The House of Sky

Nokia Research Labs has created a magnetic ring called Nenya, which can control your cellphone as you twist it on your finger. The ring looks like a standard piece of jewellery, but is actually a strong magnet. Moving the ring causes changes in the surround magnetic field, which are picked up by a bracelet worn by the user that connects to their phone via Bluetooth. You rotate the ring to pick from a number of options, which could be memorised, played as audio through headphones, or displayed on a screen, then push the ring towards your fingertip to select. The options could include asking a caller to hold, or updating your location on a social network. The researchers conducted two small trials and found that people could accurately position the ring in roughly 45 degree increments, suggesting that a ring-controlled menu could contain up to eight options. They will present their findings at the Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems in Vancouver, Canada next month.