Windows Mobile interface provides fingertip control
Jan. 02, 2008
Australian company Pointui has released a user interface (UI) for Windows Mobile that allows owners of touchscreen devices to bypass styluses, operating devices with their fingers. Pointui Home has "generously sized" controls that make it easy to load and switch between applications, the company says.
Windows Mobile runs on a wide variety of devices, but its standard home screen (seen below) has traditionally been the same on each. This uniformity began to break down, however, with HTC's release of its popular TouchFLO interface, regarded by many as the Windows Mobile world's answer to Apple's iPhone. Said to be able to distinguish between finger and stylus input and respond accordingly, TouchFLO provides what HTC terms an "animated, three-dimensional" interface.
Windows Mobile's standard home screen
Microsoft later joined the fray, creating customized UIs for Vodafone's version of the Palm Treo 500v and for T-Mobile's Shadow. But Pointui Home, demonstrated below in a YouTube video, now provides another alternative. Among other touted features, an "Applet Ribbon" provides access to time, tasks, appointments, calendar and up-to-date weather forecasts.
Pointui Home Click to play (clip contains video only, no sound)
Pointui claims the Home interface allows users to:
Control a device via touch or via thumb with the directional keypad
Locate an item in even the largest lists with "Smart Lists Navigation"
Get one touch access to calls, email, text messages and music
Manage a device's sound, wireless, battery and device settings
Create new emails, text messages, appointments and other documents
Load or switch between running applications
Availability
Pointui Home, version 1.01b, is available for free download from the company's website, here. It requires 3MB of storage and currently runs only on Windows Mobile devices incorporating phones, with 240 x 240, 240 x 320, or 320 x 240 screen resolutions.
According to the company, a version that supports VGA and other resolutions is planned, as is a version for Pocket PC 2003 devices.
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Australian company Pointui has released a user interface (UI) for Windows Mobile that allows owners of touchscreen devices to bypass styluses, operating devices with their fingers. Pointui Home has "generously sized" controls that make it easy to load and switch between applications, the company says.
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