If ancient communities had their ways of gauging people, natives in the technological realm are not too far behind either. After revealing preferences of Indian smartphone owners, Nokia has disclosed that manufacturers can comprehend their audiences based on the apps they use in another report.
In a study jointly conducted with Professor Trevor Pinch of Cornell University, the company is said to have concluded that almost 55 percent smartphone users depend on apps. This in turn has transformed the world into a place occupied by ‘app dependant’ habitants. It has also been suggested that as the usage levels of apps soar higher, mobile devices learn more about their owners.
“With so many apps available, people can pick the ones most relevant to them,” remarked Professor Trevor Pinch. “The intimacy we share with our phones stamps our personality onto them. They know our tastes, our needs and even our secrets. If you ever want to really know someone, take a look at their apps – you may be in for a surprise!”
For estimating the significance attached to apps in the life of smartphones users, the company has defined six personality types which are broadly categorized under the ‘appitypes’ caption. These groups have been carved out depending on the genres, variety and usage of apps. Furthermore, they summarize not only personal traits but also national characteristics.
“Apps are a great way to personalize your mobile. Like our old record or CD collections, apps reveal who we are – whether we look at the type of apps people have, how they organize them, or which ones they most use. It certainly makes for interesting reading,” explained George Linardos, Vice President of Media, Nokia.
The six appitypes include appthusiasts, appcentric, live wire, creator, connector and apprentice. Those who fall under the first two classes have been emphasized to be energetic. While the appthusiats download numerous apps and like to stay tuned-in with latest trends, the appcentric community is described as conventional with a preference for data management, numerical and organizational pursuits. In addition, the latter group downloads limited apps but uses them more frequently than others.
Owing to their active and athletic nature, the live wires faction prefers apps related to health/fitness and travel. The creators are said to be creative as well as imaginative and thanks to their storytelling abilities, they are hooked onto social networking sites. The connectors obtain limited apps which are expedient not only to themselves but also others. Lastly, the apprentices have been referred to as sensitive, kind hearted and independent people. Though they are interested in downloading apps, they have little knowledge about the source for acquiring them.
The data for this survey has been collected from across 10 countries including the UK, Italy, South Africa, Singapore, China, Brazil, India, Spain, Germany and the United States. As per the statistics, South Africans fall in the category of the connectors while Germans and Indians maintain their stance as ‘apprentices’. Besides, the Italians classify as live wires whereas the Brazilian population seems to flaunting their status of ‘creators’.
With such distinctions in tastes and preferences, app developers may soon flood the Brazilian market with ingenious apps and the Indian segment with mathematical products. Those who wish to figure out their personal appitype can log into the Ovi Store blog and take the test for the same.