Users to hold on longer to smartphones due to lack of new features

Market researchers from Gartner predict the smartphone upgrade cycle will lengthen because of a lack of new features being added. The firm believes mobile handset lifetimes will increase every year through 2020, after that they will shorten again due to the emergence of new AI capabilities.

"By 2020, artificial intelligence capabilities on smartphones will offer a more intelligent digital persona on the device," said Anshul Gupta, a research director at Gartner, in a press statement. "Machine learning, biometrics and user behavior will improve the ease of use, self-service and frictionless authentications. This will allow smartphones to be more trusted than other credentials, such as credit cards, passports, IDs or keys."

According to Gupta, future AI capabilities, including natural-language processing and machine perception, will allow smartphones to learn, plan and solve problems for users.

Gartner expects 1.9 billion mobile phones will be sold this year, up 1.6 percent year-over-year. Smartphone sales are anticipated to grow 5 percent in 2019.

Via: EE Times