215 is almost over in the blink of an eye, and it's time for major mobile phone manufacturers to take stock at the end of the year. The past year can be said that challenges and opportunities coexist for all mobile phone manufacturers, and the results are also happy and sad. In the past year, Huawei was the only "China Cool Alliance" among domestic mobile phones, and the other three companies all declined in different degrees, while Xiaomi and Meizu gained substantial growth by further broadening the Internet ideas. At the same time, the rise of a new batch of Internet mobile phone manufacturers represented by Hammer, One Plus and 36 Qiku also made more people see the importance of the Internet for the development of the mobile phone industry. Of course, this does not mean that the offline mode has come to an end. The continued popularity of OPPO and vivo has once again proved that offline channels are still an indispensable key link, and the opening of offline channels by many Internet vendors also represents a development idea in the future.
Of course, not every mobile phone user is concerned about the changes in the development of the industry, so our topic today is still about mobile phone products. In the past year, we have seen all kinds of smart phones, whether it is superior cost performance, novel and unique design, or carrying the marketing banner of various gimmicks, the final market has made a clear and rational choice. We can see that those rough so-called metal body designs, those so-called high-pixel cameras that image five dregs, and those system UIs that are labeled with Android 5.X but still stuck, can't escape the user's discerning eyes. With the gradual popularization of smart phones, domestic mobile phone users are no longer fooled by just a few concepts as they were a few years ago. In 216, all mobile phone manufacturers have to come up with some real materials to really impress users.
so, what designs or configurations will become the mainstream of the market next year? In today's article, the author will talk with you about smartphones in 216. Before starting today's inventory, the author simply summarized his prediction of the standard configuration of smart phones in 216 into a table. You can refer to it first, and then we will have a detailed analysis and prediction.
"
smartphone configuration forecast of all levels in 216
mobile phone
low-end entry level
mid-range level
high-end flagship
screen size
5.5 inches
5.5 inches
5.5 inches
resolution (material).
192x18
192x18 amoled
2k (256x144) amoled
processor
Snapdragon 415/425
Snapdragon 62/MT6755
Xiaolong 82/exynos889/. GB
3? GB
4GB
body memory
8/16GB
16/32 GB
32/ 64 GB
main camera
13 million
13 million/16 million (optical image stabilization)
13 million/16 million. Support beauty
8 million /4 super pixel, beauty
battery
3 mAh
35 mAh, fast charging
35 mAh, fast charging and wireless charging
features
VoLTE
Type C interface, VoLTE
. VoLTE
Appearance
"
Metal and glass are popular, and differentiation is the key to success
With the increase of various attributes of smart phones, the appearance of a mobile phone accounts for an increasing proportion in the overall score of users, and even becomes a decisive factor for users to buy mobile phones in some cases. Looking back on the past year, it is not difficult to find that almost all major mobile phone manufacturers will greatly exaggerate the appearance of their mobile phones, so we have also seen one brand-new concept after another, such as ID borderless, arles texture, violin arc, screw-free ID and palm arc design. On the surface, this grandiose wind seems to be innovative, but behind it is the performance of lack of innovation under the background of convergence of mobile phone design.
▲ arles texture adopted by one plus mobile phone X
Because the existing smart phones are designed around the touch screen, the future appearance of smart phones will definitely depend on the development of screen technology. It is foreseeable that the hyperboloid side screen design led by Samsung will soon be extended to other brands, and Samsung is also likely to bring a breakthrough folding screen mobile phone. At the same time, in order to ensure the sufficient stability of mobile phones, 7 series aluminum alloys will also appear in a wide range of smart phones.
In addition, in order to bring differentiated touch and appearance to the fuselage, the double-sided glass design, which was gradually popularized in 215, will still dominate for a long time; Among them, the shape of glass and the detailed design of anti-fall will also become a new criterion for high-end mobile phones. Of course, considering that zircon (cubic zirconia) has been used as the backplane material, it is not ruled out that more materials will appear on mobile phones instead of glass in the future.
