Reasons why FEATURE PHONES may live Forever

By Andre February 16, 2017

Feature phones are mobile phones that comes with features such as the capability to browsing through the Internet and store data and play music but does not the advanced operations of a smartphone or computer.

Feature phones, of course opposite of the word "smart phones". Are they really dump, what are we to call standard cellular phones, old desk phones, phones like Nokia 3310 would be called what?

These kind of mobile phones were primarily meant for consumers who wished to have a multifunctional mobile device but may be due to lack of enough funds or intentionally refused to dip their hands into wet side of the pockets to get a smart device.

Summary of Some features available on features phones includes:

Supports Voice calling

SMS support functionality,

Some basic multimedia functionality

Internet access,

Possesses some productivity apps like calculators, organisers, etc.

Some of the services offered by the user's telecom service provider.

*Rumours says feature phones will soon support 4G LTE service.*

Feature phones tends to use They also tend to make use of software and User interfaces that are branded, specially-designed for the phone unlike the mobile operating system generally used in smartphones such as Android, iOS , Blackberry OS, Windows, Symbian (though no long in production) and so on.

History had it that the first cell phone was the Motorola DynaTac which was released back in the year 1984 and was considered a feature phone if we are to use the recent standard for classifications of mobile phones in terms of feature and smartphones. Smartphones was introduced the mid-1990s but was made popular by Blackberry incorporation (then research in motion, RIM).

Feature phones became so popular in the early 2000s, all thanks to Nokia and Motorola brands that produced best-selling feature selling phones. Recall that Nokia 3310 sold more than 100 million units in year 2000.

The introduction of Symbian OS by Nokia, iOS by Apple Inc (around 2007), Android by google and other OS(s) brought the thought to many that the end of feature phone may be at the corner but they all seems to be wrong because feature phone may leave forever.

One of the major factors that may elongate the use of feature phones is just SIMPLICITY, easy to use in terms of navigation (some even have dedicated button for some services). They also very RUGGED, screen does not break easily especially those in smaller sizes with physical button.

Another factor contributing to its longevity, is their LONG BATTERY LIFE. Definitely, battery will last because no complex app installed on the phone unlike smartphones. People hardly press their feature phones compared to smartphones because of less interactive apps installed on them.

In a determination to deliver parity with smartphones, some modern feature phones manufacturers are incorporating 3G and even 4G connectivity support, multi-touch screens of different dimensions, even different types of sensors stretching from Bluetooth, GPS and proximity sensors to NFC. That did not stop there, incorporation of some popular social networking services like Facebook, WhatsApp and many others.

In spite of all the threats from smartphones, 70% of all mobile phones sold globally in 2011 were said to have been feature phones.

If feature phones possesses 60% services to be rendered by smartphones, I guess it will never die because of people that can afford smartphones but still love simplicity, the poor that can afford smart devices and mention yours, developing countries and include yours.