November 9th, 2009

Smartphone Buyer's Guide: What are the choices on my carrier?

Posted by Matthew Miller @ 5:06 am

Categories: AT&T, Android, Apple, BlackBerry, Google, HTC, Linux, Microsoft, Palm, RIM, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon, WebOS, Windows Mobile, iPhone

Tags: Touch Screen, Apple iPhone, High Tech Computer Corp., Google Android, Device, Microsoft Windows Mobile, Smart Phone, T-Mobile, RIM BlackBerry, Smartphone

I recently posted the 2009 Holiday Guide for smartphones and in that guide posted about just one smartphone from each carrier. I also posted my Holiday Guide for feature phones and included the two I thought are best on each carrier. There are more smartphone selections than just one and now that most all of the announcements for the holidays have been made I thought you might like to know what the choices from each carrier are, along with the subsidized and non-subsidized prices so you can make an informed choice. Most people find a carrier that works for them with the best coverage in their local area so they look first to their carrier for a smartphone rather than looking for the a smartphone and then switching carriers. You will find the smartphone choices from the four largest nationwide carriers, but keep in mind there are also some rather large localized carriers in the Northeast and Southern regions with excellent smartphone choices.

The prices you will see in this article are from the carrier. If you are new to a carrier or adding another line you will find excellent prices on Amazon.com and other online vendors.

Verizon Wireless

Verizon has had a rather weak lineup of smartphones for most of 2009 with their primary focus on high end BlackBerry models. They recently added some very good Windows Mobile and Google Android devices to their offerings so Verizon Wireless customers have some of the best choices this holiday season. You will find smartphones with keyboards and those focused on touch only so something should appeal to you that allows you to stay with Verizon Wireless, or even join them to obtain one of their new Google Android devices.

Verizon does have the most expensive data and voice plans, but they also have the most coverage of any wireless carrier. The HTC Touch Pro2 has been sold out for much of the last month so may be difficult to find. The HTC DROID ERIS and Motorola DROID are the hottest devices at the moment and you will see commercials for both on television and in print advertising. If you travel internationally, make sure to look for a phone that is GSM-capable too.

RIM BlackBerry

• BlackBerry Curve 8330 - Front facing QWERTY, 2.0 megapixel camera: $429.99 (no contract) and $49.99 (2-year contract)
• BlackBerry Tour - Front facing QWERTY, 3.2 megapixel camera, GSM world phone: $489.99 (no contract) and $149.99 (2-year contract)
• BlackBerry Storm2 - Large touchscreen, WiFi, 3.2 megapixel camera, GSM world phone: $539.99 (no contract) and $179.99 (2-year contract)

Windows Mobile

• Samsung Omnia - Large touchscreen, Samsung TouchWIZ interface, 5 megapixel camera: $459.99 (no contract) and FREE (2-year contract)
• HTC Ozone - Front facing QWERTY, non-touchscreen, 2 megapixel camera, GSM world phone: $349.99 (no contract) and $49.99 (2-year contract)
• Samsung Saga - Front facing QWERTY, touchscreen, 2 megapixel camera, GSM world phone: $449.99 (no contract) and $99.99 (2-year contract)
• HTC Touch Pro2 - Large touchscreen, slider QWERTY, 3.2 megapixel camera, GSM world phone: $489.99 (no contract) and $199.99 (2-year contract)
• HTC Imagio - Windows Mobile 6.5, large touchscreen, 5 megapixel camera, GSM world phone: $579.99 (no contract) and $199.99 (2-year contract)

Google Android

• HTC DROID ERIS - Touchscreen, 5 megapixel camera, HTC Sense UI and widgets:: $469.99 (no contract) and $99.99 (2-year contract)
• Motorola DROID - Android 2.0, 5 megapixel camera, large touchscreen, slider QWERTY: $559.99 (no contract) and $199.99 (2-year contract)

Apple iPhone
Verizon has no iPhone devices.

Symbian
Verizon has no Symbian smartphone offerings.

Palm WebOS
Verizon has no Palm WebOS devices.

A couple of things to keep in mind as you look at these Verizon smartphones is to check for WiFi and GSM support if you are a business traveler who needs these wireless technologies to do your job.

