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New phone features 'baffle users' New phone features 'baffle users'
(30 minutes later)
The complexity of modern mobile phones is leaving users frustrated and angry, research suggests.The complexity of modern mobile phones is leaving users frustrated and angry, research suggests.
Some 61% of those interviewed in the UK and US said setting up a new handset is as challenging as moving bank accounts.Some 61% of those interviewed in the UK and US said setting up a new handset is as challenging as moving bank accounts.
Compiled by consultants Mformation, the survey found 85% of users reporting they were frustrated by the difficulty of getting a new phone up and working.Compiled by consultants Mformation, the survey found 85% of users reporting they were frustrated by the difficulty of getting a new phone up and working.
Of the 4,000 people questioned, 95% said they would try more new services if the technology was easier to set up. Of the 4,000 people questioned, 95% said they would try more new services if phones were easier to set up.
Web browsingWeb browsing
Mformation spokesman Matthew Bancroft said users were frustrated by having to call an operator or look online for help.Mformation spokesman Matthew Bancroft said users were frustrated by having to call an operator or look online for help.
"There is an enormous range of things modern phones are capable of doing but the paradox is that many people are not using these capabilities," he said."There is an enormous range of things modern phones are capable of doing but the paradox is that many people are not using these capabilities," he said.
Of those questioned, 95% said they would be more likely to use new features if the initial set-up were easier.Of those questioned, 95% said they would be more likely to use new features if the initial set-up were easier.
Mr Bancroft said bad experiences turned people off trying to get more from their phone.Mr Bancroft said bad experiences turned people off trying to get more from their phone.
"If an application does not work once or twice, they just will not use it or try again," he said."If an application does not work once or twice, they just will not use it or try again," he said.
Some 61% of those questioned said they stopped using an application if they could not get it working straight away.Some 61% of those questioned said they stopped using an application if they could not get it working straight away.
Mr Bancroft said setting up a new phone should take only 15 minutes but many people were spending an hour or more to get the handset to do what they wanted.Mr Bancroft said setting up a new phone should take only 15 minutes but many people were spending an hour or more to get the handset to do what they wanted.
He added that most people wanted to do such tasks as browsing the web, reading e-mail, or sending picture messages, but the complexity of modern handsets was leaving them foxed.He added that most people wanted to do such tasks as browsing the web, reading e-mail, or sending picture messages, but the complexity of modern handsets was leaving them foxed.
Industry work on standards for basic handset operations could help the situation, said Mr Bancroft.Industry work on standards for basic handset operations could help the situation, said Mr Bancroft.
As phones packed in more processing power, he said, that computational ability could be used to anticipate what users were doing and help them find their way around the handset.As phones packed in more processing power, he said, that computational ability could be used to anticipate what users were doing and help them find their way around the handset.
He said operators needed to remove the frustration because new data services were likely to form a bigger part of their revenues in the future. Geoff Blaber, director of devices, software and platforms at mobile analysts CCS Insight, said the problem of phone configuration was one operators were trying to tackle.
"People are already using handsets as much as possible to do voice calls," he said. Many, he said, had invested in staff training and in-store help desks to get customers using more of the features on their phones.
Touch screen interfaces as seen on Apple's iPhone were showing how this could be done, he said.
Having icons for all a phone's available services at hand was better than burying them in a sub-menu, said Mr Blaber.
Some operators were also working hard to ensure that phones were configured before purchase so services switched on with the phone.
There were good business reasons for helping phone owners do more with their handset, he said.
"Operators are trying to move revenues away from a reliance on voice and text which are declining," he said.
"To make that transition they need to be sure that the services are identifiable and easy to configure and use," he added.