Android and iPhone racing for customers
Thursday, December 24, 2009
A new study reveals that Google and Apple are in a sharp race for smartphone demand. Among the Americans wanting to buy a smartphone between November and February, 20 percent plan to get and iPhone 3G or 3GS, while 17 percent want to buy an Android phone. Both categories are more specific when it comes to buying a high-end device, 14 percent of them opting for an iPhone 3GS, while 8 percent would buy a Motorola Droid.
BlackBerry is still leading in customers’ demand with 51 percent of those buyers aiming to purchase a RIM phone, but the preference for a particular model is not similar to the competitors’ situation. About 18 percent of BlackBerry customers would buy the least expensive model, the candybar Pearl. The touchscreen Storm and Storm2 demand is situated at 13 percent, but 4 percent are planning to buy a model of the high-end Bold and 3 percent are opting for its CDMA model, the Tour. Other platforms are trailing, just 2 percent aiming to buy a Palm Pre or the Windows Mobile-based AT&T Tilt.
The request for Android devices have dramatically increased compared to August when there was a lack of Android phones that left the entire group at 7 percent. Apple instead has had a steady demand and has lost only a single percentage point during the period between mid-summer and mid-fall.
BlackBerry demand is still strong, though Research in Motion is the only one company in the top three to have an operating system available on all important US carriers and selling its handsets at prices of $100, $50 or even free in some cases, on contract. Android expansion is considered identical to that of the iPhone, thanks to a great popularity of data use. On both platforms, users are more likely to utilize third-party applications, media playback, e-mail and the web than other owners of smartphones. E-mail is the only weak point on Android, 63 percent of its customers using it regularly, while in the case of the iPhone 87 percent of the owners are regularly using the service.
Source:http://www.htlounge.net
BlackBerry is still leading in customers’ demand with 51 percent of those buyers aiming to purchase a RIM phone, but the preference for a particular model is not similar to the competitors’ situation. About 18 percent of BlackBerry customers would buy the least expensive model, the candybar Pearl. The touchscreen Storm and Storm2 demand is situated at 13 percent, but 4 percent are planning to buy a model of the high-end Bold and 3 percent are opting for its CDMA model, the Tour. Other platforms are trailing, just 2 percent aiming to buy a Palm Pre or the Windows Mobile-based AT&T Tilt.
The request for Android devices have dramatically increased compared to August when there was a lack of Android phones that left the entire group at 7 percent. Apple instead has had a steady demand and has lost only a single percentage point during the period between mid-summer and mid-fall.
BlackBerry demand is still strong, though Research in Motion is the only one company in the top three to have an operating system available on all important US carriers and selling its handsets at prices of $100, $50 or even free in some cases, on contract. Android expansion is considered identical to that of the iPhone, thanks to a great popularity of data use. On both platforms, users are more likely to utilize third-party applications, media playback, e-mail and the web than other owners of smartphones. E-mail is the only weak point on Android, 63 percent of its customers using it regularly, while in the case of the iPhone 87 percent of the owners are regularly using the service.
Source:http://www.htlounge.net
Labels: Android News, Blackberry News, iPhone News, Smartphonesmarket
Motorola probably sold 250,000 Droids in first week, Flurry says
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Motorola probably sold 250,000 Droids in the first week, making it the Android platform’s first legitimate challenger to the iPhone, according to analytics firm Flurry. Those figures are more than four times what HTC and T-Mobile were able to do with the MyTouch phone and about one-sixth of what Apple pulled off with the iPhone 3GS in their first weeks. (Keep in mind that Apple launched that model in eight countries, not one like the Droid, and already had a base of users ready to upgrade from older versions.
Flurry made its estimates through the analytics service it provides for more than 10,000 apps. The company says the apps that it tracks are on two out of every three iPhone and Android handsets worldwide. So it derived an estimate from the number of new Android handsets it detected that week and cross-checked its methodology against actual sales numbers for Apple’s iPhone 3GS.
Flurry’s estimates are also broadly in line with others’. Broadpoint AmTech’s Mark McKechnie said Motorola did 100,000 phones in sales during the first weekend, while Macquarie’s Phil Cusick said the phone had 200,000 sales in its debut weekend.