Let’s see what AT&T has available »

November 5th, 2009

Review: OtterBox Commuter and Commuter TL Series for iPhone 3G/3GS

Posted by Matthew Miller @ 4:49 am

Categories: Apple, Mobile accessories, Review, iPhone

Tags: Apple iPhone, Apple Inc., Commuter TL Series, Commuter TL Case, OtterBox Logo, Smart Phones, Consumer Electronics, Personal Technology, Matthew Miller

I have tried cases with my iPhone devices in the past, but kept going back to an InvisibleShield or BodyGuardz plastic skin because I didn’t want anything adding bulk to my iPhone 3GS. Silicone cases are very popular today, but I have never been happy with them since I carry my phone in my pocket and they tend to cause the phone to stick in my pocket and gather lint. OtterBox recently launched a couple of new hybrid silicone cases that add a hard plastic shell to a silicone case so you can slip your iPhone in and out of your pocket while also gaining a decent level of protection with minimal addition of size. The OtterBox Commuter and Commuter TL series cases are available now for the iPhone 3G and 3GS. Their Defender series adds the most protection, but add too much bulk for me to accept for daily use. Check out my image gallery of the OtterBox Commuter and Commuter TL Series cases.

	Image Gallery:A look at the new iPhone OtterBox Commuter and Commuter TL cases.

Both of these new iPhone case lines are similar in that they are composed of two pieces; a silicone inner shell and a hard plastic/polycarbonate out shell. You also receive a self-adhesive screen protector in each package and I found the protector gives you a feel very much like the oleophobic finish on the iPhone 3GS device. The inner silicone shells are almost exactly the same on both cases with just a slightly different back (designed to fit the plastic shell) and ribs on the inside left and right sides of the Commuter TL Series. The plastic shells are quite different, but they weigh almost exactly the same (0.74 ounces and 0.75 ounces) and have almost the same dimensions. The Commuter TL Series is available in seven different colors so it has a bit more personalization and as you can read below there is another main reason I prefer the Commuter TL Series.

OtterBox Commuter TL

The Commuter TL Series is available in black, blue, green, pink, red, white, and yellow. At the time I was sent an evaluation unit the black model was the only one available, but I may have to pick up a colored one soon. I was reluctant to place the screen protector on my iPhone 3GS because I love the oleophobic feel of the display and was worried the screen protector would take away from that experience. I was pleasantly surprised to find it felt much like the default display and decided to keep the protector on since it protects the display from scratches.

I then wrapped the silicone shell around my iPhone 3GS and found openings for the Apple logo, camera, silent/ringer switch, stereo speakers, bottom Apple iPhone port, and headset jack. There are covers for the headset jack and bottom connection port designed to help keep dust out of these open ports. There are rubber protrusions over the volume rocker and power switch so you can operate these through the silicone case. The Commuter TL also has Read the rest of this entry »

November 4th, 2009

The iPhone is one of the best phones in the world, carriers with it are the problem

Posted by Matthew Miller @ 5:34 pm

Categories: AT&T, Apple, T-Mobile, iPhone

Tags: Apple iPhone, Phone, Carrier, Smart Phones, Telecom & Utilities, Consumer Electronics, Personal Technology, Matthew Miller

I try not to link to posts I completely disagree with that reach conclusions that don’t seem fully backed up, but I just had to respond to this UK Crave blog post titled, The iPhone is the worst phone in the world. After reading the post and then thinking about my experiences with my iPhone 3GS on both AT&T and T-Mobile I really think the author meant the iPhone/carrier combo is the worst in the world. Every issue, other than battery life, that they mentioned was carrier related and not due just to the device. You see, with AT&T I too experienced constant dropped calls in full signal areas and massive data issues in areas saturated with iPhone users. Then, with T-Mobile I never have had a dropped call on my iPhone and data has been solid, although it is only EDGE data on T-Mobile.

The iPhone is actually a pretty incredible phone that offers the consumer an experience not ever seen before. While we all acknowledge the iPhone rocks at web surfing and media consumption I honestly think it does quite well as a phone too for several reasons as I have listed here.

• Answering calls is as easy as a swipe across the screen.
• Controlling how your call is handled couldn’t be easier. By this I mean the options for a Bluetooth headset, speakerphone, or headset speaker.
• The proximity sensor turns off the display so nothing is accidentally pressed.
• Voicemail appears in a visual list so you control what messages you want to listen to.
• Starting a conference call or swapping calls just takes a screen tap.

I am not saying the iPhone is the perfect phone, but it sure makes all these tasks above easier than I have ever before experienced on a phone before. We now see others copying these exact same interface elements. For example, the Nokia N97 and Touch Pro2 have swipe to answer actions.

There are MANY other phones that are much worse than the iPhone and I completely disagree with the CNET UK post. Do you agree that the iPhone is the worst phone ever or do you think it actually is one of the best phones?

