Phones do “phone things”. If you want to do MORE than “phone things” you can buy a tablet, or a laptop, or a desktop. Phones aren’t “computers”. Phones are phones.

At least, that seems to be a prevailing idea among more affluent communities.

In many areas around the world, a low-cost smartphone might be the only computing and data platform a user might be able to afford. Increasingly, in North America, we’re seeing many people struggle with inflation, rising food and energy costs, and a shift of work/life digital balance.

Each year we detail all the incredible ways our phones get more powerful and more impressive. Yet we still discuss these devices at a fairly low estimation of what a phone SHOULD be able to do. There’s some acknowledgement now that phones CAN be good for gaming (if there’s regularly a knee-jerk reaction to point out “mobile gaming BAD”), but there aren’t as many conversations happening about practical compute use.

Beyond a bigger benchmark score, how does someone USE that power in their phone?

Communicators Don’t Need That Much Horsepower

If our core “average” uses for a phone are tallied, it’s not a particularly impressive list. What is an “AVERAGE” consumer? What are “AVERAGE” needs?

When asked point blank, I think many enthusiasts struggle to define the boundaries of “average”. We casually use that term while discussing our gadgets, but it’s a fluid term built to fit whatever argument we’re trying to make about smartphone trends.

I’d maybe try to define “average” as all the services users might agree NEED to be on a phone.

It needs to make and take calls, engage with text communication, have a functional camera, and utilize data for basic web browsing and social media.

Beyond these lowest level basic tasks, improving the performance of any individual component means a phone immediately starts specializing. I still believe, it makes little sense to discuss any phone more expensive than $300 in terms of “average” consumers.

Yes. SOME consumers will buy an extremely expensive phone, and use it as much as they might have used a decade old flip phone. SOME consumers will shrug off the premium price tag because they can afford a higher monthly bill. We should NOT set our sights on those consumers.

In discussing the Premium Phone, we should be pointing out why it costs more, and what you get for that higher price. We shouldn’t be overly concerned with the users who spend a lot and UNDER use the phone.

The performance needed to cover “basic” use hasn’t shifted much over the last five years. A mid-ranger phone from five years ago is still plenty capable of EXCEEDING our definitions of “average”. It’s far more likely that a lack of software support and a degrading battery are the issues dragging performance down. The hardware is still phenomenally competitive.

If we spent more time highlighting the performance advantages of the premium phone, and properly showcasing the differences between major price tiers, I feel more of our family and friends would feel comfortable saving money and shopping at lower tiers. They’d get features more in line with their needs, and they would likely benefit from better battery life on lower power internals. Saving money is actually the “icing” on a “better fit for their needs” cake.

I feel a smaller minority of consumers might be encouraged to try doing more from their phones. Fewer folks would be “bored” with new tech, if they tried doing NEW things with their tech. A new phone purchase wouldn’t be an expensive “obligation”. We’d all find new ways to push boundaries, even on traditional form factors.

A phone can be exciting even if it’s not built as a “weird” novelty with exotic pieces.

We’ve Past the Golden Age of Power User Phones…

There was a brief PEAK moment for pocket computer performance.

The industry built up to one year of feature rich devices, and since that year, we’ve seen a watering down of premium handsets.

2019.

In 2019 we got our first tastes of 5G connectivity, but standard slate phones still had “traditional” features like memory cards and headphone jacks. We hadn’t seriously started playing with folding screens, and QHD resolution was table stakes for any phone above $400.

Samsung and Huawei were battling on advanced camera tech. Desktop mode improvements were still being highlighted. LG sold a Quad DAC premium audio solution on a phone with secure fingerprint and face unlock, which experimented with alternative gesture support. OnePlus sold a phone with a periscope selfie camera. Google flexed its computational photography muscles on the Pixel 4, but shocked the market with the 3A. We got our first tastes of dual display use on phones. 4K video was mature and more accessible, and we could add storage to many of the phones that shot this higher quality video.

In 2019, I was excitedly showing anyone who would listen how I could plug a phone into a TV and play games like Tesla vs Lovecraft, Lego Star Wars, or OddWorld. I was plugging professional recording equipment into phones to replace my laptop for podcasts. While traveling, I was doing most of my writing, shooting, editing, and uploading directly from phones.

