The dust is still settling from the iPhone tornado that blew through a few weeks ago, as Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) and AT&T (NYSE: T) now bask in the glow of brisk sales of the combo phone and media player. But the debate is still fresh over the "revolutionary" new device, with many contending that the iPhone is merely a veiled evolution of an old regime.
If you're not sure where I'm going with this -- and how it connects with Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) -- let me explain: The iPhone was heralded as a revolution in the world of cellular services. According to some, the enigmatic device was supposed to rewrite the rules of wireless services by putting the "true Internet" in your pocket -- not the limited, walled garden of content that carriers including AT&T, Verizon (NYSE: VZ), and Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S) currently supply.
But many are arguing that Apple and its exclusive carrier AT&T have hobbled access to Internet sites and content with a locked device restricted to relatively slow speeds when on AT&T's second-generation network. Developers complain about limitations not experienced on other smartphones that utilize Microsoft's (Nasdaq: MSFT) Windows Mobile, for instance. And many argue that the $500-plus unsubsidized price tag for the iPhone should give users the privilege of complete control of its use and access to content.
So where does Google fit into this? Rumors say Google is contemplating a "GooglePhone" that would truly be a free-access device -- one that accesses open, ubiquitous broadband networks in the same way PCs can connect to Wi-Fi networks today. The thinking is this: An ISP or broadband provider doesn't dictate where and how you browse the Web, so why should wireless telcos? While Apple may be moving toward a more open Internet experience, Google wants to start there.
To get there, Google confirmed in a letter to the FCC that it would bid a minimum of $4.6 billion for 700 MHz frequency licenses in the upcoming auction if four conditions for open access, devices, and applications are stipulated on the spectrum. Google and Yahoo! (Nasdaq: YHOO) have long argued for rules that specify open-access wireless networks in a portion of the band, rather than having to pipe content through incumbent carriers -- at a price.
The debate has a long way to go, but if Google and other open-access proponents are successful in lobbying for changes in the rules, truly revolutionary wireless devices may succeed in making the iPhone a relic of a past regime.
source: fool.com
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Nov 29, 2007
Nov 23, 2007
What Google can learn from the iPhone
Despite the Apple iPhone's significant shortcomings, the iPhone has captured the fancy of the mobile device market. The iPhone's touch and keyboard-less interface, interactive gesture-based user experience, visual voicemail, and stunning look and feel set it apart from the rest of the mobile device crowd. I believe the most significant advancement of the iPhone is the Safari mobile web browser, which delivers a far superior web interface experience than Internet Explorer in Windows Mobile 6 or the BlackBerry web browser.
Those improvements alone won't be enough for Apple to maintain a lead in the mobile device and cell phone market. The iPhone is seriously lacking is support for critical business and security requirements. The BlackBerry is a winner because it does email extremely well. Windows Mobile wins because it is a versatile mobile computing device that integrates well into IT environments. Palm OS created the PDA experience but is showing it is a bit long in the tooth. And Google threatens to change the game for all mobile players.
Here's my top 10 lessons that Google can learn from Apple's experience introducing the iPhone.
1. It's about business. Business users will spend big bucks on mobile devices, software and services, but the device must meet the security, email and application requirements of business users. Corporate email, not just email, is the killer app (everybody gets that wrong, btw.)
2. KISG - Keep it simple, Google. Apple knows how to create a great user experience. Google also follows a similar minimalist experience, resisting all temptations to turn the main Google home page into a billboard for a thousand ads. Google Apps are the same way, simple and effective. Stick with your roots.
3. Design for the everyday user, not for the IT specialist. While WM6 is the ultimate platform for the IT guru and serious hobbyist, it's not a friendly platform for the causal user. Apple learned this lesson well and designed their product for the everyday user. (They just forgot the everyday business user in the process.)
4. It's about IT integration. While you don't have to do everything WM6 does, make it easy to integrate with Microsoft and / or BlackBerry technologies, preferably both. Providing both makes for the widest addressable market. Business users will turn in their WM6 and BlackBerrys in droves for a better device that IT blesses.
