NTT Docomo Introduces Palette UI for Android – Wants To Simplify Your App Drawer
Love it or hate, Android is no stranger when it comes to UI’s. We first began seeing this from manufacturers like HTC who wanted to offer more features outside of stock Android and further differentiate themselves from their competitors by offering an enhanced user experience. Soon after Motorola jumped on the badwagon with Motoblur and soon after Samsung with their TouchWhiz UI. Whether or not these UI’s/themes/skins/launcher replacements actually enhance the user experience or hinder it is another talk for another time (but feel free to comment).
Well, it looks like we may start seeing carriers offer their own take on the Android UI. Sprint gave us a hint of this with their “Sprint ID” launcher replacement that essentially loads your homescreen with pre-configured app packs suited to each individual customers’ needs. Now, in Japan, there is a carrier called NTT Docomo who has just unveiled their Palette UI for Android which, like all UI’s, is aimed at simplifying and enhancing general ease of use on Android. Aside from the usual widgets and bubbled icons, Palette UI’s claim to fame is its handy app drawer that can group apps into categories and help you make sense of your growing app addiction. While mostly new to me, for some, this is nothing they haven’t seen on UI’s before like Motoblur, Timescape and even the new Sense which offer something similar.
NTT Docomo (I love saying that name) will be offering their Palette UI cross platform on devices such as the Samsung Galaxy S 2 and NEC Media. If you would like to see more, hit up the rather soothing video below and make sure to let us know what you think.
[Via Engadget]