▲ Blackberry Priv adopts a retro slide shape
On the other hand, the appearance of retro shape is also a noteworthy phenomenon in the mobile phone circle in 215, and the slide design similar to BlackBerry Priv will also become a representative of smartphone differentiation in 216. However, considering the patent problems, it is difficult for small and medium-sized manufacturers to make a difference in this direction, and whether large manufacturers will intervene in a wider range depends on what kind of market effect BlackBerry Priv will achieve.
at present, the appearance of smart phones in 216 will be dominated by straight shapes, and all-metal integrated body and double-sided glass design will appear more in manufacturers' copywriting, but with the increasing popularity of CNC cutting and other related processes, the optimization of details and the pursuit of experience will determine whether a product will be accepted by the market. In addition, as we mentioned earlier, in the case of similar hardware parameters, the proportion of design in a mobile phone score will further increase, which will even become the only direction for a mobile phone to stand out.
screens
"
5.5 inches are becoming the mainstream, and small-size screens are expected to pick up
In fact, screens should be counted as part of the appearance of mobile phones, and they are listed separately because screen size and display effect also involve many deep-seated things, such as screen structure and screen material. Of course, let's start with the screen size. I don't need to say that everyone has discovered that the screen size of most smart phones is about 5.5 inches. Although large-screen mobile phones also have certain market demand, they have gradually become a niche. However, the popularity of iPhone 6c and the popularity of Xiaomi 4c all imply that more and more mobile phone manufacturers will use small-size screens.
▲ Xiaomi 4C is very suitable for one-handed control
As for the resolution, it is obvious that 216 will be the world of 18P, and 72P will probably only appear in smartphones below 5 yuan; At the same time, the 2K screen will become the upper limit of mobile phone screen resolution. Sony Z5 Premium Edition's attempt at 4K is likely to end in failure, because we hardly need ppi to reach such an amazing number as 86. What's more, the extra power consumption brought by high-resolution screen is not acceptable to everyone.
▲ There is almost no color cast in the display of AMOLED screen
In addition, the change of screen material is also worthy of our attention. With the gradual reduction of smartphone thickness and the continuous appearance of hyperboloid modeling, Samsung's AMOLED screen is gradually becoming the mainstream of the market. What's more, Samsung's high-end AMOLED screen has basically got rid of the label with serious color cast, and filling the short board will also make the AMOLED screen make a big difference in 216. It is worth mentioning that under the background that broken screen almost means changing the machine, Moto X Force's attempt to prevent falling screen is also a development direction in the future. Generally speaking, in 216, more and more mobile phones will use Samsung's 5.5-inch AMOLED screen, and it will become easier and easier to buy a small-screen mobile phone within 5 inches.
processor
"
The heat of nuclear war has been reduced, and the manufacturing process has been upgraded in an all-round way
Nowadays, buying a mobile phone is just like saving a computer, and a good CPU will directly affect the performance of the whole machine. This also led many people to judge the performance of CPU by the number of cores, which gradually triggered a "nuclear war" between manufacturers. As everyone knows, the number of cores is only a part of the factors that affect CPU performance, and the process technology and core architecture play a considerable role in CPU performance. This is why Samsung, Qualcomm and MediaTek are all developing 14/16nm or even higher-level process technology, and Xiaolong 82 can still achieve more powerful performance in generate even if it changes from 81' s 2nm eight-core to 16nm four-core.
▲ Xiaolong 82 has many upgrades including process technology
It can be said that the lessons of Xiaolong 81 have made many users and manufacturers begin to understand that there is no need to continue the "nuclear war" blindly, and the eight cores are strong enough, but the four cores are not inferior. In the coming year of 216, 14/16nm Exynos 889 and Xiaolong 82 will undoubtedly dominate the smart phone industry; Of course, Helio X2 will also occupy a place in the high-end market with relatively low cost. As for the mid-market with the widest audience, Snapdragon 62, which also adopts new process technology and core architecture, will occupy more than half of the country together with the upcoming MT6755. Of course, the low-end entry market with particularly fierce competition is likely to be occupied by Snapdragon 415/425.
