New survey reveals that multi-function devices still losing out in public opinion, but early-adopter niche growing.
Many consumers are not interested in handheld devices that offer multiple functions beyond making phone calls or holding data, according to a survey by Guideline Research, a custom market research firm. The survey of a representative group of online consumers also found that 25% of consumers think these multifunctional devices have limited functionality.
As the market for electronic handheld devices has become saturated, manufacturers of such electronics are driven to add features in an effort to maintain their growth. To this end, they are hoping to add to their general consumer base by offering products to those who are looking for devices that perform two or more functions. Yet, despite their efforts, 49% of consumers surveyed said they have no desire for such a device.
"Multifunction devices don't reflect the consumers' preference for dedicated, simple devices," stated James Belcher, a consultant in FIND/SVP's Technology, Information and Communications practice, and co-administrator of the Guideline survey. "With the exception of the PC, most consumers just don't want to do multiple things with a single device."
Still, there is an early adapter niche in the market that does want these multifunctional devices. Nearly 40% of those surveyed said they were anxious to have a multifunctional device, while 10% said they already had a handheld device that performed more than one function.
The survey also found that among consumers who wanted additional features they preferred multifunctional devices that also included the following: phones (79.6%), digital cameras (57.4%), PDA (47.3%), television (38.4%), GPS (33%), handheld gaming (28.1%) and two-way paging (25.8%).
"Not everyone needs an electronic Swiss Army knife, and even those who do, don't want to deal with any more functions than necessary," added Mr. Belcher. "And, while most consumers say they aren't looking for any additional features, multifunction with sensible combinations will indeed find success."
The survey, conducted in December 2003, was taken via the Internet among a nationally projectable sample of 1000 randomly selected adult consumers.
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