Observation of User Experience of Samsung Galaxy Phones - Case Study Example

Observation of User Experience of Samsung Galaxy Phones Affiliation with more information about affiliation, research grants, conflict of interest and how to contact Observation of User Experience of Samsung Galaxy Phones Activity 1: Physical Environment Observation Environment and context I observed the Samsung Galaxy during the hours between 3:00 and 7:00pm on a Wednesday in QUT campus, in the library. Samsung Galaxy is a smart phone of the Samsung brand. There are about nine smart phones in Galaxy series. The phone is beautiful and powerful as the real Galaxy and this name has the ability to catch customer attention, which is evident from the popularity it enjoys. An important series feature of this series is that it has android operating system with high speed processors up to GHZ speed. Besides, it supports 3G. Galaxy series phone models are available in both LED and LCD displays. The nine smart phone models which include in the Samsung Galaxy series is (a) Samsung Galaxy 5i5503 (b) Samsung Galaxy Prop (c) Samsung Galaxy 55115510 (d) Samsung Galaxy Fit S5670 (e) Samsung Galaxy Pro B7510 (f) Samsung Galaxy 315801 (g) Samsung Galaxy Ace S5830 (h) Samsung Galaxy S19000 (i) and Samsung Galaxy S II. Samsung Galaxy S II is the latest model. Praises for this phone includes statements like: “Few words for this handset “Simply the best Smart phone,” yes it is a best Android Powered smart phone with furious and blazing features. It is the successor of Galaxy S, with some improvements” (9 Smartphones in Samsung Galaxy Series [Review & Prices], 2011). The price of this series comes in the range of 165 to 619.98.The latest version Galaxy has online readers functions. The security functions of the Galaxy are much developed, including device encryption in the latest Galaxy series. It also has a feature of Cisco Web EX with the help of this technology a secure online meeting can be done. Dual Core Application Processor: The equipment has high speed capabilities to support multitasking. It also enables high speed web page loading and other features like image editing high speed gaming etc. With these capabilities it facilitates high performance and has a very slim design which makes it very handy for use. It is about 8.49mm and easy to grip. It has a look with its battery cover. A huge gallery of song and music can be stored in this, including online searching, discovering, and downloading track with ease. There are also many applications available on Samsung store for better performance software which we can download and installed without any difficulty. The music system is bass enhanced and gives good quality even at highest volume of sound. Samsung mobile can transfer data by using Microsoft exchange server which keeps the user up to date with contacts, events and so on. Another improvement is the concern about security and its management. Samsung and Sybase work together for managing and securing the android devices. “This partnership provides the comprehensive capabilities that it requires to allow mobile workers access to enterprise assets using the Samsung GALAXY S II. It can now confidently extend corporate security policies to the Samsung Android platform, allowing for the adoption of both personally owned and corporate owned GALAXY S II’s” (Simply the Best Smartphone!, 1995). “Making the impossible possible. Samsung Dual Core Application Processor is the ultra responsive answer to mobile performance, providing high-speed multitasking, quick web page loading, quick reaction speeds, a smoother UI, lightning fast image editing and high performance gaming. And with its screaming fast encoding/decoding ability, which supports all (1080p/30fps) video playing and shooting, outshines the other dual core processors. Seamless video or music streaming gets a big boost with the super fast wireless standard HSPA 21Mbps. outstanding computing power, outstanding performance” (Samsung Galaxy S Review, 2006, p. 1). Thoughts, Feelings and Process: The observation process involves observing Samsung Galaxy series phones in an environment where its use is common. Thus, the university library seems to be an ideal choice for the purpose. I started my observation of each model one by one initially by using it myself. The most important feature which attracted me is its speed of operation. I have picked up the latest Samsung Galaxy model, S II When I touched it, I feel comfortable as it is very slim and fast. The quality of 3D images renders it a highly aesthetic appeal. It is very easy to slide each application and I feel fascinated at its gaming performance. To test this, I chose a car racing game by simply touching the game menu. Playing the game made me excited as it provides me 3D effect as if I am racing a real car. Another game that I tried is the Angry Bird. This game involves breaking blocks of bricks and wood. There would be pigs inside the bricks which the player has to blast, using birds, using a Y-shaped device. There are more stages of Angry Bird in it. The highest scores are saved and it allows