Flurry’s Vice President of Marketing Peter Farago wrote:
Image Source:http://blog.flurry.com/
Main Story:http://blog.flurry.com/bid/28266/Droid-Does-Deliver-Flurry-Uses-its-Analytics-to-Measure-Week-1-Sales
Source:http://venturebeat.com/2009/11/16/motorola-probably-sold-250000-droids-in-first-week-flurry-says/
Flurry made its estimates through the analytics service it provides for more than 10,000 apps. The company says the apps that it tracks are on two out of every three iPhone and Android handsets worldwide. So it derived an estimate from the number of new Android handsets it detected that week and cross-checked its methodology against actual sales numbers for Apple’s iPhone 3GS.
Flurry’s estimates are also broadly in line with others’. Broadpoint AmTech’s Mark McKechnie said Motorola did 100,000 phones in sales during the first weekend, while Macquarie’s Phil Cusick said the phone had 200,000 sales in its debut weekend.
Flurry’s Vice President of Marketing Peter Farago wrote:
The launch of Droid signals the beginning of a viable platform alternative to the iPhone as Android builds critical mass. As major companies continue to vie for a piece of the exploding Smartphone market, the consumer has never had more choice and innovation in the mobile industry. With Droid, Motorola has raised the bar for Android handsets, contributing to an ever-growing base of Android handsets upon which applications developers can build a business.
Image Source:http://blog.flurry.com/
Main Story:http://blog.flurry.com/bid/28266/Droid-Does-Deliver-Flurry-Uses-its-Analytics-to-Measure-Week-1-Sales
Source:http://venturebeat.com/2009/11/16/motorola-probably-sold-250000-droids-in-first-week-flurry-says/
Labels: iPhone 3 GS, MyTouch phone, Smartphonesmarket, Verizon Motorola Droid
Smartphone Sales Up 12% In Q3
Monday, November 16, 2009
Global mobile phone sales reached 308.9 million units in the third quarter of 2009, a slight increase of 0.1 percent from the third quarter of 2008, according to a new report from Gartner.
Smartphone sales showed solid growth with more than 41 million units sold for a 12.8 percent increase from the same period last year.
"The third quarter of 2009 saw the announcement of many new mobile devices, including several Android smartphones ready for the holiday season in the fourth quarter, but hardware commoditisation and the growth in open platforms will make it harder for them to stand out," said Carolina Milanesi, research director at Gartner.
"Many devices will reach the market in time for Christmas, and mobile carriers will run incentives for consumers during the holidays. We expect sales of mobile devices in the fourth quarter of 2009 to show year-over-year growth," said Ms Milanesi.
"As many vendors and industry watchers call for a decrease in sales into the channel, our sell through data is showing that 2009 performance will be flat rather than down over 2008."
Nokia led the mobile market in Q3 with 36.7 percent of the share, followed by Samsung at 19.6 percent and LG with 10.3 percent market share.
Nokia also ranked at the top in smartphone sales with 39.3 percent of the market, followed by Blackberry maker Research in Motion with 20.8 percent and Apple with 17.1 percent.
"Smartphones continued to represent the fastest-growing segment of the mobile-devices market and we remain confident about the potential for smartphones in the fourth quarter of 2009 and in 2010," said Ms Milanesi.
Source:http://community.ecmta.org/blogs/news/archive/2009/11/13/smartphone-sales-up-12-in-q3.aspx
Smartphone sales showed solid growth with more than 41 million units sold for a 12.8 percent increase from the same period last year.
"The third quarter of 2009 saw the announcement of many new mobile devices, including several Android smartphones ready for the holiday season in the fourth quarter, but hardware commoditisation and the growth in open platforms will make it harder for them to stand out," said Carolina Milanesi, research director at Gartner.
"Many devices will reach the market in time for Christmas, and mobile carriers will run incentives for consumers during the holidays. We expect sales of mobile devices in the fourth quarter of 2009 to show year-over-year growth," said Ms Milanesi.
"As many vendors and industry watchers call for a decrease in sales into the channel, our sell through data is showing that 2009 performance will be flat rather than down over 2008."
Nokia led the mobile market in Q3 with 36.7 percent of the share, followed by Samsung at 19.6 percent and LG with 10.3 percent market share.
Nokia also ranked at the top in smartphone sales with 39.3 percent of the market, followed by Blackberry maker Research in Motion with 20.8 percent and Apple with 17.1 percent.
