IGNITION WEST: Future of Mobile article constains an interesting slide set that puts together a deck on the current trends in mobile. The slide set by BI Intelligence service looks closely at the growth of smartphones and tablets, the platform wars, and how consumers are actually using their devices.
Android will be the OS of the future because it is implemented by more and more hardware makers! But Apple has done an impressive job of hanging in there. And, thus far, developers have not rallied around Android in the same way as iOS.
According to this production the number of PCs does not seem to be decreasing in the future. The growth of PCs seems to continue to grow at current rate. In addition to this are the bigger growth in mobile and tablets. Post-PC revolution seems to be so that PCs don’t go away, just a larger number of new smart devices are taken into everyday use.
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Tomi Engdahl says:
Bank mused: Apple is repeating the errors of Nokia?
Apple seems to be selling the new iPhone as the fishing line, but how long the cycle will last? Nomura Investment Bank suspects that Apple threatens Nokia’s mistakes, such as arrogance.
The danger is that Apple succumbs to the same errors as the phone manufacturer Nokia is about glory on the hills.
- Nokia’s track record over the last decade shows nicely how the self-importance (and perhaps arrogance), as well as industrial strike quickly change the margins, analysts Stuart Jeffrey and Woo Jin Ho writes in its report.
Nomura does not expect the smartphone market, major changes over the next year. Apple and the Korean company Samsung retain their position of power, and not wait for the bank to Windows Phone handsets or Blackberryjen to weaken Apple’s drives, because if they succeed, success would take place mainly at the expense of Android phones.
After this when the spread of smartphones in developed markets, however, slows down, this slows down the iPhone sales from 2015 onwards.
In emerging markets, the progress of the iPhone is limited by high cost, as well as local Android applications more widespread.
High margins are difficult to maintain
Although the profit margins can be high, it requires product innovation. Their absence was hit in the end of Nokia, the bank estimated.
Apple is more and more difficult to stand out with iPhone from other manufacturers, since the recent updates to the iPhone have been moderate. Also iOS operating system have changed quite little.
Source: http://www.taloussanomat.fi/porssi/2012/10/09/pankki-aprikoi-toistaako-apple-nokian-virheet/201239491/170
Tomi Engdahl says:
In all, PC-to-the number of deliveries fell in Q3 of about 8.3 per cent compared to the previous year. The reasons may be due to the unfavorable economic conditions or changes in equipment usage patterns.
Source: http://www.tietoviikko.fi/kaikki_uutiset/lenovosta+tuli+kuihtuvien+pcmarkkinoiden+kuningas++ehka/a846405?s=r&wtm=tietoviikko/-11102012&
Tomi Engdahl says:
PC shipments to decline in 2012 for the first time since dot-com bust, can Windows 8 save the day?
http://thenextweb.com/insider/2012/10/10/pc-shipments-to-decline-in-2012-for-the-first-time-since-dot-com-bust-can-windows-8-save-the-day/
The global PC market will see worldwide shipments decline this year, which will mean a drop for the first time in 11 years, according to IHS’ iSuppli. More specifically, the technology research specialist expects a contraction of 1.2 percent: from 352.8 million units in 2011 to just 348.7 million in 2012.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Eric Schmidt: Apple vs. Android is the defining fight in tech
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-57530193-93/eric-schmidt-apple-vs-android-is-the-defining-fight-in-tech/
In an interview in New York, Google’s executive chairman says Android could be on 1 billion devices in a year.
The world has never seen a platform fight like the one now under way between iOS and Android, Google’s executive chairman said Wednesday evening in New York.
“The Android-Apple platform fight is the defining fight in the industry today,” Eric Schmidt said in an interview with Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher.
“The growth rate of mobile adoption exceeds everyone’s expectations every quarter,” he said. “The devices are becoming so useful that unless you’re a significant knowledge worker, you could probably live most of your life with your mobile device.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Is mobile broadband a luxury or human right?
http://money.cnn.com/2012/10/09/technology/mobile/broadband-human-right/index.html
Moderating a discussion on the future of broadband, Mashable editor-in-chief Lance Ulanoff tossed a provocative question to the audience: “By quick show of hands, how many out there think that broadband is a luxury?”
Next question: “How many out there think it is a human right?” That option easily carried the audience vote.
Ulanoff’s fellow panelists at the United Nations’ recent “Social Good Summit” took a similar view. Held annually to coincide with the UN’s General Assembly, the gathering brings together business executives, activists, academics and entrepreneurs to explore how technology can help “make the world a better place.”
Broadband access is too important to society to be relegated to a small, privileged portion of the world population, Hans Vestberg, president and CEO of Ericsson
“We need to make sure all the world’s inhabitants are connected to the goodies of the online world, which means better health care, better education, more sustainable economic and social development,” Touré said.
The so-called “digital gap” is shrinking. In 2002, an estimated 8% of world’s population was online, but by 2012 that number had risen past 33%. Most of the growth is happening in the developing world.
Those trends have profound global implications.
For example: The number of Internet users accessing the Internet in Chinese will outnumber English language users by 2015, experts predict. The total number of smartphones in the world is expected to top 3 billion by 2017, and by 2020, connected devices may outnumber connected people by a ratio of 6:1.
Those without connections will be cut off from one of the planet’s fastest growing “economies.” The size of the Internet economy in the G20 countries reached $2.3 trillion in 2010 — equivalent to around 4.1% of their GDP — and could double by 2016, according to estimates from the Boston Consulting Group.
“It’s no longer a luxury,” Touré said. “We see this is a fundamental tool that is expected by everyone.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Reuters analyst poll, Samsung increased its lead over Apple in the third quarter of 2012. Samsung and Apple were also 10 major mobile phone manufacturers the only ones who were able to increase their market shares.
Analysts predict Samsung sold in July-September, as many as 54.9 million smartphones, while Apple is expected to have reached 26.6 million iPhone sales.
All in all mobile phone shipments are expected to have grown by 8.1 per cent.
In addition to Nokia’s biggest losers on Q3 2012 are LG, HTC, Sony and RIM.
