Creating Usability Awareness in India

Android Upgrade for Google TV

2011-10-28T11:26:00.000-07:00

Google TV launched in October 2010. But for many users, the lack of Hulu — along with the awkwardness of the interface and lack of cooperation from TV networks and content providers — was a huge turnoff. Now Google aims to fix that with a massive overhaul, upgrading Google TV with its Android operating system.

Google announced on its Google TV blog Friday that the platform will be upgraded to Android 3.1

New update are focused on four areas:

1. Keep it simple
The interface is now much simpler. The new customizable home screen gets you to your favorite content quickly.

2. Make it easy to find something worth watching.

3. Make YouTube better on TV.

4. Bringing more apps to TV.

Raise in Mobile banking app usage in US: Study

2011-10-28T10:12:00.000-07:00

Nearly 13 million mobile users used a mobile banking app in June – up 45 percent from the fourth quarter of 2010, per a new study by comScore.

The comScore study found that mobile credit card services saw an increase with 18.4 million mobile users accessing credit card information – up 23 percent from December.

The study found that 12.7 million mobile users reported having used a banking app in June. This is up 45 percent from the fourth quarter of 2010.

Approximately 14 percent of United States mobile subscribers accessed banking services via their handsets.

Mobile credit card services saw an increase with 18.4 million mobile users accessing credit card information – up 23 percent from December.

Peet's Coffee & Tea uses Google Wallet and Mastercard Paypass

2011-10-24T18:53:00.000-07:00

Coffee chain Peet’s Coffee & Tea is allowing consumers to pay thru Google Wallet and MasterCard Pay pass.

The company claims that all locations will be equipped for mobile payments by the end of October.

Eighteen stores in San Francisco and San Jose, CA already have the mobile payment readers.

With the new technology, consumers can pay for items by tapping their mobile devices via the Google Wallet app or on Paypass-enabled registers.

It also signals a direct competition with coffee giant Starbucks. Recently, Starbucks rolled out a commerce-enabled application that lets consumers buy items on their mobile devices

NJ Transit Partners With Google Wallet

2011-10-19T10:31:00.000-07:00

New Jersey Transit, the third-largest U.S. transit system with more than 895,000 weekday trips on bus and rail in New Jersey, New York and Philadelphia has began letting some commuters pay for fares using smartphone sensors set up by Google Inc. at locations including New York’s Penn Station.

The public-transit system is the first to partner with the company on its Google Wallet “tap-and-pay” system, which gives businesses access to credit-card information when a customer waves their phone over a sensor to make a purchase.

This Service is now available only on Sprint Nexus 4G and soon will expand to other Andriod phones.

Dell iPhone App

2011-10-19T10:10:00.001-07:00

Computer manufacturer Dell Inc. has rolled out an iPhone app that serves as a one-stop shopping, tracking and support tool for consumers.

The Dell app lets consumer shop for products including TVs, cameras and other electronic devices.

consumers can access support forums, videos and access advisor tool to receive instant Dell recommendations.

The iPhone app lets consumers track their order status, manage their account and contact the company via a click-to-call feature.

Dell Mobile is a single app for desktop computers, laptops, monitors, printers—all the Dell systems and accessories you need for your home, plus top-brand TVs, cameras and other electronic products. With a quick and easy purchase path, Dell Mobile lets you get in, find what you need, fill your order and get out fast.

American Eagle Outfitters to Use Google Wallet

2011-10-17T16:54:00.000-07:00

American Eagle Outfitters is continuing its push in the mobile commerce space via a new partnership with Google Wallet.
American Eagle to use the Google Wallet with in-store demonstrations in New York.
Google Wallet is currently being used at American Eagle locations in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Washington and New York.
Using Google Wallet, American Eagle consumers can pay for their purchases via their smartphone.
Users with a Nexus S 4G smartphone can download the Google Wallet app to manage their accounts.

