Nokia Admits Regret For Backlash Against Its Health Mate App

Nokia has voiced regret at the frustration its Heath Mate fitness-tracking app has caused its users and promise to integrate missing features into the software.

The BBC reports Nokia’s mea culpa  stems from its take over of the Withings fitness-tech brand back in 2016, where the Finnish firm took the Withings Health Mate app and reworked it into a Nokia branded version.

But this was with the ire of users who gave it negative reviews noting Nokia had removed popular feature included in the original Withings version and had blighted the software with technical issues.

Withings woes

“The first release of the app was so full of bugs it was incredible. Their new app is appalling and everyone wants the old one back, which we loved. They’ve decimated our investment in quite expensive Withings products.”

Poor reviews referenced syncing problems, app bugs, an non user friendly interface and the removal of features present in the app’s predecessor.

“We released an update which corrects many of the issues. Very soon we will have another update to integrate the few missing features,” Nokia told the BBC.  “We will not be satisfied until the final issues have been addressed to deliver the quality user experience consumers have come to expect from Nokia products.”

The situation here is less about a company releasing a troubled app, but more an example of how end users are ever more important in the software development chain.

The plethora of alternative apps and competing ecosystems, particularly in mobile-orientated software, means the market can be tough for both new and existing developers to garner attention and acclaim.

Poor apps and feature introduction, or in this case removal, can rapidly provoke negativity from an established user base and erode a company or developers reputation,

As such in the case of Nokia, the Health Mate debacle serves as a lesson that it is worth consulting users before massive feature and interface changes are put into action. And to not forget that in the app world the users are generally the ones with the clout, not the tech firms no matter what their mobile vintage.