the player to move to the next stage. It gives us confidence when we move forward in each step. There are lots of applications yet to try. After using this model, I shifted to Samsung Galaxy Pro available with a friend. It is not a touch screen phone and consists of lots of keys. After using touch phone, I felt difficult to use keypad phones. I just moved to the camera menu and took a picture. It is high quality. It has an internal flash in it. It gives high quality photos and can zoom to a very long distance and yet give a clear image. Subsequently, I begin observing other people engaging in the use of Galaxy phones. I see that most of the people are completely unaware of their surrounding which indicate their full involvement in using their phone. They remain immersed in a world of visuals. I also feel that those who are using the phone for the first time are a little bit confused because they have in hand a new technology. I have watched people; especially teenagers in earlier years of college sit in gangs and watch each application. They also discuss in happy mood and I can see confidence and vibrancy on their faces. People with Samsung Galaxy S II do not withdraw their eyes from the screen. The network support for this phone is 3G, which is very fast. The camera quality is highly perfect that if we take a photo we will feel it’s real. When I moved nearer to people using Galaxy phones, I have seen high interest in their faces. Its Wi-Fi connection helps us in connecting to internet from an external net serving device. The entire campus has WI FI connectivity. Inside the campus, the use of internet has increased significantly. The smart phones provide high speed data transfer and students have wide options like WI FI, VPN which help in the use of faster net usage. Therefore most students indulge in such activities while in college, especially inside the library. Description of Observation- Patterns and Common Themes: Observation I: Development of New Technology: The development of touch phones made the phone smarter as compared to key pad phones. Samsung Galaxy series has offered new additional application and features with every new version of handsets. The standard of phone series has improved in each series. Samsung Galaxy S II is slimmer than the 1st series. This is the main point that I noticed. There are option for two type of display for the phone one is LCD and LED. LED has high picture quality than LCD, which makes the people more attracted to it. Besides, it also has considerably increased the duration of time they remain engaged in activities like surfing the net, playing games, chatting, listening to music etc. Observation II: Effects on the Society: The use of Samsung Galaxy can have many positive effects on the society. The main advantage is that since it is high-tech, it makes communication easy and efficient. The fast downloads, enables efficient transmission of data with the provision of high quality video chat the communication bond become much stronger. People find more time to take part in entertainment with the phone .This will help them remain free of stress Youngsters who use this technology enjoy it and they will abstain from undesirable activities. “A fantastic screen, surfing experience that really works and 5MP camera are just a few attributes that make the Samsung Galaxy S at least look like it ticks all the boxes” (Samsung Galaxy S Review, 2006, p. 1). When considering the society people get addicted to its games (like angry bird...). People can avoid meeting a person by chatting and having face to face conversations. The phone has a feature of GPS function which provides direction for the journey. It provides a 3D map which is advantageous in locating specific destinations. The technology can come handy in reducing crimes also. Observation III: User Expectation The consumers expect more body colour selection and also an enhancement in sound quality. Teenagers who use this phone expect zoom function to be improved to about 10 MP. They also want more entertainment applications. Making the body slimmer may enhance its appeal. The price of the Samsung Galaxy series is high and most of the middle class people can afford it. A price reduction will help in increasing sales. Activity 2: This part contains interviews of two people from different backgrounds; one is a student and the other is an entrepreneur. 1. What is your experience with your new Samsung Galaxy mobile set? Interviewee 1: It is very useful in my daily life. I use it for my study related activities as well as social interaction with my friends and relatives. Interviewee 2: Yeah, of course my experience has been great. I use it for all business activities, including receiving and sending mails, downloading or uploading files, storing data etc. It is very handy and I can practically carry it anywhere for the purpose of my business dealings. I also use it for socializing activities. 2. Was it easier for you learn how to use? Was there enough instructions provided? Interviewee 1: Yeah, it was. Also, my friends already have this mobile and from them I already know how ot operate it, before I bought mine. Interviewee 2: I had viewed all the videos from the internet from which i got enough knowledge to access the mobile. 