Mobiles Lead the Way in Underutilised Devices

location based services

Catching up with this month’s Wired at 33,000 feet, I was struck by a little snippet of a survey of Wired readers – thus highly biased, in the nicest possible way. These people are some of the most technically literate on the planet.
The question asked was; Which device or tool do you think you’re not using to its full potential? Surprise, surprise, the mobile phone led the field with 27%, with runners up the digital camera (25%) and the computer (18%). Somewhat surprisingly, 2% actually cited their office chair – what was I saying about being technically literate?
But if that’s the situation with Wired readers, what’s it like for the rest of the population?
Usability of mobile devices, coupled with clever ways to educate users, are going to take centre-stage in the mobile phone sector in the next few years. As an industry, we need people to start using their mobile phones beyond voice and texting – that’s abundantly clear, especially as they switch over to 3G.
Already, usability experts are at a real premium, with employers falling over themselves to retain their services – even on a temporary basis. If you have a tame usability person you’re using, be very nice to them indeed and proffer a pay rise quickly, as we’re just about to see demand way outstrip supply. Just a feeling I have, you understand.