There’s something close to 4.1 billion cell phones in the world. Yes, you read that correctly, billion. Less than 30 million of those are iPhones. Blackberries, Palm, iPhones and Windows Mobile devices make up only a small portion of cell phone sales. The rest are non-smartphones, phones that completely and utterly suck. Why is this the case? Motorola, Nokia, LG have had years of experience making phones. The hardware isn’t lacking on these phones, they have all the latest features. Fancy compact keyboards, cameras, and (in some cases) excellent reception. It’s the user interface that is lacking. Rather, it’s the user interfaces that fail spectacularly. Let’s take a deeper look.
This phone, flashy but terrible.
The trend: Flashy mobile phone handsets come out everyday, and they are all difficult to use. You ever try to read a text message, or look up a phone number while on the phone? Can you do that without hanging up on whoever you are talking to?
The skinny: I’m talking ‘non-smart phones’ here, to be clear. These are the EN-V, the RAZR, Lotus, so on and so forth. Flashy looking phones that are hyped for a few months. The non-smart phone market is practically a commodity market. There are different brands, to be sure, but there’s no standout. I’ve had Motorola, LG, Samsung and Nokia phones over the years. None of them were standouts. Even for a tech-savvy user, it can be hard to navigate poorly structured menus. So what’s the deal? User interface design has never been a priority. There’s no amazing product, so there’s nothing to beat. Phone manufacturers are very beholden to carriers, who often dictate feature sets. Verizon Wireless, for example, has long been accused of crippling features on handsets. Verizon, Sprint, AT&T and T-Mobile hold all of the keys in the US. With exclusivity agreements at stake, it’s difficult for anyone to introduce anything that could be seen as a game-changer. This will likely not change anytime soon.
The trend: Battle of the Smartphones. The more expensive, “smartphones” suck, too. Even your Blackberry. It works well for one thing, reading your email. It sucks as a phone, and it’s terrible at web browsing. The only winner is the iPhone, and it isn’t perfect. Will anyone ever outshine the iPhone?
Why can’t Google beat the iPhone?
The skinny: Unlikely. The iPhone isn’t perfect but nothing else comes close. Blackberry isn’t a true competitor. It’s a niche, the ‘corporate email’ crowd. The idea of this round up came from reading this piece over at a great site, Daring Fireball. It’s a discussion of people who tried to switch from the iPhone to the Google phone, and gave up out of frustration. Why? A lack of focus on the user experience. Google tries to be more open, it doesn’t lock its Android operating system to its own hardware. Great in theory; not so great in reality. The phones don’t always play well with the OS, and it comes up short. Like running Linux on a PC, it’s not always pretty, and sadly it’s not always usable for most people.
The verdict: Marketing and exclusivity trump interface design. The iPhone was a game-changer because Apple had enough clout it could make demands to AT&T. If AT&T didn’t accept those demands, Apple could have gone to Verizon. It’s amazing that Google, one of the biggest names in technology can’t compete with Apple. Google offers some great services, but usability and design aren’t generally a top priority. Palm keeps trying, this time with the Pre, but it’s unlikely it will take off. There’s no lack in hardware capabilities–even the most basic LG or Nokia phone could have an intuitive, elegant interface. But there’s just no money to be made when phones are locked down and consumers barely even make a choice when purchasing; they take the ‘free phone.’
Your take: You have a phone that doesn’t suck? Tell us why. Have an Android phone? A Palm Pre? Even better, do you dislike the iPhone, why? What do you want in user experience on a cell phone?
Everyone should jailbreak their iPhone.
October 9, 2009 at 10:08 amYou got it wrong, Apple approached Verizon first, they passed on the iPhone because they wouldnt accept Apple’s demands. I actually enjoy typing on a real keyboard so the BB works for me *not part of the “corporate emai”crowd*.
October 9, 2009 at 10:12 amPlease explain how “exclusivity” makes a phone better. Manufacturers using Android simply need to implement it properly. Personally, I’m waiting for the new wave of HTC phones. I’d get an iPhone, but I refuse to leave my absurdly good plan at Sprint ($30 for 500 minutes, unlimited data and text).
October 9, 2009 at 10:53 amTry the Pre. My SO was obsessed with his iPhone for 2 years and I thought it was great, but once he switched over to a Pre I wanted to covet that shit soo bad. I’ll see how the brand matures. I don’t know what it is about the States in particular, but until the iPhone it was as if we’re not allowed to have nice-looking phones, and they always have to look clunky and utilitarian. Japanese cellphones are in another world of amazing design and technology, but while they’re feature-rich and new models come out nearly every week, navigation isn’t very intuitive. (Many Japanese have gotten used to the numerical interface and if you look at sales figures they don’t seem to be complaining.)
October 9, 2009 at 12:40 pmI think Google will get better in the next couple of years, so I’ll wait it out
October 9, 2009 at 3:52 pm
I’ll agree most Cell phones designs Blow hard. I hate the ttar Trek communicator phones.
October 9, 2009 at 10:07 amI’ve got a Motoroloa Q, it work for now cause it’s flat and I’ve got a key board. That’s all i got.