Source: http://www.tietoviikko.fi/kaikki_uutiset/ennuste+samsung+hallitsi+q3lla+nokia+myi+37+miljoonaa+windowspuhelinta/a846613?s=r&wtm=tietoviikko/-11102012&
Tomi Engdahl says:
As mobile rises, desktop search declines for the first time
Analysts at the Macquarie Group say mobile devices could account for a third of all search traffic by year’s end.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-57530726-93/as-mobile-rises-desktop-search-declines-for-the-first-time/
In a sign of the mobile-centric times, desktop Web search declined in September for the first time since Macquarie Group began tracking it in 2006.
ComScore data for September showed that searches declined 4 percent year over year, according to a note Macquarie sent to clients. Growth rates in search have been slowing since February, when searches were up 14 percent. The increasing number of mobile searches appears to be the biggest reason for the decline, Macquarie analysts said in their report.
The decline in desktop search makes intuitive sense. These days, we’re less likely to search for a destination on a map site before leaving the house; that’s what turn-by-turn directions are for. We might not even search for a restaurant to eat at until we’re out the door; a number of apps can give us recommendations on the go. And nontraditional search engines are on the rise: we might search for clothes on Fab.com instead of Google, or airfares on Hipmunk, or a friend’s e-mail address on Facebook.
Collectively, all those trends point to a long, slow decline for traditional desktop search. And it’s a reason why companies like Google and Microsoft are investing heavily in mobile search applications.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Flip this app: Secondary mobile app market quietly taking off
Low-level app sales help drive startups like Apptopia forward
http://www.networkworld.com/news/2012/101212-app-flipping-263338.html?hpg1=bn
The practice of flipping is probably most familiar to the general public from reality TV shows like “Flip This House” on A&E. The idea is to buy a house for a lowish price, fix it up a bit, and then sell it on to a buyer, hopefully at a profit.
Now, the secondary market for Android and iOS apps is beginning to see the same pattern. App creators without the time or inclination to service or monetize their apps can simply sell them off for a flat, up-front sum of money. Buyers can then either tweak them as they like or not, and either attempt to monetize them themselves or re-sell the apps to still another party.
“Probably 80% of people who want to get involved in mobile either don’t know how to code an app or don’t know an app developer,” he says. “So there’s this massive demand, but kind of a little bit of a barrier to entry.”
The typical sale on Apptopia — which has attracted investment from Mark Cuban, among others — ranges between about $1,000 and $250,000, he says — hardly Instagram territory, but more of a “micro-scale.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Work in a Multi-Screen World
http://www.igloosoftware.com/blogs/inside-igloo/workinamultiscreenworld
The number of gadgets we use at work, when we skip between them and the impact they have on our productivity.
A smartphone in the morning, maybe a little laptop during the day – we use multiple devices for work. Forrester has pegged the average at 2.3 per employee, the iPass Mobile Workforce Report states the average is 3.5 and, often times, 1 or more of those devices are purchased and brought to work by the employee.
We are no longer tethered to our desk, nor do we need to be in order to be productive. New forms of connection and delivery are enabling us to choose when, where and how we work.
According to Forrester, the use of smartphones and tablets is beginning to approach – and, in some instances, exceed – the use of more traditional computing devices like desktop PCs and laptops. For example, 35% of employees working at a client site are likely to use a laptop, but 45% are likely to use a smartphone. We’re turning to different devices throughout the course of the day to access critical information and accomplish different tasks.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Why You Should Stay Away from HP
http://www.investmentcontrarians.com/stock-market/why-you-should-stay-away-from-hp/765/?subid=NRelate
Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE/HPQ) sank on Thursday after warning the market to expect less in 2013, as the former technology kingpin struggles to revamp its business.
CEO Margaret Whitman has a titanic job ahead of her, as she tries to turn the sinking ship around; but with crippling declines in the demand for PCs and intense competition in printers and other products
According to Whitman, it will take years to turn HP around
Yet, according to my stock analysis, the company’s lack of exposure in the surging mobile business is problematic.
The PC market is dead, and HP will need to re-invent itself under Whitman’s five-year plan that predicts growth will return by 2015, but, based on my stock analysis, it will not be easy.
PC growth is estimated at below one percent this year, according to International Data Corporation (IDC).
The PC market may not grow until 2016, according to HP’s Todd Bradley, head of the company’s PC unit.
Tomi Engdahl says:
SMARTPHONE USERS SHOULD BE AWARE OF MALWARE TARGETING MOBILE DEVICES AND SAFETY MEASURES TO HELP AVOID COMPROMISE
http://www.ic3.gov/media/2012/121012.aspx
Tomi says:
According to Research firm Strategy Analytics there was ore than one billion smartphones in use in the world in the July-September period. This means that today, about one in every seven people is a smartphone.
Growth has been rapid, as at the same time a year ago, there were 708 million.
Strategy Analytics analyst Neil Mawstonin expects that growth will continue to be strong, particularly in China, India and Africa.
Source: http://www.tietoviikko.fi/kaikki_uutiset/hs+maailmassa+nyt+miljardi+alypuhelinta/a848051?s=r&wtm=tietoviikko/-17102012&
Tomi Engdahl says:
A $99 Nexus tablet could spawn a new race to the bottom, but is it possible yet?
Yes, but not without compromises
http://www.theverge.com/2012/10/17/3515494/google-nexus-99-dollar-tablet-rumor
Earlier today, perpetual rumor-mill DigiTimes reported that Google was readying a $99 Nexus tablet for release by the end of the year. It’s not the first time we’ve heard such rumors: DigiTimes has already mentioned a $99 Nexus in the past, and CNET last week cited an NPD analyst as confirming a $99 Nexus would go into production before the year’s end. Unlike some rumors, however, this one is fairly specific: it claims that Google is working with a trio of Asian manufacturers — WonderMedia, HannStar, and Quanta — to bring the tablet to market, and even goes so far as to name its processor, the WonderMedia PRIZM 8950. While there is a possibility that DigiTimes — which gets as many rumors wrong as it gets right — has this one nailed, it seems unlikely. Here’s why.
