S60 Open to new features

So if you haven't heard already, S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 2 will support widgets native to the platform. The very first mobile platform to support widgets in this way. The widget will load just like any other app, and will have the same look & feel as normal apps.

Widgets make use of existing web technologies like simple HTML or more complex AJAX - but even still, AJAX is way more simpler than Symbian C++. So the potential S60 developers out there just went from the thousands to the millions. We've all thrown together some HTML in lives, and now we can throw together S60 widgets. I sincerely predict mobile widgets to be a massive success and take us much closer to the "mobile revolution" we keep hearing about.

But some of you are saying to yourself, "I've tried widgets. They suck!" I've said the same, I've tried out Google's and Yahoo!'s widget platorm for the PC. Neat idea but...who the hell uses their desktop!?! I either have my e-mail open or my browser at all times - why would I want to flip back to my desktop? At least Yahoo! and Googe are integrating widgets into their portals, that makes them a bit more useful. But I think the mobile is the ideal location for these things.

How often have you said, "I wish I had an app that does XYZ for my PC"? Probably quite often, but you're very likely to find an app that does XYZ (and usually that XYZ is something rather simple). Now how many times have you said, "I wish I had an app that does XYZ for my mobile?" Maybe just as often, but there's less of a chance you'll find it. In steps widgets - the number of potential developers increase by x1000, alot more niche apps are available (and probably for free), which is perfect for today's "long tail" lifestyle.

If you want to learn more about widgets, be sure to check out today's podcast with the S60 Widget Guru, Ganesh Sivaraman. And visit S60.com for even more info. And later this week I'll release another podcast where I interviewed a couple guys who've already created S60 widgets, and they'll answer all your more detailed questions.