Microsoft Gestures Research

A research made for Microsoft, about rethinking contemporary Gestures.

In collaboration with Noga Hadad.

Our Smartphones serve us, the users, as a substitute for many tools and devices. But are they taking places of different still objects in our lives as well?

As we decided to focus our research on the off-time gestures that the user makes on his smartphone, we classified those into two main categories:

1. 3D GESTURES – USING ALL SIDES OF THE OBJECT

Grasping \ Holding gesture \ everybody

Different ways of holding the phone, not only for a better use, but also to confirm its presence, for personal safety feeling, or for showing off.

*Comparable gestures- handling a bar of soap, holding the remote control, looking for a wallet or watch.

Playing \ Boasting gesture \ mostly men

Bouncing, rolling and risking the phone.

*Comparable gestures with other physical objects – Rolling the car keys or playing with a cigarette box.

2. 2D GESTURES – FOCUSING ON THE FRONT OF PHONE

Wiping \ Cleansing gesture \ everybody

Cleaning the screen, by wiping it with the hand\sleeve\pants.

*Comparable gestures- gathering crumbs from a table\ wiping nose with sleeve or selfcaressing.

Petting \ Self-confirmation gesture \ mostly women

Stroking the screen with repetitive moves. The petting gestures are sometimes derivative of the operating gestures, only they’ll be slower.

*Comparable gestures- hugging a cup of tea\ petting a pet or handling a comfort object.

Doodling \ Identity gesture \ creative personality

Drawing with the grease and the residue that accumulating on the screen, leaving a temporary mark.

*Comparable gestures- doodling on sand \ steam on a window, or urinating on a tree.

The nature and duration of the finger impressions on the cellular device can give users a glimpse into their relationship with the smartphone, their mood, and health. Giving shape to the residues and turning them into a material that can be examined, collected, and cleaned, can provide a physical experience that will follow the users’ virtual journey across the screen and reflect the intimate relationship they form with the object.