The biggest problem lies in the processor, which would make powering anything more than a relatively low-resolution 480 x 800 (WVGA) display problematic. It’s a single-core Cortex-A9 800MHz processor paired with a Mali-400 GPU
It’s probable that, should it be planning a cheaper Nexus tablet, Google would continue to turn to more-established chip makers like Qualcomm, Nvidia, or TI.
Would a lesser processor and screen really enable Google to halve the price of a tablet without compromising its Nexus brand? Unlikely; but with strong competition from Amazon and Barnes & Noble, the netbook-style “race to the bottom” is on, and the very existence of the Nexus 7 indicates Google’s willingness to play along.
Tomi Engdahl says:
How Obama or Romney Should Have Answered the iPad Question
http://allthingsd.com/20121017/how-obama-or-romney-should-have-answered-the-ipad-question/
Crowley: Mr. President, we have a really short time for a quick discussion here. IPad, the Macs, the iPhones, they are all manufactured in China, and one of the major reasons is labor is so much cheaper [there]. How do you convince a great American company to bring that manufacturing back here?
The correct answer is that, under current conditions, which are highly unlikely to change no matter who is president, the job of assembling iPhones and iPads and other consumer electronics is now done mostly in China by companies that specialize in manufacturing, and will never come back to the U.S. And that’s okay.
Sadly, both Obama and Romney flubbed their answers, and educated voters not at all.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Majority of humans still don’t have a mobile
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/10/19/gsma_world_mobile_connections_india_china/
The world still has some way to go before it is fully mobile, with global subscriber penetration standing at just 45 per cent despite the huge strides made in countries such as China and India, according to a new report from industry body The GSMA.
Global penetration based on total connections will exceed 100 per cent by next year, however, the report pointed to a disparity between the number of mobile connections and individual mobile subscribers, thanks to inactive SIMs and multiple SIM ownership. The average Joe apparently uses 1.85 SIM cards.
The total number of mobile subscribers worldwide will be 3.2 billion by Q4 2012, rising to 4 billion in the next five years, with around a third of the planet’s seven billion-strong population currently unconnected, GSMA said.
Tomi Engdahl says:
There Are 250,000 Active Patents That Impact Smartphones
http://www.techdirt.com/blog/innovation/articles/20121017/10480520734/there-are-250000-active-patents-that-impact-smartphones-representing-one-six-active-patents-today.shtml
A new analysis shows just how insane the patent thicket is today.
Tomi says:
From Julia Child to mobile devices: How one group cooks up accessible media technology
http://www.itworld.com/mobile-wireless/299201/julia-child-mobile-devices-one-group-cooks-up-accessible-media-technology
The National Center for Accessible Media helps develop tools, standards and policies so people with disabilities can access new technology and content
When the first iPhone came out in 2007, as we all know, it created a quite a buzz and a whole lot of excitement – except for one group: the blind. “The blind community was very upset,” said Larry Goldberg, the director of the National Center for Accessible Media (NCAM), a research and development group in Boston devoted to improving the accessibility of media and new technologies for people with disabilities. The original iPhone’s glass screen, single button and – most importantly – lack of accessibility features, such as screen reader integration, made it all but impossible for visually impaired people to use.
However, thanks to input from the blind community and NCAM as well as Apple’s dedication to making their products accessible, by 2009 the iPhone 3GS had VoiceOver, Apple’s screen reading technology, fully integrated and today the iPhone is, “the most popular phone with the blind community,” says Goldberg. Apple, he said, “bought in.”
The iPhone example illustrates an important issue in this day of lightning fast technological development, when, seemingly, new smartphones, tablets and laptops (not to mention associated apps) are introduced daily: Who makes sure that hardware manufacturers, software and app developers and content creators are ensuring that people with vision problems, hearing difficulties, or other disabilities can enjoy of all the new media and technology most of us take for granted? NCAM is one of the most important players filling this role, which is only getting more challenging as technology advances. “It’s always a game of catch-up,” says Goldberg.
Tomi says:
In Mobile World, Tech Giants Scramble to Get Up to Speed
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/23/technology/in-mobile-world-tech-giants-struggle-to-get-up-to-speed.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all
Intel made its fortune on the chips that power personal computers, and Microsoft on the software that goes inside. Google’s secret sauce is that it finds what you are looking for on the Internet. But the ground is shifting beneath these tech titans because of a major force: the rise of mobile devices.
These and other tech companies are scrambling to reinvent their business models now that the old model — a stationary customer sitting at a stationary desk — no longer applies. These companies once disrupted traditional businesses, from selling books and music to booking hotels. Now they are being upended by the widespread adoption of smartphones and tablets.
He added, “It’s hilarious to talk about traditional Web business like it’s been going on for centuries, but it’s last century.”
The industry giants remain highly profitable drivers of the economy. Yet the world’s shift to computing on mobile devices is taking a toll, including disappointing earnings reports last week from Google, Microsoft and Intel, in large measure related to revenue from mobile devices.
Tomi Engdahl says:
The Truth About Cats and Dogs: Smartphone vs Tablet Usage Differences
http://blog.flurry.com/bid/90987/The-Truth-About-Cats-and-Dogs-Smartphone-vs-Tablet-Usage-Differences
While smartphones have reached critical mass, tablets are poised to do the same soon. As a form factor, tablets simultaneously take a step toward the living and the workplace. For consumers, these devices are multimedia machines, offering a glimpse into how consumers might one day accept connected television. For workers, IT departments are already reacting to the “Bring Your Own Device” wave changing the modern workforce. According to Forrester, 12% of workers already use a tablet at work.
The stakes are high. According to its latest earnings call, more than one out of every three Apple smart devices sold during the last quarter was a tablet, 14 million iPads versus 26.9 million iPhones. And with the announcement of the lower-priced iPad mini, more directly competing with Amazon’s Kindle Fire HD, Google’s Nexus 7 and Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 2, we anticipate this ratio to increase more toward tablets during the holiday season.
This report focuses on how consumer demographics and behavior vary between smartphones and tablets.
On average, smartphone users are younger than tablet users, 30 versus 34 years of age.
