Psychology says that your mobile phone related to your personality.
Your choice of mobile phone says a lot about you, and as the
battle for the hugely lucrative market continues apace, manufacturers are
realising that it’s not just the phone at stake — your choice could influence
everything from what computer you buy next to what you watch (and how) on TV.
When Samsung unveiled its latest iPhone killer last week (which
is also the official Olympic Games smartphone), it took its best shot yet at
ending Apple’s dominance of the high-end smartphone market.
While there are dozens of phone makers, the key is the software
they run. Apple’s iOS, which is on iPads, iPods and iPhones, is up against
Google’s Android, on tablets, phone and even TV set top boxes. And bringing up
the rear are the ailing RIM with the BlackBerry and Microsoft with its Windows
Phone software.
So what does your phone say about you? According to one expert,
the distinction is relatively simple.
“The iPhone is a safe trendy choice that shows you love apps,
and want them first, while Android users tend to be trying to avoid the iCrowd
moniker,” says Stuart Miles of gadget website Pocket Lint.
“They like choice, and see themselves as someone who wants to
control the experience. For BlackBerry owners, it is all about communication,
they tend to be email or BBM (the BlackBerry instant messaging software) mad,
they like a phone that does just that — and they don’t really care about apps.
Windows phone users, on the other hand, like interactivity, and are the new
trend setters.”
However, others believe there is more to it, and that the
biggest issue is that all phones look pretty much the same.
“One of the striking things about phones is how little
difference there is in appearance between them,” says Ian Fogg, an analyst with
IHS Screen Digest. “We used to have a lot of different designs, flip phones,
phones with slide out keyboards, and those with full qwerty keyboards. Now
everything has come down to a standard design — a slab with one or two buttons
and a big screen.”
The other big decision which divides phone users is the question
of apps — and it has taken until recently for Android to get its act together.
There is also the question of handset choice — there are dozens of Android
phones, compared to Apple’s choice of two.
“The big difference is that iPhone owners are still very much
the premium end of the market, whereas Android smartphones range from very
expensive to mid-market and prepay handsets, often available for under £100.
And of course, there is also RIM with its once hugely popular
Blackberry range.“They have next generation software coming out in the summer,
and that is really critical, everything depends on it,” says Fogg.
As both Apple and Google are already running their phone
software on TV boxes, and Apple is rumoured to be building a TV set, your choice
is going to be even more important — as apps, books, TV shows and films
downloaded to one system may not necessarily play on another.
And as phone makers turn themselves into entertainment giants,
one thing is certain — the battle for the mobile phone is also set to invade
your living room.
What your phone says about you
iPhone
The most hipster of all phone users, the iPhone owner is an app
obsessive, with everything from games to live TV available. The iPhone is also
the easiest to use of the smartphones and popular among the non-tech-savvy.
Most likely to say: “Have you seen this amazing app?”
High end Android Samsung Galaxy SIII
Likely to be technically minded, the tech savvy Android owner
sees themself as a free spirit who shuns the iCrowd and has spent a lot of time
personalising their handset.
Most likely to say: ‘It’s got a quad core processor”
Blackberry - Bold 9790
Likely to be either a businessman who can’t live without email,
or a BBM-obsessed teen. Most likely of any phone user to carry a second
handset, and uses email almost exclusively to communicate.
Most likely to say: “Where’s my other phone?”
Windows Phone — Nokia Lumia 900
The joker in the pack, the Windows Phone user really does want
to be different, and wants something slick, easy to use and, most importantly,
a truly different approach to phones. It’s lacking apps but it does look
superb.
Most likely to say: “Hang on, my battery is dying.”
Lower end Android — HTC Wildfire S
Far more likely than any other user never to have downloaded an
app or even turned on wifi in their phone, this is the mass market user,
probably on a prepay plan, who actually uses the phone as, well, a phone.
Texting and calls are the most used features, along with email.
Most likely to say: “Give me a call.”
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