Identifying mobile phone design features critical to user satisfaction

A variety of mobile phones are available to consumers. They differ from each other in many design features including shape, color, size, and material. This study attempts to identify some of the design features of a mobile phone critical to user satisfaction. Empirical models linking design features to satisfaction levels were developed and used to identify critical design features. Design properties common to "desirable" and "undesirable" phones were then extracted by comparing the values of the critical design features. The approach used in this study may help the product designers identify critical design features with their desirable properties in a systematic manner. (C) 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.