While smartphone usage trends slightly more male, tablet usage is nearly even. Traditionally, males adopt technology devices more than women. With an even gender split for tablets, this bucks the trend, indicated that tablets likely have more long-term mass-market appeal.
Studying the chart, tablets have a greater spike of usage during the prime-time television window, from 7 pm to 10 pm whereas smartphone usage is more evenly distributed throughout the day.
At a high level, consumers spend more time using tablets for media and entertainment, including Games (67%), Entertainment (9%) and News (2%) categories which account for nearly four-fifths of consumption on tablets. Smartphones claim a higher proportion of communication and task-oriented activities with Social Networking (24%), Utilities (17%), Health & Fitness (3%) and Lifestyle (3%) commanding nearly half of all usage on smartphones. Games are the most popular category on both form factors with 67% of time spent using games on tablets and 39% of time spent using games on smartphones.
Studying smartphone versus tablet usage differences not only provides insight into how developers should consider form factor when designing app experiences, but also how digital distribution could disrupt the living room. As we imagine a world of connected TV, tablet usage gives us the best current-day hint of that world to come. Tablet users are older, more female, and we can surmise, more affluent.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Forgetting Microsoft: How Steve Ballmer’s Surface could win
Ignore Apple, it’s Google he must take on
http://www.channelregister.co.uk/2012/10/30/open_and_shut/
Open … and Shut In a Windows world we bought the product. In Google’s world we are the product. Judging from market share trends, we apparently don’t mind being bought and sold. At least, so long as the price is right.
Yes, Apple gets all the news (and profits), but it’s Google Android that is set to displace Microsoft Windows by 2016, according to Gartner. So much of the media’s focus is on the battle between Android and Apple’s iOS for the heart and soul of the mobile industry that we forget the meta-battle between both iOS and Android against yesterday’s desktop market, still owned by Windows.
Microsoft put on a good show last week at its Windows 8 launch, but the only thing that really matters is how well Windows performs in mobile device markets.
In Google Land, in other words, the hardware and software is going to be cheap and free, respectively, with money being made through advertising or other services, largely invisible to the cost-conscious consumer. Yes, there are premium buyers happy to pay for Apple or Microsoft devices, but the majority of the market is heavily trending toward “cheap and free.”
And when that happens, Microsoft (and, eventually, Apple) can kiss goodbye to the developer ecosystem critical to winning over users. Developers go where the volume is, and that volume is Google’s to lose.
Microsoft could pull an Apple and sell a consolidated device like the Surface.
It might not be enough, anyway. Apple is happy to occupy the premium segment of the market, even as Google’s Android takes the mass-market lower-end. Where does this leave Microsoft? It’s unlikely to be able to beat Apple at the top and its strategy ensures it has no chance of beating Android at the bottom.
Can Microsoft turn this ship around?
Google’s dominance is not set in stone, any more than Apple’s was. But there’s a lot of hard, painful work for Microsoft to do
Tomi Engdahl says:
Intel working on 48-core chip for smartphones, tablets
A smartphone with 48 cores could change our concept of what it is and what it does
http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9233039/Intel_working_on_48_core_chip_for_smartphones_tablets?taxonomyId=162&pageNumber=1
Intel researchers are working on a 48-core processor for smartphones and tablets, but it could be five to 10 years before it hits the market.
“If we’re going to have this technology in five to 10 years, we could finally do things that take way too much processing power today,” said Patrick Moorhead, an analyst with Moor Insights and Strategy. “This could really open up our concept of what is a computer… The phone would be smart enough to not just be a computer but it could be my computer.”
He explained that with many cores, someone could, for instance, be encrypting an email while also working on other power-intensive apps at the same time. It could be done today, but the operations might drag because they’d have to share resources.
Ramirez also said that instead of one core working at near top capacity and using a lot of energy, many cores could run in parallel on different projects and use less energy.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Perpetually connected: Are wearable computers and bio-implants the future of mobile?
http://thenextweb.com/mobile/2012/11/04/perpetually-connected-are-wearable-computers-and-bio-implants-the-future-of-mobile/
In today’s connected world, you’d be hard pressed to find a population (disregarding technophobes and lost tribes) who actively shun activities that are digitally mediated. Unfortunately for those who do align themselves with Luddism, advances in mobile computing (and digital tech in general) appear to be exponential. Technologically-enhanced areas of information are all around us, from our PCs to smart gadgets made pocket-portable.
Wearable Computing is a discipline devoted to exploring and creating devices that can either be worn directly on the body, or incorporated into a user’s clothing or accessories.
The Wearable Computing field has grown markedly since the early 1960s.
In current wearable tech terms, real interest lies in the rapidly growing field of Head-Mounted Displays.
More eyewear than traditional head-set, Google Glass still exemplifies just how far wearable computing has come since its initial development.
Although technically Google Glass units are still in prototype development, the wearable tech was recently allowed out of the testing bag and into the hands of the media via Spencer Ante from the Wall Street Journal. The results proved mixed,
Another issue that wearable computing tech needs to address – preferably before any mainstream commercial production kicks into gear – includes the establishment of reliable network availability. If wearable tech advocates are forced to deal with geo-restrictions or patchy coverage prone to dropouts (think, as an example, of past coverage provided by LTE networks), early adopters may be understandably unimpressed.
Through wearable technology or bio-implanted fusions of the organic and mechanical (just as in the H+ fictional universe), the future of computing seems inextricably linked to mobility. Are you prepared for a world where your mobile device melds directly with your cortex, or do you assume functional wearable computers and BCIs are to remain purely entrenched in the realm of fiction?
Tomi Engdahl says:
802.11ac to dominate mobile-handset market
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2012/10/80211ac-mobile-handset.html
In a recent brief, market research and analyst firm ABI Research said that almost every smartphone shipped this year will offer some form of WiFi capability. “However, a new WiFi protocol will begin to dominate mobile devices soon,” the brief continued. “The IEEE 802.11ac WiFi protocol will begin to conquer the existing protocols [802.11b, g and n] in the next two to three years.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Mary Meeker Gives Mid-Year Internet Trends Report: Android Adoption Ramping Up 6X Faster Than iPhone
http://techcrunch.com/2012/11/05/mary-meeker-internet-trends/
KPCB partner Mary Meeker usually publishes her famed Internet Trends report once a year, but gave a small San Francisco crowd a mid-year update tonight. The biggest new facts? Android phone adoption is ramping up six times faster than iPhone, and Android surpassed Windows as the #1 OS for Internet-enabled devices in Q1 2012.
