The retail environment is fast paced, competitive and fluid. Facilitating Information flow, channeling and distributing it to the right points across this highly changeable and dynamic environment is the key challenge for improving business in the retail sector. Nordic ID meets the challenge with solutions that bridge the gap between people and information.

Building on a strong reputation for solid design and well thought-out functionality, Nordic ID recently announced the arrival of its latest flagship product, Nordic ID Morphic. While the new mobile device shares many of the design principles of other data devices made by Nordic ID, including a simple intuitive user interface and field-proven functionality, its new compact monoblock form and VoIP capabilities puts it in a league closer to a mobile phone in terms of lightweight portability, functionality and looks. Overall the aim is to create a truly personal device that fits comfortably in the hand or the pocket allowing it to become a smooth functioning and natural extension to the user’s daily working gear.

On a software level, Nordic ID Morphic features a new client which makes it backwards compatible with existing Nordic ID RF-series integrations with no further work needed. This is an important feature which allows customers already using Nordic ID RF-series handhelds and operating a WLAN network in their working environment to upgrade their systems without extra cost and align themselves with the possibilities that new technologies have to offer. The new device keeps the door open to expand with RFID and all the possibilities it offers and, for example, with GPRS in the future.

Mikko Lähteenmäki, chief software designer for the new client explains: ”The Nordic ID RF Client is a software component running on top of Windows CE 6.0 that provides full backward compatibility to existing RF customer backend servers. With Morphic, customers will be able to enjoy a whole new set of new features for better integration to their network infrastructure – features such as WLAN with the latest security standards, device remote management and Voice over IP.”

One of the strongest claims for the new product is its future proof design. In this Lähteenmäki and his colleagues have played a pivotal role in the creation of a product that not only works with legacy Nordic ID systems but also looks forward. Lähteenmäki continued: “When talking about a product that is ‘future proof’, as software designers what we mean is that our SDK remains the same over different devices. For example, software written for PL3000 will work on Morphic with little or no change at all. And software written for Morphic will most likely work on any next generation Nordic ID device. With Morphic our customers will get a highly customizable and stable device.”

Concerted effort to create a new platform

Since the project’s inception the team responsible at Nordic ID has worked consistently to ensure that everything goes to plan under the guidance of project manager, Anna Nummi. Now in her sixth year at the company, Anna praised everyone involved for a concerted effort: “Lead times for projects like this are as compressed as possible so we tend to work under some pressure. The challenge with Morphic is that we were building a new platform as well as creating something with a lot more features than its predecessors. At the same time we had to pay attention to the more compact, lightweight design while retaining the same ease of use and simplicity our customers are used to.”

Nummi added that much of the success of a project is down to good communication both internally and externally: “When you are doing something new, you have to really work closely with people and listen to them carefully. I work in a very male dominated environment but I like to think I’m one of the guys when it comes to talking through problems and achieving solutions. That’s all the more important with our customers, whose feedback is essential to creating a good product.”

This sentiment was echoed by Technical Director at Nordic ID, Hannu Heino, who explained that interviewing and gathering feedback from existing customers and researching technologies is a process that demands as much attention to detail as the physical creation process
itself: “In the beginning we make draft specifications for a product and balance these against use specifications outlined by our customers. Only when we have established that we are in the right area with what we are doing and what our customers want do we really start the project”, he said, adding that this process can take as long as four months to complete. In the same timeframe, other team members are researching the availability of technical solutions, critical components and potential partners in the design mix. Only when all this information is tied together can the team at Nordic ID finalise specifications.

Faster, better, stronger

The result from a technical perspective is an extremely powerful device featuring an extremely fast 540Mhz CPU and DDR memories making Morphic very good for heavy applications written with Java or C#. Mikko Lähteenmäki explained that such applications typically run by clients are known to be slow on most devices, but now with Morphic there would be more than enough capacity. In addition to fast processing speeds, Morphic also boasts a 128 MB high speed non-volatile flash memory that is highly suitable for batch applications. Lähteenmäki added that the device’s VoIP and Push to Talk functionality would also be a great benefit to customers looking to increase work floor communication and decrease phone costs.

Technical specifications aside, Hannu Heino pointed out that customers will be delighted with Morphic’s sleek ergonomic design and ease of use: “I think customers and more importantly those that use Morphic on an everyday basis will appreciate its simple user interface and smart ergonomic design. Both from the perspective of the key pad layout and what they see in its bright display window has been designed with simplicity in mind. More importantly Morphic represents a solid platform to build upon for the future, whether customers require an upgrade from barcode reading to RFID or the incorporation, for example, of GPRS”, he stated. The range of applications for our handheld technology is opening up new vistas for retailers in terms of efficiency and control, creating new business logic models and enhancing communication and customer satisfaction where it needs to be - on the shop floor.

Nordic ID Morphic makes its official debut at the world’s leading investment goods fair for the retail industry, Euroshop in Düsseldorf, Germany in February this year. The team at Nordic ID who has worked hard to make the new device a reality hopes that customers from all sectors will warm to Morphic’s sleek simplicity and striking design: “We feel we have made a real departure from other Nordic ID products with Morphic and created a platform that will find application in a broad band of industries. We’re very proud of the new product and believe that the benefits it has to offer will speak clearly to all prospective customers”, Anna Nummi concluded.


Nordic ID Morphic’s benefits:

• Faster stock control, merchandizing and pricing
• Relevant up to date information to the backbone
• Wastage control data fed straight into the system
• Ability to answer customer enquiries at POS
• Ability to perform customer surveys at POS
• VoIP functionality offers efficient communication across the shop floor • Mobile POS functionality when combined with a mobile payment device • Custom colors available