5. It's about security, stupid. How Apple could be so careless and be so lax about security is astounding. Two things Apple forgot about which are a must: remote device wipe, and SSL encrypted communications to Exchange servers are both a must out of the gate.
6. Closed platform is a very remote island. Apple apparently forgot when they created Mac OS X for the iPhone, that OS X is based on BSD, an open source operating system.
7. Mobile devices are like personal computers, automobiles and cribs. Everyone likes to trick out, customize and add their own bling. They also like to add applications, hopefully from a rich selection of third party applications. (See point #6.)
8. Put Google on every mobile device, not one. Phones aren't iPods. People don't replace them because a new one comes out every six months, with new features, obsoleting the phone you just bought. Why? A two year contract. Google Phone software should be on everybody's device, not just Google's phone. Want to rule the market, be everywhere, not just on the faithful followers' devices.
9. It's about the online experience. Networks and network providers come and go. Today it's Verizon, tomorrow it will be somebody else. If you're going to sign an exclusive, and please don't, please chose a carrier that actually has a good network. EDGE was outdated two years ago. Current networks will be passé in two years. WiMax is on the horizon. A great mobile experience is more than just about having three to five bars for phone calls, we need high speed broadband to the device, everywhere, with great software.
10. It's about the software and user experience, not the hardware. Touch screens and gestures? Cool. Runs on only one hardware platform? Not cool. Google's everywhere today, so be everywhere for mobile devices. We'll get over not having gestures in our user interface, especially if we get great apps and lots of choice.
Link
Those improvements alone won't be enough for Apple to maintain a lead in the mobile device and cell phone market. The iPhone is seriously lacking is support for critical business and security requirements. The BlackBerry is a winner because it does email extremely well. Windows Mobile wins because it is a versatile mobile computing device that integrates well into IT environments. Palm OS created the PDA experience but is showing it is a bit long in the tooth. And Google threatens to change the game for all mobile players.
Here's my top 10 lessons that Google can learn from Apple's experience introducing the iPhone.
1. It's about business. Business users will spend big bucks on mobile devices, software and services, but the device must meet the security, email and application requirements of business users. Corporate email, not just email, is the killer app (everybody gets that wrong, btw.)
2. KISG - Keep it simple, Google. Apple knows how to create a great user experience. Google also follows a similar minimalist experience, resisting all temptations to turn the main Google home page into a billboard for a thousand ads. Google Apps are the same way, simple and effective. Stick with your roots.
3. Design for the everyday user, not for the IT specialist. While WM6 is the ultimate platform for the IT guru and serious hobbyist, it's not a friendly platform for the causal user. Apple learned this lesson well and designed their product for the everyday user. (They just forgot the everyday business user in the process.)
4. It's about IT integration. While you don't have to do everything WM6 does, make it easy to integrate with Microsoft and / or BlackBerry technologies, preferably both. Providing both makes for the widest addressable market. Business users will turn in their WM6 and BlackBerrys in droves for a better device that IT blesses.
5. It's about security, stupid. How Apple could be so careless and be so lax about security is astounding. Two things Apple forgot about which are a must: remote device wipe, and SSL encrypted communications to Exchange servers are both a must out of the gate.
6. Closed platform is a very remote island. Apple apparently forgot when they created Mac OS X for the iPhone, that OS X is based on BSD, an open source operating system.
7. Mobile devices are like personal computers, automobiles and cribs. Everyone likes to trick out, customize and add their own bling. They also like to add applications, hopefully from a rich selection of third party applications. (See point #6.)
8. Put Google on every mobile device, not one. Phones aren't iPods. People don't replace them because a new one comes out every six months, with new features, obsoleting the phone you just bought. Why? A two year contract. Google Phone software should be on everybody's device, not just Google's phone. Want to rule the market, be everywhere, not just on the faithful followers' devices.
9. It's about the online experience. Networks and network providers come and go. Today it's Verizon, tomorrow it will be somebody else. If you're going to sign an exclusive, and please don't, please chose a carrier that actually has a good network. EDGE was outdated two years ago. Current networks will be passé in two years. WiMax is on the horizon. A great mobile experience is more than just about having three to five bars for phone calls, we need high speed broadband to the device, everywhere, with great software.
