Pragati Simlote

NEW DELHI: From mobiles resembling miniature cricket bats that weighed like bricks to those in almost every shape and size, and featherweight, mobiles have come a long way just in a span of a few years.

Consumers are increasingly becoming more sophisticated in their selection of handset and base their purchase decision on the blend of technology and style that a mobile phone offers.

According to an ARC Chart’s research report, it is estimated that there will be sufficient consumer demand to support the sale of 23 million fashion handsets by 2010.

Mobile phones are also fueling the creative imagination of fashion designers with many designers basing their collections on these mobile phones. In a bid to further deepen its association with fashion and style and connecting with India’s fashion conscious consumer, Nokia India recently announced its association with fashion designer Ashish Soni to create a collection inspired by an upcoming luxury handset from the Finnish mobile handset maker.

According to Nokia India marketing director Devinder Kishore, “A recent consumer segmentation study completed by Nokia globally, found that majority of the mobile phone consumers fall in the ‘style’ category. This segment places great emphasis on the aspirational value of a product and considers design to be a key parameter when making their purchase decision. Given analyst projections that one billion new consumers will join the mobile phone user group and influence how they want their phones to look and function it would be fair to say that the era of mass market design is coming to an end.”

Recently Motorola had unveiled the new MOTORAZR V3i Dolce & Gabbana, under a collaboration, which unites the MOTORAZR design together with Dolce & Gabbana’s signature style for consumers in India.

The company also has a slew of products, which cater to the fashion conscious consumer. These include MOTORAZR V3 (Black & Pink), MOTORAZR V3i (Metallic & Maroon), MOTOSLVR (L2, L6, L7) and MOTOPEBL (Black, Red, Pink, Blue, Orange, Green) and most recently the MOTORAZR V3i Dolce & Gabbana.

Motorola India Mobile Devices Marketing director Lloyd Mathias said, “Today, the mobile phone has evolved to a level where it is more than just a communication device. It has become an extension of one’s personality and an individual’s style quotient. This could be viewed in the form factor---design, color, screen savers, etc. The basic philosophy of Motorola is to continue evolution in form and design. Motorola has pushed technology forward in new ways to enrich consumer’s lives.”

Samsung has also associated with leading designers and created phones for upwardly mobile consumers. Samsung Telecommunications India corporate communications manager Yuvraj Mehta said, “Serene is one such phone that is the masterpiece of personal expression developed jointly by Samsung and Bang & Olufsen. The idea behind Serene was to create a mobile phone that is dedicated to one prime purpose: to enable comfortable and convenient communication. In every aspect of the design and technology there is a carefully thought through relationship between form and function that makes both the minimalist design and the use of the phone elegantly simple and straightforward.”

Samsung also has a range of models in its kitty to cater to the fashion conscious people. These include X210, X300, C130 for mass level and X820, D900, X700, D820 and D600 for the high end.

Mehta said, “As an individual spends most of his time with mobile, its design, look and features speaks a lot about what he is and what he aspires for. For fashion conscious customers, exquisite looks, ergonomic design and breakthrough features of a phone become the key criterion to decide which phone to buy. This means that both mass level and high end phone can fall into this fashion category.”

A feature rich phone helps its owner to stand out among his group. With features becoming generic to mobile phones now consumers are looking at the different designs as a big differentiator, which has lead to a big change on design.

LG is extremely bullish about the growth of designer phone segment and hence has launched its “chocolate phone.” LG GSM national product group head HS Bhatia said, “Our KG800 slider is a work of art both in looks and features. It has won the prestigious 2006 iF and Reddot Design Awards for its distinctive style and aesthetic user interface. We would soon unveil the entire range called Black Label series, which is premium series, and Chocolate is only the first in this.”

LG’s latest phone “Chocolate Phone- KG-800” caters to this segment. The company’s handset range also includes LG P-7200 is a trendy, light, easy to carry and offers true value for money for the consumers. The M-6100 is also a stylish phone falling in the same category.

© CyberMedia News