"Smartphones continued to represent the fastest-growing segment of the mobile-devices market and we remain confident about the potential for smartphones in the fourth quarter of 2009 and in 2010," said Ms Milanesi.
Source:http://community.ecmta.org/blogs/news/archive/2009/11/13/smartphone-sales-up-12-in-q3.aspx
Labels: Smartphones, Smartphones OS, Smartphonesmarket
Mobile Phones are the New Computer
Monday, November 02, 2009
The mobile phone is the new computer. The desktop computer is not going away, but the smartphone market is growing fast. Phones are being used as computers by more people and for more purposes. Just as we still have supercomputers today but most people use desktop computers everyday, soon desktop computers will be relegated to the specialist and elite professional, and most people will use their mobile phones for their computing needs.
Already there are more mobile phones than computers connected to the internet. Smartphones are generally cheaper than computers. With their primary role as communication devices, they are often more useful. The smartphone of today will be the standard phone a few years from now. With profits from applications growing, we’ll see continued subsidies of the hardware and operating systems by manufacturers and carriers, keeping new phones cheap or free.
We’re also seeing a change in how people use computers. More often applications we use are centered around communications (more commonly termed “workflow”) than the more traditional personal computer task of document creation. In the business world, we file expense reports, approve decisions, or comment on proposals. As consumers, we read reviews, send short notes to friends, and share photos. Email is the killer app of the late 20th century, rather than the word processor or spreadsheet.
I’ve never been a gadget geek and have skirted getting into mobile application development before now. The actual engineering challenges of working with native code on a device doesn’t scare me, but just didn’t seem worth it. Developing apps for a phone typically meant that you were working for a carrier, directly or indirectly subjected to the whims of a monstrously large company, and often disconnected from the people actually using the application.
Mobile development also seemed to attract the same style of engineer as game development: interested in the tech for itself, with less interest in the end result, and a feeling that the application is “cool” because it runs on a gadget, independent of its usefulness. Mobile apps weren’t attractive to me as a developer or someone who might use them. I always said that I would start using a PDA when they had the resolution and battery life of paper, and the phone was suited for direct communication with another human being via voice.
Full Story Here: http://www.ultrasaurus.com
Already there are more mobile phones than computers connected to the internet. Smartphones are generally cheaper than computers. With their primary role as communication devices, they are often more useful. The smartphone of today will be the standard phone a few years from now. With profits from applications growing, we’ll see continued subsidies of the hardware and operating systems by manufacturers and carriers, keeping new phones cheap or free.
We’re also seeing a change in how people use computers. More often applications we use are centered around communications (more commonly termed “workflow”) than the more traditional personal computer task of document creation. In the business world, we file expense reports, approve decisions, or comment on proposals. As consumers, we read reviews, send short notes to friends, and share photos. Email is the killer app of the late 20th century, rather than the word processor or spreadsheet.
I’ve never been a gadget geek and have skirted getting into mobile application development before now. The actual engineering challenges of working with native code on a device doesn’t scare me, but just didn’t seem worth it. Developing apps for a phone typically meant that you were working for a carrier, directly or indirectly subjected to the whims of a monstrously large company, and often disconnected from the people actually using the application.
Mobile development also seemed to attract the same style of engineer as game development: interested in the tech for itself, with less interest in the end result, and a feeling that the application is “cool” because it runs on a gadget, independent of its usefulness. Mobile apps weren’t attractive to me as a developer or someone who might use them. I always said that I would start using a PDA when they had the resolution and battery life of paper, and the phone was suited for direct communication with another human being via voice.
Full Story Here: http://www.ultrasaurus.com
Labels: Mobile development, Mobile technology, Smartphonesmarket
Motorola Cliq Gets Release Date, Price
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Motorola on Tuesday finally revealed the pricing and release details for its eagerly anticipated first foray into the world of Google Android: The Motorola Cliq will debut on T-Mobile on November 2 for new customers, but existing customers will can sign up as early as Oct. 19.
The forthcoming handset, which was first announced earlier this month at the GigaOm conference in San Francisco, will be priced at $199.99 with a two-year T-Mobile contract. Voice plans for the phone begin at $29.99. Data plans start at $24.99. "[T]he CLIQ's total cost of ownership over the course of a two year contract stacks up well vs. the competition," writes T-Mobile in a press release issued today.
