How often you’ve heard people crib that smartphones these days have more or less similar hardware specifications depending on the price segment they fit in. Similar camera configurations, amount of storage space, memory, design and other features could be found on many devices. So, what makes each of them unique? Well, it’s the user interface that powers these devices makes the entire experience unique to each.
There are people who prefer the cleanest form of Android and then there are few who prefer the customized version. Though the stock android or vanilla Android, mostly found on Pixel phones from Google, is fast, devoid of bloatware and is the first one to get the latest Android updates. On the other hand, a custom OS, which is basically a skin built on top of Android by phone manufacturers, comes with unique and handy enhancements that stock Android often lacks.
The most common versions of custom Android user interface are Oxygen OS from OnePlus, EMUI from Huawei, MIUI from Xiaomi, FuntouchOS from Vivo and ColorOS from OPPO. Each of these feature-rich user interfaces has its own unique characteristics and they try to enhance the user experience by building apps and features offering the best out of device’s hardware.
Chinese smartphone maker OPPO had recently set up an R&D center in Hyderabad to build localized features keeping in mind the needs of Indian consumers. Features like bike riding mode, system-wide dark mode, dynamic wallpaper, screenshot gesture and DocVault, a customized version of DigiLocker, to keep your important documents safe, are a few features built by this local team.
These features will be a part of the recently announced ColorOS 7 which will power most of its phones, going forward. OPPO has also put a strong focus on improving the overall mobile camera performance with the help of Google Camera X APIs. This can be one interesting reason to buy ColorOS 7 powered phones since we all know Google’s prowess with smartphone cameras.
Ability to customize the look and feel, a neat design and better user experience is what most smartphone users expect from their phones. This is exactly where the local R&D teams come in to picture for these smartphone companies. These local teams engage with the existing users through different forums, meetups, and other market research agencies to assess the features their users look for.
With an ever-increasing focus on software and features, it’s the consumers who will be benefitted the most. Firstly, by getting amazingly powerful smartphones at affordable costs. Secondly, getting features, which are designed to make their smartphone experience better. Combined together both these will have an equal say in consumer behavior going forward.
A technology buff, Jitendra stays up-to-the-minute of trends in smartphones, gadgets, apps and more.
