UAE residents tell how often they change phones

Published Sunday, March 17, 2013

By Team Emirates 24|7

Last Friday, at an arguably over-the-top Broadway-themed event in New York’s Times Square, at about 3.15am UAE time, South Korean giant Samsung Electronics unveiled the Galaxy S4 smartphone, and launched yet another handy candy for us to start craving – and saving – for.

The launch follows close on the heels of some of the other big smartphone launches this year – the BlackBerry Z10, the Sony Xperia Z, the HTC One and the LG Optimus, to name but a few.

As rumour would have it, the Cupertino-based Apple Inc. will be soon following it up with its own next big thing, the iPhone 5S (or iPhone 6) in a couple of months’ time.

With all these phones vying for our attention – and money – we asked ourselves this question: how often do people change phones, and why?

Not content with the answers we gave ourselves, Emirates24|7 decided to go a step ahead and ask UAE residents this very question. The answers are enlightening, to say the least.

Here’s what they had to say:

“I have a basic Nokia mobile phone that does nothing else than phone calls and text messages. I change it only when it breaks down, about every two years. My phone usually breaks from having fallen down too often,” quips Anna Bachmeier, a German national living in Dubai.

Anna is an exception rather than the rule. A vast majority of residents we spoke with say they are indeed tempted with the features of every new phone, and can’t decide which one to go for – and find reasons for dumping their ‘older’ phones.

In fact, latest available official data shows that there were 13.34 million mobile phone subscribers in the UAE by the end of October 2012. With the UAE’s population estimated at less than 8 million – including small children who can’t possibly use a mobile phone subscription – this means that, on an average, each one of us is carrying two subscriptions.

Which would mean that, on an average, each one if us has at least two – possibly three or more – phones. What on earth do we do with them? Or, more fundamentally, why do we buy the many phones that we do?

The answer may lie in temptation. “With so much on offer, it’s tempting to change your mobile every time a new one hits the stand. Now, that might not be a feasible option especially for an Apple loyalist like me, but I try to stay updated,” says N Nair, a marketing executive working in Dubai.

“I’ve skipped two versions (iPhone 3 and iPhone 4S), but I’ve picked every other iPhone in the market. Now, I have the iPhone 5 and the news of an iPhone 6 has got me worried,” he shrugs.

Another geek, Satvik, is equally obsessed about owning the latest in the market, and doesn’t mind shelling out his savings for it. If it’s not an iPhone, he won’t own it.

“My mom and kid brother are happy with my obsession because I hand them the older versions when I buy the new one,” he adds.

But there are others like Sheetal, who aren’t swayed by the barrage of new mobiles in the market.

“I find this whole exercise pointless. I have basic uses for my phone, so I don’t need anything high-tech. I was gifted the Samsung Galaxy S2 and I’ve been using it ever since. I don’t think I will change it now, unless the phone gives up on me.”

Then there are those that are passionate – but not obsessive – about new launches. Dubai resident and Director of an IT Solutions company, Srinivas Karuturi, says he only replaces his phone when there is something unique out there in the market that is worthy of a new buy, or he manages a killer deal on a phone.

“I am always ready for an upgrade, provided the phone has something revolutionary to offer,” he said. “Something like the iPhone or the BlackBerry Z10, which offer cutting edge technology that is unique to those brands and models.”

Karuturi, who currently uses a BlackBerry 9390, claims he was one of the first few ones to buy into a Palm Pilot, “which was one of the first smartphones ever launched.”

He states his current phone, which is five months old, “was virtually free”, with the package he currently pays for with telecom provider etisalat.

“I am now eyeing the Z10, but I will not pay the list price. I am sure deals are a few weeks away so I will patiently wait for it to come to me,” he says.

Meanwhile, South African architect Palesa Thompson says she prefers loyalty over flash-in-the-pan fads that every other new phone offers.

Says Thompson: “I currently use an iPhone 4 and am quite happy with its performance, have been since I received the mobile as a gift nearly two years ago.”

She explains further: “I am not the type who follows some mass trend or attempts to keep up with the Jones, as is the trend with many in Dubai.”

Quiz her when an upgrade would be the call of the hour, and she admitted only when her trusty handheld gives up on her. “Till then, we are stuck with each other,” she says.

Pakistani national and digital client servicing head Abdul Basit Qureshi says: “I change phones probably once in two years, and only when situations like when the office gives me a phone or a new technology upgrade is the call of the hour.”

He continues: “I have a friend who changes his phones every six months. In marketing terms, he is what you call a forward thinker. He is always the first one amongst peers to have a new phone in hand, so he is ideally the one we go to for recommendations before snapping up a new gadget.”

Qureshi, who currently has an iPhone and a BlackBerry, admits he is waiting for the Samsung S4 to be available in April to upgrade his phone.

German national and club manager Mark Grintke says: “I go through phones like women go through clothes, but that’s probably because I have a habit of misplacing mine all the time.”

Grintke admits that last year he had to replace his phone three separate times and now simply invests in a basic BlackBerry that set him back Dh70.

“I would downgrade it further but that’s the cheapest smartphone I could find in the market that suited my purpose,” he said.

We tried to narrow the phone changing habits down to personality traits, but it’s a difficult if not downright impossible task.

Although they are friends, John Grainger (23) and Sam Ibrahim (36) have totally different views on how long their mobile phone may stay with them.

“I love new gadgets. I buy a new phone at least twice a year,” says Sam, an Egyptian-American resident in Dubai. “I carry two phones, and I buy the newest version of both these phones when it comes out. I just like to check out the new features of the newer version.”

His love for the newest gadget costs Sam around Dh8,000 per year, but he never regrets the purchase. “I do my research. I would not buy the phone if I did not like the features on it. But if I do, I buy the phone and I play with it.”

After the new phone, the older phone either lands up in the closet, or is passed on to a new happy owner. “I keep six phones in my closet, but I have given many of the old phones away.”

Sam could not thrill his friend John with such a gift, as the British expat has chosen to do away with all technologically advanced devices. “I have cancelled the data [plan] on my smartphone and put it away. Now I am using the same phone I used to carry three years ago. No Internet, not even a camera; just phone calls and text messages. It feels great,” John says.

“I love these old phones,” he continues. I have dropped this phone a thousand times, thrown it away, and it has been in the water too. Yet, it is still working. If this was one of the newest smartphones, it would have given up already. I do believe that these new phones are designed in such a way that you must purchase a new one after a couple of months. I rather stick with the old one, which I keep 2-3 years.”

Although John could not be happier with his decision, his friends do not feel pleased at all. “I receive complaints all the time, about me not being available on this or that. I really do not care. I play snake on my phone, and do not need more.”

Disagreement also struck Kinana Homsi-Mardini (27) and her husband, who is a true tech-lover. While Kinana goes with the motto ‘as long as it works’, her husband is of the opposite nature and wishes to catch the latest of the latest.

“I do not get it. Only two weeks ago he purchased a newer version of the phone he had. He sold his old phone, only to be able to get the newer version. If you ask me, there was not even that much of a difference, but he said the difference was huge,” the Syrian lady complains.

“I do like to have a nice phone, but I would not get rid of my old phone in order to get the newer one. I have had my smartphone now for a year and I am very happy with it. I will only replace it when it gives up on me, which God willing will not happen,” she says.

So, how often do you change your phone, and why? Let us know in comments below.

(Inputs by Bindu Suresh Rai, Shuchita Kapur, Sneha May Francis & Majorie van Leijen)

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