November 4th, 2009

Q3 09 Canalys smartphone data shows RIM increasing 40% over 2008

Posted by Matthew Miller @ 7:14 am

Categories: Android, Apple, BlackBerry, Google, HTC, Microsoft, Nokia, RIM, S60, Windows Mobile, iPhone

Tags: Research In Motion Ltd., Platform, Smart Phone, Apple Insider, Mobile Operating Systems, Smart Phones, Handhelds, Microsoft Windows, Operating Systems, Cellular Phones

Canalys posted their 3rd quarter 2009 figures and as you can RIM had an amazing year going from 15.2% to 20.6% of the global market share (an increase of 40.8%). A bit surprisingly to me, Nokia actually saw a 6% increase in its market share too while Apple predictibly increased 6.7% over the year with the iPhone 3GS release helping. Windows Mobile suffered quite a bit with a 33.1% drop in market share over the past year and with the release of the minor 6.5 update I don’t see that trend changing much over the next year either. Google Android finally popped up in the data at 3.5% and hopefully this continues so that HTC bounces up after showing a 5.6% decrease over the last year.

Apple Insider has presented the data in pie charts so you get an even better picture of what is going on by platform and hardware maker. They also give an interesting perspective on the data and group the platforms into integrated ones (Apple and RIM) compared to licensed ones (Windows Mobile and Google Android). Symbian is licensed too, but Nokia is the primary licensee so they are more of an integrated platform than a licened platform. It looks like the integrated platforms are doing better than the licensed platforms, which is not necessarily what the analysts all predicted.

The integrated platforms do give the hardware makers better control over a consistent user experience and upgradability of the platform, while also locking down more functions. It seems that the consumer cares more for the experience and UI than the ability to customize and tweak their device.

November 1st, 2009

Holiday Gift Guide 2009: Smartphones

Posted by Matthew Miller @ 9:18 pm

Categories: AT&T, Android, Apple, BlackBerry, HTC, Holiday Gift Guide, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon, Windows Mobile, iPhone

Tags: Apple iPhone, High Tech Computer Corp., Phone, Device, Smart Phone, T-Mobile, Sprint Communications, Smartphone, CLIQ, iPhone 3GS

The lineup of cell phones has expanded a bit, but a significant number of what we see in that category are updates to existing models. The real innovation in the mobile phone world is in the area of smartphones where we see the Apple iPhone, Palm WebOS, Google Android, RIM BlackBerry, and Microsoft Windows Mobile devices taking us to places we have never been before. This holiday season there is a huge selection for you to choose from on every carrier and several exciting devices will be launching throughout November. There are so many to choose from that we can’t cover them all here so I will present you with one smartphone from each carrier and one SIM-unlocked one.

Even though I am only presenting one phone from each carrier, I highly encourage you to visit your local carrier’s retail store to check out all the offerings available since they are quite compelling. The great thing for buyers this holiday season is that such intense competition lends itself to good prices and changing carrier plans and services.

T-Mobile

Motorola CLIQ

T-Mobile is my personal wireless carrier and I was going to talk about my current favorite device, the T-Mobile Touch Pro2, but I think another new device is more exciting and interesting for the holidays. Motorola’s new CLIQ Google Android device with MOTOBLUR integration that tightly integrates social networking feeds and data in the device. The CLIQ has a beautiful capacitive touch screen, 5 megapixel camera, support for T-Mobile’s 3G data network, GPS, WiFi, Bluetooth, and full QWERTY keyboard.

The device is highly optimized for social networking with Facebook, MySpace and Twitter apps built right into the Android OS. Android is an exciting new platform with thousands of applications and capability to meet all your needs.

Price: $199.99 with 2-year contract and rebate

[Check out the ZDNet Reviews page]

Check out my AT&T recommendation »

October 28th, 2009

Smartphone wars; one platform will never rule them all

Posted by Matthew Miller @ 1:27 pm

Categories: Android, Apple, BlackBerry, Google, HTC, Linux, Microsoft, Nokia, Palm, RIM, S60, WebOS, Windows Mobile, iPhone

Tags: Apple iPhone, Mobile, Smart Phone, Apple Inc., Smartphone, Jim, Smart Phones, Cellular Phones, Handhelds, Consumer Electronics

Verizon Wireless commercials have been pounding away directly at the Apple iPhone and looking at the Motorola DROID and all of the hands-on reviews starting to appear does give you reason to pause and wonder just how far Android will go and if they will take away the edge from the iPhone. Joe Wilcox at Betanews posted an article stating that the iPhone cannot win the smartphone wars. He wrote about the comparison between Apple and Windows in the PC space and also about the huge number of junk apps in the App Store. He concludes by stating that Android is looking to be the mobile OS of the future, similar to the statements I have made about Android and the future of mobile phones.

