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February 4th, 2009

iPhone: 'Not a business tool, but a nice to have'

Posted by Larry Dignan @ 8:49 am

Categories: Apple, Enterprise 2.0, General, IT Management, Mobile, SAP, Wired & Wireless, iPhone

Tags: Apple iPhone, SAP AG, Tool, E-mail, Handhelds, Online Communications, Hardware, Larry Dignan

CIOs gathered at SAP’s New York dinged Apple’s iPhone as an enterprise tool. 

Vinnie Mirchandani asked SAP’s customer panel about iPhone adoption and other key technologies such as cloud computing and software as a service. The iPhone comments were the most interesting. The takeaway: Research in Motion’s BlackBerry juggernaut still rules. 

Jennifer Allerton, CIO of pharma giant Roche, said there are enterprise users that have iPhones. And as a result, Roche has connected its corporate email system to the iPhone. The problem: Roche’s email intensive culture can’t type fast enough on the iPhone.  She said:

“We have email on iPhone, but it has a soft keypad and we are an email intensive culture. We can’t get good enough on it. iPhone is not a business tool, but a nice to have. The backbone is the BlackBerry.”

Colgate Palmolive global IT head Ed Toben agreed. “We’re the same way with the iPhone,” he said.

IBM vice president of enterprise business transformation Jeannette Horan took the diplomatic route, noting that “we have one of everything.”

SAP co-CEO Leo Apotheker duly noted that the company’s CRM application is available on the BlackBerry and iPhone. However, demand for SAP CRM on the BlackBerry is much stronger than for the iPhone. And don’t expect any long emails from Apotheker on an iPhone. “I’m totally unable to complete a sentence on the iPhone,” said Apotheker. “Perhaps I’m clumsy.”

Also see: Is SAP really done with ’scary upgrades’ and ’sleepless night’ projects?

Larry DignanLarry Dignan is Editor in Chief of ZDNet and Editorial Director of ZDNet sister site TechRepublic. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.

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  • Talkback
  • Most Recent of 43 Talkback(s)
RE: iPhone:
Larry my intent was not to start another iphone versus world thread. My question was meant to solicit from SAP execs and customer execs how innovations in mobility, SaaS and clouds would affect enterp... (Read the rest)
Posted by: vmirchan Posted on: 02/05/09 You are currently: a Guest | | Terms of Use
Was this article really necessary?  bobiroc | 02/04/09
Same here  rynning | 02/04/09
Pretty impressive  bobiroc | 02/04/09
Yes, it was in orer to destroy the myth that  deaf_e_kate | 02/04/09
What works for some may not work for others.  bobiroc | 02/04/09
It's not "the only way" ...  dkawalec | 02/04/09
Are you sure about that definition?  eb276 | 02/04/09
Not that one...  dkawalec | 02/04/09
The other definition is also valid  eb276 | 02/04/09
"The point..."  justthinking | 02/04/09
Well maybe...  bobiroc | 02/04/09
RE: iPhone:  Silex | 02/04/09
RE: iPhone:  Axsimulate | 02/04/09
RE: iPhone:  pjtmgt@... | 02/04/09
Hey..  bobiroc | 02/04/09
iPhone not a business tool?  yvesrn1 | 02/04/09
Seriously?  mrgoodall | 02/04/09
Sorry that I am ignorant  bobiroc | 02/04/09
I don't think he did call you or anyone "ignorant"  James Quinn | 02/04/09
He said..  bobiroc | 02/04/09
yes thumb typing is ignorant...  mrgoodall | 02/04/09
LOL so true  oncall | 02/04/09
Yes Pagan, some like hardware keyboards better  Aragorn_z | 02/05/09
RE: iPhone:  stevemann | 02/04/09
This comes as a surprise to no-one in business.  Sleeper Service | 02/04/09
Fair enough.....  James Quinn | 02/04/09
Can a serious enterprise phone....  oncall | 02/04/09
Service Provider  bobiroc | 02/04/09
So its apple as usual.  ChrisOPeterson | 02/04/09
It's nice getting old  Ken_z | 02/04/09
Isn't RIM trying to push touchscreen Blackberries now? [nt]  olePigeon | 02/04/09
With RIM the choice is yours...  iTeaBoy | 02/05/09
The "ILLUSION" of none choice from Apple..  James Quinn | 02/05/09
yep, Storm will suffer same but it can cut and paste  deaf_e_kate | 02/05/09
RE: iPhone:  frankz00 | 02/05/09
Maybe phones aren't meant to do email?!?!?  frankz00 | 02/05/09
RE: iPhone:  Synthmeister | 02/05/09
No it won't.  Sleeper Service | 02/05/09
iPhone was never aimed at business folk...  chas_2 | 02/05/09
iPhone May Be a BETTER Business Tool Than BlackBerry  Boulder_Bum | 02/05/09
Really??? No one with the slightest clue???  i8thecat | 02/05/09
Hogwash, i8thecat  Aragorn_z | 02/05/09
RE: iPhone:  vmirchan | 02/05/09

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