I got an interesting mail from Pernille Missel Danielsen, handicap consultant at "Videnscenter for Specialpædagogik" (Knowledge Center for chidren with special needs), the other day. She asked me:
I am a handicap consultant who have been asked to buy PDA to 3 teenagers with ASD. I have been traversing the market and found many very interesting product but I have gotten confused. Which PDA would you recommend?
My answer to Pernille Missel Danielsen was:
"It is a very good question, which we in HANDS do spend some time on. I am happy you ask me, but please do not wait for HANDS. We will enter the market in 2011!
Within the HANDS project have we not decied the hardwareplatform yet. We are eager to give the users influence and hear what they need. We experience there is a number of possibilities.
A pda(a mobile device without phone)
A windows mobile SmartPhone. Either small screen and small device or big(big screen and big device).
NOKIA SmartPhone
Alternative SmartPhones(nokia, Sony Erichsson, Samsung...)
General mobilephone(nokia, Sony Erichsson, Samsung...)
According to the big mobiletelecom exhibition in Barcelona(march 08) the productsegment "Smart Phone" are the fastest growing segment within the mobilephonesproductsegments. The consequense is, that we will see lots of productintroductions in "SmartPhone" productsegment in the nearest future. Iphone has been introduced, Google is about introducing Androids, and more is to come.
When choosing a pda for young people be aware that
You are choosing mobiles for young people, who would be happy, if mobile phone and pda is the same.
You need a large screen, but the gadget has to be as small as possible. I myself has a large SmartPhone(HP Ipaq hw6515 , dim: 15x8cm) which hardly fit in my pockets and because of that I tend to forget the pda everywhere.
Producers of mobilephones estimates the product lifelength to be 2 years. It will probably be true in your case. Possibly less. Your pda will be pedagogical tools and such equipment do have a risci life. The larger the pda is, the higher is the chance for shorter life because of weight and size.
The software we have spotted for individuals with ASD are all running on windows mobile on a pda. But our marketresearch has been orientated towards the best products and we do definitely not know all products.
I do expect, that HANDS will choose the Windows MobilePlatform with an Smartphone. But again do not use this knowledge as a foundation for your decision. It takes three years, before our software is on the market.
Sincerly yours,
Morten
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There is updated info: the kickoff meeting of HANDS held in SletteStrand 15th to 18th of June made a decision about the hardwareplatform: The meeting decided to use Windows Mobile SmartPhone platform. The next question is, which models is accepted as HANDS mobilephones. The teachers wanted a relatively large screen, but what that means precisely is not known.
Morten Aagaard
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Hi Morton, I have received you e-mail and here are some of my comments regarding the kick off meeting:
It’s really hard to say what where my expectations and worries when I have arrived on the Aalborg airport, the fact is that I new very little things about the autistics people and maybe that’s why I was a little bit worried that I won’t understand exactly what are them needs and how they are supposed to use the application that we are supposed to develop, also I was hopping that I will have the opportunity to see some applications that they are using at the moment and the way the teachers are working with this children with special needs.
The visit we have made in the last day at the schools it was really interesting, after that visit “I’ve started to see the hole picture” and to understand how the hands application should look, and how it should be used by the children.
In the first days at the kick off meeting I have started to make a small picture about your intentions regarding the Hands application but I think the most important thing it was in the last day when we have visited the schools. After that visit I’ve started to believe that it we’ll be a good idea that the teachers form the schools to have the last word regarding the hardware platform for this project because they are the only ones that could understand the needs of those children. My only hope is that we’ll have as soon as possible the first prototype of the Hands application in the hands of the teachers and to get some feedback from them in order to see if the application we’ll reach them expectations.
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