A Familiar Path to a New Future
Our Solution
How we helped a leading ODM build a product bridging the gap between featurephones and smartphones.
The Result
A design that opened up India’s underserved markets in Tier2/3 towns blending technology, entertainment and long lasting battery life
The Story
For millions of people in India, the mobile phone was already a trusted companion long before smartphones arrived. It was how music was shared, calls were made loudly on busy streets, and days were organized around battery life that lasted for days, not hours. Wiwo Super was designed for those users. Instead of asking them to abandon familiar habits, it met them where they were, blending the comfort of physical buttons and FM radio with the promise of Android. The result was not a sudden leap into the future, but a gentle step forward that felt natural from the very first use.
THE CHALLENGE
Crossing the Featurephone Divide
By 2011, India stood at a crossroads in mobile adoption. Urban consumers were embracing premium Android and iOS devices, but the majority remained tethered to low-cost feature phones—reliable, familiar, and affordable.
For first-time smartphone users on the outskirts of cities—mechanics, rickshaw drivers, shopkeepers, and service workers—smartphones carried a double burden:
- Economic risk: The jump from a ₹1,000–₹1,500 feature phone to a ₹5,000+ smartphone was steep for budget-conscious families.
- Trust gap: Earlier low-cost touchscreen attempts often ended in lagging UI, poor build quality, and weak batteries.
- Cultural distance: Android was virtually unknown outside metros, and English-heavy interfaces alienated many who relied on regional scripts.
- Behavioral inertia: Physical call buttons and loud FM radio weren’t features—they were rituals with emotional weight.
For United Telelinks (UTL), the mission was ambitious: Could we design a smartphone that felt familiar from the very first touch? It wouldn’t just need to be cheap—it had to seamlessly fit into everyday Indian life.
THE INSIGHT
Habits Matter More Than Specs
The resistance wasn’t to smartphones—it was to breaking habits, comfort, and cultural rituals. Our design needed to:
- Preserve tactile familiarity with physical buttons.
- Honor communal listening via FM.
- Communicate in local languages through Indic-script UI.
- Deliver rugged durability and long battery life.
Design had to feel like home from day one.
DESIGN SOLUTION
Masstige for First-Time Users
We leaned into Masstige—the art of importing aspirational cues into mass-market products. While the term was popularized by Silverstein & Fiske in Trading Up (2003), its ethos dates to Michael Graves’s beloved 1999 Target collection.
For our audience, the Tata Indica represented attainable aspiration. Its smiling grille symbolized hope and upward mobility. We distilled that into the red ring framing Wiwo’s physical buttons—a Masstige signal of pride, right in the user’s grip.
Additional design features included:
- Physical hotkeys mapped to Android Froyo actions, with clear ‘accept’ and ‘hang-up’ icons.
- Audio-first hardware: the first-ever smartphone with a telescopic FM antenna and a high-powered speaker.
- Localized UI: Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, Telugu, and Malayalam support out of the box.
- Rugged build and battery capacity built for rural endurance.
Hands-on ODM collaboration, ensuring the design survived production unblemished.
THE IMPACT
Opening India’s Next Smartphone Wave
- Indic-Inclusive Innovation
BGR hailed the Wiwo Super as “the first phone with an Indic Script.” - Access Meets Affordability
Priced at ₹2,099–₹4,299 and armed with five regional languages, it unlocked smartphone access for Tier 2 and Tier 3 India. - A Behavioral Bridge
More than a gadget—it was a symbolic passage. By preserving FM habits and physical navigation, Wiwo Super eased users into digital without friction.
Design That Listens
While direct user testimonials are limited online, the ethnographic-rich design process ensured real resonance with users.
THE RESULT
A Charger Ready for India’s Streets
- Rapid progression from concept to DVT and PVT readiness.
- Oakter could begin supply on aggressive timelines.
- The charger is now available via ElectricPe’s online shop, powering the expansion of India’s slow-charging ecosystem.
- Installations are quicker, safer, and more consistent thanks to the single-fastener mount.
Key Learnings
- Continuity beats novelty—design that honors existing habits fosters adoption.
- Masstige brings emotional value—symbolic aspirational cues (like the red ring) elevate at affordable cost.
- Manufacturing fidelity matters—ODM visits protect the soul of the design.
User Voices
While archived user testimonials are scarce, the design direction was deeply informed by field observations, local dealer feedback, and early launch insights. This grounded, user-first approach ensured the Wiwo Super wasn’t just loved—it was understood by those it served.
United Telelinks: Company Snapshot
United Telelinks (Bangalore) Limited, founded in 1994, heads up mobile assembly and manufacturing in Bangalore, known for the Karbonn brand and capacities of ~350,000 units/month. It operates under the umbrella of United Telecoms Limited (UTL)—established in 1984 and known for its work in cellular services, telecom infrastructure, and e-governance platforms. This deep heritage provided Wiwo’s mobile-first leap with both credibility and scale.