HMD Global, the home of Nokia phones, leads the Counterpoint Research 2020 trust rankings based on the four pillars of software, security updates, build quality, and devices recommended for enterprises.
The findings are a part of Counterpoint Research’s latest whitepaper titled “Nokia Phones Lead the Trust Rankings based on Software, Security Updates and Build Quality”.
Counterpoint Research analyzed the importance of various factors that are relevant yet ignored and are crucial in gaining trust from the end consumers.
They allocated four main pillars contributing to the overall Trust Rankings and they are:
- Timely Software Updates.
- Timely Security Updates.
- Build Quality.
- Enterprise/Business Recommended Smartphones.
All these pillars are further categorized into various criteria and a weightage has been assigned to each of the pillars. For example, Timely Software updates (30%), Security updates (30%), Build Quality (30%) and Enterprise/Business recommended (10%).
Each OEM was evaluated on a scale of 100 with cumulative numbers added to determine what we call an overall “Trust rankings”
Table of Contents
Number 1 – Security Upgrades
- The frequency of releasing security patches varies from one smartphone maker to the next. Only a handful of smartphone brands roll out monthly security updates. Most make them available less frequently – either bi-monthly, quarterly, or even less often
- Security is essential to prevent malicious attacks that can cripple smartphones and leave users vulnerable to having personal information stolen.
- Few consumers have been found to mention regular security updates as a highly desirable feature. This may be because consumers assume that their smartphones will be updated, or that they don’t understand the implications of poor security. Or maybe it’s because attacks are relatively rare. But they can be highly disruptive when they do occur
Number 2 – Software Updates
Number 3 – Build Quality and Testing
- To evaluate the build quality pillar, Counterpoint Research undertook a qualitative survey with the top five ODM/EMS suppliers.
- The Industry average, here, is defined as the average of all qualitative instructions which are required for a certain test. For example, if in a soft pressure test various OEMs have pressure instruction ranging from 20-25KG, then the industry average is taken as 22.5KG
- The build quality pillar was evaluated in terms of different segments like product robustness, force measurement, drop and impact, fatigue, wear and scratch, thermal test, moisture and liquid test, and others which included both qualitative and quantitative observations.
Number 4 – Business/Enterprise Recommended
In a crowded smartphone market, every manufacturer is trying hard to differentiate its offering from its competitors. From design and build quality, to screen size and the number of cameras, a lot goes into this effort to differentiate. The software that the smartphone runs on is also an important consideration.
