Consumers are much happier with their wearable hardware than corresponding apps, according to a new report from Argus Insights.As far as apps go, according to Argus, Jawbone Up is leading delight as a great “all-in-one app”, with it making personal data actionable, however users have also expressed discontent with the Jawbone bands.
Argus found that, based on an analysis of over 136,000 consumer reviews of wearables devices and apps from November 2015 to February 2016, that users report higher delight for devices than the brands’ associated apps.
“Clearly, the app experience is affecting the long-term efficacy of the wearables market,” John Feland, Argus CEO, commented. “Without interpretation of the data to inspire action and promote change, devices become dispensable and land in the sock drawer.”
Among the report’s findings, both Nike and Jawbone apps are earning praise and relatively higher delight scores, while Fitbit, Samsung and other apps are consistently seeing low consumer satisfaction.
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“The major areas of consumer discontent include trouble syncing data, apps crashing and frustration with installation,” Argus states.
“The report also shows that consumers are happiest with the fitness, calorie tracker and heart-rate monitoring information available from the wearable apps.”
According to Argus, there is a continued need for apps to improve to interpret all data collected by wearable devices.
Argus additionally found that companies must integrate all personal data “in a simple, understandable way and inspire users to take specific actions based on this information”.
