“Is that a phablet in your pocket…?”
Can usability be reached by disaggregating functions from an essentially unusable device?
After a few days trying a phablet, a device in between a phone and a tablet, courtesy of Huawei, I am beginning to see some interesting possibilities in a category that I have so far resisted exploring.
First of all, phablets look very big. Their shape is unquestionably that of a telephone, but their size makes them seem out of proportion, almost profligate. Also, the idea of putting something as big as this against my ear is very unappealing, while managing a screen as large as this certainly put my understanding of ergonomics to the test, while stretching the fingers of my (relatively) large hand.
That said, phablets have two massive advantages: a screen that is a luxury when it comes to surfing the web, and even reading news or books in any peaceful moment, along with a sustained battery life thanks to the amount of space available inside. More to the point, after a few days’ use I really began to see where the key to the usability of a device this size lies: you only take it out of your pocket when it is required for the things it does best.
As devices such as Bluetooth 4.0 hands-free headsets and smartwatches develop and improve, receiving a call when you have such a behemoth in your pocket is simply a matter of looking at your watch to see who’s calling, and using the headset to talk.
This might seem a little laborious at first, but one soon interiorizes the sequence and it quickly becomes automatic. In return, you have a device notably more pleasant to use than even the biggest telephone if you want to look at a website, read news, or make good use of your time by opening the Kindle app and progressing with that book you still haven’t finished.
This is one of those cases where, after finally trying something that you initially dismissed, you now see it with a more sympathetic eye: I can see myself carrying a device of this size in my pocket, perhaps not every day, and being the butt of jokes along the lines of: “Is that a phablet in your pocket, or are you just pleased to see me?” :-)
The widespread use of smartwatches is still a long way off, and probably dependent on what Apple has to say about this redefinition of the category and its functions. And while Bluetooth headsets go back a long way, they too are still not widely used. But we are talking about a usability that is, at the least, worth thinking about: by removing some of the device’s functions and putting them on smaller devices through an energy-efficient protocol such as Bluetooth 4.0, which seems to be establishing itself as the protocol of preference for personal area networks, themselves a fast-growing trend.
