The emergence of mobile Internet applications and a growing demand for additional functionality has driven device manufacturers into a situation where they have to decide which operating system to deploy. Traditionally, mobile phones were used primarily for voice and simple text messages. Therefore, screens and character input methods were not regarded as important. With today’s explosion of data services, however, the increased need for advanced screens and easier text input is shifting the mobile phone industry towards pen-based PDA devices more suitable for Internet browsing. Additionally, third party developers must be provided with tools and open Application Programming Interfaces in order to enable custom applications to be built. Also, the existing applications, like Microsoft Exchange and Lotus Notes, will be integrated into the new mobile channel. Therefore, the operating system of a mobile device is becoming increasingly important.
Archive for the ‘Mobile Devices’ Category
Mobile Technologies - Synchronization
Sunday, February 22nd, 2009Synchronization enables identical application data to be maintained in various devices. For example, Microsoft Exchange or Lotus Notes information on a PC can be made identical with a mobile device. Furthermore, corporate applications providing access to CRM, ERP or SCM systems can use synchronization between mobile devices and the application server. Synchronization has been particularly successful with laptop computers where connection to the Internet is not always possible or takes effort. This way, the users have been able to work offline and synchronize the information with the central system as soon as they have an opportunity to go online. The same pattern has continued with PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) devices not capable of accessing the Internet directly. The offline PDAs have dock stations connected to a PC and information can be updated as soon as the user gets back to the office.
Mobile Phone Technologies - Micro-browsers
Sunday, February 22nd, 2009A microbrowser is a piece of software which enables Internet access from a mobile phone. It may be installed on a SIM card with phones using SIM Application Toolkit. Another option is to integrate a microbrowser as a part of the core operating system of a mobile device. The first option enables new features to be introduced later on and gives mobile operators an opportunity to synchronize handsets at a later stage. However, most new phones are equipped with WAP microbrowsers already and, therefore, WAP software residing on a SIM card is becoming less popular.
SIM Application Toolkit and smart cards
Sunday, February 22nd, 2009SIM, Subscriber Identity Module, is used to identify the user of a mobile phone in GSM networks. This represents the majority of mobile phone users because the only markets not using SIMs are CDMA and TDMA networks, used particularly in the USA. SIM is based on a smart card technology capable of storing and processing information. Therefore, it will be one of the main components in enabling secure mobile commerce. Although WAP specification does not require the use of a SIM card, it provides an easier migration path to secure mobile commerce conducted using mobile devices. Furthermore, WAP Identity Module (WIM), required for storing sensitive data and private keys of the user, is based on smart card technology. Therefore WIM can be integrated into the same card with a SIM module and the existing phones do not have to be replaced. By contrast, TDMA and CDMA phones must be equipped with smart card technology to enable secure WAP transactions conducted using WIM. Therefore, it is likely that within a couple of years, all phones will have a smart card slot for storing the user’s intimate data and transactions.
Importance of Bluetooth
Sunday, February 22nd, 2009Strategically, Bluetooth is an important technology for mobile commerce providers coming from high street retail companies. They are able to deploy multi-channel marketing strategies combining traditional media and mobile communication into a lucrative package. With Bluetooth technology, established corporations will be able to offer new payment solutions and service concepts yet to be innovated. For example, retailers will be able to offer additional information about a particular product via a Bluetooth link located close to the actual item. This way, a customer could go “online” with his mobile terminal and acquire detailed information about the product. For instance, the customer can download a music sample from a record into his mobile phone while reading the cover. Later, at home, he could listen to the samples and download rest of the album using the mobile phone or fixed Internet. This way, the traditional retail shopping experience is integrated into mobile commerce technology. In the era of electronic commerce, there is still an emotional and social need for traditional shopping. (more…)
Mobile terminals - Bluetooth Technology
Sunday, February 22nd, 2009Bluetooth is a short range radio technology developed to connect several devices without wires. Because of its sophisticated power consumption, it is an effective technology for a new generation of Internet-capable mobile terminals. The radio link of a Bluetooth device has a range of approximately ten meters. Within ten meters, there may be up to seven devices communicating with each other with a frequency of 2400MHz. The size of a Bluetooth chip is 9´9mm and the technology is able to transmit voice and data at a gross rate of 1Mbit/s. Because it is physically small and relatively inexpensive, the chip may be built in to most terminals from 2001-2002 onwards. The development of Bluetooth technology takes place within the Bluetooth Special Interest Group, consisting of over 1000 organizations. Some members are Ericsson, Nokia, 3Com, IBM, Microsoft, Intel and IBM. According to the International Data Corporation, the US will ship 103 million Bluetooth-enabled devices in 2004 and the worldwide number will be 450 million
