Future Features on Your Mobile Phone
We are interested in the features and applications on your future mobile device to find out what is possible in mLearning in the near future. In the questionnaire we have grouped these features in the same way we grouped the features on your current mobile phone, so it will be easier for you to choose which of them you would like to be on your future mobile device.
Screen Size
The purpose of this question is to find out what screen size will be most commonly used in the near future. We have categorized them in:
- small: resolution approximately 128×160 pixels
- medium: resolution approximately 176×208 pixels
- large: resolution approximately 240×320 pixels
- extra large: resolution approximately 320×320 pixels or higher
Keyboard
This question is meant to give us an idea about the type of keyboard that will be most commonly used in the near future. The classification is:
- small
- extended: with additional keys
- additional keyboard: external and can be connected to the mobile device
- on screen: for mobile phones that have touchscreen
Camera
The purpose of this question is to find out what percent of the students are planning to have a camera integrated in their mobile device and what will be the camera’s most common features.
Here is the classification:
- simple camera on my next mobile phone: low resolution camera
- high quality camera: high resolution camera (starting at 5Mpixels)
- mobile camera with picture location information (GPS): when a picture is being taken it is attached to it information related to the location where it was taken, so you can use the picture as a destination for the GPS system.
- camera for video recording
- mobile camera for video conferences: it allows you to participate at video conferences
Calendar
The Calendar is an application in which you can organize your daily tasks and set reminders for the coming events. It can be used on the computer: Google Calendar, Yahoo! Calendar, Microsoft Office Outlook Calendar, but also many mobile phones have a Calendar application. Depending on it’s complexity, the mobile calendar can be:
- simple mobile calendar: with basic calendar functions (adding personal events, setting reminder alarms)
- mobile calendar with internet synchronization: the mobile calendar can be synchronized with the web calendar. Reminders from the web calendar can be sent via E-mail on personal computer as well as SMS to mobile phones.
- mobile calendar for group cooperation: allows members of the group to share their calendars to facilitate setting up meetings (example: HandStep’s TeamCalendar)
- mobile calendar with time zone: when a meeting between members of different countries is set, it takes in consideration the time difference between the two countries, using UTC
- mobile calendar with extended services (example: RSS feed alarms)
Connectivity
There are a few ways in wich a mobile device can be connected to a computer, another mobile device or to the internet. Here is a list of the connectivity options available for mobile devices:
- USB (to connect to a computer)
- Bluetooth (to connect and exchange data with mobile devices, computers, printers, GPS receivers or digital cameras )
- Infrared Data Association (for short-range exchange of data with mobile devices or computers, over infrared light)
- GPRS: General Packet Radio Service (data transfer is typically charged per megabyte of throughput)
- EDGE: Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution (allows increased data transmission rates and improved data transmission reliability)
- 3G-HSDPA: High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (allows higher data transfer speeds and capacity)
- WLAN: Wireless LAN (mobility to move around within a broad coverage area and still be connected to the network)
- WAP: Wireless Application Protocol (enables access to the Internet from a mobile phone or PDA)
- Wi-Fi (wireless-technology brand owned by the Wi-Fi Alliance)
- GPS: Global Positioning System (determines the mobile device’s location, speed, direction, and time)
- NFC: Near Field Communication (enables the exchange of data between devices over about a decimeter distance, will surprisingly enhance it’s utility in the next 2 years)
Internet applications
The Mobile Web refers to the World Wide Web as accessed from mobile devices such as cell phones, PDAs, and other portable gadgets connected to a public network. Here is a list of applications to facilitate the use of internet through a mobile device:
- internet mobile browser (example: Safari, Opera Mobile, Nokia, MotoMagX, Internet Explorer Mobile)
- E-mail: facilitates access to your e-mail account
- RSS Feed for mobile devices: facilitates receiving up-to-date information of your interest areas on internet
- Audio and video capabilities: downloading, watching and listening to audio and video content, streaming multimedia
- VoIP: protocol optimized for the transmission of voice through the Internet or other packet switched networks (example: Fring, Skype, Windows Live Messenger, Google Talk)
- Push-to-talk: immediate communication and sharing of documents in a group
Support for other applications
Some of the mobile devices have other facilities also, like support for:
- Flash animation: to facilitate web conferences and sharing of documents (example: Adobe Connect Pro)
- PDF documents
- Microsoft Office Mobile (example: Word Mobile, Excel Mobile, PowerPoint Mobile, OneNote Mobile, Outlook Mobile)
- Java applications (example: games)
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