This Makes American Eagle Outfitters the latest to join the race of NFC Payments.

Subway to Use Contact Less Payments with NFC Devices

2011-10-10T14:58:00.000-07:00

Subway, the largest restaurant chain in the United States to accept contactless payments.The new tap and go payment readers will be implemented at more than 7,000 United States locations by the end of 2012.

Subway consumers can tap their PayPass-enabled MasterCard card, phone or device on a PayPass-accepting reader at check-out.

According to MasterCard, PayPass does not require customers to sign receipts for purchases under $50.

Mastercard is a global payments and technology company, It operates the world’s fastest payments processing network.

55% of Mobile Web Traffic comes from Apple's iOS

2011-10-04T10:51:00.000-07:00

Apple’s iOS operating system is now driving nearly 55 percent of worldwide mobile web traffic, according to a new report by web analytic firm Net Applications.

The findings suggest that the percentage eclipses Google’s Android by more than three times. At 16 percent global market share across mobile phones and tablets, Android web traffic even trails Java ME, which accounts for nearly 19 percent market share.

Symbian follows at 6 percent and RIM’s BlackBerry is at 3 percent.

Although Android controls 48 percent of the worldwide smartphone market, Apple’s iPad continues to own the tablet market, increasing to 68 percent global market share during the second quarter, up from almost 66 percent a quarter ago.

OfficeMax uses NFC payment through Google Wallet

2011-10-04T10:11:00.000-07:00

OfficeMax is letting in-store customers pay via Google Wallet to deliver a faster, personalized in-store shopping experience.

OfficeMax is the latest retail chain to join the growing list of merchants who are accepting Google Wallet NFC payments. OfficeMax are also utilizing Google Wallet along with their MaxPerks Rewards loyalty program that will enable customers to pay, redeem coupons and reap the benefits of OfficeMax’s MaxPerks. The Google Wallet NFC payments are currently limited to greater New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington D.C. markets.

The Google Wallet app is available on the Sprint Nexus 4G phones. It stores virtual versions of a customer’s payment and rewards credentials and uses near field communication technology to make payments by tapping the phone on the MasterCard terminals.

Google Wallet

2011-09-20T11:01:00.000-07:00

Google officially rolled out its Google Wallet mobile paymnet system on last monday. Google wallet is now available only on Sprint nexus 4G, It works with Citi-Mastercards and Google Prepaid Card.

How it Works:

Tying into the near field communication (NFC) system built into select Android handsets, Google Wallet allows your phone to act as your credit card. By tapping your Android phone against a compatible card reader available in select retailers, your payment credentials are transferred to the merchant without any swiping.

Security:

Google Wallet requires you to set up a Google Wallet PIN that must be entered before making a purchase. This PIN prevents unauthorized access and payments via Google Wallet. Android phones also feature a separate lock screen.

If your phone is stolen, Google Wallet PIN and Secure Element protect your payment card information which prevents
others making a purchase with your phone.

Offers:

Google Offers are deals on products and services at local or online businesses. Whenever you buy or save a Google Offer, it automatically syncs to your Google Wallet so your offers are always with you.

Near Field Communication

2011-09-16T21:27:00.000-07:00

Near field communication, or NFC, allows for simplified transactions, data exchange, and wireless connections between two devices in close proximity to each other. Co-invented by NXP Semiconductors and Sony in 2002, NFC technology is being added to a growing number of mobile handsets to enable mobile payments.

The Near Field Communication Forum (NFC Forum) formed in 2004 promotes sharing, pairing, and transactions between NFC devices and develops and certifies device compliance with NFC standards.

NFC devices can read NFC tags to get more information or an audio or video presentation. NFC can share a contact, photo, song, application, or video.

Uses of NFC:

It is used in Social Networking to instantly share a contact, photo, video or a url.

It expands eCommerce opportunities increases transaction speed and accuracy which in turn increases productivity.