Another writer, Jim Dalrymple, posted an article stating that he does not think Apple will lose the smartphone war, in large part due to the ecosystem they have built around iTunes and media content that is easy to enjoy on the iPhone. I think one of the areas that may hurt Apple’s chances is their apparent arrogance in dictating what users need, rather than fully listening to what users want (look at MMS on the iPhone). Then again, Apple can sure make what they do seem like the best solution around, can’t they?

Something that I have been thinking of given all of the news and excitement around the latest Google Android, HTC HD2 Windows Mobile, and Nokia N900 devices is that Apple too has been working on the next generation(s) of iPhone devices that we are sure to see roll out in 2010. Given the shakeup in the mobile industry that Apple created with the iPhone, there is definitely cause for excitement in 2010 to see if Apple can once again leap past all the other mobile operating systems that have now caught up in terms of user interface elements. The iPhone isn’t so special now with devices like the Motorola Droid, HTC Hero, Nokia N900, and others so it will be interesting to see if they try to blow the others away or stay in the smartphone race as just another comparable option. Jim thinks that “Apple will outclass them all”, but I am not so quick to accept that seeing what others have been able to come out with lately.

I personally doubt there will ever be a clear cut winner in the smartphone war and do not think there has to be. Consumers benefit from competition and life would be boring if all we had was the iPhone. People were quite impressed by the work Palm did with the Pre and WebOS and for several months they generated quite a bit of optimism and excitement in a crowded space. I honestly doubt Palm will be making smartphone devices for much longer given the lack of adoption of WebOS, but they were able to play in the game for at least another year based on a single device and brand new operating system.

Symbian currently still leads everyone by a considerable margin and even all the 2012 forecasts still show them with a double figure lead over the next platform competitor. We haven’t even seen the results of their Symbian Foundation work that may blow the doors off of everything we have seen to date, thus propelling Symbian the other direction into a further market share lead. The smartphone market is constantly moving and I am just happy to be along and enjoying the ride.

Related stories:

• BlackBerry Storm 2 wins battle, but not the war
• Is the BlackBerry OS the weak link?
• Mobile OS wars: Apple, RIM surge, Symbian still dominant

October 25th, 2009

iPhone app review: Mantis Bible Study

Posted by Matthew Miller @ 2:05 am

Categories: Apple, Mobile software, iPhone

Tags: Apple iPhone, Bible, Toolbar, Icon, Verse, Help Icon, Calendar Functionality, Auto-scroll Functionality, Smart Phones, Consumer Electronics

I previously posted reviews of two Bible study applications I have used on other smartphone platforms that moved onto the iPhone (Laridian PocketBible and Olive Tree Bible Reader), primarily because they are the programs I was most familiar with over a number of years. One thing we have discovered with the launch of the iPhone and the App Store is that there are a ton of developers creating new and exciting applications just for this platform. The most compelling of these native iPhone programs pertaining to Bible reading and study that I found so far is Mantis Bible Study. I actually discovered this a few months ago when I was looking for a program and was pleased to see it was one of the only ones with note taking support. After adding back the two apps I used in the past, I reloaded Mantis Bible Study and actually think it may be the best of all Bible applications on the iPhone platform. Check out screenshots from Mantis Bible Study in my image gallery.

	Image Gallery:Check out screenshots of the Mantis Bible Study application on the Apple iPhone.

Current version and App Store availability

I am currently running version 4.4.0 of Mantis Bible Study on my iPhone 3GS. I understand that version 4.5.0 was submitted to Apple for review and brings bug fixes/performance enhancements along with in-app purchases so you can buy premium content from within the application rather than having to buy from a browser and then download through the app.

Like most other Bible study applications, the Mantis Bible Study application is free and comes with a full King James version of the Bible for you to use. They offer over 150 add-on services and pieces of content that you can add to the base application with several Bible translations available on the App Store. I see available resources ranging from $12.99 (ERV Study Bible) to $69.99 (KJV Silver Study Bundle) with many popular translations (HCSB, ESV, NIV) running $17.99 to $19.99 in price.

It is actually quite amazing seeing the number of resources they have available in their store, including Bibles, commentaries, dictionaries, maps & media, and books. You can purchase full collections in available bundles too and as you will see Mantis has resources available for those who want to use their iPhone/iPod touch as a serious Bible study resource.

