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Retailers find fault with hero handsets |
goldenface
Joined: Dec 17, 2003
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From: Liverpool City Centre
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Retailers find fault with hero handsets
11:17AM Thu 10 May 2007
The Nokia N95 and the LG Prada handsets were released around a month ago, with massive expectations for both. After a lull in hero-handset releases, the market was set for two winners to pick up sales in a slowing market.
But one month on and many retailers say they are disappointed with the handsets' performance. A senior operator retailer told Mobile: 'People have very high expectations of these devices – that can lead to returns.'
Several retailers commented that the Prada's fashion appeal was likely to be short-lived: 'When it was first released, everyone was buying it for two reasons. One, it's Prada. Two, it's touch-screen. I think people are realising it's a lot of money for a phone.'
Others have complained that customers find it difficult to access the keypad on the Prada handset when on a call, particularly when trying to use voicemail. 'When you use an auto pre-select service such as needing to press one, two or three as an option, as it is all touch-screen, the selections are not recognised,' one dealer said. However, LG's Steve Fraser said: 'There are no technical glitches with the Prada. People just don't seem to know there is a button to press to access the keypad.'
'The Prada has started to die down a bit, but the N95 is still going well,' a Phones 4u salesperson said. The N95 continues to attract interest, but customers have started complaining about software issues, battery life and the GPS system. One dealer who uses the handset said: 'It crashes a lot and the GPS takes ages to lock on. It turns off when I am using a Bluetooth headset.'
Despite complaints, both the handsets have been holding top positions on the Mobile Tracker chart. The N95 has been the bestselling handset for the past three weeks, while the Prada has been holding on to second place for the last two weeks.
Source
© Noble House Media Ltd
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masseur
Joined: Jan 03, 2003
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From: Sydney, London
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I always thought the Prada was over priced and when I had a little play with it I got bored very quickly.
I also expect that this feedback for the N95 is based on original firmware as we know now that its alot better for the current firmware, though the average consumer expects it to be perfect from the outset (though we know no phone is really like that at first)
I also think returns of *any* high end phones are higher at the start, not just for the reasons given, but also people get caught up in the hype and buy on impulse then realise they spent too much money, or it wasn't really what they wanted etc and so make up excuses to return the phones.
a few initial weeks is no real indication IMHO, perhaps 3-6 months is a better indication
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goldenface
Joined: Dec 17, 2003
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From: Liverpool City Centre
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I would never buy a fashion phone anyway as fashion comes and goes and its one phone that will end up in the draw when the next 'fashionable' phones come along.
Regarding the N95, I think most people aren't aware of fw update concept and it would be a pain for the retailer to use this as a reason to 'bat away' the returns.
I can't see the battery life changing that much though after an update, that's something that has to be right first time around. My brother just got an N95 and he is amazed by it. I want to get my hands on one too which shouldn't be a problem as he works in CPW. 
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[ This Message was edited by: goldenface on 2007-05-11 09:26 ] |
masseur
Joined: Jan 03, 2003
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From: Sydney, London
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I've never been one with this batetry life issue. you can get 2-3 good days from the N95 but all I ever expect is a full day with some reserve. Why do we need endless days of battery life and why do people complain when they don't get it, especially in a device like this. Do we not all go home every day and put our phones on charge? or if we are travelling we take a charger with us
I don't really want to get into a whole debate about battery life but alot of it also comes down to the fact that we're expecting (and getting) more in our devices but battery technology simply isn't keeping pace
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batesie
Joined: Feb 13, 2004
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From: London, UK
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exactly, and i'm sure fuel cell technology will be here to help soon anyway.
not sure about these people complaining to phone shops about the N95, i guess some users are less educated and leave wifi scanning on all day and forget to exit GPS properly.
and they didnt think, talking to a satellite's miles away on the edge of space doesnt use battery life pfft. clear line of site to a large area of skyline helps lock on speeds...
