Mobile users shun new technologies

Despite the vast of number of features packed into today's mobile phones, over half of users (60 per cent) still use them purely for calling and sending SMS messages, according to a new study by mobile interaction management developers SNAPin Software.

Amongst a third of respondents who do take advantage of their mobile phone's other features, the camera came out as the top choice - with 30 per cent of users saying they use the camera to take and send pictures to friends and family.

Despite the big push of mobile data services and the increasing number of flat-rate data packages from service providers, just 12 per cent of mobile users e-mail from their mobile phone or access the internet.

Similarly, despite the increasing number of phones with mapping and GPS functionality, street navigation systems proved to be least popular service, with just three per cent of respondents using them.

"Today's mobile phones are packed with functionality, yet many mobile users only discover a mere fraction of the features and applications available," said Robert Lewis, president and chief executive officer of SNAPin Software.

SNAPin attributes the lack of adoption to three major barriers, which it describes as services apathy, billing confusion and manual fatigue.

The research revealed that the majority of users simply aren't interested in using the mobile services available on their phone.

While a third of respondents (29 per cent) said they were confused about mobile operators' billing rates and how they are being charged for additional offerings, and a further18 per cent admitted they couldn't be bothered to go through a user manual in order to learn how to use certain applications.

"We believe this situation is symptomatic of how mobile handset manufacturers and operators approach user education. Users need simpler and less time intensi ve ways of discovering their mobile phones' potential," explained Lewis.