User interfaces for mobile content

The UI must be designed to facilitate the widespread and increased use of mobile content. Current UI approaches in the computing domain - such as windows, icons, menus, and pointing (WIMP) - are inadequate and inappropriate for mobile applications. Mobile device constraints pose several UI design challenges. UIs for emerging mobile devices consist of hardware and software combinations such as additional buttons for text input and special functional keys, touch-sensitive screens, audio/visual interfaces, and haptic interfaces to provide virtual-reality (VR) experiences. Analysts expect that third-generation mobile phones and beyond will be conduits for enormous amounts of multimedia content. Several major issues along a variety of dimensions must be addressed in the design and provision of content to these mobile devices. Because they are crucial for enhancing the user experience and enabling the effective consumption of mobile content, UIs are therefore among the major issues that need further study and work.