Initial startup and navigation

When you launch Mantis Bible Study you are taken to the main reading pane that has the last Bible you read or the one preloaded with the program. You will see a top toolbar (primarily used for navigation to the resourse you want to read), bottom toolbar, main text of the selected resource, and shaded triangles in each of the four corners of the main text area. You can start reading just by Read the rest of this entry »

October 22nd, 2009

Apple thumbing nose at Nokia? Nokia sues them over wireless patents

Posted by Matthew Miller @ 7:50 am

Categories: Apple, Nokia, iPhone

Tags: Apple iPhone, Patent, Nokia Corp., Apple Inc., Wireless, Smart Phones, Wi-Fi, Wireless And Mobility, Consumer Electronics, Personal Technology

You can’t argue with the success of the Apple iPhone, especially here in the US. However, Nokia believes that Apple infringes on their patents for GSM, UMTS, and WLAN standards so it is suing Apple in a Delaware court. There are ten patents called out in the suit that cover wireless data, speech coding, security and encryption and are infringed by all Apple iPhone models shipped since the iPhone was introduced in 2007. The details of the patents were not in the press release, but I have to wonder why the iPhone is different than all the other smartphones using these same wireless technologies and maybe it has to do with the way they all work together or something. According to the press release, approximately 40 other companies, including virtually all leading mobile device vendors, have worked our license agreements with Nokia.

Nokia has not had much success in the US and their market share here has declined siginificantly over the years, even counting their “dumb” phones. From Nokia’s point of view, I hope this lawsuit has some valid evidence because I don’t think this will cause people to love the Nokia name if iPhone’s are affected by the lawsuit. Then again, Nokia spent billions developing these technologies that all the other players have acknowledged is valuable so they should be compensated accordingly for the billions they spent.

It seems like Apple may have turned their nose to Nokia regarding these technologies that everyone else has already worked out with Nokia. Another sign of Apple arrogance?

October 18th, 2009

Rock on the go with Rock Band on your Apple iPhone

Posted by Matthew Miller @ 11:04 pm

Categories: Apple, Mobile software, iPhone

Tags: Apple iPhone, Apple Inc., Games, Smart Phones, Bluetooth, Personal Technology, Consumer Electronics, Wireless And Mobility, Matthew Miller

I spend most of my time using my Windows Mobile and Nokia devices, depending on my needs at the time. However, I keep getting drawn back to using my iPhone due to the incredible quality, functionality, and low prices of the games. The latest game from Electronic Arts that appeals to me is Rock Band (iTunes link). This game is priced at $9.99 and has four different ways to play, including multiplayer via a Bluetooth connection.

20 songs are included when you purchase the application, but you can also purchase additional songs from within the game’s music store (looks like 99 cents for 2 song packs). Bluetooth multi-player is not supported on the first gen iPhone or iPod touch and rock band requires OS version 3.0 or higher. Anyone try out Rock Band on their iPhone yet?

October 13th, 2009

Gist iPhone app; your mobile talent scout

Posted by Matthew Miller @ 7:47 am

Categories: Apple, Mobile services, Mobile software, iPhone

Tags: Apple iPhone, Talent, Mobile, iPhone App, E-mail, Smart Phones, Online Communications, Consumer Electronics, Personal Technology, Matthew Miller

Do you ever go to meetings wanting to know more about the people who will be in attendence? Do you ever have some spare time while traveling and think it would be a great time to touch bases with a client or prospective client? If you answered yes to either then I highly recommend you give the free Gist service a try. And if you have an iPhone you can now take that experience mobile and have a ton of valuable information right at your fingertips with the Gist iPhone app (iTunes store link). I have been testing Gist for about a month and the iPhone client for just over a week. I am not in sales, marketing, or an industry that meets with a ton of people, but I do meet with clients and other industry people at conferences and events and find Gist to be a valuable tool to have in your arsenal, especially if you are socially connected.

Gist brings together a large amount of online data from people who you want to know about, including data from Facebook, Twitter, your email account, LinkedIn, Salesforce, and other supplied sources. It is available via a web interface from any browser, as an Outlook plugin, and now as an iPhone application. As you can see in a couple of screenshots, the iPhone application gives you access to your data with an optimized Dashboard, event view, and more.

Gist automatically assigns importance values to your contacts based upon algorithms that look at the way you interact with that contact, but you can also manually control those values if there are people you want to keep up to date with more often than what is presented to you. The service is extremely customizable, yet it also works hard to give you what you need with little effort on your part. The iPhone app is mostly a viewer of your data being presented to you from the Gist servers where all the heavy lifting is being done. It is designed to give you access on the go to all the data and while there are Twitter and Facebook status update pages, I found the most valuable functionality to be the search capability. Rather than scrolling through the data you can simply Read the rest of this entry »