The functions of smartphones improve year by year, but not all new trends are met with positive reactions from users. An Internet poll asking “Which smartphone trend do you want to see disappear in 2026” revealed a fairly clear opinion of users: artificial intelligence used as a cover for the absence of real hardware improvements took first place on the list of the most undesirable trends.
The research was conducted by Android Authority, and nearly 4,500 respondents participated in the survey. Around 26 percent of them believe that manufacturers have been excessively pushing AI functions in recent years, while at the same time trying to justify the lack of significant improvements in cameras, batteries or other key components with software tricks. Precisely because of this, this approach has been declared a trend that users would prefer to leave in the past.
Users want tangible improvements, not marketing buzzwords
Although the entire industry is strongly oriented towards artificial intelligence, a large part of users openly say that they do not need many AI functions in practice. Instead, preference is given to better cameras, larger batteries, faster charging and higher memory capacity.
Android AuthorityComments on the survey even suggested that phones in 2026 should have significantly fewer AI features, or none at all, indicating a widening gap between what the industry is promoting and what users actually want.
Other disputed trends were found in the following places of the list. About 17.5 percent of the respondents indicated the use of special chargers exclusively to achieve the maximum charging speed, while 17.1 percent voted for the final disappearance of so-called fake cameras that serve only as decoration. This design, especially common in cheaper models, has caused dissatisfaction for years because they visually suggest advanced photographic capabilities that do not exist in reality.
A significant number of votes were also received by trends such as extremely thin phones, as well as short software support times for more affordable models. All of this together shows that users are falling prey to superficial innovations and aggressive marketing less and less.
Overall, the survey makes it clear that real customer experience and concrete improvements are more important than buzzwords and abstract promises. For smartphone manufacturers, the year 2026 could be a moment of rethinking: less focus on AI as a one-size-fits-all answer and more attention to what users actually use and notice every day.