Meeker noted that iPad adoption is now ramping up five times faster than iPhone adoption, up from 3X in her May report. Meanwhile Android adoption is increasing six times faster than iPhone adoption, up from 4X.
According to her research, there will be 1 billion smartphone users but 5 billion mobile phone users by the end of 2012, showing the massive popularity of the cheap feature phone. In May, Meeker reported that there were 953 million smartphone subscriptions and 6.1 billion mobile phone subscriptions, though those count multiple subscriptions by the same person.
Meeker says that in Q1 2012 the amount of Internet-enabled Android devices shipped surpassed the number of Windows Internet-enabled devices shipped. That was when Android was at around 90 million units shipped per quarter. By the end of 2013, Meeker expects there to be 160 million Android devices, 100 million Windows devices, and 80 million iOS devices shipped per quarter.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Exclusive: Microsoft Office for iPhone, iPad, and Android revealed
Office Mobile will arrive in early 2013
http://www.theverge.com/2012/11/7/3612422/microsoft-office-mobile-ipad-iphone-android-screenshots
Microsoft’s Office for iPad, iPhone, and Android is a reality. Although Office Mobile has been rumored and reportedly spotted in the wild, Microsoft has remained persistently quiet about its plans for the product. The Verge has learned through several sources close to Microsoft’s plans that the company will release Office versions for Android and iOS in early 2013.
Office Mobile will debut in the form of free apps that allow Android and iOS users to view Microsoft Office documents on the move. Like the existing SkyDrive and OneNote apps, Office Mobile will require a Microsoft account.
Word, PowerPoint, and Excel documents will all be supported, and edit functionality can be enabled with an Office 365 subscription.
A recent Microsoft press release from the company’s Czech Republic subsidiary revealed that Office Mobile apps for Android and iOS would be made available from March 2013.
Tomi says:
Android and Linux on a dual-booting tablet for $100
http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2012/11/android-and-linux-on-a-dual-booting-tablet-for-100/
Maker of “PengPod” tablets is seeking cash on crowdfunding site Indiegogo.
It likely won’t be as sleek or fast as a Nexus 7 or Nexus 10, but a new tablet running both Android and Linux is in the works for open source enthusiasts and lovers of low-budget devices.
PengPod tablets, made by a company called Peacock Imports, will dual-boot Android 4.0 and a version of Linux with the KDE Plasma Active interface for touch screens. But in order to reserve a tablet for yourself, you’ll have to contribute to the company’s crowdfunding project on Indiegogo and hope enough money is raised to begin production.
PengPods and the PengStick use the A10, a 1.2GHz Cortex A8 ARM Core system-on-chip from Allwinner Technology.
PengPods use Linaro, an Ubuntu-based root file system for ARM devices, allowing access to many common Ubuntu applications.
“Our goal is to build a powerful, True Linux Tablet, one free of Google and Android’s restrictions, at a reasonable price,” the PengPod IndieGogo page says. “If you’re a Linux fanatic you probably ended up getting an Android phone. Hey, it’s Linux right? It’ll be open, run all the programs I’m familiar with and let me hack around and have some fun right? Too often, this is not so. That is why we set out to find a way to run real Linux and all the software you really want.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Hands on with Nokia’s HERE, a cross-platform mapping tool that takes on Microsoft, Google, and Apple
http://thenextweb.com/apps/2012/11/13/hands-on-with-nokias-here-a-cross-platform-mapping-tool-that-takes-on-microsoft-google-and-apple/
Welcome to the mapping wars, it would seem. As Microsoft burnishes Bing, Google cements its market advantage with its own tool, Apple works to right its own ship, Nokia is diving into the ring, taking its maps product everywhere all at once through a new effort called HERE.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Smart Device Boom Expected to Continue in 2013
by Felix Richter, 13.11.2012
http://www.statista.com/topics/840/smartphones/chart/713/forecast-of-global-electronic-device-shipments-in-2013/
The meteoric rise of smart devices such as tablet and smartphones has been almost unprecedented in the history of consumer electronics. According to mobile industry specialist Tomi Ahonen, there will be 1.2 billion active smartphones by the end of 2012. An incredible number, given the fact that the rise of the smartphone as we know it began little more than five years ago with the launch of Apple’s first iPhone.
The smartphone boom shows no signs of slowing down. IDC’s analysts are predicting 800 million smartphones to be shipped in 2013. The tablet market is expected to keep its momentum too, with 7-inch tablets taking a significant share of the market.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Mobile phone sales slump bites Nokia
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/11/14/phone_sales_slump_bites_nokia/
Nokia may have plunged down the chart of best-selling smartphone makers, but at least it can console itself with the knowledge that it’s still up toward the top of the broader mobile phone supplier table.
According to market watcher Gartner, Nokia is merely the world’s second most successful phone seller, at least during the three months to the end of September, behind Samsung. Apple, which only makes smartphones, is in third place.
Overall, shipments were down 3.1 per cent to 428 million units, a further decline after two past quarters’ worth of falls, though demand was up, Gartner said. Smartphone sales accounted for 39.6 per cent of total mobile phone sales, driven by a 46.9 per cent increase in shipments year on year.
Tomi Engdahl says:
“Android tablets pass the iPad next year”
Consulting company Finvista Advisors working Singh relies on a market researcher IDC’s figures.
Until two years ago, the iPad tablet sales accounted for 87 per cent, but this year’s third quarter, more hastily than 50 per cent. Android tablet sales have recently increased six times faster than iPad.
Android manufacturers have got serious about the contest by clicking the Amazon on the road: low price to attract buyers. Apple is still no reason for great concern
Surface and other Windows RT tablets RT does not seem to have chance in the race.
