Talk:Feature phone

Inaccurate example
The device shown in this article (Nokia 130) is a cellphone, not a feature phone. According to the website GSM Arena, it doesn't even support Java. Most feature phones have a touchscreen like smartphones and you can install and run Java applets.

And let me tell you my terminology too: Cellphone: Basic functions like phone calls, text message, address book, watch/alarm, simple calendar, radio/music player, physical keypad but no full keyboard Feature phone, in addition to basic functions: uses Java, software can be installed additionally, either physical full keyboard or touchscreen, camera, internet (ideally wifi) Smartphone: uses a more sophisticated operating system than feature phones, but then, not really and just wants to spy on us and make us customers the product for the big corporate companies — Preceding unsigned comment added by 46.253.186.62 (talk) 21:12, 17 June 2019 (UTC)

Please, what does this mean?
"...a class of mobile phones that are still technically otherwise smartphones, besides their lack of highly advanced hardware and capabilities of modern ones." If I knew what the author was trying to say I could have re-written it in better English but I'm afraid as things are I have to say it is ambiguous to the point of being incomprehensible! 86.150.252.213 (talk) 22:06, 6 August 2019 (UTC)
 * a phone able to run Runescape, but without multitouch. 23.30.146.165 (talk) 20:03, 24 February 2020 (UTC)

Uncited material in need of citations
I am moving the following uncited material here until it can be properly supported with inline citations of reliable, secondary sources, per WP:V, WP:NOR, WP:CS, WP:NOR, WP:IRS, WP:PSTS, et al. This diff shows where it was in the article. Nightscream (talk) 18:36, 3 September 2022 (UTC)

LEDE SECTION
Feature phones typically provide voice calling and text messaging functionality, as well as basic multimedia and internet capabilities, and other services offered by the user's mobile network operator. The hardware of feature phones often include a backlit liquid-crystal display (LCD) screen, a hardware notification LED, a micro USB port, a physical keyboard, a microphone, a microSD card slot, a rear-facing camera to record video and capture pictures, and GPS services. Some feature phones include a rudimentary app store that includes basic mobile apps such as a calendar, calculator, mobile web, and mobile games.

Definition
Feature phones were typically mid-range devices, between basic mobile telephones on the low end, with few or no features beyond basic calling and messaging, and business-oriented smartphones on the high end. The best-selling feature phones include those by Nokia, the Motorola Razr, the multimedia-enabled Sony Ericsson W580i, and the LG Black Label Series that targeted retail customers.

Differences and similarities between other devices
Feature phones run on proprietary firmware; for example MediaTek MAUI, with third-party software support through platforms such as Java ME or Binary Runtime Environment for Wireless (BREW). The proprietary operating systems were not designed in mind to develop nor handle the intensive applications found on iOS and Android, both of which specifically cater to third-party application development which became increasingly important.

For example, today's feature phones typically serve as a portable media player, and can have digital cameras, GPS navigation, Wi-Fi and mobile broadband internet access, and mobile gaming through discrete apps.

Contemporary usage
...and extended battery life per one charge (viz. standby and talk times). In emerging markets, a feature phone remains the primary means of communication for many.

For manufacturers
Feature phones are often kept in mobile phone manufacturers' ranges for several reasons:
 * They are lower priced than smartphones, because:
 * Most patents on basic mobile device technology have expired. Some expired patents make it possible to add more functions in their basic form, that before were usually the purview of mid-range or high-end devices.  Many standards-essential patents are required to have fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory licensing (RAND/FRAND), which typically means that license payments for each device using a standards-essential technology must be low enough that it will not dis-incentivise adoption of a standard, or cause legal conflict;
 * Less complexity translates to simpler assembly and cheaper unit cost;
 * Relative modularity: a feature phone can be designed around one or two primary functions: torch, radio, microSD card slot for additional storage, music player, camera, internet web browser, and wireless hotspot for more advanced devices. Many basic phones now include some of that functionality, rendering them as either basic feature phones or smart feature phones, whereas advanced feature phones include all of these functions and others.

To consumers
From the point of view of markets and consumers, there are several situations for which feature phones are beneficial:
 * Power requirements are typically relatively low, which translates to extended talk and standby times;
 * Anticipated loss, damage, or reasonably rough use: feature phones are often more durable, less complex, and more affordable, and for these reasons are preferred as travel devices, children's devices, and for field use scenarios. The devices' low cost means that loss of such an item can be manageable, and usually serves as a disincentive for theft in mature markets;
 * Liberal and mature markets are well-suited for specific functions: in countries where payphones have been discontinued, some mobile operators offer prepaid cellular plans with a SIM card and a basic mobile phone in one package for about the same amount a mid-tier calling card would have cost (€15 for the whole package in some areas). Travellers may often prefer this option, to save on expensive roaming fees.

Industry trends
The first cellular phone, the Motorola DynaTAC released in 1984, is considered a basic mobile phone due to its inability to do anything more than making voice calls.

Despite the introduction of smartphones in the mid-1990s, ignited with the August 1994 release of the IBM Simon, Nokia Communicator from 1996 on, and the BlackBerry range of handheld personal digital assistants (PDAs) from Research in Motion (RiM); feature phones enjoyed unchallenged popularity into the mid 2000s. In North America, smartphones, such as Palm and BlackBerry, were still considered a niche category for enterprise use. Outside North America, Nokia's Symbian devices had captured the early smartphone market, in which price was the only barrier to entry, and Nokia offered smartphones across all feasible price segments. In the mid-2000s, phone makers such as Nokia and Motorola enjoyed record sales of feature phones.

However, consumer-oriented smartphones such as the iPhone and those running Android fundamentally changed the market, with Steve Jobs proclaiming in 2007 that "the phone was not just a communication tool but a way of life".

Platforms
Several distinct mobile operating systems have been developed which can operate on a feature phone. These operating systems are designed to be lightweight to increase the feature phone battery life, work well with a small screen which does not have touch features, and also work well with a small hardware keyboard such as T9 keyboard commonly found on feature phones.

Nokia has developed the Series 30, Series 30+, Series 40 and Feature OS software platform and application user interfaces which run the Nokia Asha platform.

NTT Docomo has developed MOAP software platform and OPP (Operator Pack) (Japanese).

Qualcomm has developed a lightweight runtime environment Brew MP, an operating system for ARM phones REX OS, KCP (Japanese), and KCP+ (Japanese).

Tizen Association (formerly LiMo Foundation) has developed a Linux-based LiMo Platform for smartphones.

Smarterphone has developed Smarterphone OS, a full operating system designed for feature phones. The first release was in 2008.

KaiOS Tech has developed KaiOS, a lightweight fork of Firefox OS which was originally developed by Mozilla.