if connected

Back in the day, Nokia had religious zeal for one-handed use and an aversion to touch screens. Now, with the just-announced N97 and the 5800, everything changes in Espoo. But there’s still a real need for mobile handsets to be usable one-handed.

I used to think the best test was to walk down a busy street with a bag in one hand, phone in other, while making calls, sending texts and reading emails.

With a baby in the house I’ve realised that isn’t a sufficient exam. Using that measure, here’s my take on some popular devices:-

• Nokia N82 – Pass, mostly. This is a fairly standard pre-touch screen Nokia phone. It has some one handed rough edges: Opening the lens shutter cover and rotating the device to use the camera is hard. The byzantine S60 menu structure requires too much thought to pass the baby test easily, except for pro users, although it’s fine in less distracting situations.
• Google G1 phone – Fail. The handset is too big. Plus, the asymmetric bump at the bottom makes juggling the phone in one hand very hard when using the keyboard. Typing requires two hands or at least two thumbs.
• iPhone – Pass, just barely. It’s almost great, but the software routinely places buttons in all four corners of the screen, making large hands essential for full one handed use. If that’s fixed, it would be A1.
• HTC Windows Mobile QWERTY slide phones – Fail. There are many examples of these phones, often they have operator branding. The Windows Mobile software is almost impossible to use without a stylus, which means two hands. The sideways slide is also a two hand task.

There’s still enormous room for improvement. I hope that Nokia hasn’t forgotten the basics in the rush to compete using touch screens.