The touchscreen smartphone is built around Motorola's Motoblur OS, a skinned version of Google Android. The software is largely centered around social media sites like Facebook and Twitter.
Motorola is widely expected to launch a second Android handset early next month. Codenamed Sholes, the device is rumored to be the first Verizon handset to utilize Google's open OS.
Source:http://www.gearlog.com/2009/09/motorola_cliq_gets_release_dat.php
The forthcoming handset, which was first announced earlier this month at the GigaOm conference in San Francisco, will be priced at $199.99 with a two-year T-Mobile contract. Voice plans for the phone begin at $29.99. Data plans start at $24.99. "[T]he CLIQ's total cost of ownership over the course of a two year contract stacks up well vs. the competition," writes T-Mobile in a press release issued today.
The touchscreen smartphone is built around Motorola's Motoblur OS, a skinned version of Google Android. The software is largely centered around social media sites like Facebook and Twitter.
Motorola is widely expected to launch a second Android handset early next month. Codenamed Sholes, the device is rumored to be the first Verizon handset to utilize Google's open OS.
Source:http://www.gearlog.com/2009/09/motorola_cliq_gets_release_dat.php
Labels: Android device, Mobile technology, Motorola handsets, Smartphonesmarket
IMPACT OF MOBILE TECHNOLOGY & MARKETING
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Mobile technology is touching heights these days and the small device is offering a lot to the users other than making and receiving calls. With a new platform of smartphones in the market, this technology is giving a tough time to the other fields of advertising. The mobile advertising is an effective and more result-driven form of marketing. At times you are away from your computers but still have mobiles in your hands and it remains with you most of the time. So, your mobile is the ultimate platform for various companies to advertise their products & services. This phenomenon has given rise to a new form of marketing popularly known as mobile marketing.
Mobile marketing is blooming at a much faster rate as compared to the other forms of marketing. Though Internet marketing is on rise, mobile marketing is considered as a more cost effective, personalized, and immediate form of marketing. It is estimated that the world market for mobile marketing and advertising revenues will reach nearly $50 billion by 2014, up from about $29 billion today, growing at a five-year CAGR rate of nearly 12%. Europe and North America will grow at the fastest rates, about 16% through the period, to reach $16.3 billion and $12.4 billion, respectively. Many companies are using this new form of marketing to enhance brand awareness and increasing sales effectiveness. It has changed the ways of many users as they use their phones to search and sometimes, even, buy the products & services.
People often receive some kind of advertisements on their mobiles. These advertisements come in the form of SMS, MMS and Calls. You might be anywhere but you would keep on receiving such form of advertisements. SMS and messaging continue to dominate as the vehicles able to interact with the largest portion of the installed base for mobile phones. Mobile games used to represent the total sum of in-application advertising, but not any more. The surge in smartphone applications broadens the appeal for marketing messages inserted during program run time. Location is the mobile marketer’s best friend as it quickly becomes an integral component for precision audience targeting.
Most of the companies around the world are turning their marketing objectives towards the widespread mobile marketing. Companies are using all manner of lucrative methods to attract the buyers from various segments. If they are targeting kids, they can place their advertisements in mobile games or sponsored videos. One of the important things about mobile marketing is that it is the cheapest means of advertisements. Companies need not to invest huge amount of money for advertisements through mobile marketing.
2009 is expected to be a decisive year for mobile marketing spending as marketers worldwide move from disillusionment over their expected return from this platform to the realization that they can indeed enhance consumer brand equity via the targeted precision and customized experience that mobile affords over other media placements.
Mobile marketing is blooming at a much faster rate as compared to the other forms of marketing. Though Internet marketing is on rise, mobile marketing is considered as a more cost effective, personalized, and immediate form of marketing. It is estimated that the world market for mobile marketing and advertising revenues will reach nearly $50 billion by 2014, up from about $29 billion today, growing at a five-year CAGR rate of nearly 12%. Europe and North America will grow at the fastest rates, about 16% through the period, to reach $16.3 billion and $12.4 billion, respectively. Many companies are using this new form of marketing to enhance brand awareness and increasing sales effectiveness. It has changed the ways of many users as they use their phones to search and sometimes, even, buy the products & services.
