Not Designed For Humans

Boy Genius Report sums up the Samsung Galaxy Note:

The phone is too big. You will look stupid talking on it, people will laugh at you, and you’ll be unhappy if you buy it.

I would like to think that, as a result of its ridiculous size, Americans would not buy this phone. It clearly is not designed for humans: too small to be a tablet, but too big to be a phone. But we are so used to things not designed for humans at this point, I fear many won’t notice. I have a nightmare image of soccer moms holding giant slabs to their heads while cruising around suburbia in their SUVs. Indeed, the initial sales figures reported by Forbes do not bode well:

Consumers seem to like it. Samsung says it has already sold 2 million Notes since last October’s launch, and plans to sell another 10 million by the end of 2012.

It is a shame that Android handset makers are having to play these games in order to get their phones noticed. This phablet phenomenon is a akin to putting a giant inflatable gorilla in front of a store. Sure, the inflatable gorilla will make the store more noticeable from the highway, but what are the chances that store will provide a good shopping experience? Very slim chances. Management’s decision to put a giant gorilla out front is a clue to their decision making in general. Similarly, the phablet form factor of phones like the Samsung Galaxy Note should make us question the ability of these Android handset makers to provide a good user experience. Getting noticed from the highway isn’t everything.