But there’s always room for more. We asked our writers, “What features would your perfect smartphone have?”
Our Opinion
Miguel is looking for s smartphone to “make calls and have a ton of storage space.” He’d also like dual-SIM, a 5.5-inch luminous screen, and he’d like it to be able to read his mind. Damien joked if reading his mind was what Google Assistant was aiming to do. Christopher has been using a Google Pixel XL and loves using the camera when he didn’t used to ever care about such a thing, but this phone has a good one, and that makes the difference for him. He also admits to being spoiled by the fingerprint scanner.
Because of that he says, “I’d think of other features, but in all honesty I don’t think I’ll know what new features I’d love until I experience them for myself.” Phil looks at it very practically and explains that “people get too easily wrapped up in novelty rather than durability,” and he believes that phone manufacturers rely on it. “Neophilia (liking everything new or novel) is a popular modern addiction and is fast replacing critical thinking as far as the usefulness of features is concerned.” He adds that people need to realize the difference between a tool and a toy, and he feels more new phones tend to lean too much towards being a toy. He feels it only gets worse with people comparing their phones to everyone else’s. When push comes to shove, he’d rather have “a good, solid, dependable phone that is fully upgradable” than something disposable. To which Miguel chimed back in and said that it comes down to “a self-perpetuating cycle of obsolescence that is fueled by the need to make programming more convenient.”
I do know the kind of smartphone I want, and I have that for the most part in my iPhone 7. I want dependability, I want a screen that isn’t too large, I want water-resistance, I want Touchscreen ID, I want my productivity sped up, and I want it to connect to my iPad. I have all that. That said, I admit I’m looking forward to the iPhone 8. With my current plan I can upgrade to the 8, and I wouldn’t turn down exciting new features if they were being offered to me.
Your Opinion
For the most part our writers weren’t able to tell us what they particularly wanted on a phone. They’re either more into the function over form or they’re just in love with their current phone. We want to know your thoughts, though. What features would your perfect smartphone have? Please add your thoughts into the conversation below in the comments.
