Usability and Acceptance in Small-Screen Information Systems

The small screen sizes of mobile phones can create problems for users. There is a need for acceptable user interfaces that enable a better, more maximised use of the limited screen size while still providing high levels of usability. One method of maximising a limited display area is translucency. To examine the effect of translucency on interface usability we created a fully functioning simulation of a third generation mobile phone user interface, containing a translucent menu system. In this study translucency was implemented at 50% alpha, and two menu levels deep. Objective and subjective aspects of usability and acceptance were gathered. Within the focus of the research the study yielded interesting findings positively relating translucency to perceived usability and measures of acceptance of small screen information systems. This paper presents the results of this study, and presents avenues for continuing research arising from the findings.