Marginal Gains or Meaningful Progress? Exploring Tech Tuber Narratives on Annual Smartphone Innovation
Chandima Wickramatunga (Department of Information Systems, Business Analytics Deakin University Burwood, Melbourne, Australia), Ruwan Nagahawatta (Sydney International School of Technology, Commerce Melbourne, Australia), Anagi Gamachchi (Department of Information Systems

TL;DR
This paper investigates the disconnect between industry claims of innovation and expert evaluations of smartphone updates, revealing that most annual improvements are incremental and often insufficient to justify frequent releases, raising concerns about sustainable innovation.
Contribution
It applies a grounded theory approach guided by Rogers' DOI framework to analyze reviewer discourse, uncovering processes that sustain perceptions of innovation in the smartphone industry.
Findings
Incremental updates dominate annual releases.
Expert reviewers often find updates insufficient for meaningful innovation.
Market complacency and perception cycles influence innovation narratives.
Abstract
Smartphone manufacturers continue to release new models annually, yet the pace of meaningful innovation has slowed, with most changes limited to incremental updates in design, performance, or software. This study examines whether such updates deliver tangible user benefits, as perceived by expert reviewers. Using a grounded theory approach, guided by Rogers Diffusion of Innovation (DOI) framework, the research analyses reviewer discourse from 2021 2025 across three technology commentators. The analysis identifies three interrelated processes sustaining perceptions of innovation: innovation displacement, capability utility divergence, and market complacency cycles. While some improvements are acknowledged, such as refined aesthetics or extended software support; they are seldom judged sufficient to justify annual releases. These findings highlight a growing disconnect between industry…
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Taxonomy
TopicsInformation Systems Theories and Implementation · Service and Product Innovation · Innovation, Sustainability, Human-Machine Systems