An NFC device may make a payment like a credit card by touching a payment terminal at checkout or a vending machine when a PIN is entered.

Tap an NFC device to purchase rail, metro, airline, movie, concert, or event tickets.

Microsoft Tags

2011-09-16T16:57:00.000-07:00

High Capacity Color Barcode (HCCB) is the name coined by Microsoft for its technology of encoding data in a 2D "barcode" using clusters of colored triangles instead of the square pixels traditionally associated with 2D barcodes. Data density is increased by using a palette of 4 or 8 colors for the triangles, although HCCB also permits the use of black and white when necessary.

A Microsoft Tag is essentially a machine readable web link, analogous to a URL shortening link: when read, the Tag application sends the HCCB data to a Microsoft server, which then returns the publisher's intended URL. The Tag reader then directs the user's mobile browser to the appropriate website.

You can create and deploy Tags, scan them with a single reader, analyze the results, and update the content anytime without changing the Tag. You can create custom Tags, tailor the consumer experience based on their location and mobile device, and deliver a wide range of content, from product details and videos to interactive games and apps.

Belkin QR Code

2011-09-16T10:58:00.000-07:00

Belkin International, Inc., is a Californian manufacturer of computer hardware that specializes in connectivity devices launches packaging QR code campaign on select networking products.

Belkin International’s packaging features QR barcodes on select networking products. When Scanned from the smartphone with a QR reader it takes the user to belkin's mobile site where users can find more info on the particular product.

The QR codes are cost effective means of connecting the physical world to the interactive world and driving traffic to their mobile internet site.

Mobile bar code scanning increases by 4549% on a YOY basis

2011-05-16T07:18:00.000-07:00

Mobile bar code scanning has increased by 4,549 percent in the first quarter of 2011 on a year-over-year basis, according to a Mobio Identity Systems study.

With the increase in smartphone purchases for both iPhone and Android devices, which have a pre-installed QR reader, there is growing awareness among consumers of QR codes compared to a year ago.

In terms of the type of media scanned, social media accounts for 70 percent of scans, TV 22 percent, the physical world four percent, online three percent and print one percent.

The iPhone is the most popular scanning device, followed by the iPod Touch and then, Android

Android load web pages faster than the iPhones

2011-03-19T00:14:00.000-07:00

smartphones using android performed better than the iPhones when it comes to loading web pages. Blaze.io, a mobile website optimization company, conducted the study that involved over 40,000 downloads of web pages belonging to the Fortune 1000 companies.

The study revealed that the iPhone loaded web pages 52% longer than Android and on average Android took 2.1 seconds to render non–mobile-optimized web pages, while the iPhone took 3.2 seconds. Android phones outdid the iPhone on site-loading time by 84% of the time.

During the study researchers used the Samsung Nexus S (Android 2.3), Samsung Galaxy S (Android 2.2), iPhone 4 (iOS 4.3) and iPhone 4 (iOS 4.2). The phones loaded pages using a strong Wi-Fi connection, and each device loaded each Fortune 1000 website three times.

iphone would have performed better if they are tested with safari web browser.

QR Code

2011-03-10T01:26:00.000-08:00

QR Code is a specific matrix barcode (or two-dimensional code), readable by dedicated QR barcode readers and camera phones. The code consists of black modules arranged in a square pattern on a white background. The information encoded can be text, URL or other data.

It was created by Toyota subsidiary Denso-Wave in 1994, the QR code is one of the most popular types of two-dimensional barcodes. QR is the abbreviation for Quick Response.

There are a number of sites for generating QR codes and they’re all free. One that is Kaywa, a site created by Datamatrix, which is another pioneer of 2D codes. You can use it to create QR codes that link to a web page, text, phone numbers, or SMS.

