Not since Steve Jobs over at Apple has a company apparently worked so hard on the look of fonts. But it appears Google has something of that same passion for user experience as it develops Android, its open source platform for mobile computing and communications devices. Here are the fonts users will be interacting with. Nice. Pleasing. But just as important, a sign that mobile user experience might now be really be an obsession at two companies.Don't get me wrong. My BlackBerry is one of two devices I can't seem to dispense with, simply because it handles email so well. But it doesn't do voice very well, the key placement is occasionally awkward, and camera and media support is woeful.
The other, curently a Nokia N95, does photography, audio and video really well, has much more personality and uses a much better Web browser. RIM's browser is awful. Still, when I find I am reading the manuals, over and over, to learn how to use either device, which was my experience, something isn't being done as well as it might.
Syncing of data, calendar items and so forth is easy using either RIM's Intellisync or Nokia's PC Suite. And the picture-handling Nokia LifeBlog is interesting. The point is that software and navigation are getting to be more important now that mobiles are computers. Apple always gets this. Android might as well.
These fonts are nice. They also hopefully are a sign.
