Smartphone Design: Innovation

The following question was asked: ''who is the biggest mover and shaker when it comes down to design innovation''. This time we are taking a look at three new manufacturers: LG, Motorola and Nokia. When put on paper it sounds pretty epic: the third largest smartphone maker on the globe against a Google owned company and an up-and-coming giant and market leader from Finland. However all three more or less fulfill the role of market misfits and this is normally why outsiders dare to go where no other smartphone maker has ever gone, design-wise that is. Is this the case for all of these three?In my own personal opinion LG compares to the automobile brand Audi, also in terms of design tendencies. Motorola on the other hand with its Kevlar and outlandish details is definitely something out of the ordinary. And the Lumia devices from Nokia can also be easily recognized. At least for the last two, design does seem to be something quite important. But do they dare to defy the norm with their flagships? Or was LG the only one who dared to be innovative and different?

Motorola Droids have always been something that has relied on personal taste. The individualism has clearly been retained by the Google subsidiary in their upcoming release of their flagship device. If one can accuse Samsung of sticking with a tried and true design time and time again, Motorola falls into the same category. Asides from the change in design of the Kevlar backing, you wouldn’t really be able to tell the difference between the two devices. From the front, the change to capacitive buttons and a little bit of a bevel on the bottom edge are the major changes. The side view shows the biggest change, both in the form of material and shape of the physical buttons

Nokia Lumia 920 – Lumia 925You can definitely see some major changes in the two iterations of the Nokia Lumia when you look at the large picture, notably the back and the side of the device. The sharp edges have been rounded, a more subtle choice of color tones, and a pure plastic body with aluminum edges. However, from the front the device, you can’t really tell that much has changed between the 920 and 925.

LG Optimus G – G2The Optimus G had a very simple angular design and begs to question as to whether the company has much of a design department. Although simplicity does lead to some pretty popular designs, the G2 brings something new to the table: the physical buttons found on the back of the device. For the first time, it feels like this isn’t a LG smartphone, but something completely else. The G2 has been completely revamped and almost looks similar to the Galaxy S4 from the front. Either way, kudos to LG for this iteration of their device, transforming it from a relatively cheap looking device to something resembling an actual flagship device.

Conclusion

If we were to award a prize to the most significant redesign, the winner would be LG . However, the Lumia from Nokia has undergone some major changes to the design, while still retaining an overall feel and look of a Lumia device. While the 920 and 925 do have some changes between the two, it’s easy to recognize the Nokia branding between the two.  Unfortunately, Motorola has really done nothing with their new design of their Droid device.

Final Conclusion

If we briefly recapitulate all the design comparisons we’ve done in this series, it is difficult to really choose clear winners or losers. However, for many, it would fall into the laps of HTC, LG, Nokia, and Huawei. These four have clearly done some major design changes on their devices and taken on some large risks in changing the look and feel of their phones. Sony and Google follow closely behind with Samsung, Apple, and Motorola lagging in the design department.

Hope you enjoy this  review!