Future of phones is in software and not hardware

They say that change is the only constant. Just a few years ago, the industry faced a market evolution that promised to dramatically upset the status quo. Evolution to 4G required tough technology choices and investments. Service delivery was shifting from a focus on voice and messaging to a new world of data connectivity and to apps later. The newer technology is paving way for the older ones and the times ahead are clearly for the ones who fall out of line.

The year 2015 was the one when smartphone industry grew and introduced products that not only changed the user experience but enhanced it by many notches. Users are now demanding a powerful computing experience packaged well in the handheld device itself. Well, the days wouldn't be far behind as we have seen launch of octa-cores, curved display smartphones, wearable’s and almost edge-to-edge display phones with great camera in the market. The future of mobile devices, however, is about to stretch a lot further than simply cramming a full-fledged computer into your pocket.

The tech-savvy millennial are the new face of India. They are looking for smartphones that offer advanced functionality and an unparalleled experience which is customization as per their taste and preference.

We believe that in phones and laptops the brands and operating systems the consumer chose was starting to matter less. The hardware forms from multiple suppliers are beginning to resemble each other and devices perform extremely similar functions. This may be bad for the makers, but it is good for the users. People will use such devices more as they become low-cost commodities. The real mobile news is not in the devices, but how the software has changed and how it will evolve.

Smart watches, health monitors, and fitness trackers -- the world of mobile is changing. The wearable landscape got a lot of attention this year, and it has helped fuel more talks about a future where every device or object could be connected. Today, the number of “things” that are connected to the Internet in a home has changed. While earlier, one would have a single desktop computers connected to the Internet, today the number of devices include tablets, laptops, gaming consoles, smartphones, Televisions and more.

IoT will be a game changer and you will be able to see brands step out of their comfort zones, trying newer things. It can open up a new horizon and the possibilities are limitless. What is interesting is that mobile will be at the center-stage of this change. Everything that a user wants will be and can be controlled through his mobile device. The year 2016 will be a beginning towards offering consumers this change.

We envisioned this change in the beginning of 2015 where a mobile hardware compliments the software capabilities and offers a user a holistic mobile experience. The experience of our primary mobile screen being a bank of app icons that lead to independent destinations will slowly see the end of the road, what we therefore design and build on mobile needs to change. The transaction based apps such as cabs, food and movie tickets, if get integrated into the native device experience can offer greater functionality and ease to the user. The future will see most of this get integrated, right into the home screen of the device itself. Services offered inbuilt with phones will provide a differentiated experience to users and lay a strong foundation for the future development. Around YU, is an answer to this? We are writing the future today.

Around YU is an effort to smartly integrate most of these functions into the OS layer and provide a native experience. Around YU was created to smartly pull up information from apps and web and provide contextual recommendation of content and actions, saving a user time and effort to switch between multiple apps.

While there is a lot to look ahead for in terms of technology innovations, at YU, we will continue to strive for more convenience and ease for our consumers and provide them best in class technology at affordable prices. As we close the year 2015 on a high, the year 2016 will be the year of many firsts, putting the consumer first and offering him everything that simplifies his engagement and experience with the mobile device.