With new age mobile phones or so called the smartphones literally
doing job of a phone, a computer and a companion (by keeping you
informed and entertained), it was but natural that there is bound to be a
horse race between world's top manufacturers to dominate this segment.
But in recent times in India, because of this segment gaining huge
popularity among the helpless population succumbing to these handheld
attractions, this race has turned into a war among the top players (with
host of models or in our case ammunitions) which I think is the biggest
after 'The STAR WARS'...LOL...So that's why I thought I will cherish
few facts and fiction on this on-going saga of 'The MOBILE WARS'.
In
this epic battle (raging within the Indian market), main characters are
obviously Samsung, Apple, Nokia, Micromax, HTC, LG, Sony, Motorola,
Xiomi, Karbonn, Gionee, and Blackberry.
Apple: The Inventor
Apple
has all its current and outdated models in its current ammunition
namely 'iPhone' - 3, 3S, 4, 4S, 5 and soon there will be 5S for sure. So
you can see the barrel is same but bullets keep on changing...LOL...SIM
is getting smaller while budget is getting bigger. Pride of ownership
remains but otherwise it is very hard for a normal user (until and
unless you spend more time with your phone than your regular work) to
actually experience the change. Screen size has just got bigger but
still feels less than the Samsung canons. Nevertheless it still has best
and trouble free application store as well as the user interface. Even
with all its hits and misses, Apple will always be Numero-Uno of the
game because it has actually invented the world of smartphones.
Samsung: The Reigning King
There
are so many models or ammunition with them in entire price band
spectrum that one will actually lose count of all the types. Samsung
Galaxy Y, Y Duos, S2, S3, S4, S5, Note, Note 2, Note 3, Note 4, S
Advance, S Grand, Ace, Ace Duos and god only knows what else. Largest
screen to host of functions, to best brand image in affordable pricing
or you can say any band of pricing has made it click for Samsung
literally. Moreover Android application store is not much behind the
inventor and almost all the necessary or commonly used applications are
already available in it. So if nothing drastic is done by any other
contender, Samsung is bound to be on top for a long-long time.
Nokia: The Fallen Legacy
Even
though Nokia is trying to break its jinx in this smartphone market but
it is still considered as a poor man's device and such a brand image is
hurting it in positioning as well as in matters of pride of ownership.
With Nokia Lumia 510, 610, 710, 800, 820, 900, 920, 1120 (God only knows
on what basis they keep name of the phones) and Nokia Asha series, it
is still far from the top of the range. Even though user interface is
good, lack of functions and applications is further hurting their
chances to reach on top of the branding matrix. Something drastic and
more innovative approach is required to penetrate the mind of the users
as well to create good old times.
Micromax: The Challanger
Micromax
started on a good note by providing smartphones to the general public
at the most economical prices and suddenly there are plenty of new
models from its stable in the market. From the begining itself Micromax
was the real contender for Nokia's place in the Indian market, and now
it is challenging even the big daddies. Recently there were some really
good surprise launches suddenly and with its A90, A110, A116, Knight,
Turbo and so on things are falling in place for the ingenious
manufacturer provided there is enough availability of its models to
sell.
HTC: The On-Off Contender
Even though people knew about its smart range before they knew about
Samsung or Apple, the manufacturer has been in on-off mode in Indian
market. Suddenly there were no new models and recently there are many in
the market. Suddenly there was lot of marketing and suddenly there was
none. Even though the products are good and reliable, the brand image
fails to appeal to the masses as of now and something dramatic has to
happen if they really want to create a mass appeal. Product range is
fairly balanced and covers lot of price band, so there is a very good
chance if they take Indian market seriously, they can play a major role
in the on-going mobile war.
Blackberry: The Lost Cause
Blackberry even though was one of the most preferred model of
businessmen and professionals (due to their BBM service) lost the
initial plot in smartphone game. The earlier launched models in a hurry,
failed to steam up the market and upgraded versions took too much of
time to make an appearance and still not in sight soon. So the only
advantage with which Blackberry would have survived and flourished in
the Indian market would have been its BBM service only and nothing else
but with BBM services now available for IOS, Android and Windows users
as well, I don't think Blackberry will be able to cash on it any
further. Moreover, they will surely be hoping that applications like
WhatsApp, LINE and WeChat must not take this advantage away from them
any further otherwise it will be an impossible task to crack the tough
nut called Indian market once again.
Sony, Motorola and LG: The Pursuers
With
Sony Xperia series, Motorola X / G series and LG Optimus series, these
companies have waged battle against all others and surely making their
strong presence felt in the Indian market. Their smartphones are loaded
with features and boast of excellent quality. With competitive pricing
against peers, these can be true pursuers to Samsung and Apple models.
In fact the smallest smart phone by Motorola E series is quite a big hit
among budget buyers. What all path breaking models and innovative
strategy these giants are going to introduce that only time will tell
but they are bound to make competition tough in the on-going war in the
mobile market.
Gionee and Xiomi: The Carnivores
Xiomi
has become synonym for flash sale in Indian mobile market with
thousands of pieces selling into minutes on Flipkart. Its models are not
only packed with top most hardware and software, their prices are
almost 50% of the competitors models. Gionee on the other hand can also
boast of power packed mobile range at amazing prices including world's
slimmest phone in Elife S5.5. In future once their infrastructure set-up
is complete, like carnivores these two companies can eat lot of market
share which right now belongs companies like Samsung, Nokia and
Micromax.
Anyways the consumer is always in
a dizzy while current 'MOBILE WAR' is going on. You set your heart on a
model and next day there is another one better than that in the market.
You purchase a tiny wonder and tomorrow it is available at a cheaper
rate somewhere else. Since you cannot own each and every great wonder
available in the market today and tomorrow as well as cannot upgrade
your device every month, it is better to be content with what is
available with you today and wait and watch for the right time, right
device to upgrade and that is what my heart whispers to me...........
