No matter how you measure it, mobile market is huge and growing. The convergence of cloud computing, ubiquitous broadband, and affordable mobile devices has begun to transform every aspect of our societies. Before 2015, mobile phones have overtaken desktop computers as our primary means for accessing the internet.

Mobile devices have transformed the way we live and conduct everyday activities. Not only can we access almost any type of content on mobile, but with most mobile smartphones today we can deposit checks, accept credit cards, order food and pay for groceries, sign digital documents, and even lock our house door. Some of these tasks have become easier because of the existence of this new technology: the smartphone. In order to keep pace with this rapidly changing landscape, designers and developers – and the people who work with them – need to start thinking about mobile as a primary project goal; not something tacked onto a desktop-centric project as an afterthought.

Although they are often lumped together as computing devices, smartphones and desktop computers are very different: small screen vs big screen, intermittent vs reliable connectivity, low vs high bandwidth, battery powered vs plugged in, and so on. Given this list, one might be tempted to think of mobile devices as underpowered versions of 'real' computers. But this would be a mistake. In fact, the reverse is true: smartphones are actually more powerful than desktops in many ways. They are highly personal, always on, always with us, usually connected and directly addressable. Plus, they are crawling with powerful sensors that can detect location, movement, acceleration, orientation, proximity, environmental conditions and more.