Intro
It has been one or two months since Apple and Samsung released their new smartphone in the market. Apple’s iPhone 14 received much attention from users because of its new feature, Dynamic Island, and Samsung’s Galaxy Flip 4 was noted with its Flex Mode. Apple also released its new software update, iOS 16 in September, and it has earned users’ attention for the new features which the users have requested for. This article then will review how users have reacted to these newly added innovative features and updates and attempt to anticipate the future smartphones and what ASO marketers should prepare in light of the anticipation.
iPhone 14 Pro’s Dynamic Island is Apple’s approach to resolving the notch on the top side of its previous iPhones. Apple successfully made the notch smaller and shaped it in a pill-like circle, and it even turned it into software where users can receive notifications from first-party apps like Apple Music, Map, iMessage, etc. Apple also allowed 3rd party developers to create apps compatible with Dynamic Island, so users can get as much benefit with their new function.
When Dynamic Island was first introduced to the users, their reaction was vigorous. Firstly, they were pleased because the notch has become much smaller compared to that of the iPhone 13, but Apple not only made it smaller but turned the problematic area into a new and innovative space where users can interact with their phones more easily and efficiently. The boom of Dynamic Island quickly spread, and its Android version was released the very next day after iPhone 14’s release. This app, Dynamic Spot, was installed more than 1 million times and earned about 10,000 reviews in a month.
So the overall impression of Dynamic Island among users was positive and some even praised Apple’s capability to create innovation continually. However, this opinion seemed to change after one month since its release.
Innovative Yet Too Distractive
So the overall impression of Dynamic Island among users was positive and some even praised Apple’s capability to create innovation continually. However, this opinion seemed to change after one month after its release. Prakhar is an editor of a web magazine, Digitaltrends, and noted that Dynamic Island can be more distractive than the former iPhones’ notch. Since Dynamic Island is a separate space, as its name refers, it comes in sight more often and keeps distracting the users. This becomes more annoying when watching a full-screen video. Dynamic Island does not act dynamically anymore but is a mere cutout.
Another web magazine, Phone Arena, has conducted a survey on Dynamic Island, and the users who like Dynamic Island were only 1.3% more than those who think it is a gimmick. This shows that Dynamic Island is not as satisfying as the users expected upon its first introduction, but it is indeed an innovative feature that addresses Apple’s next step: more interaction between users and their phones.
Apple's iOS 16
As our previous article, iOS 16 and How it Affects ASO, has discussed, Apple’s iOS 16 update has brought many features that users have found interesting and helpful. Phone Arena‘s other survey has shown that the users have liked the redesigned lock screen the most, and the editing/deleting iMessages follows next. The lock screen update has allowed users to customize their lock screen; users can change the text’s the text style and size of the lock screen’s time and date, and the depth effect added dynamic taste. iMessage now allows users to edit and delete the sent messages. Some users state that this feature should have been added a long ago since other apps provided it already. Anyhow, this is something the iPhone users found quite exciting as they have been waiting for it.
Users’ reactions toward Apple’s new product and features seems to make a point: users like to customize their phones more and enjoy more various interactions they can experience with their devices. The iOS 16 has allowed more customization possible and Dynamic Islandーthough it may need some improvmenetーhas broadened the approach toward the interaction between the users and their mobile devices. The direction toward more customization and interaction appears to be the same in Samsung’s Galaxy products, so it looks like not one space on a device should not be merely empty in the future.
Galaxy Z Flip 4 & Flex Mode
Though Apple has a reputation as the leader of the smartphone marketーthanks to Steve Jobs’s invention of the iPhoneーSamsung has been widening its influence in the market. Accordingly, Samsung’s Galaxy has improved its innovation, and when the first Galaxy Z Flip was released in 2020, people even said it was the future of smartphones. Android Police’s editor, Hager noted that he was “convinced” that Galaxy Z Flip “is the future.” (resource: Galaxy Z Flip first impressions: Folding phones have turned the corner). The first foldable glass-screen smartphones have developed since its first release and its newest version includes interesting features.
