UIQ
UIQ was a user interface maintained by UIQ Technology, which has been used in many touch screen based devices. Nokia used UIQ in just one of its models, Nokia 6708. Later Nokia used the Maemo, MeeGo and S60 platforms in their touch screen devices.
At first Symbian called UIQ "Quartz". The word UIQ however stands for User Interface Quartz. Its description was "Pen-based information-centric mobile phones". Later UIQ supported operating with fingers as well.
Characteristics
Some UIQ devices look like S60 phones, but a majority has a huge touch screen in the front cover and only a few command keys next to it. In some models there is a numeric keypad on top of the display which can be bent down when the user wants to utilize the whole screen.
There are only two screen resolutions for UIQ:
| Resolution (width x height) | Example model |
|---|---|
| 208 x 320 | Motorola A920 |
| 240 x 320 | Sony Ericsson P990 |
Versions
There were three main versions of UIQ published, like S60. And just like in the S60's case, UIQ v1 and v2 programs were binary incompatible with UIQ v3 platform. A list of all UIQ versions:
- UIQ v1.0
- UIQ v1.1
- UIQ v2.0
- UIQ v2.1
- UIQ v3.0
- UIQ v3.1
- UIQ v3.2
- UIQ v3.3
This page has images of different UIQ versions' desktops. The page opens in a new window.
Memories
UIQ v2.0 and v2.1:
- ROM drive Z:
- Contains the operating system's and user interface's files. It's on a Flash memory chip in "read only" form, and it can only be edited during the firmware update.
- ROM drive A:
- Contains operator specific files, e.g. operator's own ringtones, themes, screensavers and starting animations. This memory is write-protected, just like the Z: drive.
- User drive C:
- This drive can be used as a storage area of the user's own files; the user can save his files and install applications here, and it won't empty although the device gets switched off.
- User drive D:
- This drive is a memory card, which can be attached into the device. Like the C: drive, it can be used as the user's own storage, and it won't lose its data although it wouldn't get any power.
- Program memory - RAM
- This is a memory for running programs. For example when the user opens an image file, the image and the image viewer applications gets loaded onto this memory. When the device is switched off, this memory gets empty. So basically this memory works like the PC's RAM memory.
UIQ v3.0 and v3.1:
UIQ v3.x platforms' memory structure is similar, but only the A: drive is missing. That means the operator can't install its files onto these devices.
Devices
There are considerably more UIQ devices manufactured than S80 and S90 devices, but way less than S60 devices. Below is a list of all UIQ devices
| Device | Operating system | User interface |
|---|---|---|
| Arima U300 | Symbian OS v7.0 | UIQ v2.1 |
| Arima U308 | Symbian OS v7.0 | UIQ v2.1 |
| BenQ P30 | Symbian OS v7.0 | UIQ v2.1 |
| BenQ P31 | Symbian OS v7.0 | UIQ v2.1 |
| Motorola A920 | Symbian OS v7.0 | UIQ v2.0 |
| Motorola A925 | Symbian OS v7.0 | UIQ v2.0 |
| Motorola A1000 | Symbian OS v7.0 | UIQ v2.1 |
| Motorola M1000 | Symbian OS v7.0 | UIQ v2.1 |
| Motorola MOTORIZR Z8 | Symbian OS v9.2 | UIQ v3.1 |
| Motorola MOTO Z10 | Symbian OS v9.2 | UIQ v3.2 |
| Nokia 6708 | Symbian OS v7.0 | UIQ v2.1 |
| Sony Ericsson G700 | Symbian OS v9.1 | UIQ v3.0 |
| Sony Ericsson G900 | Symbian OS v9.1 | UIQ v3.0 |
| Sony Ericsson M600 | Symbian OS v9.1 | UIQ v3.0 |
| Sony Ericsson P1 | Symbian OS v9.1 | UIQ v3.0 |
| Sony Ericsson P800 | Symbian OS v7.0 | UIQ v2.0 |
| Sony Ericsson P900 | Symbian OS v7.0 | UIQ v2.1 |
| Sony Ericsson P910 | Symbian OS v7.0 | UIQ v2.1 |
| Sony Ericsson P990 | Symbian OS v9.1 | UIQ v3.0 |
| Sony Ericsson W950 | Symbian OS v9.1 | UIQ v3.0 |
| Sony Ericsson W960 | Symbian OS v9.1 | UIQ v3.0 |
Else
- BenQ P31 and Nokia 6708 were basically the same device. Nokia licensed the device to itself, and therefore "BenQ P31" didn't exist.
- The i and c letters after Sony Ericsson phones' model numbers (e.g. Sony Ericsson P1i) were there for different market areas. For example, SE P1i is for European market and P1c is for Chinese market.
- UIQ v1.0 and v1.1 wasn't used in any device.
- The UIQ platform was discontinued with the establishment of Symbian Foundation.