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Handset Input Interface Methods and Technologies: 2007-2011
ARCchart, Dec 2006, Pages: 147
With the 12-key numeric keypad appearing on 95% of all handsets shipped, it is easy to take input interface technologies on the mobile phone for granted. However, it is the handset’s physical input interfaces through which users accomplish their fundamental data entry and Command & Control tasks such as entering characters to construct text messages or navigating through the device’s menu system and launching applications. Keypads, keyboards, touch-screens, joypads, joysticks and jog dials are the main interfaces delivering this capability today. But as the handset feature-set continues to expand, and the number and variety of applications on a phone grows, the mechanisms for interacting and controlling them are put under ever-greater strain: the need for application-specific controls and shortcuts is increased while the user demand for ease of use has never been greater.
This report examines the current state of input interface technologies on mobile phones and provides a view of how input technologies and methods will evolve over the coming years, up to 2011. We examine interfaces falling under three categories: interfaces for data entry, Command & Control and control surfaces. We discuss the benefits which improved interfacing deliver to the main value-chain players - operators, manufactures and end users – and profile the various technology vendors providing innovative interface solutions for mobile phones.
For mobile operators, there are immediate revenue benefits gained from improved interface technologies: any feature which eases data entry will encourage their subscribers to send more SMS, email or IM messages; and features which augment navigation and speed access to personal information and applications will encourage subscribers to initiate more voice calls and consume more content services. For handset manufacturers, input interfaces allow them to differentiate on the two metrics which rank highly on consumers’ handset purchase decision: cosmetics and usability. The Blackberry’s success is partly a result of the suitability of its main input interface (the mini-keyboard) for the corporate demographic. The popularity of LG’s Chocolate is purely a result of its stylishly smooth form factor, made possible through the use of the innovative input interfaces based on capacitance detection technology.
The report examines all interfaces for entering data. Keypads and the keypad component market are discussed, as are voice and handwriting recognition systems, as well as more esoteric systems such as chording and alternative keyboards including the virtual keyboard from Lumio and the FasTap keypad from Digit Wireless. The raft of devices incorporating a mini-QWERTY keyboard which have launched in 2006 (including the Motorola Q, Nokia E61, Samsung SGH-i320 and HTC’s Excalibur) are also discussed, along with the evolution being made to predictive text by Tegic and RIM to address mistype errors on crowded minikeyboards.
While several interfaces exist offering superior data entry speeds compared with MultiTap or predictive text using a keypad, ARCchart finds that most of these interfaces are unfamiliar to users and suffer a learningcurve barrier which we believe will hinder take-up. It is also clear that text entry using the keypad has been Handset Input Interface Methods and Technologies: 2007- 2011 optimised more towards languages based on the Latin alphabet, and is not ideally suited for logographic languages like Chinese and Japanese. The report examines the interface challenges based on language differences and discusses the different regional evolutions in input interfaces we expect to see as a result.
Control & Control is typically provided by a 5-way joystick or joypad, and the report explores the range of interfaces fulfilling handset navigation functions. While voice recognition provides basic voice activated dialling, more sophisticated speaker-independent systems are gradually appearing on handsets delivering interaction and navigation capability. A new generation of navigation technologies are explored; some niche and some mass market including motion detection, haptics and navigation using fingerprint sensors. While motion sensing and haptics have compelling gaming applications, they can also be exploited for navigation. Fingerprint sensors are now present on some 6 million handsets, with AuthenTec being the leading technology supplier. These sensors are primarily integrated for biometric security, but some handset models from LGE, Lenovo, Pantech, Samsung and Fujitsu also exploit the sensors for 5-way navigation.
This report introduces the term ‘Control Surface’ referring to any surface that allows the position of a finger or pointing device (e.g. stylus) to be detected. Touch-screens based on resistive technology (widely deployed on PDA phones) are currently the most common type of control surface. However, we expect control surfaces based on capacitance detection technology to grow and be applied to other parts of the handset, not just the screen. Control surface technology vendors Eleksen, Synaptics and Quantum are discussed and we explore the potential for these surfaces to act as soft interfaces, where buttons, keypads, keyboards and various navigation elements are rendered graphically on-screen to provide interfaces, which can change dynamically depending on context and the application. The report presents a concept handset produced by design firm The Alloy which has no physical interface controls, leveraging instead interfaces rendered on-screen for all data entry and command & control interactions.
There will be a growing opportunity for improved interface technologies to be exploited by handset OEMs to provide greater device differentiation, and by operators to enhance existing revenue channels as well as create new ones. Haptics and motion detection can provide an enhanced experience on handsets targeted at gamers, and matching each of an individual’s ten fingerprints with a shortcut to a number or web service provides a rich personalisation experience with compelling revenue opportunities for operators and advertisers. However, operators and OEMs must not underestimate the ultra-conservative nature of users when introducing a new input interface. The report provides several examples of superior interface mechanisms on handheld devices which have failed simply because of users apathy.
The report provides a forecast up to 2011 for the seven main input interface technologies: keypads, keyboards, 5-way input, control surfaces (screen), control surfaces (other), voice dialling and fingerprint sensors. Overall, deployment of the various input interfaces across the device portfolios of the Tier-1 vendors are similar; although Sony Ericsson has more touch-screen models, and Sony Ericsson and Motorola are greater users of voice dialling, with the feature appearing in 90% and 73% of their models respectively. The 12-key keypad is by far the most implemented data entry interface. ARCchart estimates that about 94% of handset models shipped in 2006 have this feature, but this will drop to 80% over the next five years. Traditional 5-way navigation interfaces such as joypads and joysticks experience the greatest erosion of all the interface technologies, impacted by the emergence of two alternative technologies: capacitance detection control surfaces and fingerprint sensors. By 2011, we estimate that about 72% of handset models will have a traditional 5-way interface, compared to 96% of models today.
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