There was vibrant competition, and a small collection of geeks were getting more interested in ADVANCED compute work from mobile devices. It felt like we were right on the cusp. Spending more on a smartphone could legitimately displace the need to carry or use other expensive computers and gadgets.

Three Years Later…

No one would argue that the industry just stopped. We’ve seen new technologies arise, and mobile SOC performance has certainly improved.

More, I’m commenting on the tone of enthusiast conversations.

Our phones are more powerful, but there seems to be less interest in finding ways to apply that power. I still feel enthusiasts can start a “trickle down” trend for computing ideas. If techies are excited about new features, that excitement can spread to our friends. We CAN influence those around us.

Unfortunately, tech enthusiasm seems to have been replaced by brand enthusiasm. As more companies “streamlined” their premium phone offerings, as more companies removed practical useful features, we saw enthusiasts quick to defend those companies.

It mattered more that an enthusiast saw the phone they personally owned in more ads around them, than it mattered what that phone could practically do.

We’re in an Odd Place Now…

I’m looking at a slate of phones coming out dropping the “Pro” label for international sales. On the one hand, I appreciate the honesty, but on the other hand I’m anxious to see if any phones will be made for ME.

At once I’m critically excited to see how powerful these devices are, but then I’m nervous as there are even fewer opportunities to USE that power in a meaningful way.

Numerous enthusiasts will be quick to point out that “average people buying expensive phones weren’t USING those features”, but again, I don’t believe that should be the standard by which we judge a premium phone.

We don’t nerf high performance sports cars just because MOST people drive in bumper-to-bumper morning commute traffic.

We’re seeing a push towards market motivated pricing, which is actually a positive thing for many consumers. The AVERAGE selling price of an Android phone is under $400. Where is Apple MOST vulnerable? Phones under $800. Where is there an opportunity to spark more consumer interest? Selling NICE phones in the $600 – $700 range.

This is a smart reaction to the reality of premium phone sales, but it leaves power users high and dry. Fewer and fewer options that can push boundaries and drive more excitement on disruptive phone use. In the short term it’s better for consumers wallets, in the long term it kills our industry in a race to the “average”.

Consumers Have Already Been Hurt…

We techies missed a critical opportunity to drive this conversation.

At the beginning of the pandemic, as many communities rushed to work and school at home, we saw how many people struggled to acquire and afford new home computer equipment. The focus of many conversations was directed towards helping people shop for new PCs and laptops. Almost no chatter came from the mobile geeks about repurposing phones to fill some of that need.

We celebrated the sharp rise in low-cost Chromebook sales. We tragically ignored that a years old Galaxy S9 was likely more powerful than many of these inexpensive Chromebooks, and could have been repurposed as a student grade desktop.

We missed a huge chance to point out to folks, they probably already had the tech they needed. They just needed some help using it.

Now we’re seeing the market rebound. Computer sales are dropping dramatically. Companies are forcing employees back into offices. Schools are over stocked for student machines.

The mainstream idea of a phone doing “phone things” has taken root, and will be difficult to shake. Why use a phone to do more, when your home has a pandemic purchased laptop gathering dust?

I’m struggling to find a “silver lining” ending for this editorial…

The most frustrating aspect of this trend, we still see the folks interested in pushing their phones harder, but they’re increasingly running into the limits of new premium phone tech.

We can boast about camera technology, but folks quickly exhaust the limited storage built in to their phones.

I’ve been promoting the use of portable and wearable displays, and it’s been tragically disheartening to see all the people who try, but can’t use them. We read comments from people who can’t separate brand fandom from tech fandom.

“People praise these glasses, but they don’t work on iPhones! The glasses must be broken!”

“What do you mean my expensive Pixel phone cant send video out???”

“This Xiaomi doesn’t support these USB accessories? What’s wrong with those accessories???”

These complaints are valid, but they’re not blaming the phone manufacturers for removing functionality. They’ve been told they have the BESTEST phone, and “it just works”. When faced with evidence countering that marketing, they’re lashing out.

They’re even less likely to listen to techies who can deliver better information. They’re less likely to engage with better educational media.

2023 is just getting started. I’m excited to see what arrives this year. I’m interested in pushing the compute limits of the phones I get to test drive.

I’m nervous that these new powerhouse phones might actually do LESS than my phones from 2019…