People often receive some kind of advertisements on their mobiles. These advertisements come in the form of SMS, MMS and Calls. You might be anywhere but you would keep on receiving such form of advertisements. SMS and messaging continue to dominate as the vehicles able to interact with the largest portion of the installed base for mobile phones. Mobile games used to represent the total sum of in-application advertising, but not any more. The surge in smartphone applications broadens the appeal for marketing messages inserted during program run time. Location is the mobile marketer’s best friend as it quickly becomes an integral component for precision audience targeting.
Most of the companies around the world are turning their marketing objectives towards the widespread mobile marketing. Companies are using all manner of lucrative methods to attract the buyers from various segments. If they are targeting kids, they can place their advertisements in mobile games or sponsored videos. One of the important things about mobile marketing is that it is the cheapest means of advertisements. Companies need not to invest huge amount of money for advertisements through mobile marketing.
2009 is expected to be a decisive year for mobile marketing spending as marketers worldwide move from disillusionment over their expected return from this platform to the realization that they can indeed enhance consumer brand equity via the targeted precision and customized experience that mobile affords over other media placements.
Labels: Mobile marketing, Mobile technology, Smartphones, Smartphonesmarket
Internet Media "Android Tablet" On September 15
Friday, August 21, 2009
Archos has announced that a 5-inch Internet media tablet loaded with Android will be unveiled on September 15th, According to The Inquirer. The tablet will have an HDMI out and comes with natively embedded OpenGL libraries. Archos has also announced its AppsLib application store for advanced Android devices targeted at super high-end non-smartphone devices. Archos has clearly framed its objectives by stating that :
However, the development guidelines describe just a single, 5-inch 800x480 pixel device with accelerometer, OpenGL 3D graphics support, and HDMI output pushing an oddball 1160x652 pixel resolution to your TV. Still there is room for other speculations like ; 500GB storage, 10-mm thickness, 7-hours of battery when playing video, voice and HSUPA data radio, and OMAP3440 processor -- unexpectedly announced (by TI!) for the tablet way back in February to be in place. The device has all the makings of a successful piece of hardware.
With this challenging endeavor, it would be worth watching whether or not the ARCHOS Android Internet Tablet and AppsLib will be successful in the already hot smartphone market. It will be interesting to watch the developing part with completely different implications.
- By High-End devices, we mean devices that are not only smartphones, but all kind of tablets, PDA, PNDs or picture-frames. Devices that will tomorrow provide the same kind of experience than a PC, mobility added.
AppsLib is a co-venture with ARCHOS. Our target is to be available on a large variety of device, from a lot of manufacturer. But we believe ARCHOS has got what it takes to become the future of Android devices.
However, the development guidelines describe just a single, 5-inch 800x480 pixel device with accelerometer, OpenGL 3D graphics support, and HDMI output pushing an oddball 1160x652 pixel resolution to your TV. Still there is room for other speculations like ; 500GB storage, 10-mm thickness, 7-hours of battery when playing video, voice and HSUPA data radio, and OMAP3440 processor -- unexpectedly announced (by TI!) for the tablet way back in February to be in place. The device has all the makings of a successful piece of hardware.
With this challenging endeavor, it would be worth watching whether or not the ARCHOS Android Internet Tablet and AppsLib will be successful in the already hot smartphone market. It will be interesting to watch the developing part with completely different implications.
Labels: Android, Android applications, Android Tablet, Smartphonesmarket
Dell Mini 3i smartphone gets official outing in China
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
At last, the much rumored Dell cellphone has made its first official appearance. The 3.5-inch 360 x 640 pixel device with capacitive touchscreen was on display in China running the Android-based Open Mobile System (OMS).
The Mini 3i was on-hand as part of the launch of China Mobile's new Application Platform that offers music, video, and app downloads to mobile phones from Nokia, Samsung, LG, and apparently, Dell.
The candybar device lacks WiFi (or Chinese WAPI) and is strictly 2G GSM (no 3G) but does come with a 3 megapixel camera, microSD slot, Bluetooth, and 950mAh battery. Guess now we know why the early prototypes were met by a collective meh by mobile carriers earlier this year.
No idea when this will ship but it looks China-bound for at least the near future. A few more pics after the break.
