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Why Dumbphones Still Dominate, For Now

Posted by timothy on from the dumbbells-are-everywhere dept.

Velcroman1 writes "Androids are awesome, iPhones impressive ... but dumbphones still dominate. Of the 234 million cell phone users in America last year, a dominating 73 percent own traditional (aka non-smart) devices, according to market researcher comScore. Despite their more popular mindshare, intelligent devices like the Apple iPhone and phones based on Google's Android operating system own barely a quarter of the market."

9 of 618 comments (clear)

  1. Smart people by Kokuyo · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Some people are smart enough to realise (and have the restraint) that you don't need to be connected all the time; that it's actually healthier not to be.

    Alas, I'm not one of them.

    1. Re:Smart people by drunkennewfiemidget · · Score: 5, Informative

      It's not a satchel, it's a purse.

    2. Re:Smart people by SpeedyDX · · Score: 5, Interesting

      I switched from a smart phone plan to a "dumb phone" plan because I found it too distracting to be connected all the time. To each their own, however.

      Incidentally, I've found social interactions (particularly lunch, coffee, or interactions that take a while) with people who don't have smart phones to be more pleasant. Not to say anything about inherent social personalities of smart phone and dumb phone users, but dumb phone users simply don't check their phones as much. It's nice to be able to talk to someone at lunch without them constantly checking their email or twitbook each time there's a natural lull in the flow of conversation. It breaks attention and train of thought. Their social facial and body cues are sometimes missing from the conversation, so it makes the other party feel like they're disengaged.

    3. Re:Smart people by DrgnDancer · · Score: 5, Insightful

      I carried a 10 pound $800 lap top on my vacation to Boston a couple of months ago. I also carried my iPhone. Guess which one got used, and which one isn't going with me next time. This isn't an advertisement for iPhone either, everything I did with it I could have done on an Android, Nokia, or WebOS device. Phone apps helped me navigate the subway system, find fun things to do, walk where I wanted to without getting lost, keep in touch with the people I was visiting if we had to separate (My wife is living up there and had to go in to work a few of the days I was up), keep in touch with the people taking care of my dog back home, use the web to look up some more information about some of the stuff I saw...

      One of the advantages of phones over netbooks is precisely that they aren't "real" computers. No one writes an app for Windows or stock Linux that helps you find the nearest T-station. Why would they? How many people are going to be wandering around with a full computer trying to find a T-station? Lots of people use phones for it though, or at least I have to guess they do given the 7 or 8 apps I had to chose from. The thing is that there are very few things you can do on a full sized computers that you can't do on a phone. There are some things they can't really do: I wouldn't want to edit photography on a phone for sure; and other things are definitely a bit more trouble: SSH works on my phone, but it's not exactly a ton of fun to use. None the less they *can* do almost everything that a computer can do, and do it adequately for most purposes in an emergency. They can also do lots of things most computers can't which are really nice while on the move (GPS, apps which just make more sense for a purely portable platform, etc)

      --
      I don't need a million points of light, just two points of multi-mode fiber and a 10 Gig-E router.
    4. Re:Smart people by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

      It is about cost. Some people do not see spending an extra 30 a month on top of each phone they own. In some families it can be as many as 4 phones. 4*30 + 100. A 200+ phone bill is not exactly sustainable. That is ~2600 a year. Average family income is ~55k, or about 40k after taxes. That is 6% of your income to just pay for phones. Most people can not swing that. After paying for food/car/house/gas/electric.

      So yes the 'el cheapo' as the 'geezers' call them does make sense.

      They are cool and all. But 200 bucks a month cool?

      When the dataplans come down in price you will see many more people use them. Right now it is in the 'fad' stage and the phone companies are taking advantage of that. But in 3-5 years that will have worn off and they will be wanting to convert 'el cheapos' to paying something for a dataplan. You will start seeing it when people start dumping their cool shiny phones for elcheapo again. I am borderline on that myself. I used the hell out of it at first. Now its just a phone again.

      Its funny per byte SMS is still more expensive...

  2. Just don't need one. by ckblackm · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I use the phone to make calls and send texts. I don't have a need for the added features of the "smart" phone, and can't justify the extra expense for the new toy or it's higher cost data plan.

  3. smart or dumb? by cyfer2000 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    “I have always wished that my computer would be as easy to use as my telephone. My wish has come true. I no longer know how to use my telephone.” - Bjarne Stroustrup, the designer and original implementer of C++

    --
    There is a spark in every single flame bait point.
  4. Re:preference != (smart || restraint) by Buelldozer · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It's not the $20 up front that is "too expensive" it's the monthly reoccurring $20 (minimum!) that is ridiculous!

    With Verizon and a new Smartphone under contract that number actually balloons to something like $40 PER MONTH PER LINE for JUST the data service!

    So with four lines I'd have $160 for data, $80 for voice, and $20 for texting. Why, exactly, does my cell phone bill need to be $260 per month? Answer: It doesn't!

    Oh, and without the data plan a smartphone is really no better than a dumb one. Maybe some better games and some additional PDA functionality but that's about it.

    The simple truth is that until data prices come down smartphones are too expensive for many people to justify no matter how much they want them.

  5. People are funny. by kryliss · · Score: 5, Interesting

    As with many people, I work in a building with an elevator. Have you ever noticed that these days, the first thing people do when they get into an elevator is reach for their phone to look at something... anything other than making eye contact or talking with people in the elevator? Especially the younger generation (18 - ~25). it's funny to watch them read through messages that they've already read just so they don't have to socially interact face to face with someone they really don't know.. Of course.. I like to push them out of their "comfort zone" and talk to them. :)

    --
    --- If the bible proves the existence of God, then Superman comics prove the existence of Superman.