▲ High performance and low cost are the advantages of MediaTek
Generally speaking, Qualcomm will still occupy a dominant position in the smart phone market with its complete product structure and brand-new core architecture; Samsung will exert a lot of pressure on Qualcomm in the high-end market with Exynos 889 and Exynos 742; And MediaTek will continue to become the first choice for mobile phone manufacturers to enrich product lines and reduce costs in various market segments by virtue of its high chip cost performance ratio.
Taking photos
"
The bottom is crushing, and all kinds of focuses are in full swing
After talking about the processor, I have to talk about the camera part of the three major pieces of mobile phone configuration. It is no exaggeration to say that except for professional photographers, most users have long been accustomed to using smartphones as their first choice for taking pictures. Once the user raises the camera function of the mobile phone to a certain height, it is unlikely that the manufacturer will try to fool the user through the parameters. After all, even the aunt who sells pancakes downstairs knows that the 8 megapixel iPhone 6 is better than many tens of millions of pixel mobile phones. At this time, major mobile phone manufacturers need to come up with some real materials to enhance the experience.
▲ Structure diagram of mobile phone camera module
Whether it is a digital card camera or a smart phone, image sensor (CMOS/CCD), Optical Lens and image processor (ISP) are all indispensable for taking pictures. These three parts comply with the "Cannikin Law" and * * * both affect the quality of output images. From the sensor's point of view, it is still "crushing people at the bottom". It is very likely that high-end flagship mobile phones will adopt IMX 3XX sensors in a wide range. This series of sensors is famous for its larger single pixel area, which can further enhance the photo experience when the pixels are completely enough. IMX 298 and IMX 258 will appear more on mid-to high-end mobile phones. Among them, the smaller size of the former can greatly reduce the thickness of the mobile phone, while the latter has proved itself on Xiaomi 4c with its mature and stable performance and affordable price.
▲ The matching of lenses and the focusing method will affect the photographing experience
Of course, a good "foundation" does not mean a good photographing experience, and the choice of focusing method and the matching of lenses will affect the user's photographing experience; In 215, there have been many smart phones with hybrid focus, and this trend will be further amplified in 216. In addition, the optical anti-shake function will be further extended to more mid-range mobile phones. However, you can't have your cake and eat it. Optical anti-shake and multi-lens configurations will take up more volume and cause the final lens to protrude from the surface of the fuselage. Therefore, in 216, it is still difficult for us to see a super camera phone with no protruding lens. It is worth mentioning that it is possible for manufacturers to realize the functions of large aperture blur and analog optical zoom through dual lenses.
battery life
"
fast charging makes up for the lack of battery technology
no matter how powerful the hardware of a smart phone is, all its functions depend on a battery. Unfortunately, however, there is still no breakthrough in battery technology, and battery technologies such as graphene and lithium air are still far from commercialization. At present, the feasible way to extend battery life can only be to increase battery capacity. In terms of capacity expansion, manufacturers currently mainly adopt the methods of increasing the energy density of lithium-ion batteries (currently the highest is about 7Wh/kg) or increasing the volume occupied by the batteries. Since the thickness of mobile phones will not be affected basically, the method of increasing energy density is likely to be extended to more models in 216.
▲ The convenience of wireless charging makes up for the shortage of battery technology
In addition, wireless charging and fast charging are also a way to improve the battery life. Although this method is not as direct as increasing the battery capacity, shortening the charging time or simplifying the charging operation is the best way that manufacturers can think of at present. According to the previous news, Qualcomm has added the fast charging 3. technology to Snapdragon 62/82 and other processors, which can realize 8% charging in 3 minutes, and the wireless charging mode has already realized the support for fast charging. Therefore, it is foreseeable that a large number of smart phones will support the fast charging function in 216, and wireless charging technology will be extended to more high-end mobile phones.
Other
"
VoLTE, iris recognition, 3D Touch, Type C interface
Of course, with the continuous development of various technologies, the hardware parameters that have attracted much attention have already gone beyond the category of "three big pieces", and fingerprint recognition, which was very popular in 215, is a good example. In the coming year of 216, there will still be many new functions extended to more mobile phones, such as VoLTE, iris recognition, 3D Touch, and the already popular Type C USB interface.
First of all, with the three major operators announcing their 4G+ network upgrade plans, V.