Scandinavian giant Schibsted’s VG Mobile is solving the puzzle of device compatibility with painstaking testing.

The Verdens Gang digital business has set up a unit late last year to formalise a process which has previously been addressed by a handdful of smarphones and tablets stored on an office shelf. “Nothing beats testing websites and apps on the same devices as users, says development manager Padraic Woods in an INMA blog.

With different screen sizes, operating systems and multiple browsers, testing is becoming more and more challenging. “Physical interactions such as pinching, zooming, and scrolling, hardware features like the camera, GPS locations, the accelerometer, and factors such as battery consumption or site performance are all best tested using physical devices,” he says.

VG’s new “device lab” avoids the use of emulators and presents devices in a systematic manner – stored in a lockable TabCabby unit – ensuring they are all charged when needed for testing. Older devices are retired – rather than updated – as their operating systems and browsers become obsolete, but Woods notes that those nearing retirement are the devices on which users have most problems.

The facility is shared by VG departments and companies including web TV company VGTV, ad agency Tactus and the E24/Dinepenger global and financial publishing business, and used by web and app developers, designers, testers and the support department.

Apple, Google and Windows Live accounts have been established for use on the different platforms, and the devices are all logged and tagged, with users asked to sign them in and out.

“Most of our devices have been bought or donated to the device lab by employees, and we try to buy the newest, most popular brands when they are launched,” Woods says.

“The shift in readership traffic from desktop to mobile platforms and the resulting focus on being a mobile-first newspaper has placed a greater importance on delivering the best possible user experience on all devices. Tools like a device lab have made it easier for us to deliver on this promise.”

Tray easy: The TabCabby unit (pictured) charges and synchronises devices