I was not planning to write about smartphones again so soon, but this week's announcement of the latest iPhone by Apple as well as the recent announcement of new Android-based smartphones make this topic too timely to hold off.
The announcement this past Monday of the fourth generation iPhone has been eagerly anticipated. While the announcement did not hold anything nearly as revolutionary as the first announcement of the iPhone, Apple has certainly built on its innovative traditions by adding high-definition video and a front facing-video camera to enable video chat with this latest version. But perhaps most notably, the curves of the device have been slightly diminished and the size is being heralded as the world's thinnest smartphone to date. The screen is also so high quality that it has a higher resolution than is discernible by the human eye. In other words, it's crisp beyond description.
It's too soon to know if this latest edition of the iPhone will make it even more of a hit than it already is, but it is certainly not going to diminish its market share. The new iPhone will be available later this month, and we are sure to see droves of current owners rushing to upgrade to the latest hardware as well as causing many who have been holding off to dive right in.
Perhaps what was missing the most from the announcement of the new iPhone was its rumored arrival to the Verizon Wireless network. It didn't happen, at least not yet, and I will not waste column space speculating on whether it will come to carriers other than AT&T before the 2012 expiration of the reported exclusive contract between Apple and AT&T.
Over the past several months, Verizon Wireless has sent me several new Android-based smartphones to evaluate, the more recent being theHTC Droid Incredible, a phone I have begun to think of as the incredible Incredible. For those on the Sprint network, the new EVO 4G is a nearly identical device. What has impressed me the most about the Droid Incredible is similar to what impresses me about the iPhone. The intuitive nature of the device, aided in part by some additional software from HTC, manufacturer of the phone, that simply makes it a pleasure to use.
I have had several clients mention to me recently that they no longer rely on their notebook or home computer for remote access to their offices. Rather, they use their smartphones, whether an iPhone, Android, Windows Mobile or Blackberry device, to access much of what they need while they travel.
One client even boldly commented to me that he does not take his notebook with him on any business trips less than four days as he can stay in contact with everyone he needs to with his smartphone, including reviewing documents and spreadsheets. This more than anything illustrates just how far smartphones have come. Business people across industries are able to operate without their main computer for days at a time thanks to these devices. It's truly impressive.
Smartphones are capable of providing secure access to business resources at a much higher level than ever before.
To be able to carry a single device so thin and light as to be able to be comfortably placed in a shirt pocket that can access not just your e-mail but also files on the company network, securely and efficiently, is a real benefit to many in the business community.
From an information security point of view, the fact these connections are secure and encrypted is critically important. Moreover, the fact IT administrators have the tools to remotely wipe out and erase a lost and stolen device provides the security necessary for many industries.
These developments are part of what is fueling the rapid pace of development of these devices.
I plan to release my detailed review of the HTC Droid Incredible on my blog at mjsblog.jenaly.com over the coming week and may devote a future column to that review, as well.
In the meantime, if you have not made the move to a smartphone, I encourage you to do so.
You won't regret it.
