The annual gadget juggernaut, the Consumer Electronics Show, wound down last week. Missing from the aisles of shiny new toys? Feature phones.
In years past, handset makers such as LG, Motorola, Nokia, and Samsung would have unveiled dozens of “regular” cell phones. Not so. In fact, there were hardly any feature phones announced at CES 2012. Instead, hardware makers introduced smartphones that will hit store shelves with $50 price points. It won’t be long before feature phones are used only by the very young and the very old. Smartphones have taken over. —from InformationWeek
Watch this trend. Yes, people still have plain, old cellphones, but you better not be building your strategy around them. The growth is in smartphones. Don’t put your head in the sand because not everyone has one. Yet.
**reposted from the Mobile Gov Blog from the Office of Citizen Services & Innovative Technologies at GSA**
I have an Android phone, and while I couldn’t imagine being without it, I also wish I didn’t feel that way. I don’t like the idea that everyone is going to have to spend extra money on a data package in the near future. Especially, though, I don’t like the idea that we always need to be connected. Last night I was dealing with someone frustrating and finally I just had enough and turned the phone off. It felt so great to sit back, watch some TV, and not worry about someone bothering me.
I imagine a lot of employers would be frustrated if they don’t get an immediate response to something when workers are either required to have or provided with a smartphone. I think we all need some time to breath and to think without being plugged in which is becoming more and more rare.