Bad design disables: SONY ERICSSON mobile phone K700i

To SONY ERICSSON Mobile Phones Division, Autumn 2005.

This is a comment (or 2) about human interface design for mobile phones!

I have bought a Sony Ericsson K700i mobile phone. It has a built-in camera, a large screen, a radio, “bluetooth”, infrared and a calendar that can be synchronised with a PC.

I was looking for a phone which, apart from all the above functions, is easy to read, as I am 50 years old and starting to use glasses for reading. (Many people get long-sighted as they get older). But I do NOT want to put on reading glasses to use my mobile phone - it is a nuisance, especially on the street and when I have my hands full!

Problem 1. When buying the K700i (at the Vodaphone shop) customers are NOT able to see the phone in operation. This is the same for almost all phones, of course. (Imagine buying a car you cannot test-drive! This is crazy - When will this problem be rectified?). Looking at a “dead” phone, it is impossible to get an idea about the menu, functionality and especially - for me - the font sizes used in the K700i.

Problem 2. The actual size of the text fonts, now that I have bought the phone: The K700i screen is nice and BIG, but the phone book text and sms message text font is tiny! The letters seem to have been drawn with a pinpoint – maybe 2 pixels thick? (Yes, the SMS text size can be increased but only for WRITING messages, not for READING!!!! As far as I can tell, it is impossible to re-size the fonts IN GENERAL.

– Why is that? (My answer? - Because someone did not think of it, or thought it was not worth doing)!

Problem 3. The K700i keys show the letters of the alphabet in a minute text size. Also the keys have a shiny, plastic coating, which makes them difficult to read, due to reflections.

Problem 4. When writing text messages the "space" key is down in the bottom right corner. (#-key). This is nearly impossible to use with my right thumb. It will not bend down there while I am holding the phone - or not without dropping the phone! So I have to hold the phone with one hand and write with the other: Not very “handy”!

So as an example of good HUMAN INTERFACE DESIGN, the K700i gets very poor marks from me.

In fact I will go back to using my old NOKIA phone which has re-sizeable screen fonts and a better, bigger ergonomic size/shape.

Listen! I am WILLING TO PAY up to 500 Euros for a mobile phone which has BIG buttons and a BIG screen and BIG font sizes. I am sure you have heard about the "ageing population" - which really needs such a phone. Do you make one??? The trend to make smaller and smaller phones is great for schoolkids but I and about 90 million other people in Europe need a better, ergonomic design. I hope you will make a serious effort to improve or create at least ONE of your models to satisfy this customer demand. (And don’t tell me that your customers don’t want it!).

Please let me know if SONY ERICSSON makes a truly ACCESSIBLE phone and I will buy it!!!!!!!!!!!!!! - I promise!

Lastly, although your Web site says your mobile phone designs are "one step ahead of the customer”, in the case of older people I would place you about 3 streets behind the customer needs!!! So please revise your misplaced, self-congratulatory marketing copy.
And by the way - the SONY ERICSSON Web page where customers can send their comments did not work, when I tried to send you this message! Maybe you should fix that and then you will get some useful customer feedback!

Hoping for a positive response.

Ivor Ambrose,

Athens, Greece.