Mobile Computing News

As mobile phones become more prominent and continue to expand, so too do the so-called smartphones. Smartphones are essentially more advanced mobile phones with internet capabilities, instant messaging, email, and often an operating system capable of running applications and games. Perhaps the most iconic smartphone is the much vaunted iPhone, however, the struggle for smartphone supremacy remains anything but decided.

The iPhone has been rapidly gaining world market share, at the expense of Nokia’s Symbian OS smartphones, whilst Windows Mobile smartphones and RIM’s BlackBerry continue to be major players. In the United States, RIM’s BlackBerry possesses over 40% of the market, while Apple’s iPhone is second with around 30% and Nokia is clearly trailing far behind. With all this high quality selection it becomes difficult to make a decision, and even though the iPhone is deservedly respected and praised, it is not necessarily the clear cut “King” of smartphones. We have taken it upon ourselves to provide you with a close and honest look at today’s major smartphone contenders, and help you in deciding which is best for you.

Apple’s iPhone Reigns Supreme

Whilst the iPhone’s status as the best smartphone on the market is very debatable, its unparalleled success cannot be questioned. With a growth rate of 28% from the spring to the summer, many credit the iPhone with actually reversing a stall in the overall smartphone market. Contrast the iPhone’s dramatic increase in sales with Nokia’s dramatic decline, and it is clear Apple is doing something right. Although iPhone sales slowed slightly in the fourth quarter of 2008, they were still dramatically higher than last year; 88% higher to be exact. Spurred on by the introduction of the upgraded iPhone 3G, iPhone sales for all of 2008 totalled a remarkable 13.7 million, far more than nearly any other single smartphone model, although it was far below the overall sales of Nokia and Windows Mobile phones.

So, what makes the iPhone so great?

There are a number of special features that make the iPhone both great and popular, such as the App Store, which offers hundreds of unique applications and games, the easy to navigate and use interface, integration with online services like Facebook, YouTube, and Flickr, in addition to its music player and graphics processor. The ease with which one can use the iPhone’s touch screen interface and OS leaves rivals green with envy, and has really only arguably been surpassed by Palm Pre’s recenty unveiled WebOS. Despite the fluid touch screen control, however, the iPhone still lacks a physical keyboard for quickly churning out those IMs, emails and text messages. So business users beware, if you need to do extensive emailing, then the iPhone might not be the fastest and best option.

Perhaps the iPhone’s greatest success and asset remains the Apple App Store. Previously developers had to first jailbreak the iPhone to run exciting third-party apps on it, but now the apps are officially sanctioned, and many are still free. Although numerous apps are buggy or poorly conceived, others are indispensable classics, like the Facebook app which provides you with nearly all the tools of regular online Facebook on your iPhone, or the Pandora app which enhances your iPhone’s musicality tenfold. Other spectacular apps include one that turns your iPhone into a remote control for your computer, another which locates the nearest pubs, restaurants and banks via GPS, or SnoZu which makes uploading pictures from your iPhone directly to your Flickr, or Facebook account and Blog effortless. RIM has plans for a similar BlackBerry app store and Google’s Android app store definitely has the potential to surpass Apple’s, but as of now neither are close. Moreover, some even argue the iPhone’s embedded graphics processor is better than the one found in either the Nintendo DS or Sony PSP, making it a perfect platform for game developers.

Despite our praises, the iPhone is far from flawless. One of its most obvious shortcomings is its meagre 2 megapixel phone, in addition to its obviously extra high price. It is only available on O2, for either an initial £342.50 for a pay as you go 8GB mobile, or only with an 18 month contract with limited texts and minutes on the lower tariff plans. The iPhone’s slow network, meanwhile, was largely corrected with the release of the iPhone 3G. So, if you do not mind using O2 or having a lacklustre camera, and have the cash, then the iPhone is definitely worth the consideration.

BlackBerry Smartphones: Still the King of the Business World?

RIM’s BlackBerry brand took a clear shot at Apple’s iPhone with its first ever touch screen model, the BlackBerry Storm, and largely came up short. Customers complained about the buggy OS, and no conventional keyboard when the phone is in portrait mode. Furthermore, the final verdict on the Storm’s shortfall came with its mediocre sales, as it sold only half a million units in the US in November, compared to the 2 million Apple sold in the same period of time. Nevertheless, with models like the BlackBerry 9000 Bold, RIM still maintains a firm position, especially among business users. The Bold, for example, excels not just with traditional BlackBerry strong points such as email, but also offers fast HSDPA, and comes with a fantastic keyboard, complemented by an equally impressive screen. Although BlackBerry may no longer be the indisputable king of business phones, especially with competitors like the Nokia E71, the company still produces some very reliable and impressive models.

