Have phones lost their soul?

[Ben]

Stumbled across this video on the BBC News website and it got me thinking:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-17040699

As you look across the history of mobile phones, each exhibiting distinctive designs like the SE T610 and Nokia 6680, and then look at the modern day phone do you think they've lost something along the way? New stuff just doesn't seem to have any personality. As the video says, it's all about what's on them, not the phones, or even tablets, themselves.

I think it's a little sad.

[hecatae]

my x10 mini pro and dell streak have personality.

I dont think your iphone has a soul, it was probably sold for a fee

[Ben]

Ha! Oh hecatae :p

See, I think the iPhone does have soul. It has a quality to it. But I don't think a lot of the competition do... most notably HTC handsets, which seem devoid of any soul, personality, or general likeable qualities whatsoever.

The white SGS2 has a certain amount of panache.

The iPhones mostly suffer through being so popular, and so copied. Things like the Streak benefit from being relatively niche - sometimes simply being unusual gives a product soul, like the swivel-based SE W900i.

[Hands0n]

See, I think things have moved on a bit from those halcyon days :) To borrow a phrase oft used in relationships, its not whats on the outside that counts but whats on the inside. And in that case, I think that there is soul and then again there is soul. Allow me to offer my thoughts.

I do tend to think of the iPhone as pretty soulless - it is highly functional, it dots all of the i's and crosses all of the t's that I require in my daily life. In fact, I think that I would have a hard time getting around my daily routine without it.

But then turning to my Android - this is the Galaxy Nexus, bog standard Android as Google meant it to be - and I find a device that is loaded with "soul". It has a certain character, one that personalises quite nicely to my desires. I particularly like where Android 4.0 has brought us also.

And then when I pick up either of my two WP7 (LG E906 [Jil Sander] or Nokia Lumia 710), forget all about any of the various moans about WP7, you've got a device that has soul leaking out of the corners. Yes, you read that right, I actually do think that it is the best of the lot in terms of what WP7 and Metro set out to do. The actual execution sucks in any number of places, but for some reason or the other it is a rather compelling experience. The OS tries so hard to do so much, and there really is tons to criticise it about, but it just looks and feels so right in use. Hard to put the finger on exactly what it is about WP7 I think the best I can say for now is that it is rather modern with a distinctly retro feel to it.

And so to BlackBerry, another brand that I keep an eye on but have remained at more than arms length since my 8 week trial of one where I boxed the iPhone and crossed over entirely. It wasn't entirely pleasant, I so missed the large screen of the iPhone (well, it was large then). Soul? BlackBerry? Nah, not in my book.

[Ben]

Perhaps flaws give a phone soul, then?

Perhaps it was all the niggles of the utterly hopeless Z1010 that made it one of my favourite phones of all time?

And yet life without my iPhone and iPad? Unimaginable. So flawless are they in organising my life.

[gorilla]

Can an OS have soul? Yes my Samsung might not be a thing of beauty, but I have the home screen set up exactly as I'd like, with widgets etc. is it this character that gives my phone soul?

[Hands0n]

Perhaps flaws give a phone soul, then?

Yes, and I think that is precisely why we might ascribe soul to these devices. That certain character and quirkiness that a mere machine cannot possess.


Can an OS have soul? Yes my Samsung might not be a thing of beauty, but I have the home screen set up exactly as I'd like, with widgets etc. is it this character that gives my phone soul?

In a sense breathing life into the creation of the manufacturer. Personalisation or customisation to suit the individual really is what its about these days, like never before. It all started with ringtones back in the '90s and not much changed until the last few years. Android has opened up an even greater number of possibilities in that respect.

[3GScottishUser]

I think a device that can be personalised is what you make it and right now I have Launcher 7 on my Samsung Galaxy S. I like the Windows Phone 7 User interface but also like the variety of apps for Android so the Launcher 7 facade fits the bill nicely and is a great talking point. At last Microsoft have come up with something unique and very different from the android/apple type touch screen interfaces and that definately makes for mobile personality.

[Ben]

I actually agree with the personalisation sentiment... I have a great wallpaper (actually a photo I took of some wood on a bar (don't ask) that accidentally went wrong; the flash went off and illuminated the varnish basically making it all go bright red) and have, over time, taken to customising the locations of my icons much more and creating more folders/downloading more apps. Makes my iPhone feel uniquely mine, which does give it a pull.

There's still an element of sameyness in big-screen devices. We used to get some really, really interesting form factors. But, at the end of the day, they were all inferior to what we have now.

[@NickyColman]

I think soul-less handsets are just a natural evolution of where our mobile handsets are going.

A number of years ago, before the advent of mobile internet, WAP (lol) & apps, we picked mobiles based on looks (and later on camera pixels). So each phone had to look different to stand out or to match our personality (Nokia's Xpress on covers & "L'Amour" range anyone??). The OS of a particular handset didn't matter at the time. It was factors like looks, good battery life, durability, easy to text with etc - all physical features.

As time has passed and mobiles have advanced, more emphasis has been placed on the guts of a phone. For a while it was camera pixels and gimmicky features. Our requirements have gone way past accepting a good looking phone - it has to be smart both inside and out.

The operators have tried to sweeten the deal & tie in their handsets with their internet 'portals' & handset OS branding. (Vodafone LIVE!, Orange World, O2 Active, T-Zones & Planet 3)

But we've moved on. Customers want content from outside their handset. A game of Snake isn't enough.

Google & Apple have now taken the fight almost from a spec war, to the battlefield of the 'eco-system'. Each side has an arsenal of internet services, social tools & security/backup features designed to keep us trapped in their eco-system.

I firmly believe handsets will soon be regarded in the same way ISP's & mobops seem to be going - dump pipes. Yes, some will have bell and whistles on, but handsets will essentially be 'gateways' to other services. Mobiles will be regarded in the same way as computers are now, simply terminals to the web. Access points. Disposable, capable but essentially a doorway to the internet.

Looks won't matter near as much as they have been in the past. Break your phone? In the past you could be found broken hearted at the loss of a phone. All those pictures, videos, personal memories lost. You become attached to a phone. No worries, buy a new one & log on, all backed up & downloaded from 'The Cloud'
The 'soul' of the handset won't be found on the device itself, but rather the things it lets you find/discover/enjoy/love/interact with.