10 Best Intranets of 2011

2011-02-01T20:38:00.000-08:00

* AMP Limited (Australia), a wealth management company
* Bennett Jones LLP (Canada), one of Canada's largest law firms
* Bouygues Telecom (France), a telecom, mobile, fixed, TV, and Internet communications services company
* Credit Suisse AG (Switzerland), a global financial services company
* Duke Energy (US), an electrical power holding company
* Habitat for Humanity International (US), a non-profit, non-denominational Christian housing ministry
* Heineken International (The Netherlands), a leading brewer and owner and manager of a portfolio of beer brands
* KT (Republic of Korea), an information, communications, and technology company
* Mota-Engil Engenharia e Construção, S.A. (Portugal), a leading construction enterprise
* Verizon Communications (US), a provider of wired and wireless broadband and communications services to US consumers, as well as of global business networking, data, and managed solutions to enterprises worldwide.

Source: Useit.com

Google TV

2011-01-31T19:07:00.000-08:00

Google TV is an internet-connected television platform. It was announced by Google on May 20, 2010 at Google’s Google I/O event and was co-developed by Google, Intel, Sony and Logitech. Google TV integrates Google’s Android operating system and Google Chrome browser to create "a new experience for television”. Google TV officially launched October 6, 2010 with devices from Sony and Logitech.

Google TV leverages many of Google’s existing products. Google’s Android operating system provides the underlying foundation, allowing developers to create applications that extend the system’s functionality. Google’s Chrome browser provides a gateway to the Internet, allowing consumers to browse web sites and watch television, in tandem. Consumers can access HBO, CNBC, and content from other providers through the Chrome browser. Partners have built applications that allow customers to access content in unique ways. Netflix, for example, has built an application that allows customers to access Netflix’s large library of movies and television shows. Android and soon Apple phones will be used as remote controls for Google TV. Google TV products ship with wireless remote controls with a full QWERTY keypad.

Opera's new mobile statistics report

2010-12-23T20:42:00.001-08:00

Top mobile sites in India

2010-12-23T20:36:00.000-08:00

Mobile internet in India has been picking up fast and a recent report released by Opera reveals that page views have seen a 416.9 per cent increase during November this year, compared to last year.

Following are the Top ten mobile websites surfed in India:

1. Google
2. Facebook
3. Orkut
4. YouTube
5. Getjar
6. Zedge.net
7. yahoo
8. songs.plk
9. wikipedia.org
10.vuclip

Mobile Web - Best Practices

2010-12-23T20:16:00.000-08:00

Standards

* Use XHTML Basic 1.0.

Images

* Minimize the use of images. If you must use them, make them relevant and supply meaningful ALT text so that mobile devices can use the text descriptions.

* Make images smaller than 100 pixels. Specify the image height and width in the source code.

* Don't use background images on your mobile pages.

User Interface

* Set margins and padding to 0. Widths and margins are detrimental to good handheld display.

* Use one column layouts and avoid floats. Horizontal overflow can be a problem on handhelds, so make sure wide elements fit the narrow screen.

* Add skip anchors. 'Skip to content' and 'Back to top' anchor links are vital when using a mobile device.

* Be consistent. Use similar alignment, color, and layout on pages.

* Align content to the left.

* Place non-essential links and other marginal content at the bottom of the page.

* Take advantage of ordered lists of links and accesskeys.

CSS

* Use external style sheets to control presentation.

* Ensure that contents are readable without style sheets.

* Use the link element to link to an external style sheet. Some handhelds don't recognize @import or @media.

Some of the Top Mobile Sites in South Africa

2010-10-16T00:57:00.000-07:00

1. SuperSport Mobi
2. News24 Mobi
3. M.iol.co.za
4. The Grid Mobile
5. Soccer Laduma Mobile
6. Junk Mail Mobile
7. DStv Mobile
8. JobMail Mobile
9. Webmail Mobi
10. Zoopy Mobile

India Ranks 3rd in surfing mobile web thru Opera Mini

2010-10-04T07:18:00.000-07:00

Opera has released its State of the Mobile Web, August 2010 report, which shows India has 3rd most Opera Mini users in the world. Since the month of August 2009, pages-per-view of opera mobile users in India has grown by 397 percent, while unique-users have grown by 339 percent. The State of the Mobile Web, August 2010 report also states that the page-views per user in India has grown to 405 and the average data transferred per user is 7MB.