3. What do you like the most in Galaxy mobile? Both gave somewhat similar answers to this question. Galaxy mobile has a SUPERAMOLED display, 8MP Camera, and many other features like HD Video recording, good volume enhancer. 4. What are the different connectivity options in Galaxy mobiles? Common Answer: As seen in most of the today’s modern smart phones, Galaxy mobile includes GPRS, Wi-Fi, EDGE, 3G, HSDPA, micro-USB and Bluetooth.  5. How much is Galaxy’s battery life? Common Answer: It has a high battery power. We get enough battery charge to talk by either of the ways (orally or through visually). 6. What are the formats (video and audio) that Samsung Galaxy supports? Common Answer: Galaxy supports most of the today’s audio and video formats, which includes mp3, wav, aac, m4a, mp4 and wmv, DivX, XviD, mkv, avi. Also I would like to put weight on the sense that it has a very good audio output. It supports wireless headphones too. There are different softwares developed for easy 7. How much is its memory capability? Common Answer: It internally has 16 GB memory capacity; it can be extended with 32 GB external MicroSD memory. 8. What do you like to say about the camera? Question addressed to only Interview 2: There are 2 cameras in the mobile hand set. One in the front which is 2MP this one is used for the video calling and the other at the rear side of the set is about 8MP it has an inbuilt flash in it. The rear camera has the recording capability in the HD unit which can be viewed in the mobile itself. 9. Will you change your phone with a new phone if arrived in the market? If no why? If yes, why? Interviewee 1: No, because it is the most modern mobile that is having almost all the functions, at affordable price. Interviewee 2: Yes, I would like to change with I phone or Galaxy Tab. “Samsung Keyboard: Its probably the worst keyboard available on the Android OS. I had to download an application called Anykeyboard which makes the stock keyboard look like childsplay. One programmer can create such a brilliant keyboard app yet Samsungs entire team cant even match it” (20 Best Mobile Phones in the World Today, 2011). There is no camera flash in it. It has a weak GPS. And speaker should be better. Also Iphone beat SGS 2 in application store too. I would prefer Samsung tab because it contains all the features of a phone with applications plus that of computer, which an entrepreneur like me prefer, but at an affordable price. Environment and Context: The observation has been conducted on a Queensland University of Technology. One of the interviews was also an entrepreneur, who is doing a part-time MBA. Because most of the users of Samsung Galaxy Mobile phone are students who use its different applications like social networking, music player, video player and other applications like browsing at a very high speed. They can also reference different online books from online stores as well as shop and sell the different items by using eBay. It helps them to exchange data from pocket to pocket. The second interviewee is an entrepreneur who uses his phone as a pocket diary, as presentation equipment, for video conferencing with his clients as well as other employees. He also can use it for finding share prices, online trading as well checking daily news. One of the questions that I liked to include was the security of the mobile, and what can be done if a mobile is lost, whether it is easily searchable by using modern technology. These questions help other mobile phone lovers to have a clear view on which phone to select and what are the basic objectives for searching a good mobile. Conducting Observation: I had a better knowledge about Samsung Galaxy mobile phone which I obtained through different websites. The main focus of this exercise has been to get a detailed idea about the future technology can be introduced in mobile with respect to Samsung Galaxy Mobiles. These notes can also be used by any person for detailed information about Galaxy mobile. Furthermore, it will helps to analyze who are the participants included the interviews and what their views about the equipment. Initial thoughts of the area are that dozens people are already using it around the globe. They love it just because of its excellent features rather than its colour. I checked one store and see that all the phones in shop have black casing. Today, a large number of people use Galaxy mobile around the globe. But usually in touch screen mobile, the users could unknowingly touch its touch pad and may trigger a call. But, different from other mobiles, Galaxy has a finger sensing ability so that a touch by other materials cannot activate a call. Also it has an auto key pad lock which helps the mobile to lock when not in use. It is also compatible with most of the Bluetooth devices, PAN devices, WI-FI network etc. One of the main problems that Galaxy faces is that it gets hanged when a game is played for a long time. This causes discomfort to users. Reflection: Comparison with Personal Experience: My experience using Samsung Galaxy series is totally different. I have to say only positive things about this phone when I used each series from the beginning to end I felt development in the technology in each series. When using keypad phones it is necessary to press the key but by using the touch it become some simpler When I used the latest model Samsung Galaxy SII and it makes me more and more enthusiastic and interested. It is really slim and it provides lots of applications. I have to spend more time if I have to know more about each application. The gaming experience makes me to move to an HD world. When I play NFS Hot Pursuit, I feel that I am racing a real car within my phone. It is a motion sensing game. When I conducted the interview with people from two different levels, I understand this phone is of more use to an entrepreneur, though students have high utility for the same. The teenagers mostly use this phone for entertainment purpose. Thus, investing more for entertainment may not find the favour of many people. However, for a business man, the phone becomes very handy during journeys. He can also indulge in social networking to promote business using this device. Using of new technology brings confidence for the users. Learning: I have learned some important facts through this assignment. The main idea I have gathered is that the value of user experience is more important for evaluating an item. Users are also able to specify the disadvantages so the manufactures are able to improve the product quality or add additional features as per the users’ demand. By interviewing the user, one can clearly understand in what areas the product needs improvement. In the case of mobile phone with the development of smart phone technology, people really forget the real world they are and they get transported into the visual, virtual world. I find that new technologies highly affect social developments. Various innovations are occurring in this world on a daily basis. For a new user it will take some time for him to understand the product. After using the new technology versions, if one goes back to the old version phones, he or she finds difficulty in usage. The operating system of each version varies and some use android and some use Mac. It actually depends on the individual tastes of users. User experience varies from person to person and it is also found to be dependent on one’s knowledge, perceptions, attitude as well as adaptability to technology. Changes in Perspective: According to my view it will be better to ascertain the experiences of teenagers because they will be able to explain correctly what changes should be made on the basis of product evaluation. Students get more time to spend on the product and they will be more adaptable to technology. Depending on user experiences is a good option for the development of the product. However, there should be interview with some technicians who can suggest better ideas. According to my view in order to evaluate each product we should first identify the people who use the product and then obtain ideas from them about the current status of the product and by ascertaining what changes they would like on the existing products. This will enable us to improve the product as per the needs of the users. Future Direction: I have seen many videos and review on how to deal with different applications and its working. In my experience, it created some confusion to those who use this phone for the first time. However, once the person receives a little bit of familiarization, the difficulty vanishes. One major concern about mobile technology is the anxieties it causes on human health. The Galaxy pro version consists of QWERTY key pad. The next development in Galaxy mobiles is the introduction of touch screen which we see today. The next development might be the mobile with projection keypad that we see in our notebook or sheet of paper or even in our own hand. I think it has already happened in some mobiles. Galaxy can introduce it in a new form with more advanced facilities. We knew that with the introduction of new technologies the older versions become obsolete and need to be thrown which may cause some kind of pollution to the environment. The introduction of this virtual keypad can somewhat lower the rate of this waste. Reference List Samsung Galaxy S Review, (2006). TechRadar.com. Retrieved Aug. 27, 2011, from http://www.techradar.com/reviews/phones/mobile-phones/samsung-Galaxy-s-689293/review Simply the Best Smartphone!, (1995). Samsung. Retrieved Aug. 27, 2011, from http://www.samsung.com/in/consumer/mobile-phone/mobile-phone/smartphone/GT-I9100LKAINU/index.idx?pagetype=prd_detail 9 Smartphones in Samsung Galaxy Series [Review & Prices], (2011). Dream Bloggers. Retrieved Aug. 27, 2011, from http://www.dreambloggers.com/9-smartphones-in-samsung-Galaxy-series-review-prices/ 20 Best Mobile Phones in the World Today, (2011). TechRadar.com. Retrieved Aug. 27, 2011, from http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/20-best-mobile-phones-in-the-world-today-645440 Read More