[ Via : Engadgetmobile ]
The Mini 3i was on-hand as part of the launch of China Mobile's new Application Platform that offers music, video, and app downloads to mobile phones from Nokia, Samsung, LG, and apparently, Dell.
The candybar device lacks WiFi (or Chinese WAPI) and is strictly 2G GSM (no 3G) but does come with a 3 megapixel camera, microSD slot, Bluetooth, and 950mAh battery. Guess now we know why the early prototypes were met by a collective meh by mobile carriers earlier this year.
No idea when this will ship but it looks China-bound for at least the near future. A few more pics after the break.
[ Via : Engadgetmobile ]
Labels: Dell cellphone, Dell Mini3i, Smartphones, Smartphonesmarket
Weaker World Mobile Phone Sales but Smartphone 27% Higher in Q2, Says Gartner
Friday, August 14, 2009
Worldwide mobile phone sales totalled 286.1 million units in the second quarter of 2009, a 6.1 per cent decrease from the second quarter of 2008, according to Gartner, Inc. Smartphone sales surpassed 40 million units, a 27 per cent increase from the same period last year, representing the fastest-growing segment of the mobile-devices market. The iPhone market share grew a staggering 375%.
"Despite the challenging market, some devices sold well as consumers who would usually have purchased standard midrange devices either cut back to less expensive handsets or moved up the range to get more features for their money," said Carolina Milanesi, research director at Gartner.
"Touchscreen and QWERTY devices remained a major driver for replacement sales and benefited manufacturers with strong, touch-focused midtier devices. However, the decline in average selling price (ASP) accelerated in the first half of the year and particularly affected manufacturers that focus on midtier and low-end devices, where margins are already slim."
The recession continued to suppress replacement sales in both mature and emerging markets. The distribution channel has dealt with lower demand and financial pressure by using up 13.9 million units of existing stock before ordering more. Gartner expects the gap between sell-in to the channel and sell-through to customers will reduce in the second half of 2009 as the channel starts to restock.
Source for images: Gartner (August 2009)
Via:http://www.wirelessandmobilenews.com
Main Story:http://www.gartner.com/DisplayDocument?ref=g_search&id=1124912&subref=simplesearch.
"Despite the challenging market, some devices sold well as consumers who would usually have purchased standard midrange devices either cut back to less expensive handsets or moved up the range to get more features for their money," said Carolina Milanesi, research director at Gartner.
"Touchscreen and QWERTY devices remained a major driver for replacement sales and benefited manufacturers with strong, touch-focused midtier devices. However, the decline in average selling price (ASP) accelerated in the first half of the year and particularly affected manufacturers that focus on midtier and low-end devices, where margins are already slim."The recession continued to suppress replacement sales in both mature and emerging markets. The distribution channel has dealt with lower demand and financial pressure by using up 13.9 million units of existing stock before ordering more. Gartner expects the gap between sell-in to the channel and sell-through to customers will reduce in the second half of 2009 as the channel starts to restock.
Source for images: Gartner (August 2009)
Via:http://www.wirelessandmobilenews.com
Main Story:http://www.gartner.com/DisplayDocument?ref=g_search&id=1124912&subref=simplesearch.
Labels: Android Phone, iPhone, Smartphones, Smartphonesmarket, Windows Mobile Marketplace
Smart-phones: Silver Lining of Declining Handset Market
Friday, June 12, 2009
The smartphone market is growing very healthily, as expected, 72% year on year. Changing consumer behaviors due to the ongoing global economic downturn is stimulating a renewed focus on smartphones, which analysts say would rule the declining handset market. Analysts expects sales of smartphones to grow 12-15 per cent in 2009. Smartphone offers advance capabilities, which could also be the reason for their raising popularity.
In terms of features, most smartphones support full featured email capabilities with the functionality of a complete personal organizer. Other functionality might include an additional interface such as a miniature QWERTY keyboard, a touch screen or a D-pad, a built-in camera, contact management, an accelerometer, built-in navigation hardware and software, the ability to read business documents in a variety of formats such as PDF and Microsoft Office, media software for playing music, browsing photos and viewing video clips, internet browsers or even just secure access to company mail, such as is provided by a BlackBerry.
One common feature to the majority of the smartphones is a contact list able to store as many contacts as the available memory permits, in contrast to regular phones that has a limit to the maximum number of contacts that can be stored.
