Gesture recognition used to be the one of the coolest things to hit UI technology until the Nokia Kinetic bendy phone which can be operated by twisting, squeezing or bending came along. A prototype of the suitably titled ‘bendy phone’ was showcased by Nokia’s Head of Design, Tapani Jokinen at Nokia World 2011, reveals the company’s official blog.
Unsurprisingly enough, it managed to garner a lot of attention at the Nokia World event along with the new smartphones released at the conference. This remarkably flexible phone goes a step ahead with touchscreens and allows users to control it through actions such as bending or twisting. At the same time, Tapani maintains that the Kinetic will not be replacing touchscreen devices any time soon.
To talk about its functionality, a forward twist of the handset lets users scroll through files while the speed of the same depends upon the twisting action. And scrolling back to a previous point is as simple as twisting the phone in the opposite direction. Once the file to be opened is found, users can bend the phone to open the folder from the menu. This device is completely devoid of buttons and squeezing should allow for answering calls.
According to Tapani, the intuitive and interactive interface adds to the browsing experience as it offers complete control over the device. And in response to multiple actions, the phone is said to be capable of executing about three to four commands at the same time. Moreover, advanced security functions can be included in the device to recognize the user’s grip over the phone. Add to that the idea that its flexibility and button-less form factor may result in an absolutely water-proof product.
Apparently, the Finnish company has already developed the technology for the Nokia Kinetic bendy phone and users can expect it to hit markets in the next three years.
