The Trinity of Device success

Tap your pockets, glance around the room. Chances are you will register a few electronic devices of a modern persuasion. They are big business with Smartphones alone shipping 491.4 million units in 2011. We revel in the availability of well integrated electronic solutions to everyday challenges and would most likely be a little socially disadvantaged without them.

But what makes a successful device? Be it tablet computer, desktop, laptop or mobile handset, it’s no simple task for retailers to shoe-horn devices into a crowded market. It occurred to me that for a device to be successful it needs to lean firmly on a triangle of factors. The first is the hardware. Consumers are sharp on comparison of the numbers (even if they don’t know what they mean). Processor speeds for phones, pixel volumes for screens; contrast ratios for TV’s are all now bartering benchmarks now which not too long ago were solely the reserve of geeks and the technicians who designed them. It really is crucial to build a device with appropriate hardware. Over spec-ing will price you out of the market, and underperforming hardware gets little sympathy from the modern consumer. Many early Smartphones were loaded with features that their frail mobile processor just couldn’t handle, and some still argue the inflated price of Apple hardware is due largely to the choice of high grade hardware of questionable suitability.

The second pillar of importance for Businesses in the electronics sector is the software. When the shiny brick falls out of the block, the wide-eyed consumer is waiting for the moment when it lights up and starts to perform. At this point proper testing of software pre-installed on the device is crucial with usability and reliability being instantly scrutinised by the proud owner. If businesses get this wrong then it doesn’t matter how shiny the device, it will likely end up going through a window or on eBay. The HP TouchPad had what many considered to be a good software deployment, but it just turned people off. Something about the function of the inbuilt operating system built just never flew. On the flipside custom manufacturer deployments of the Android platform on suitable tablet hardware have taken the market by storm and brought many outsiders into the fold of mobile computing.

Finally, Businesses who want to stay the current maelstrom of electronic device retail need to get their after-sales support together. Arguably the most important of the three, it’s not just about what you sit around a development table and build in at the factory any more. Users don’t want to feel out in the cold once they have bought your product. They want to feel like they are just beginning on a journey of fun and productivity by buying it. To give them a great experience and secure a future for your next product Businesses absolutely must consider updates after the point of sale. The Blackberry playbook is a great value bit of kit with solid hardware and a good initial software setup, but it’s likely to be strangled off the shelves because its app store will never get up to speed. Alternatively staunch advocates of Apple products profess that they will forever retain unsurpassed access to apps and replacement/repair support because of the companies continued commitment to after sales engagement.

Depending on the chosen positioning strategy it is of course appropriate to lean on these three in varying degrees, but I challenge any manufacturer to ignore any one of them and still deliver a successful device.