Source: http://www.3t.fi/artikkeli/uutiset/teknologia/android_tabletit_ohittavat_ipadin_ensi_vuonna
Tomi says:
Android Hits 73% of Global Smartphone Market
http://news.slashdot.org/story/12/11/15/1823201/android-hits-73-of-global-smartphone-market
“Gartner’s released a report on worldwide numbers of 2012 3Q phone sales”
“t’s time to face the facts and realize that Android now owns 73% of the worldwide smartphone market.”
“the biggest growth market of them all is China, which is more than 90% Android.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Mozilla: The problem is mobile, not money
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-57550227-93/mozilla-the-problem-is-mobile-not-money/
The organization generated $163.5 million in 2011, mostly from searches performed with Firefox. But it still lacks a strong foothold the world of smartphones and tablets.
With more than 400 million Firefox users, Mozilla doesn’t have a problem with relevance.
But it does have a problem with mobile.
So concludes Mitchell Baker, leader of the organization behind the open-source Web browser and other projects designed to keep the Internet free from proprietary constraints. Firefox, which just celebrated its eighth birthday, is the main lever that Mozilla uses to try to keep the Internet open. But Firefox is largely absent from the explosive growth in the mobile world of smartphones and tablets.
“The current state of the mobile ecosystem concerns us the most,” said Mitchell Baker, who has led Mozilla since it was spun out of the Netscape browser project. Mozilla can’t bring its full browser technology to iOS, Windows Phone, and Windows RT, and people do things with native apps on mobile device that they might do with a Web browser on a PC.
“The stage we’re in with mobile devices — with different hardware, software, and user experience — is much more closed. It’s lacking many of the freedoms of the Web,” Baker said. “In the mobile space, we have less impact, and more computing time is moving in that direction.”
The bulk of Mozilla’s funds come from search-ad revenue shared by partners including Google, Bing, Yahoo, Yandex, Amazon, and eBay. “Most of that is from Google,”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Autodesk Enters the Gaming Industry
http://www.designnews.com/author.asp?section_id=1394&doc_id=254311&cid=NL_Newsletters+-+DN+Daily
Middleware is a software framework provided by third-party companies to help create complete packages without starting from scratch.
The most prevalent use of this shortcut can be found in the gaming industry.
An unlikely company is venturing into the middleware sector of gaming — Autodesk Inc. — which, on March 1, 2011, acquired the company Scaleform.
Autodesk Inc. (makers of AutoCAD) has announced the upcoming release of Scaleform UI Middleware, targeted for developers who want to design games for mobile platforms based on Android, iOS, and Windows 8, but have little to no programming experience. Previous iterations of the software were primarily used by big-name developers to pump out “triple-A” titles such as Crysis 2, Mass Effect 3, and Batman: Arkham City.
The software suite enables developers to incorporate their Adobe Flash game renderings into the Unity game engine
Included with Autodesk’s new Scaleform revision is the Unity package
A preview SDK of Scaleform is available now, with the commercial release expected sometime before the end of the year, at a cost of about $295 per platform.
Tomi Engdahl says:
This Trend Is Very Worrisome For Apple
http://www.businessinsider.com/mobile-market-share-2012-11?op=1
a major long-term risk for Apple, which is the gradual loss of mobile market share to the Android platform.
This trend has continued in recent months, to the point where Apple has now been reduced to a niche player in the global market.
The more market share Apple loses, the more worried Apple shareholders should become. And the more Apple should consider making a subtle but important shift to its product and pricing strategy.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Apple’s profits fetish could spell its DOOM
Mobile world will soon be like PCs
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2012/11/20/open_and_shut/
The other shoe is about to drop in the mobile market. For years Apple has dominated mobile, both in terms of market share and in terms of profits. It was an enviable position, and a unique one, borne of Apple’s commitment to out-innovating the industry, allowing it to consistently charge a premium for its products. But as the industry has matured, Apple has haemorrhaged market share to low-cost Android.
In turn, it is now also losing its hold on industry profits. Given Apple’s fetish for profits over market share, it is consigning itself to a repeat of its battle with Microsoft, wherein it ends up as a profitable, but niche, market player.
It was supposed to be different this time. Apple had supposedly learned from its Microsoft mistakes.
Yes, it has worked. For a time. But Apple’s hold on industry profits is starting to slip, even as its market share plummets.
Not only is Apple losing market share in established markets like North America and Western Europe, but it’s practically an afterthought in the world’s most critical market: China.
An Analysys International report, as detailed on BGR.com, shows Android with more than 90 per cent of the China market
That’s up from 58.2 per cent in 2011, and is even more interesting when you see Apple declining in China to 4.2 per cent (from 6 per cent in 2011). In a market with more than one billion subscribers, that’s market share Apple can ill-afford to lose.
Apple is a great company, consistently building products that I’ve been very happy to buy. But its manic desire to control its ecosystem, coupled with its insistence on sky-high margins at the expense of market share, all but ensure that it will soon be an important, but niche, mobile vendor. A few years ago, this seemed impossible, at least, to those who had no memory of the desktop market. But for those of us who lived through Apple vs Microsoft, it’s very, very familiar.
What’s surprising is that Apple doesn’t seem to have learned from its mistakes. It’s not enough to be a profitable niche company in a platform market, as Blodget argues.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Windows 8 Tablets On A Plane: Emirates Airlines Takes Microsoft, HP Into Real Clouds
http://www.fastcompany.com/3003286/windows-8-tablets-plane-emirates-airlines-takes-microsoft-hp-real-clouds
Using tablet tech to go way beyond mere beverage service, here Emirates execs discuss flying with open Windows.
PATRICK BRANNELLY: On an Airbus A380, there’s about 25 cabin crew the purser is in charge of. Chances are, the purser’s only flown with three of them before. Then there’s 500 passengers. On a tablet, you can see an instant overview of the entire team, as well as all about the passengers–how many infants are on board; do any passengers have special needs or preferences; is this person’s favorite drink a gin and tonic? Imagine doing all that with paper–which we used to do. You would literally be carrying around a piece of paper about eight feet long. Now, with Windows 8, you can just touch a photograph of the crew and see what languages they speak. You can see who on the crew speaks Swahili, and dispatch the nearest one to the passenger who doesn’t understand English.
