MIT's Independent Activities Period is a great time to try out new things, or work on things you've always wanted to but never got around to it. One of the classes I took was around product design, where you could develop prototypes using basic materials and then have users test the products (with a little bit of imagination).
A dismembered phone
My concept was a phone that was broken down into individual components:
- A screen that was used for all data input and output
- A headset for all audio input and output
- A communication box for all infrastructural activities (data/voice communication, data storage, etc.)
The idea is that the components would communicate via bluetooth. The potential benefits are:
- No need to carry all components on you -- the communicator can be stowed away in a bag, etc.
- The screen has an ideal form factor for presenting data since it would be highly portable (light, small) yet highly functional because it is not encumbered by other functions (communications, etc.)
- When using voice functions, only the headset is required, so all the other components can be neatly tucked away.
User test
The users found the touchscreen interface intriguing and confusing at the same time. The interface was similar to that announced by the new iPhone -- I wonder how the iPhone 's interface is going to fare. I suppose I could upload the videos of the user test on YouTube ... time permitting.
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