BREW 2007’s User Experience Focus

Qualcomm’s annual BREW conference wrapped up in San Diego on Friday. This year saw an unprecedented focus on user experience, with panel and breakout sessions over all 3 days on everything from Understanding Users Through Contextual Inquiry to User Centered Design for Mobile Environments and Designing and Evaluating Mobile User Interfaces. Qualcomm also sponsored quick-hit 30-minute sessions where attendees had the opportunity for Q&A in a more informal environment.

Although some sessions were introductory in nature, several assumed a degree of knowledge about user centered design in general and its application to the mobile space in particular. This leads me to think that BREW is attracting a more diverse audience that is increasingly aware of the importance of a user centered approach to mobile interfaces and seeking out information to this end. This is a good thing for anyone who uses a mobile phone, which is to say, pretty much everyone.