KG: At the moment, we’re just announcing the fact that we’ll be giving these to the purser. I think that’s the way the world is going, but there’s no decision yet.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Black Friday: Catalyst for Tablets to Far Surpass Notebook Shipments in North America
http://www.displaysearchblog.com/2012/11/black-friday-catalyst-for-tablets-to-far-surpass-notebook-shipments-in-north-america/
NPD DisplaySearch’s fourth quarter North American tablet shipment forecast is 21.5 million units, far exceeding the 14.6 million notebooks and mini-notes that are expected to ship in the same period. Starting in 2013 in North America, tablet shipments are expected to exceed notebook shipments on an annual basis for the first time; 80 million tablets versus 63.8 million notebooks. On a worldwide basis, tablet shipments aren’t expected to out-ship notebooks until 2015, when 275.9 million tablets are projected to ship, as compared to 270 million notebooks.
Several factors are enabling the North American tablet-friendly environment. First, over 70% of U.S. households have PCs, putting the U.S. amongst the countries with highest PC penetration rates in the world, and making new PC purchases less necessary for consumers. Second, consumer preference has shifted from notebooks to tablets in the U.S., as we have seen from rapid growth of the tablet shipments (200% Y/Y or 38.2 million units in 2011, and 46%, or a projected 56 million, in 2012) and the rapid slowdown of notebooks (-2% Y/Y or 54.9 million units in 2011, and 2%, or a projected 55.9 million units, in 2012) over the last two years. Third, major players (i.e. Amazon, Google) started, focused, or emphasized their tablet efforts in the U.S.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Mobile devices can leak from the company’s data in an uncontrolled way.
Mobile devices pose IT administrations of many organizations quite a headache.
The solution to new challenges is a remote management, mdm (mobile device management). It allows IT management software can directly see the console, to whom each of the remote control device is covered, what is the model of what applications are installed, and the most important thing, that is, if the machine and the settings of the company’s IT policies in accordance with or not. That can be automatically forces the company and the workers owned equipment.
Plain device management is, however, already old-fashioned. The trend is to focus on the applications and content management, and mdm for example, may provide an application-level protection. All company data from e-mails can be run on a mobile device isolated sandbox, which for example can not share data with other applications, or even take screen captures.
Mobile device management software, demand is growing at an incredible pace.
it is not easy to choose the one most suitable to your needs
Source: http://www.tietokone.fi/uutiset/alypuhelin_voi_olla_tietoturvan_talvivaara
Tomi Engdahl says:
Before IPhone and Android Came Simon, the First Smartphone
http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-06-29/before-iphone-and-android-came-simon-the-first-smartphone
Simon was the first smartphone. Twenty years ago, it envisioned our app-happy mobile lives, squeezing the features of a cell phone, pager, fax machine, and computer into an 18-ounce black brick. The touchscreen (monochrome) had icons you tapped, or poked with a stylus, for e-mail, calculator, calendar, clock, and a game called Scramble in which you moved squares around the screen until you formed a picture. It featured predictive typing that would guess the next characters as you pecked. And it had apps, or at least a way to deliver more features—including a camera, maps, and music—by plugging a memory card into the phone.
It would take an additional 10 years before anyone called a cell phone “smart,” and a further five before the iPhone shattered our view of what these digital devices could do for us. Simon retailed for $899 and sold approximately 50,000 units. If you were a heavy data user, you had about 60 minutes before you needed to recharge—as little as 30 minutes in areas with poor cell coverage.
When a few IBM (IBM) engineers first showed a working prototype at the 1992 Comdex computer show in Las Vegas, the model was code-named “Angler” and drew crowds of people eight-to-10 deep. BellSouth Cellular teamed with IBM to turn it into a commercial product with a Milton-Bradley-meets-Gene-Rodenberry name.
The story of Simon is the timeless lesson of tech innovation: Groundbreaking products require a rich ecosystem before the “big idea” can become truly useful or widespread. In this case, what was needed included fast networks, Web browsers, and a whole lot of apps waiting to be pulled off the Internet. In the early 1990s, none of these were available.
Phone networks were designed mostly for voice, not sending data. When Simon was conceived, a Web browser had yet to be released.
In the end, technical limitations, product delays, a world-class corporate meltdown, revolving-door management, and bad business decisions conspired against Simon.
Lou Esparaza says:
Windows 7 is really a great piece of software and it is very responsive too. ,
Tomi Engdahl says:
Dual-identity smartphones could bridge BYOD private, corporate divide
New processors will allow phones to run two OSes — one public and one corporate
http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/print/9233834/Dual_identity_smartphones_could_bridge_BYOD_private_corporate_divide
Late next year, consumers will be able to buy smartphones that either come with native hypervisor software or use an app allowing them to run two interfaces on the phone: one for personal use, one for work.
The technology could help address an issue that has cropped up with increasing frequency at work: Employees who bring their personal mobile devices to work and use them to communicate with clients and to access corporate data. The issue can cause friction at companies that need to safeguard their data on employee-owned smartphones and tablets and want to be able to remotely wipe the devices of data if they’re lost or if an employee quits or is fired.
VMware and Red Bend are two of the leading software companies that have already signed OEM agreements with smartphone manufacturers to create dual-identify devices from some of today’s most popular models.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Pew: 56 Percent Of All Mobile Users Access The Internet
http://marketingland.com/pew-56-percent-of-all-mobile-users-access-the-internet-27205
According to some new survey data released over the weekend by the Pew Internet & American Life Project, 56 percent of all mobile phone owners in the US access the internet. In addition, Pew says that 85 percent of all US adults now own a mobile phone.
There are approximately 250 million US adults today. If 85 percent own a mobile phone that would make 212 million mobile phone-owning adults in the US.
Tomi says:
evolution of the mobile phone by docomo
http://www.designboom.com/technology/docomo-phones-celebrate-20-years/
Japanese communications company NTT docomo celebrates its 20th anniversary with an exhibition showcasing the evolution of
mobile phone culture starting from 1987 to the present day.
