3D screens?! Smartphone makers should focus on the basics to win us over
With 3D graphics, eyeball scrolling and flexible glass no longer merely futuristic concepts but incorporated into our smartphones, mobiles are getting more sophisticated all the time. However, while some new smartphone technology is proving useful, it’s still the basics that British mobile users are most concerned about, according to new research from price comparison and switching service uSwitch.com.
When asked what smartphone owners care most about in a handset, the top priority was simply how easy it is to use, voted for by almost three in 10 (29%). In second place was call reception, the primary concern of one fifth of Brits (19%) and in third place was battery life (19%). One in ten (10%) said apps were their chief concern. Interestingly, only 3% put quirky or unique features first.
According to smartphone users, the most useful feature – for which Apple’s iPhone 5S can claim bragging rights – is fingerprint scanning security. More than half (56%) of people who have this function use it more than once a day. In second place is the camera - more than a fifth (21%) use their smartphone’s camera more than once a day, while almost half (49%) use it a few times per week.
Long battery life would make almost nine in 10 (89%) Brits more likely to buy a smartphone, while a waterproof body (67%) and a zoom camera lens (66%) would also sway them.
The data suggests that Brits are a sceptical crowd, not easily swayed by gimmicks. Three quarters (75%) said eyeball-tracking technology – as seen on the Samsung Galaxy S5 – would make no difference to their purchasing decision, while 69% said they wouldn’t be lured by a phone with a voice control function, like Apple’s Siri or Samsung’s S Voice. More than six in 10 (62%) said that 3D graphics, as shown off at the US launch of Amazon’s Fire Phone, wouldn’t make them any more or less likely to buy a handset.
The figures below shows the responses to the question ‘if you were choosing a new smartphone, which of the following features would make you more likely to buy it?’:
More likely to buy | No difference | Less likely to buy |
Long battery life 89.2% | 10.8% | 0% |
Fingerprint scanning security 37.6% | 55.5% | 6.8% |
Voice control 26.1% | 68.9% | 5.1% |
Eyeball tracking 14.2% | 74.9% | 11% |
Fingerprint-proof screen 48.5% | 48.1% | 3.4% |
Waterproof body 67.2% | 32.3% | 0.5% |
A zoom camera lens 66.4% | 32.1% | 1.5% |
3D display / graphics 26.4% | 61.9% | 11.7% |
Flexible phone 17.7% | 62% | 20.2% |
Projector 32.3% | 54.5% | 13.3% |
Mobile payment technology 34.5% | 59.7% | 5.8% |
Of those who do have the following features on their smartphones, almost two thirds (66%) never use eyeball tracking and more than half (55%) never use voice control. Interestingly, almost a third (32%) who have fingerprint-scanning security never actually use it.
Almost one in eight (13%) Brits don’t own a smartphone, but have a feature phone instead. Of these people, nearly half (47%) simply don’t feel they need a smartphone, while almost three in 10 (28%) are put off by the cost. The over 65s are least likely to own smartphones – almost a third (32%) don’t have one, with six in 10 (60%) saying they just don’t need an internet-connected phone.
Ernest Doku, telecoms expert at uSwitch.com, says: “It’s becoming increasingly hard for smartphone makers to differentiate their handsets from those of their rivals. They hope that flash features like Fingerprint ID on the iPhone 5S, or Amazon’s Fire Phone and its ‘Dynamic Perspective’ display, will give their phones the edge. However, our research shows that many Brits can spot a gimmick from a mile away. It’s actually the basics that affect the every day user experience – like long battery life and a robust design – that people really care about.
“Entry-level smartphones can cost from as little as £7.50 per month including a ‘free’ handset. If you’re not a self-confessed ‘early adopter’ – that's code for tech geek – and you don’t care about the bells and whistles, like 3D screens or ultrapixel cameras, you can pick up a decent internet-connected handset very cheaply. Just keep an eye on your mobile data usage on your bill to make sure you’re not going over your limit each month.
“That being said, it doesn’t take long for science fiction to become science fact in the mobile world, and features that we considered to be gimmicks just a couple of years ago like touchscreens and front-facing cameras are now integral to our daily smartphone experience. So whilst great handsets are available that do the job, sometimes a bit of futuristic phone tech is just what’s needed to move the industry forward.”