Sony Ericsson Tries QWERTY Again with M600i
If you’re familiar with mobile phones, you know that the “i” version of a mobile phone is “basically” the same thing as the previous version but with a few more features thrown in.
So here’s a mini-lesson on gadget marketing and price shaving. After a couple years (or months in the fast-paced world of technological toys), the buzz about the model sort of dies down while new models with new features take the public’s attention. So what can a company do? Release a variant of an old model that’s basically a remake or “update” that takes advantage of the lower cost of new technology. That means less R&D because they don’t have to develop a completely new product, and usually they can sell the new version for a very good price (many times for less than the old version). And since it’s both “new” and “has good value for its technology” it gets the public’s attention.
The Sony Ericsson (SE) M600 came out a while back. It featured a QWERTY keypad that just didn’t get mass approval.
Now Sony Ericsson is trying it again with the M600i. A lot of its features are basically standard for most mobile phones: large screen (perfect for videos), slim and lightweight construction, email and Internet capability, multimedia mischief, and business applications (organizer, calendar, etc.). Meanwhile, reviews and official descriptions keep mentioning it as a “true 3G multitasking device” and focus on its Symbian OS that lets you add applications, and all that sounds great.
But in the final analysis, the same question still applies: will the QWERTY catch on? Is the market ready or willing to adjust? Those of us who are looking for something different might try it out (in the morning commute we see a lot of people with the same kind of mobile phones). Those of us who are more used to QWERTY (because we type for a living) might have no problem adjusting.
But we stare and stare at the keypad and realize that if you have a type-A “heart-attack prone” personality, you’ll get impatient and frustrated by the adjustment process when it comes to keying in text. A lot of you have owned mobile phones for about a decade, and you’re used to the traditional setup (2=ABC, 3=DEF, etc.). The phone is just about wide enough for you to use two hands to type in letters quickly (being able to use two hands is an advantage of the QWERTY keyboard). However, big-handed and hamhanded people might have a bit of a problem.
Via MobileBurn
If you’re familiar with mobile phones, you know that the “i” version of a mobile phone is “basically” the same thing as the previous version but with a few more features thrown in.
So here’s a mini-lesson on gadget marketing and price shaving. After a couple years (or months in the fast-paced world of technological toys), the buzz about the model sort of dies down while new models with new features take the public’s attention. So what can a company do? Release a variant of an old model that’s basically a remake or “update” that takes advantage of the lower cost of new technology. That means less R&D because they don’t have to develop a completely new product, and usually they can sell the new version for a very good price (many times for less than the old version). And since it’s both “new” and “has good value for its technology” it gets the public’s attention.
The Sony Ericsson (SE) M600 came out a while back. It featured a QWERTY keypad that just didn’t get mass approval.
Now Sony Ericsson is trying it again with the M600i. A lot of its features are basically standard for most mobile phones: large screen (perfect for videos), slim and lightweight construction, email and Internet capability, multimedia mischief, and business applications (organizer, calendar, etc.). Meanwhile, reviews and official descriptions keep mentioning it as a “true 3G multitasking device” and focus on its Symbian OS that lets you add applications, and all that sounds great.
But in the final analysis, the same question still applies: will the QWERTY catch on? Is the market ready or willing to adjust? Those of us who are looking for something different might try it out (in the morning commute we see a lot of people with the same kind of mobile phones). Those of us who are more used to QWERTY (because we type for a living) might have no problem adjusting.
But we stare and stare at the keypad and realize that if you have a type-A “heart-attack prone” personality, you’ll get impatient and frustrated by the adjustment process when it comes to keying in text. A lot of you have owned mobile phones for about a decade, and you’re used to the traditional setup (2=ABC, 3=DEF, etc.). The phone is just about wide enough for you to use two hands to type in letters quickly (being able to use two hands is an advantage of the QWERTY keyboard). However, big-handed and hamhanded people might have a bit of a problem.
Via MobileBurn