The iPhone is drawing increasing competition from entrenched smart-phone makers anxious to emulate the upstart. The most significant of these is Palm's impressive new Pre, which is off to a good start with an estimated 100,000 approximately., so units sold since it was launched on June 6.
Apple's iPhone has become on of the world's most popular smart phones, just two years after entering the cellphone market. Its success has led rival phone makers to respond with formidable touch-screen devices of their own, including Research In Motion's BlackBerry Storm and T-Mobile USA's G1 - which runs Google's Android software - and Palm's Pre.
Catching up in gaming segment, the introduction of devices like the iPhone, Android, and N-Gage has spurred domestic and overseas mobile games sales. Games sold through smartphone application storefronts accounted for 15 percent of all mobile games sales in 2008 in North America and Europe.
The innovation of competing devices and storefronts has the potential to boost the sagging mobile games market. Analysts find that growth in the operator-distributed mobile games segment has fallen to 7 percent in 2009, as compared to its peak of over 50 percent throughout 2004 and 2005.
Though it's believed that the new platforms will help grow the mobile games market as a whole, Android and Palm phone are likely to maintain their lead in the smartphone segment in the immediate future.
According to a report. "Whilst Nokia's N-Gage games platform and Google's application store Android Market also have the potential to grow the market for mobile games outside operators' portals".
The Java market continues to earn the largest revenue share in the mobile games industry. Smaller publishers will soon "reduce or abandon" development of games for release through operator-run portals, however, as smartphone platforms offer "a greater share of revenues, a more receptive audience, and a wider array of content."
Besides the game segment, Research In Motion is still by far the top seller of feature-packed smart phones, with a 55.3-per-cent share of the market, according to IT research giant International Data Corporation (IDC), but Apple is in hot pursuit. Whereas, Palm holds 3.9 per cent of the market.
In terms of features, most smartphones support full featured email capabilities with the functionality of a complete personal organizer. Other functionality might include an additional interface such as a miniature QWERTY keyboard, a touch screen or a D-pad, a built-in camera, contact management, an accelerometer, built-in navigation hardware and software, the ability to read business documents in a variety of formats such as PDF and Microsoft Office, media software for playing music, browsing photos and viewing video clips, internet browsers or even just secure access to company mail, such as is provided by a BlackBerry.
One common feature to the majority of the smartphones is a contact list able to store as many contacts as the available memory permits, in contrast to regular phones that has a limit to the maximum number of contacts that can be stored.
The iPhone is drawing increasing competition from entrenched smart-phone makers anxious to emulate the upstart. The most significant of these is Palm's impressive new Pre, which is off to a good start with an estimated 100,000 approximately., so units sold since it was launched on June 6.
Apple's iPhone has become on of the world's most popular smart phones, just two years after entering the cellphone market. Its success has led rival phone makers to respond with formidable touch-screen devices of their own, including Research In Motion's BlackBerry Storm and T-Mobile USA's G1 - which runs Google's Android software - and Palm's Pre.
Catching up in gaming segment, the introduction of devices like the iPhone, Android, and N-Gage has spurred domestic and overseas mobile games sales. Games sold through smartphone application storefronts accounted for 15 percent of all mobile games sales in 2008 in North America and Europe.
The innovation of competing devices and storefronts has the potential to boost the sagging mobile games market. Analysts find that growth in the operator-distributed mobile games segment has fallen to 7 percent in 2009, as compared to its peak of over 50 percent throughout 2004 and 2005.
Though it's believed that the new platforms will help grow the mobile games market as a whole, Android and Palm phone are likely to maintain their lead in the smartphone segment in the immediate future.
According to a report. "Whilst Nokia's N-Gage games platform and Google's application store Android Market also have the potential to grow the market for mobile games outside operators' portals".
The Java market continues to earn the largest revenue share in the mobile games industry. Smaller publishers will soon "reduce or abandon" development of games for release through operator-run portals, however, as smartphone platforms offer "a greater share of revenues, a more receptive audience, and a wider array of content."
Besides the game segment, Research In Motion is still by far the top seller of feature-packed smart phones, with a 55.3-per-cent share of the market, according to IT research giant International Data Corporation (IDC), but Apple is in hot pursuit. Whereas, Palm holds 3.9 per cent of the market.
Labels: Smartphones, Smartphonesmarket
