The look of mobile devices has changed considerably over the past couple of years, or more precisely since Jan 9^th 2007 when the iPhone was first unveiled.  Since then there has been a gradual movement  toward the ubiquitous large touch screen, rounded corners and thin form. To illustrate this, handsets from Samsung, Nokia and Apple are shown to the left – to the untrained eye there is little to differentiate between them.

Compare this to a few years ago when there was a proliferation of form factor – from the previously ubiquitous clamshell Motorola Razor to some of the more unusual designs from Nokia (below). Admittedly these are somewhat polarised examples to make a point but nevertheless it is fair to say that we are not seeing the range of design in the basic form factor that was the case a few years ago.  Some would consider that this was due to the focus moving to the user interface rather than the form factor of the device and indeed, as we have reported previously, technology eco-systems are increasingly the critical element of the design process.

(You can read the full version of this article in the latest edition of GfK TechTalk here.)

The importance of the User Experience (UX) is increasingly recognized for the crucial role it has to play in take-up and loyalty of devices & digital services. The consumer devotion to their product eco-system of choice, the way in which users are encouraged to explore and discover new service facets, the ease with which it is possible to execute the actions you want quickly and easily; all these are core drivers of adoption and loyalty driven by the User Experience.

This has not always been the case, with UX historically being considered a discipline that is often separate from overall marketing prerogatives; a stage undertaken as something of a hygiene factor to ensure ‘all is well’ before getting on with the ‘more important parts’ of the marketing cycle.

(You can read the full version of this article in the latest edition of GfK TechTalk here.)

Most of us love getting a link to a piece of internet material which we find amusing and then forward on to our friends. It’s harmless and generally leaves us with a good feeling so it is easy to see why many brands are so keen to get in on the act.  It’s also perhaps not unreasonable to expect digital viral material to potentially work well for technology companies given that the target market is likely to be spending more time online.  Of course some brands do this extremely successfully, but many others try and fail – so what makes some succeed while others get consigned to the outer reaches of YouTube?

To try and answer this, I spoke to Dr Dominic Yeo, an academic at University of East Anglia with a particular expertise on this aspect of consumer behavior about research he had conducted whilst pursuing his PhD at Cambridge.

(You can read the full version of this article in the latest edition of GfK TechTalk here.)

Pleasure for its own sake is becoming as crucial to the effectiveness of digital operating systems as the fundamentals of UX design. We are seeing a new dimension for UX: discoverability – the joy of discovery for its own sake. Discoverability is about three key success factors: personalized discovery; game-like engagement and viral appeal. This new dimension is about understanding how to engage digital consumers – encouraging them in exploring, finding, trying out – ‘experiencing’ new digital stuff.

User Experience – or UX – has historically been the discipline that has kept technology design honest. When all around them are losing their heads about the next shiny new technology feature, the UX experts are there, soberly insisting that any new design must first and foremost be seen from the user’s point of view. Is it usable? Is it useful?

In the latest edition of The GfK TechTalk magazine, Richard Preedy looks at the issue of switching between smartphones (differentiated by their OS e.g. Android) and why it’s becoming increasingly difficult for consumers. When benchmarked against everyday services and utilities, consumers worry more about having to switch the type of smartphone they own than their insurance, home telephone or pay TV providers.

In this video blog, Richard Preedy explains why simpler, integrated user experiences are playing a huge role in driving this aversion to switching. These user experiences are no longer just device-specific, but relate to the wider ecosystem of digital content and devices.

You can read the full article by visiting the latest GfK TechTalk online magazine here.