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WEB SITE OF THE WEEK
The mobile promise land?
As a designer and a programmer, you may think that I get excited about technology as a matter of course. I don't. I ignored the Blackberry, the Palm Treo and all the other mobile technologies that emerged because, quite simply, I was jaded. There is so much hype I found myself bored with the process of sorting out the men from the boys and deciding which developments would actually make my life easier. But last week, for the first time in years, I found myself actually scrambling around for as much information as possible on a new bit of kit. The Apple iPhone.
The iPhone is billed as a revolution in mobile technology but whilst this will get many geeks looking into the small print, it's not what it does it's how it does it that does it for me!
Apple revolutionized computing over 20 years ago when the GUI was introduced. Gone were the days of scrolling through a mass of computer-code. Suddenly, we could see the file we wanted, click on it and, hey presto, there it was.
Cynics, or realists, will tell you that the iPhone has been introduced to beat other phones integrating Ipod-like technology into their phones and thus reduce the revenues available to Apple. Fans, or Apple cult members, will tell you that Apple loves design, love technology and loves making it easy. Nobody, they believe, does it better so nobody should do it for them!
So what is all the fuss about?
The 3.5inch screen with multi-touch (patented) technology is the first aspect of the phone to make an impact. There is no keyboard. No keys. It is all done by touch. The lack of keyboard allows the relatively huge screen to change to what you need according to the software you are using. If it's the phone, then phone keys are what you have. If it's the iPod then the finger-scrolling comes into its own and, if it's the Internet then a browser is what you use.
The iPhone, predictably, is a mobile phone but not just any mobile phone. It allows easy conferencing calling, easy number retrieval and even easier number viewing. You know when you type in a long number on normal phones, half the number disappears off to the side of the screen. Not on the iPhone. It simply makes the numbers smaller so you can see what you have dialed.
More to come... meanwhile take a look at the keynote speech at http://events.apple.com.edgesuite.net/j47d52oo/event/.
Jacqueline Alexander
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