Where Has The Smartphone Innovation Gone?

Written by
Joshua Holmes
Published on
February 24, 2014
Read time

It seems that smartphones have destroyed the desktop PC and gone the same way as them all in one swoop. Bland, unexciting, pieces of sameness and a market starting to show signs of saturation.

What I mean by this is that with each new iteration, we seem to be getting more of the same. Either a manufacturer is playing catch up or trying to make something work that just won’t stick. Each new flagship device becomes less and less exciting. It could be that the risk of creating something new in a now mature market or the cost of reinventing and marketing something new is too scary. But if something doesn’t happen soon, we will lose the innovation altogether.

We see the now seven year old iPhone’s launch time and again with no real ‘BOOM!’ We see the Galaxy, now four years old, looking the same between the S3 and S4. Sure, Apple and Samsung continuously boast about this new feature and that new advantage, but there just isn’t anything that we all want, need or actually take notice of.

So what do I think is the key? Well, actually going back to the drawing board, no matter the expense, and coming up with something ground breaking. Smashing through the wall of monotony.

Give us some see through screens. Give us edge to edge displays.

Make your software interesting, taking on beautiful design, typography and elegance.

Integrate further with wearable tech and other devices. Why don’t my devices seamlessly integrate? Why should I have to buy the same products again and again to make my tech ecosystem work?

Give us a battery that lasts longer than a day with average use.

And get the mobile payments done right. Why do I still have to carry around a wallet with all my cards? It couldn’t be easier with NFC and linked banking/loyalty accounts.

Hopefully we will see something good come out of the Mobile World Conference in Barcelona this week. Something that everyone can be excited for. Something to rejuvenate a faltering technology segment.

Headshot of Josh in black and white

Joshua Holmes

Josh is a product design leader based in Melbourne, Australia.
He has been working in the design space for 7 years across various industries.