10. It's about the software and user experience, not the hardware. Touch screens and gestures? Cool. Runs on only one hardware platform? Not cool. Google's everywhere today, so be everywhere for mobile devices. We'll get over not having gestures in our user interface, especially if we get great apps and lots of choice.
Link
Want An Unlocked iPhone? Go To Germany
Ya gotta love those European courts. T-Mobile said today it will sell the iPhone in Germany without a contract in order to comply with an injunction issued by a court hearing a lawsuit brought by rival Vodaphone. If you want it without a contract, you can have it for 999 Euros, or more about $1,477 given today's exchange rate. With a contract it will go for 399 Euro, or about $590.
The issue is exclusivity. Vodahone is challenging the right of T-Mobile and Apple to offer the phone on an exclusive basis, which sounds a lot like the one big complaint that consumers in the U.S. had when the iPhone first hit the market: They didn't like that it worked only on AT&T. Funny how you don't hear that complaint all that much of late. Additionally. Vodaphone is challenging T-Mobiles practice of selling the phone with a so-called SIM lock that prevents SIM cards from other networks from working in the phone.
It seems to me the easy way to answer the problem might be to allow basic phone features -- voice calling and text messaging -- to work when another SIM is used, but to not offer support for specialized features, when the non-preferred SIM is sued. Visual voice mail is one that comes to mind.
Either way, most German consumers who want an iPhone will probably vote with their wallets and take the T-Mobile contract, while the courts hem and haw for months until its too late for any final resolution of the complaint to matter. By that time, we'll be talking about a third-generation iPhone and recalling how quaint the first one was.
Link
The issue is exclusivity. Vodahone is challenging the right of T-Mobile and Apple to offer the phone on an exclusive basis, which sounds a lot like the one big complaint that consumers in the U.S. had when the iPhone first hit the market: They didn't like that it worked only on AT&T. Funny how you don't hear that complaint all that much of late. Additionally. Vodaphone is challenging T-Mobiles practice of selling the phone with a so-called SIM lock that prevents SIM cards from other networks from working in the phone.
It seems to me the easy way to answer the problem might be to allow basic phone features -- voice calling and text messaging -- to work when another SIM is used, but to not offer support for specialized features, when the non-preferred SIM is sued. Visual voice mail is one that comes to mind.
Either way, most German consumers who want an iPhone will probably vote with their wallets and take the T-Mobile contract, while the courts hem and haw for months until its too late for any final resolution of the complaint to matter. By that time, we'll be talking about a third-generation iPhone and recalling how quaint the first one was.
Link
RIM Working on iPhone Rival?
RIM, once the maker of the most corporate-looking handhelds, is rumored to be working on a touch-screen phone that will compete with the iPhone and - for the first time on a BlackBerry - have no hard keyboard.
The BlackBerry 9000 series will be aimed at the consumer market, where the condensed BlackBerry Pearl has had a lot of success since its launch last year marked a change of direction for RIM.
"The 9000 is supposed to be a touchscreen device, very similar in form factor to the iPhone," says analyst Carmi Levy of ARCommunications, in an article for Unstrung. He expects them to appear in the first quarter of 2008, to be aimed squarely at consumers, not suits, and to have 3G as well as updated multimedia abilities.
RIM isn't discussing this in public, but the rumors on several sites are getting confident that the 9000 will extend the company's Pearl consumer range a bit further to capitalize on the demand created by the iPhone.
While Levy is quoted saying this is "the future of the BlackBerry franchise," no one expects the new product - if any - to dislodge the company's mainstay, the traditional BlackBerry QWERTY e-mail phones beloved by executives.
RIM hasn't responded to this burst of rumors but Levy believes the 9000 Series will appear in the first quarter of 2008, apparently after missing an original target of the second half of this year.
Link
The BlackBerry 9000 series will be aimed at the consumer market, where the condensed BlackBerry Pearl has had a lot of success since its launch last year marked a change of direction for RIM.
"The 9000 is supposed to be a touchscreen device, very similar in form factor to the iPhone," says analyst Carmi Levy of ARCommunications, in an article for Unstrung. He expects them to appear in the first quarter of 2008, to be aimed squarely at consumers, not suits, and to have 3G as well as updated multimedia abilities.
