Innovations in smartphones have been replaced by updates in accessories. Yes it is. And that's not bad at all.
As part of MWC 2016, there were announcements of new fantastic flagships Samsung and LG, but none of them was able to break the patterns or direct the industry in a new direction, as the companies did before. In fact, if you dig deeper into the question, this year is quite possibly the most boring in terms of smartphones.
Let's take a look at the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge first. Samsung tested the curved display in two phones last year, and the first was the use of a curved display in 2014 using the example of the almost forgotten Galaxy Note Edge. The transition to a sophisticated ultra-premium design was carried out last year on the example of the Galaxy S6, and the company decided to return memory cards and water protection to the devices. However, these features first surfaced two years ago with the Galaxy S5, not to mention the Galaxy S Active line, which has always been built to be durable and rugged.
LG? If we talk about originality, then with the G5 the company took a step back. The unique features of the phone – the volume buttons on the back of the phone – have been abandoned in favor of standard sound controls. The power button has a built-in fingerprint scanner and it remains on the back, but this is not surprising and breakthrough given a similar experience late last year in the V10 and Nexus 5X.
Even if you look at other manufacturers, for example, HTC or Huawei, or any manufacturer planning to release a phone this year, it can be noted that their devices are teetering on the edge of innovation in smartphones. Sure LG and Samsung are using the latest technology in cameras, the quality of which is phenomenal in the S7 and G5, but do we really consider it an innovation to improve low-light shots? Me not. Screen resolution has reached a ceiling, which has negatively affected Sony's widespread 4K screen testing, and the display size for many has settled at five inches. Great cameras, sharp displays, growing internal memory, software tweaks to help us charge our phones less than twice a day, the list goes on.
It's not that these big players have given up on consumers in the hopes of buying cheap, redesigned versions of last year's phones. Example HTC One M9 showed that this would not work. Samsung and LG have added 'always on' displays to their flagships, and work is underway to bring the software to perfection. But even during the presentations of the company's devices, no one spoke about the technical characteristics. Representatives LG briefly talked about the hardware of the new devices, literally in a minute, because everyone is no longer interested. Samsung hesitantly announced a 30% increase in processor speed, but this was just a passing point of the presentation, and not a separate story, as it was before.
But what interesting things were presented? Accessories announced with the phones. And so, smartphones are no longer sparkling and flashy attributes of the user, just as they are no longer the 'face' of companies. Smartphones have become the mainstream platform for manufacturers, and that's a good thing. Yet, fortunately or unfortunately, smartphones have reached a dead end. Very few features of the new products cannot be replicated on the S6, G4 or One A9, and this practice extends even to cheaper devices like the Moto G and other budget options. Phones are getting a little better and a little cheaper every year, so manufacturers need to find other ways to profit and innovate, so they are doing it by transforming the smartphone into a digital brain for a vast ecosystem of accessories.
We have already seen attempts by virtually all handset manufacturers to use their own services, varying in success. Does anyone remember Samsung's own movie and music catalogs included in the SIII? Consumers didn't buy into these specific ecosystems and chose Google or Apple if they didn't need a device on Android. For this reason, OEMs have left these digital frontiers of attack one by one. The next direction of impact? Connected devices, virtual reality goggles, camera extensions, robots scaring your pets, whatever. Manufacturers can't keep users with software like Google or Apple does, but it definitely can be done with hardware.
A significant part of Samsung's MWC 2016 conference was dedicated to the Gear 360 virtual reality device. LG did the same, focusing on the virtual reality camera and modular system for the G5, which was created in order to sell accessories for this smartphone to potential owners. In HTC, they also keep up with and rely heavily on virtual reality, and many manufacturers are actively working on smart home devices, including vacuum cleaners, washing machines, refrigerators, cars, robots and many others. Profits from smartphones are falling and the market is becoming more competitive from year to year, but accessories have always been a gold mine for any seller or manufacturer. In addition, they increase the average bill, which almost all device manufacturers struggle with. And this business strategy is pretty good, because it helped Apple become one of the most valuable companies in the world.
The emphasis on accessories will also have a positive impact on the price of devices. Samsung, LG, HTC, Motorola and other companies do not plan to generate the main profit from the sale of gadgets, instead increasing the margin from sales of accessories. Samsung might not mind reducing the cost of flagship devices by a few dollars if the consumer spends two years on accessories and VR glasses and cases for a particular device. Of course, no one guarantees an instant fall in prices, but we have already seen the announcement of a practically flagship device with a relatively lower cost from HTC and LG V10, the price of which is slightly lower than what one would expect for a flagship with a unique second display.
If you want to fully experience the manufacturer's product experience, then you have to invest in lenses and camera extensions and other accessories, which can make your wallet a lot lighter. But it does give producers room to be creative and the potential to test riskier ideas. And if you just want a great phone with a cool screen and fast hardware, then you just need to buy one of the flagships.
Like any technology, smartphones have gone through a 'childhood' phase when everything was amazing and mesmerizing, an explosive phase in which they improved every six months, and now it's a rather boring phase when phones from two years ago are quite suitable for everyday use, except, perhaps a little outdated software. Do we remember when there was the last significant breakthrough in televisions or cameras? Undoubtedly, the hardware has become better, but for the majority, even 4K resolution is not a reason to abandon old devices and buy an updated gadget. But like any market, the smartphone market is maturing and saturating, and you can expect companies to diversify and breathe a little life into their once-in-demand products, which within this market is feasible through accessories. Wearables and fitness trackers were just an omen and the movement in this direction is not over yet. Perhaps, unless in 2017 something comes onto the market that can radically change the industry again, as the first one did at one time iPhone.
Original material by Jared Peters
Elir: quite logical reasoning, at first glance: the “iron” race is gradually slowing down, the wow-effect, already familiar to many, is decreasing, and manufacturers are trying to hook the mass consumer with something else. And they are helped by accessories and additional devices. And the past MWC is a very good example of this. Personally, I am rarely interested in any accessories, mainly I focus on the characteristics of the devices themselves. Apparently, therefore, I question the author's categorical nature, tk. if you wish, you can find those interesting features that distinguish the new flagships. Yes, I do not argue, they do not make you want to urgently look for a program to exchange the current device for an updated top device, but at least they distinguish generations from each other. Accessories as one of the main sources of innovation? Why not.