Change resistant old git?

Orange interface

I’m big fan of Orange but its new interface overlay has really annoyed me. I’m trying to figure why out loud (if a blog entry counts as out loud).

For some time now, handset manufacturers and operators have been looking at making more of the phone’s information and functionality available at what I call the surface level, or the industry terms the idle screen. Orange has introduced a new idle screen mode across several handsets, including Nokia Series 60 devices (like the 6630 for instance). I smashed the screen on mine last week and got a replacement from Orange. Great customer service as usual. But it was not a like for like swap. Now down the left handside of the idle screen I have a range of icons (contacts, call list, messages, calendar, camera, mobile internet) which expand to text sub menus (ie call list gives you missed calls, received calls and dialled calls). If there is any information as a detail to this: for instance a missed call number, it shows this too.

So – lots of information now visible on the surface. Sounds great – why do I dislike it?

1. Change. I’m probably getting cranky and conservative with a small c, like most customers. No-one warned me, it’s different, I have to learn new routines (granted, not very taxing).
2. Clicks. It now takes six clicks to read a newly arrived text message. Rather than one as previously when the alert opened the text with one click. Four clicks to see a missed call detail.
3. Clarity. The text detail is so small it is pretty hard to read, and the non selected items are grayed out which makes them even harder. It really is not that clear that you have a missed call anymore.
4. Camera. A joy of the 6630 is the picture quality. Orange’s interface has changed the screen proportions, forcing them to resize any photo that you set to be the background, with a huge drop in quality. Which sort of takes away one of the small joys of being able to personalise one’s phone.

That said, it is a good effort. They’ve worked hard to make it discreet. It is easy to understand and get to grips with. So why am I moaning? Because it is not an improvement overall, so in the end as a user I feel my time is being wasted learning a new interface for no appreciable gain. The gain, perhaps, is a corporate one (Orange phones develop their own USP). And is that a customer focused strategy? Orange used to be masters of that.

Comments

[Tom Hume]

I guess one win is that interfaces across Orange handsets start to get consistency... While this is probably more a win for Orange than most of their customers, it does mean that next time I upgrade there's at least some of the phone interface that's immediately familiar.

What bugs me about the HomeScreen stuff is that you can't turn it off, and it eats a reasonable chunk of memory. I actually like the new UI, but if I don't want it there, that's a decision I should be able to make.