RIM isn't discussing this in public, but the rumors on several sites are getting confident that the 9000 will extend the company's Pearl consumer range a bit further to capitalize on the demand created by the iPhone.
While Levy is quoted saying this is "the future of the BlackBerry franchise," no one expects the new product - if any - to dislodge the company's mainstay, the traditional BlackBerry QWERTY e-mail phones beloved by executives.
RIM hasn't responded to this burst of rumors but Levy believes the 9000 Series will appear in the first quarter of 2008, apparently after missing an original target of the second half of this year.
Link
Apple iPhone too expensive, say consumers
In a survey conducted by GfK NOP, almost three-quarters of those people questioned said that they would not buy an iPhone because of its high price. Just two per cent of those surveyed said they would be adding the iPhone to their Christmas lists.
The iPhone – which combines an iPod music player with a web browser and mobile phone – went on sale in the UK earlier this month, and costs £269. Users also have to sign up to an 18 month contract with O2, Apple's excluisve network partner in Britain, with tariffs starting from £35 per month.
"Apple's history proves that it has the magic touch when it comes to product development and marketing," said Richard Jameson, an analyst at GfK NOP. "However the iPhone has yet to capture the imagination of the UK public. iPhone hype is in full-force, but our data shows that it is very much a considered purchase, with its high price turning many consumers off.
"We must take into account that the UK mobile market's success has been down to subsidised handsets, therefore the iPhone's price really stands out and consumers are not used to paying in excess of £200 for a phone. "This is a highly competitive market and the mobile phone manufacturers have very strong brand loyalty. Apple needs more than cutting–edge design to penetrate this market and will have to work much harder in the UK than it did in the US to make iPhone a mass-market proposition."
Early sales figures seem to bear that out, according to technology website The Register. It quotes "reliable channel sources" as saying that O2 has activated just 26,500 handsets since the iPhone went on sale on November 9. The telecomms company had earlier stated that it anticipated selling around 100,000 devices over the first weekend. According to The Register, Carphone Warehouse – one of only three outlets allowed to sell the handset, along with Apple and O2 stores – had taken receipt of 50,000 iPhones but sold only 11,000 on the first weekend. But the number of handsets activated does not necessarily translate into the number of iPhones sold.
The phones are not "activated" at the time of purchase, but rather when the buyer plugs the handset into their computer and signs up for an O2 contract via iTunes. It is suspected that many people have bought iPhones but not activated them, choosing instead to "hack" them so that they can run on any mobile phone network.
When the iPhone went on sale in the US at the end of June, Apple sold one million devices in the first 74 days. Industry insiders do not anticipate any official word from Apple on UK iPhone sales figures until early next year, when the next round of financial results are released. However, there was some good news for Apple.
According to the GfK NOP poll, over three-quarters of those surveyed associated the iPhone with music, while two-thirds associated it with email and web surfing. This will come as a blow to the likes of Nokia and Vodafone, who recently launched a slew of new handsets and mobile music download services to compete with the iPhone.
Link
The iPhone – which combines an iPod music player with a web browser and mobile phone – went on sale in the UK earlier this month, and costs £269. Users also have to sign up to an 18 month contract with O2, Apple's excluisve network partner in Britain, with tariffs starting from £35 per month.
"Apple's history proves that it has the magic touch when it comes to product development and marketing," said Richard Jameson, an analyst at GfK NOP. "However the iPhone has yet to capture the imagination of the UK public. iPhone hype is in full-force, but our data shows that it is very much a considered purchase, with its high price turning many consumers off.
"We must take into account that the UK mobile market's success has been down to subsidised handsets, therefore the iPhone's price really stands out and consumers are not used to paying in excess of £200 for a phone. "This is a highly competitive market and the mobile phone manufacturers have very strong brand loyalty. Apple needs more than cutting–edge design to penetrate this market and will have to work much harder in the UK than it did in the US to make iPhone a mass-market proposition."
