capture much more detail than if we asked users lots of questions about their behavior during a testing session, in a lab-like setting (e.g. focus group, usability tests).

Context is essential to the user experience. Context provides insight into not only who users are (demographics) but what is important to them and what motivates them to act and make decisions (psychographics). Think about those things you have come to wish for and desire on your mobile based on your unique ways of using it. Think about your frustrations (and your curses) when your mobile does not work the way you want or need it to…these frustrations, wishes, desires can all be translated into development ideas and then, perhaps, into device changes. However, this can happen only if the experts and those who can make it happen are willing to listen!

I have two browsers on my mobile phone: the Opera Mini and the N70 in-built browser. I prefer to use the Opera Mini because it is easier to use, looks nicer and is just more handy. Lately, however, I have found my self launching the built-in browser more often. Why is this? The answer is simple: The Opera Mini does not show all the pages I want to access, whereas the in-built browser does.

This is a good example of what actually counts the most in the User Experience of mobile data services: Technology that works. Good usability and interaction is naturally what we aim for, but it does not help if the technology does not allow the user to complete her tasks. This is connecte to Jesse’s previous entry in which he states: “What I really looked for was an application or service that could offer a combination of WAP or text TV and mobile TV. I don’t need result information with hyper graphics, just the data.”

I hope that some day I will have the user interface of the Opera Mini (there is actually the v2 available, probably I need to check that out) and the technology of my built-in browser--in one package. How about you?

An interesting piece of news was published today in Finland. VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland had asked people to innovate new mobile applications. This happened in April. By the end of May they got - believe it or not - more than 37000 ideas out of which 2000 is said to be top level.

I am very curious to know what these ideas are like... I wish they will surprise us in a positive sense. Or are they going to give the ideas to companies only for further development?

The temperature is rising and its time to get ready. I’m not one of those lucky ones who has a possibility to spend the next month in Germany but I try to live with this. Yesterday I started to look for a wonderful mobile solution which will keep me up to date and provide access to match highlights. And guess what? There wasn’t an appropriate solution available (here in Finland). A quick surfing on the web didn’t prompt any suitable solution and I started to wonder if I’m just a stupid user or if the mobile services have died after the crazy years of late 90s. I know Finland is an ice hockey country... but still.

What I really looked for was an application or service that could offer a combination of WAP or text TV and mobile TV. I don’t need result information with hyper graphics, just the data. Only game highlights would be nice to see as video clips – I guess it is impossible to describe the moves of Ronaldinho in 160 symbols or something… And wasn’t this the reason to have a device with large display in the first place? I was probably looking for some application that would be easy and fast to use and would be dedicated to the World Cup. Is this too much to ask?

Of course I know there is an official version available on the World Cup site but it didn’t convince me totally. At least the videos are missing, the UI is not the most user-friendly one and designers could have spent more time creating a high speed service, which is one of the most critical features in mobile content usage. A good start but there’s still a lot to do. I’m sure there is someone who already knows where to start!

As always, we feel it is important to keep you posted about interesting and/or applicable conferences, lectures etc. We've mentioned this conference already. Here is the latest:

Go and check out the updates on the Mobile User Experience Conference in London online. Key Note -sessions and Panel discussions are handeled in the conference blog. Interesting topics of the blog include convergence, communities, and experience design.

A friend of mine recently bought an N70 phone. Before that he had been using a Series 40 phone (although he did and does not know the difference between these two, he just refers to them as old/new, small/big and not so expensive/expensive).

After he had been using the phone for a while, I asked him how he liked the new device. He told me that he liked it very much (well, after he got it back from the repair --- the phone had broken right after he bought it): “It’s great - I have been making video calls. Me and Inkeri (his girlfriend) were in the bus and we were having a video call with my work mate. They have a baby and he showed me what the baby looks like. It was really cool.”. (Wendy: this seems like at least a few Finns ‘share’ also in the public transportation :D).

All in all he seemed to be happy with his phone, but there was one thing he wondered if I could help him with: “There is this button I have to press to get to the menu. Do you know if you could bring the menu somehow to the main screen like that you would have a direct access to it…if there was a setting for it or something?”

I had never heard a wish like that: the main menu right in the idle screen…I can’t even imagine how it would function. I answered to my friend that it is unfortunately not possible and he sounded a little disappointed. Even the active standby was not what he had wished for.

I think his wish was very interesting though. I guess it all comes down to the fact that the Series 40 users feel that the menu-button (at least in the beginning) is kind of an extra step to the menu. In theory there are no more steps in S60 than in the Series 40, but users seem to feel like there are. Why this is so is a bit unclear to me. One explanation could be that the menu-button is, on many phone models, located quite far away from the screen.

I’m sure this friend of mine will get used to the menu button (as I and many others did) --- or probably he already has. Maybe I need to call him and ask :)