"Growth of the mobile Web worldwide accelerated dramatically in August. These numbers are not limited to smartphones alone. The mobile Web was, and remains, a global phenomenon for people all over the world, on a variety of devices and screen sizes," said Jon von Tetzchner, Co-founder, Opera Software.

The State of the Mobile Web, August 2010 also reports many global trends. In August 2010, Opera Mini had more than 66.5 million users. As compared to July 2010, it has increased by 6.8 percent, and if you compared it from August 2009, then the number of unique users have increased 108.3 percent. In terms of number of pages viewed, Opera Mini users viewed more than 33.9 billion pages in August 2010, an increase of 14.3 percent since July 2010, and 143.2 percent since August 2009.

Tools for testing the sites on mobile devices

2010-09-28T08:21:00.000-07:00

1. iPhoney
2. W3C mobileOK Checker
3. iPad Peek
4. Adobe Device Central CS5
5. Google Mobilizer
6. Gomez
7. MobiReady
8. DotMobi Emulator
9. Opera Mini Simulator

Top Plugins for improving the Usability of Wordpress Blogs

2010-09-22T05:57:00.000-07:00

1. Lightbox 2: Images can make or break a blog as you well know from your experience with your own blog and from your perusal of other blogosphere stops. This nifty plugin uses Colorbox to overlay images in a lightbox. One advantage is that your users can view larger images without being taken to another page, streamlining their experience which they will most definitely appreciate. With this plugin you also have the option of auto-lightboxing all the images.

2. WP-Print: While going paperless is a great idea, sometimes your visitors will simply want to print something for easier access later. This plugin allows them to hit print and then go on to other parts of your blog, saving them time and perhaps encouraging deeper interaction with your site that may lead to the kind of conversions you want. This plugin is a freebie.

3. Akismet: Spammers are the bane of bloggers. This plugin will banish them and garner greater trust from those who read your blog. It’s good for nothing in terms of cost.

4. Smart 404: When a user gets a 404 error he or she might think your site is old, down or otherwise problematic when all that happened was a URL was miss-typed. Prevent click-aways by nipping in the bud many of these error messages. This plugin uses keywords from the requested URL to automatically redirect visitors to a page that matches most closely. It offers a very high success rate and it is yours for the asking.

5. WordPress Popular Posts: This will increase page reads and put your best stuff before your visitors by featuring it at the side of each page. This free widget offers great customization and usability.

6. W3 Total Cache: W3 Total Cache is the fastest and most complete WordPress performance optimization plugin. This talented plugin creates a static html pages from your dynamic blog and dishes out that page to users. This functionality allows pages to load faster because a static page is much lighter than a dynamic page and less expensive. There’s lots more this plugin will do for you.

7. Post Teaser: Rather than having to scroll below the fold to see a post this plugin allows them to see a preview of the post and provides a link to the full post. It costs nothing but will save your visitors hassle and earn you their appreciation.

8. Search Everything: Keep things smooth and easy for your visitors and they will continue coming back for more. Search Everything delivers additional search capabilities so they can easily find the content they want. The plugin accomplishes this by ramping up the default search on your WordPress blog so users can search every non-password protected page, tag, post, comment, category, taxonomy and much more.

9. Outbound Links: Users won’t leave your site when they click on an outbound link because this plugin will open it in a new window leaving your blog window open and available. Its free and easy.

10. Subscribe to Comments: Build community around your blog by inviting readers to choose to be notified by email when someone adds a comment. It offers your commenters a tailored approach to staying in the discussion. Download it for nothing and gain quite a bit.