The Evolution of a start screen
When I had my first Nokia device, the unbreakable powerhouse that was the Nokia 3210; I used to change the covers on it quite a bit. From just a single colour to odd or famous designs I thoroughly enjoyed altering the look of my trusty device.
Things have moved on a lot since then, but the customisation of a device is still a feature that a lot of mobile device users love.
One gentleman who has been taking this to the next level is Gerardo Sciacca. Hailing from Southern Italy, Gerardo is Nokia through and through, and is a man of many talents.
I’ve been a Nokia customer for a long time, since early 2000’s, I was a child and my first phone was a Nokia 3330!’
Aged 24, he is training to become a physiotherapist and can play the guitar, the piano and now the violin too!
It’s no surprise therefore that as a creative person Gerardo seeks to customise the start screen on his Lumia 920 on a regular basis, frequently rearranging his tiles to mirror his mood.
‘The majority of people think that WP is not customizable, but they are wrong and I’d like to demonstrate it.’
A former ‘theme’ maker in the Symbian years, Gerardo was worried that its successor, the Lumia range, would not have the customisation capabilities to meet his demands, but freely admits that he was wrong.
Since then, he has captured his start screen regularly, displaying its evolution.
‘I think that to personalise the start screen and to not make it look cluttered you have to understand what matters to you most and put it first’
Gerardo uses the GroupTiles app but there are many others you can use to make your start screen your own such as MyTileMaker, Custom Tiles Maker and Skinery Themes and more.
‘There’s not a perfect time for changing the start screen, but I do it every time I feel it doesn’t reflect my mood. You can see that I always use the same tiles, only in different schemes. I couldn’t say I’m influenced by sky, or clouds, or toys, or movies, or photo specifically. I don’t really know: the only thing I do know is that every time I change it, the final result is always the wanted one.’
The word customise means ‘to modify (something) according to a customer’s individual requirements’.
Gerardo’s individual requirements are to keep being inspired and feel that the device he loves mirrors his own personality.
Here’s his start screen evolution from start to now.
His newest start screen is devoted to his favourite Football team – Juventus! Complete of course with the Juventus hymn as his ringtone!
Does anybody else customise their start screens frequently in a creative way?
Tell us or show us in the comments below!
All images created by Gerardo Sciacca