The technology of communications has come a long way in the last 100 years or so. From simple cylinders attached to cables to today’s modern smartphones and even the burgeoning virtual reality industry. The ability to communicate with each other over distances has constantly been changing. Modern smartphones have almost completely replaced conventional phone services. Some statistics put the global smartphone usage at 48.20% of the total world population. That’s almost 3.8 billion people who own a smartphone. These devices are incredibly popular because of their unique versatility. Advances in technology have given us mini-computers that fit into our pockets. While the technological advances in physical hardware are impressive, they pale in comparison to the software that has been developed for these incredible devices. Check smartphone usage statistics here.
Essential Mobile Software Functions
Today’s smartphones are considered essential because they connect us with so many services we need including social media, photo editing, document creation, and even entertainment such as mobile casinos. While physical device elements such as processing power, image quality, and elegance may sway users to purchase one phone over another, it is the core software features that are the real deciding factors. The war between Android OS and Apple’s IOs are well documented. The ability to add new apps to these existing software platforms has become an integral part of the mobile ecosystem.
The Essentials
Social Networks
One of the most important features of smartphones are the ability to connect to social networks such as Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. These days, social media services are essential tools for our personal and business lives. With social networks being nowadays the site for information sharing, and for many the number one spot for entertainment and breaks to relax. Most, if not all smartphones, come with social network apps pre-installed.
Instant Messaging Apps
Instant messaging between devices is a key use of smartphones. Many apps exist to help create opportunities for social interaction and business negotiation. Many businesses use WhatsApp or Facebook Messenger as means to communicate with possible or returning customers.Instagram is also popular with businesses as the go-to place for showing the quality of their products. Many online stores are managed directly from Instagram. Tiktok and other short video-sharing applications have become a source of publicity for many businesses, taking advantage of the high level of popularity and ads feed.
Video Streaming Apps
Video streaming and sharing apps are incredibly popular with smartphone users. These apps range in their content options from short clips likeYouTube, live streaming through Twitch, and longform content streaming from Netflix and Disney+. These apps are only a few of the options to relieve the stress of a long workday by watching something new. Many of these platforms are more than simply places to view content. They have become sources of income for many creators. Live video streaming platforms have given rise to eEntertainers, Youtubers, or Streamers whose profession is creating content for the entertainment of viewers. Many of these new entertainers have amassed a fan bases numbering in the millions. Felix Arvid Ulf Kjellberg “Pewdiepie”, Mark Fishbach “Markiplier” and Ruben Doblas “elrubiusOMG”, are just a few names in the YouTube universe that have garnered over 30 million or more subscribers on their respective channels. Pewdiepie is the Youtuber with the highest number of subscriptions, with 110 million as of August 2021.
Mobile Games
A trend that could be traced back to handheld consoles like Nintendo’s GameBoy and Mr. Game & Watch, mobile gaming is currently one the most popular trends in the gaming world. Being the base of many eSports competitions, such as Clash Royale, Mobile Legends, Arena of Valor, and League of Legends: Wild Rift, each of the games has its own tournaments. For the more casual players, the Candy Crush saga, Talking Tom and his friends, and many more titles are available for well-deserved break time.
Photo Editing Apps
Photo editing is not bound only to PCs these days. Everyday new editing apps are developed and published in the App Store or PlayStore for download to our handheld computers. New trends in photography are played out through these editors. Photo filters, effects, and even augmented reality are all slowly becoming the norm for photos posted to social networks. Networks like Instagram and Snapchat constantly update their own internal editors to keep up with these new effects and filters. After all, in the world of social media trendy means happy users.
Closing Thoughts
Although the main use of smartphones remains communication, they have gone through significant changes in a relatively short time span. Smartphones have become an invaluable part of our daily life, and their place in our day-to-day interactions has only grown more prominent in the face of the pandemic. Just as the first iPhones and Android smartphones weren’t thought of as multimedia machines. The future uses for smartphones cannot be fathomed at the moment.