Tomi Engdahl says:
According to ABI Research Android tablets catching up quickly ahead of the iPad. In the third quarter iPad market share declined to 55 percent (was 69 percent earlier). This is Apple’s lowest market share since the iPad was introduced in 2010.
Android’s share of tablets has already risen to 44 percent.
All Things D estimates that if the trend continues, in the next year, Android tablets will have bigger marker share than iPad.
The same thing happened to Apple in mobile phones.
Other platforms than iPad and Android have only 1 percent market share on tablet market.
Source: http://www.tietoviikko.fi/kaikki_uutiset/hyvasti+ipadhegemonia/a860052?s=r&wtm=tietoviikko/-29112012&
Tomi Engdahl says:
THE FUTURE OF DIGITAL [SLIDE DECK]
http://www.businessinsider.com/future-of-digital-slides-2012-11
Global Internet Connected Device Shipments
http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/50a50aadecad04f123000006-650/internet-connected-devices.jpg
Ten… technology fails « Tomi Engdahl’s ePanorama blog says:
[...] Even by the late 1990s, pundits were already predicting the death of the PC: the new Millennium would herald the ‘post-PC era’, they said. The idea was that most users would access the internet cheaply and easily through set-top boxes and TVs rather than pricey desktop or laptop computers. Attempts to build these so-called ‘information appliances’ invariably offered a sub-standard – as defined by the personal computer – experience. Instead, punters adopted the ever-cheaper PCs. We have had to wait another ten years for products that looked like they might supplant the traditio… [...]
Tomi Engdahl says:
Research Firm Says Windows 8 Had a Rocky Start
http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/11/29/research-firm-says-windows-8-had-a-rocky-start/
NPD said sales of Windows 8 tablets had been “almost nonexistent,” accounting for less than 1 percent of all Windows 8 device sales.
The figures suggest that Windows 8 did nothing to arrest the downward trajectory of the PC business, much less lead to a rebound in a market that has been struggling for some time. “It hasn’t made the market any worse, but it hasn’t stimulated things either,”
The Windows 8 debut looks like it had much less of a positive impact on PC sales than did its predecessor, Windows 7, which went on sale to the general public on Oct. 22, 2009.
The PC business in 2007 had much stronger unit sales than it has now, in large part because of a boom in the low-cost laptops known as netbooks. Fast forward to 2012, and sales of netbooks have nearly vanished, replaced by surging sales of the iPad and other tablets.
Tomi Engdahl says:
5 Critical Mistakes Schools Make With iPads (And How To Correct Them)
http://edudemic.com/2012/09/5-critical-mistakes-schools-ipads-and-correct-them/
Over the last few years K-12 schools and districts across the country have been investing heavily in iPads for classroom use. EdTechTeacher has been leading iPad professional development at many of these schools and we’ve seen firsthand how they approach iPad integration.
While we’ve witnessed many effective approaches to incorporating iPads successfully in the classroom, we’re struck by the common mistakes many schools are making with iPads, mistakes that are in some cases crippling the success of these initiatives. We’re sharing these common challenges with you, so your school doesn’t have to make them.
1) Focusing on content apps
The most common mistake teachers make with iPads is focusing on subject-specific apps. In doing so, many completely overlook the full range of possibilities with the iPad.
2) Lack of Teacher Preparation in Classroom Management of iPads
One of the obvious mistakes is failing to provide teachers with adequate professional development.
3) Treating the iPad as a computer and expecting it to serve as a laptop.
iPads are devices meant to compliment computers, not replace them.
4) Treating iPads like multi-user devices
iPads were designed as a single-user device and not meant to be shared via carts.
5) Failure to communicate a compelling answer to “Why iPads?”
Many school administrators simply fail to communicate to their constituents why they’ve purchased iPads. As a result, many initiatives face resistance from teachers, parents — and even students – who don’t understand why these devices are being introduced into their classrooms. Letting the purchase speak for itself isn’t enough – districts need to explain why they’ve invested in these devices.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Worldwide Smart Connected Device Market, Led by Samsung and Apple, Grew 27.1% in the Third Quarter, According to IDC
http://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=prUS23849612#.UMigzHemoil
FRAMINGHAM, Mass., December 10, 2012 – The worldwide smart connected device market – a collective view of PCs, tablets, and smartphones – grew 27.1% year-over-year in the third quarter of 2012 (3Q12) reaching a record 303.6 million shipments valued at $140.4 billion dollars. Expectations for the holiday season quarter are that shipments will continue to reach record levels rising 19.2% over 3Q12 and 26.5% over the same quarter a year ago. According to the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Smart Connected Device Tracker, 4Q12 shipments are expected to reach 362.0 million units with a market value of $169.2 billion dollars.
“The battle between Samsung and Apple at the top of the smart connected device space is stronger than ever,”
Looking forward, IDC expects the worldwide smart connected device space will continue to surge well past the strong holiday quarter and predicts shipments to surpass 2.1 billion units in 2016 with a market value of $796.7 billion worldwide. IDC’s research clearly shows this to be a multi-device era
Tomi Engdahl says:
Dell Quits Smartphone Business Globally, Drops Android
http://www.forbes.com/sites/jeanbaptiste/2012/12/12/dell-quits-smartphone-business-globally-android/
Dell is definitely pulling the plug on the smartphone business, globally. A tough decision, leaving a market that is expected to reach $150.3 billion in 2014, according to MarketsandMarkets
Earlier this year, the Round Rock, Texas-based computer company stopped selling its mobile devices in the U.S. Although some could still be found in China where Dell hoped to continue. But that’s all over now as well.
Now in the 5th year of its “transformation,” Dell’s mobile strategy looks very much like it was before its push in the consumer business and the adoption of Google‘s Android system for most of its mobile devices (Streak, Aero, Thunder).
“It’s a content play with Android. Amazon is selling books and Google is making it up with search. So far we couldn’t find a way to build a business on Android,” added Clarke. But I’m sure Samsung would disagree.