Galaxy Z Flip 4 provides a new mode, called Flex Mode, and this allows users to maximize the usage of the divided sides of the screen. For example, a user may take an online class on the top screen while taking notes on the bottom screen (Watch the video from 3:21~3:26). Also you can refer to Samsung’s official introduction to this mode: Samsung’s official support center.
Resource: Sam News 24
Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 4 also allows users to respond to messages on its cover screen without having to open the phone. The point is that this foldable phone is providing all of its touchable screens as space for the users to interact with. Electric devices have been concrete, and users could not customize much. Users had to adjust themselves to the devices if they wanted to use them, yet it looks like the new devices, like Apple’s iPhone 14 Pro and Galaxy Z Flip 4, is ready to adjust themselves to fit users’ need.
It looks like the new devices, like Apple's iPhone 14 Pro and Galaxy Z Flip 4, is ready to adjust themselves to fit users' need.
Smartphone Innovation & Its Affect in App Development
This article has briefly covered the new products and features Apple and Samsung provided this year and found that the direction of the new smartphones’ changes is toward user interaction and providing them with a more personal and customized experience. This means that the app development also has to consider more about how users interact with the app. Of course not every app has to work with the smartphone’s newest updates; games, especially, can solely focus on their content and enjoyability. Yet apps other than games most likely have to be prepared for the upcoming changes.
iOS Apps' Priority: Widget and Dynamic Island Responsive
With the iOS 16 update, users now can add widgets of their choice on their iPhone’s lock screens. So it has become important to find a way to provide your app in a widget form, so the app’s users can find it more useful and thus increase its retention rate. In the same notion, it is important to make an app Dynamic Island friendly. Many iPhone 14 Pro users say they would like Dynamic Island more if more apps were compatible with the feature, for it is merely a distractive cutout when it is not dynamic. Please take a look at a widget reponsive example and Yet it does not have to be something about widgets or Dynamic Island as long as an app allows users to interact more with the app and thus their phone. Sharpen your ideas and creativity to find ways to maximize the usage of space on the app.
Resource: Slopes Twitter
It is a simple ping-pong game that brilliantly adapted Dynamic Island (though this is not what Dynamic Island is meant to be.)
Resource: Hit the Island Store Page
Android Apps' Priority: Multi-Screen Mode and Screen-size Flexibility
Unlike Apple’s iOS, Android can be used on various types of devices, so it is harder to address things to prepare in advance. Yet if there is no trouble in agreeing with the idea that Galaxy is taking up the majority share of Android devices and that it leads the innovation of smartphones along with Apple, it is fair to focus on Galaxy’s new features to cover what would be the necessity for Android apps to prepare the future. The first thing is the multi-screen mode provision. If an app is compatible with Galaxy Flip 4’s Flex Mode, it allows users to more interactive experience with the app and thus would likely be valued by users. The next idea is screen-size flexibility. As the video below shows how Youtube on Android phones can be stretched and shrunk freely, it will become more important for apps to fit the various needs of usersーwhether it is to allow them to use other apps while keeping the app in a shrunk form or other creative features developers can produce.
Conclusion
It is always interesting to see the new products and features that the tech companies like Apple and Samsung create. Apple’s Dynamic Island and iOS 16, and Samsung’s Flex Mode all surprised the users and surely have drawn much attention. Though the discussion of whether these new features are truly helpful or not is still ongoing, one thing is certain: “they all change the way apps are displayed on our phones’ screensーwith the ultimate goal being to make apps more useful” (Eadicicco, CNET, “iPhone 14 Pro and Galaxy Z Fold Show How Phones Are Evolving”) The usefulness of smartphone and electric devices is more than its capability and specification; how users can interact with the devices deserves more highlight. Take this in mind in composing a new year’s business and development plan and become the surpriser!