Nokia: Losing its Edge but the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic is a Bright Spot

Nokia, the world’s largest mobile phone manufacturer, with a global share of approximately 40% of the world’s mobile phone, has again significantly lost market share in the smartphone market. The company went from controlling 63.1% of the smartphone market in Q3 2007, to less than 50% for Q3 in 2008, a drastic drop. Meanwhile, both Apple and RIM witnessed large growth through the same period.

Although the company is slowly losing ground, it continues to offer very sleek and high quality models, including the very well received Nokia E71, and the high performance Nokia N95 8GB, not to mention the recently released Nokia 5800 XpressMusic. The Nokia E71 for its part includes a full QWERTY keyboard on its front, GPS, WiFi, HDSPA, email, YouTube videos, and a stable S60 operating system. The Nokia N95 8GB contains some equally stellar features, such as a 5 megapixel camera, onboard MP3 player, WiFi, GPS, and large display for viewing videos. Both are superb smartphones and represent some the best Nokia has to offer, though without offering anything truly spectacular or unique.

The Nokia 5800 XpressMusic has been available in the UK since January 23rd, but has managed to already sell a remarkable 1 million units worldwide. Also known as ‘the Tube’, the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic is remarkable for a number of reasons, not least of which include being Nokia’s first ever touch screen mobile. The touch screen phone was a long time coming for Nokia, but it also includes many other impressive features, such as 3.5G connectivity, WiFi, an integrated accelerometer, TV out port, GPS, and its often talked about media bar and Nokia Comes with Music service. The Comes with Music service grants users unlimited music downloads from the Nokia Music catalogue for 12 months. Moreover, unlike other similar services, you are allowed to keep all the music titles after the subscription period is over, and even though the downloads are not DRM-free, a little application called Tunebite can easily strip away the DRM protection. The media bar, on the other hand, provides direct and immediate access to multimedia features, including videos, photos, online photo sharing and the users’ favourite tracks. In essence the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic is designed as the ultimate multimedia/music player phone, and if this is what you are looking for in a smartphone, then you will not be disappointed.

Google’s T-Mobile G1 Android Phone: Could be the Future, but slow to catch on

The T-Mobile G1 smartphone, with the Google developed OS Android, was a very ambitious project. Not only was it Google’s first attempt at designing a mobile OS, the operating system was also made to be open source. By making the OS open source, Google is opening the door for all kinds of innovative and incredible user generated programmes and applications. Unlike developing for the iPhone’s platform or RIM’s OS, here developers do not need any permission or sanction, ensuring their creativity is not inhibited; although T-Mobile has still forbidden VoIP applications. Furthermore, Apple takes 30% of the revenue for sales of applications at the Apple app store, and more developers might be attracted to Google Android where they can reap 100% of their efforts.

At least, the hope was the Android phone would develop its own flourishing developer community, but the journey to success for Google’s T-Mobile G1 Android smartphone has not exactly been that smooth with multiple hiccups along the way. For starters, the T-Mobile G1 is completely integrated with one Google account. Switching accounts cannot be done other than with a factory reset, which is quite annoying. The T-Mobile G1 possesses no internal storage either, and music tracks can only be downloaded via WiFi, not 3G. Then there is the design, which is nothing special, and it is heavier than the iPhone. Moreover, aside from YouTube videos, the device has no ingrained video playback, although there are hopes of an independent app making this happen. Either way, in terms of sales, estimates have the T-Mobile G1 selling only around 400,000 units in the US in 2008, which obviously falls far behind its main rival, the iPhone, and Android’s developing community has still yet to even rival the iPhone’s. The T-Mobile G1 remains an interesting proposition, especially for open source developers, and even though its expectations have not yet been fulfilled, it’s still not necessarily a disappointment.

The final Choice is difficult; it boils down to your personal Needs

We have covered some of the most prominent smartphones out there. Despite overlooking some very viable and high quality Windows Mobile smartphones, like the HTC Touch HD or the HTC TyTN II, we have touched on the most popular options. Do you like the idea of playing innovative apps and games on your smartphone? Then the iPhone will be a good choice, although the T-Mobile G1 is also a perfectly valid option. Plan on using your smartphone for music, then perhaps the Nokia 5800 XpressMusic mobile with its Comes with Music service is the best option. Do you need a reliable smartphone for business with a real QWERTY keyboard? Then either the Nokia E71 or BlackBerry 9000 Bold make excellent choices. The end decision depends on you, but any of the aforementioned smartphone models certainly won’t disappoint.