As days go by, more and more tech giants are equipping their smartphones with the best that the AI world has to offer.
Companies like Apple, Samsung, and even Google have given the classic smartphone an edge with premium features but it seems like consumers are far from impressed. Let’s not forget the high price tags attached which is another deterring factor for purchases.
Thanks to a new survey from CNET, we found that nearly 25% of all smartphone owners aren’t finding these features useful. Meanwhile, 18% felt the opposite and considered new AI features fascinating and another reason for upgrading their device.
So what is the major driving force for upgrading phones today? Most users (61%) claim it’s longer battery life while 46% felt it was enhanced storage that served them the greater purpose to leap. And then 38% spoke about greater camera features being another leading reason.
The news comes after tech giant Apple just rolled out its iPhone 16 series which will entail the firm’s latest Apple Intelligence suite. The biggest and most talked about offerings in the lineup was AI with phones set for launch this fall.
As per Apple, the Intelligence will include tools for writing using AI, smarter voice assistant, and then the much-spoken-about collaboration with OpenAI’s ChatGPT.
We’ve seen tech giant Google also place heavy reliance on AI with the launch of its Pixel 9 series of smartphones. It spent a long time discussing how features from AI chatbot Gemini such as Live will be more natural and assist users with daily functions.
Then in July this year, Samsung spoke about making tasks so much simpler with AI-based edits and translation, thanks to Galaxy AI.
While you might think it’s something new and revolutionary, you’ll be amazed to learn that AI has been a part of smartphones for a long time. Let’s take cameras for instance. It’s AI that makes your images less blurred and enables better processing.
Meanwhile, Google and Apple’s voice assistants have also been in the lineup for a while now. However, the fact that generative AI is now allowing users to do more than before is what’s trending now.
Now tech giants have done their part in terms of equipping devices with AI but this does not come cheap. It’s the consumer who will be bearing the high costs if they wish to use them. Let’s take Samsung for instance. They claim Galaxy AI features will be for free until the end of next year. After that, if you wish to use Gemini on various apps, you need to sign up for subscriptions. The same goes for Apple.
Now consumers are not really convinced that better AI is worth their time and money. As per the study, more than 50% spoke about not paying extra to access better AI features. Meanwhile, another study from CNET has spoken about how American adults spend nearly $91 on subscriptions each month. Every year, it’s getting more and more expensive and not everyone loves that.
The most enthusiastic of the userbase are Gen Z and Millenials. No surprise here because the survey showed they were more than excited to see what AI has to offer in terms of photo edits, creating images, and generating summaries for content.
Another cost that keeps weighing down the arrival of AI on smartphones is privacy. 34% of respondents spoke about getting uneasy with AI and worrying their privacy was at risk. This is even though tech giants have really worked long and hard to combat this issue.
Apple spoke about more privacy with AI as data does not travel over the web. It won’t be stored or accessible to the company either.
As per the survey, the biggest reason to upgrade smartphones in 2024 is certainly not AI. As we spoke about above, it’s better cameras, storage, and longer battery life that have people talking. Meanwhile, the survey also unraveled some more interesting factors like bigger screen sizes, phone color, and better display as another point worth pondering upon.
Furthermore, the bigger costs for devices are not very alluring to many as this deters people from making an upgrade in the first place. As shown in this survey, 44% spoke about getting new phones when the old one broke or needed a new replacement. The majority also spoke about clinging on to old devices for as long as they can, with the average going up to three years.
We’re grateful to see Apple not take on a major price hike with the latest iPhone 16 series but most users are going to wait longer before they make the switch. And despite Google and Samsung thinking outside the box with foldable devices, the hype is just not there.
Read next: The Aftermath Of Brazil's Ban: Will It Hurt X's Revenue?
Companies like Apple, Samsung, and even Google have given the classic smartphone an edge with premium features but it seems like consumers are far from impressed. Let’s not forget the high price tags attached which is another deterring factor for purchases.
Thanks to a new survey from CNET, we found that nearly 25% of all smartphone owners aren’t finding these features useful. Meanwhile, 18% felt the opposite and considered new AI features fascinating and another reason for upgrading their device.
So what is the major driving force for upgrading phones today? Most users (61%) claim it’s longer battery life while 46% felt it was enhanced storage that served them the greater purpose to leap. And then 38% spoke about greater camera features being another leading reason.
The news comes after tech giant Apple just rolled out its iPhone 16 series which will entail the firm’s latest Apple Intelligence suite. The biggest and most talked about offerings in the lineup was AI with phones set for launch this fall.
As per Apple, the Intelligence will include tools for writing using AI, smarter voice assistant, and then the much-spoken-about collaboration with OpenAI’s ChatGPT.
We’ve seen tech giant Google also place heavy reliance on AI with the launch of its Pixel 9 series of smartphones. It spent a long time discussing how features from AI chatbot Gemini such as Live will be more natural and assist users with daily functions.
Then in July this year, Samsung spoke about making tasks so much simpler with AI-based edits and translation, thanks to Galaxy AI.
While you might think it’s something new and revolutionary, you’ll be amazed to learn that AI has been a part of smartphones for a long time. Let’s take cameras for instance. It’s AI that makes your images less blurred and enables better processing.
Meanwhile, Google and Apple’s voice assistants have also been in the lineup for a while now. However, the fact that generative AI is now allowing users to do more than before is what’s trending now.
Now tech giants have done their part in terms of equipping devices with AI but this does not come cheap. It’s the consumer who will be bearing the high costs if they wish to use them. Let’s take Samsung for instance. They claim Galaxy AI features will be for free until the end of next year. After that, if you wish to use Gemini on various apps, you need to sign up for subscriptions. The same goes for Apple.
Now consumers are not really convinced that better AI is worth their time and money. As per the study, more than 50% spoke about not paying extra to access better AI features. Meanwhile, another study from CNET has spoken about how American adults spend nearly $91 on subscriptions each month. Every year, it’s getting more and more expensive and not everyone loves that.
The most enthusiastic of the userbase are Gen Z and Millenials. No surprise here because the survey showed they were more than excited to see what AI has to offer in terms of photo edits, creating images, and generating summaries for content.
Another cost that keeps weighing down the arrival of AI on smartphones is privacy. 34% of respondents spoke about getting uneasy with AI and worrying their privacy was at risk. This is even though tech giants have really worked long and hard to combat this issue.
Apple spoke about more privacy with AI as data does not travel over the web. It won’t be stored or accessible to the company either.
As per the survey, the biggest reason to upgrade smartphones in 2024 is certainly not AI. As we spoke about above, it’s better cameras, storage, and longer battery life that have people talking. Meanwhile, the survey also unraveled some more interesting factors like bigger screen sizes, phone color, and better display as another point worth pondering upon.
Furthermore, the bigger costs for devices are not very alluring to many as this deters people from making an upgrade in the first place. As shown in this survey, 44% spoke about getting new phones when the old one broke or needed a new replacement. The majority also spoke about clinging on to old devices for as long as they can, with the average going up to three years.
We’re grateful to see Apple not take on a major price hike with the latest iPhone 16 series but most users are going to wait longer before they make the switch. And despite Google and Samsung thinking outside the box with foldable devices, the hype is just not there.
Read next: The Aftermath Of Brazil's Ban: Will It Hurt X's Revenue?