Early sales figures seem to bear that out, according to technology website The Register. It quotes "reliable channel sources" as saying that O2 has activated just 26,500 handsets since the iPhone went on sale on November 9. The telecomms company had earlier stated that it anticipated selling around 100,000 devices over the first weekend. According to The Register, Carphone Warehouse – one of only three outlets allowed to sell the handset, along with Apple and O2 stores – had taken receipt of 50,000 iPhones but sold only 11,000 on the first weekend. But the number of handsets activated does not necessarily translate into the number of iPhones sold.
The phones are not "activated" at the time of purchase, but rather when the buyer plugs the handset into their computer and signs up for an O2 contract via iTunes. It is suspected that many people have bought iPhones but not activated them, choosing instead to "hack" them so that they can run on any mobile phone network.
When the iPhone went on sale in the US at the end of June, Apple sold one million devices in the first 74 days. Industry insiders do not anticipate any official word from Apple on UK iPhone sales figures until early next year, when the next round of financial results are released. However, there was some good news for Apple.
According to the GfK NOP poll, over three-quarters of those surveyed associated the iPhone with music, while two-thirds associated it with email and web surfing. This will come as a blow to the likes of Nokia and Vodafone, who recently launched a slew of new handsets and mobile music download services to compete with the iPhone.
Link
T-Mobile Court Date On iPhone Set For Nov 29
FRANKFURT -(Dow Jones)- A Hamburg court will hear the case on T-Mobile Deutschland's German marketing rights for Apple Inc.'s (AAPL) iPhone November 29., the court said Friday.
Vodafone Deutschland, a unit of Vodafone PLC (VOD), earlier this week filed an injunction with the court, requesting a legal assessment of T-Mobile's marketing rights to the iPhone.
Vodafone objected to the fact that the iPhone can be used only on T-Mobile networks, and questioned the company's pricing packages, which were tied to binding contracts with T-Mobile.
Following a court order, T-Mobile has made changes to its iPhone offer, but has said it expects its marketing model to hold up in court.
T-Mobile is a unit of Deutsche Telekom AG (DT).
Link
Vodafone Deutschland, a unit of Vodafone PLC (VOD), earlier this week filed an injunction with the court, requesting a legal assessment of T-Mobile's marketing rights to the iPhone.
Vodafone objected to the fact that the iPhone can be used only on T-Mobile networks, and questioned the company's pricing packages, which were tied to binding contracts with T-Mobile.
Following a court order, T-Mobile has made changes to its iPhone offer, but has said it expects its marketing model to hold up in court.
T-Mobile is a unit of Deutsche Telekom AG (DT).
Link
O2 sell iPod Touch alongside iPhone
In a first for the company, O2 - who are exclusively selling the iPhone in the UK - are now stocking iPods alongside Apple’s cellphone. The iPod Touch is now available on the O2 website alongside its cellular sibling, although it’s not yet clear whether they’ll also be sold in-store. Prices are, unsurprisingly, on a par with that charged by Apple themselves - £199 for the 8GB, £269 for the 16GB.
It’s uncertain as to whether this was a planned roll-out or whether O2, suffering fewer iPhone sales than predicted, is looking to take advantage of MultiTouch’s charms and sell the iPod Touch to individuals put off by the cellphone’s 18 month contract and monthly bill.
Link
It’s uncertain as to whether this was a planned roll-out or whether O2, suffering fewer iPhone sales than predicted, is looking to take advantage of MultiTouch’s charms and sell the iPod Touch to individuals put off by the cellphone’s 18 month contract and monthly bill.
Link
Charlie Sheen caught talking into upside-down Apple iPhone
Actor Charlie Sheen's been caught talking into an upside-down iPhone — no, no, not an LG Voyager or HTC Touch, those are upside-down and backwards badly faked iPhones — while "acting" in a scene with Jenny McCarthy on a recent episode of the CBS show "Two and a Half Men."
Over on Engadget, Ryan Block writes, "Seriously, please don't make us start another feature series of dumbass celebs holding the iPhone upside down. We'd have to call it upsidedownPhone or something equally insipid, and who wants that?"
Link
Over on Engadget, Ryan Block writes, "Seriously, please don't make us start another feature series of dumbass celebs holding the iPhone upside down. We'd have to call it upsidedownPhone or something equally insipid, and who wants that?"
Link
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