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[ This Message was edited by: batesie on 2007-05-11 09:39 ] |
goldenface
Joined: Dec 17, 2003
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From: Liverpool City Centre
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That may be true but any device with GPS would automatically appeal to people for whom outdoor activities play a big part in their lives, hikers, cyclists etc
If you're away on a hike / trek for a few days and making good use of the GPS etc then I suppose battery life would be very important but then again they would bring a spare anyway. If I was a retailer I would just offer them a free or half/price battery.
Really, I can't see the average person coming back and complaining about the GPS as when driving they could probably get by easily without it.
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Daedalus85
Joined: Apr 23, 2007
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From: Suffolk, UK
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Their the two phones we've had mostly come back for repair, such a shame, the N95 had such potential...
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himlims_nl
Joined: Apr 06, 2004
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On 2007-05-23 10:21:28, Daedalus85 wrote:
Their the two phones we've had mostly come back for repair, such a shame, the N95 had such potential...
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Aware
Joined: Jun 24, 2006
Posts: > 500
From: Oxon, UK
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....and mine(N95)'s in the service centre for the SECOND time, as we speak.... 
....and I STILL haven't made a single call on it yet, yet alone used the GPS.......
....as another point with N95, the build quality does NOT match the specifications of the device/pricing! Mine's being sold as soon as it gets back in proper working order!
 p990i(r6d), n82-1(20.0.062) * treat people as you expect to be treated! * a-zott platinum/tttt in ~3 years...  rip expanded call lists! |
goldenface
Joined: Dec 17, 2003
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From: Liverpool City Centre
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@Daedalus85
Where do you work?
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himlims_nl
Joined: Apr 06, 2004
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we don't sell prada phone here atm so i cannot tell about it's returns.
on the other hand we do sell the n95, i've seen it come back a few times.
but hey, what do you expect from a nokia smartphone??? they _never_ work allright when released (like SonyEricsson Pxxx)
and people do have high expectations of a phone like that. They are used to the s40 software, which works smooth and easy. Now they get S60 which is complex and slow. They are not used to it, so bring back the phone
imho the N73 is a better choise, it works realy great... although it's missing the gps, but bluetooth gps is still an option. |
Daedalus85
Joined: Apr 23, 2007
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From: Suffolk, UK
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True, people come from S40 and expect the N95 to be just as easy to use as their existing phones.
Most of the people we've sold them to buy it because they've been told 'it's the newest and best Nokia to have' and they buy it on that alone, not wether they can and will use half the features. I usually end up discouraging them from it and suggesting something they NEED not something they don't.
And I work in the O2 shop
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Merlyn101
Joined: May 07, 2007
Posts: 167
From: U.K.
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Went in to my O2 store and was looking at the N95... The staff there said thaey would not recommend it just yet (until software bugs fixed) as 9/10 of their handsets are being returned due to various errors... Mostly software. Sure as nuts, while I was in there, 2 different customers came in wanting an exchange on theirs!! Can this really be happening?
I haven't seen any proof of tomorrow all day! |
anonymuser
Joined: Dec 17, 2002
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@masseur - I can't agree with you on the battery life front, a great many people (I would say the majority) certainly don't put their phones on to charge every single night and certainly wouldn't expect to have to.. it's a real inconvenience for many, and even an impossibility for some.
For me personally, a one-day-plus-a-bit battery life would be grounds for instant return. Fair enough, with a smartphone you might expect that if you're hammering all the features all the time, but if it's happening just as a matter of course that's not good enough, IMHO. Time for the designers to go back to the drawing board and either give it a bigger battery, or sort out whatever software or hardware issues are causing the drain.
At the end of the day, these are still phones we're talking about, and they need to be reliable - ie, if you forget to charge it one night, you can still make a call on it the next day.
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[ This Message was edited by: Boinng on 2007-05-25 12:04 ] |
Miss UK
Joined: Jan 11, 2003
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Im still awaiting my T-Mob n95 to be unlocked however though this phone is bloody good well worth every penny..
wont need another phone now for 2 years atleast!!!!!! 
it's really small and light I thought id be a brick but it's not!!!!!
An "Apple" a day keeps the Doctor at Bay! |
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Posted: 2007-05-11 10:03
p990i(r6d), n82-1(20.0.062)
