Smartphone 2002: solid software meets mobile phone

[Andy Sjostrom]

<a href="http://www.businessanyplace.net/?p=smartphone2002">http://www.businessanyplace.net/?p=smartphone2002</a><br /><br />The Smartphone 2002 is an important step towards innovation in the mobile phone market. It is built on top of an operating system, the same as in current Pocket PCs, that can drive both consumer and enterprise features very well. Combine the software in this phone with quality hardware manufactured by companies with a brand, ie anyone of the top five mobile phone manufacturers, and without too many "first version" phone problems - then this is what I've waited for for a long, long time.<br /><br />My friend Chris Forsberg and myself have had the opportunity to work with the Smartphone 2002 SDK and we're glad to be able to share <a href="http://www.businessanyplace.net/?p=smartphone2002">some screen shots</a> from the emulator. One of them is this Home Screen skin! Expect to see much, much more news about the Smartphone 2002 in the near future! I will return back to Pocket PC Thoughts in a short while with more in depth analysis about what this smart mobile phone can do.<br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/sp025.jpg" />

[JohnnyFlash]

Good to see M$ a finally beginning to catch up. It looks very pretty and colorful... there's nice.

And it compares quite favourably with the competition;
http://www.activedesk9200.com/images/Main%20view.jpg
http://www.activedesk9200.com/images/AD%20as%20Desktop.jpg

Hmmmmm.... (http://www.twyn-y-berllan.com/n9210), it does seem to be lacking in the 'inbox' department though and the Contacts seems to be a cut down version of the PocketPC contacts which is a cut down version of the application used on Windows!

Where does SMS and FAX come in (I know SMS is pants compared to E-mail but the fact remains that people still use it)? Are these separate applications? If so, is there any seamless integration? Will my spelling ever improve?

But for me to consider it as a communication device, it'll need to be easy to use as a phone (with desktop (speaker) phone, headset and hold-to-the-head (boil yer brain) options), have better bog-standard PIM than the PPC, be expandable and be able to interface with all my friends, most of whom still have normal mobile phones.

:lol: Let's hope the batteries last longer than the half-a-shift PocketPC though!

[Foo Fighter]

Hmm...I don't know whether this will be acceptable or not for a phone interface. A little too menuish. On the other hand, Microsoft may be onto something with the custom theme feature. Consumers already love changing the faceplates of their Nokia's.

The biggest problem Microsoft faces now is partnership. No one seems to want Smartphone 2002. I'm afraid this product will take off as poorly as WinCE.

[JMountford]

I am affraid I have to agree with Foo Fighter. It seams that early adopters for the smartphone platform are neerly nonexistant. What's worse Is there are just NO really outstanding CDMA Hanset OEMs.

[innersky]

So, when will the SDK be available for other developers :?:

[Master O'Mayhem]

Hey andy,

I think you better charge your battery... :)

[JohnnyFlash]

So, when will the SDK be available for other developers :?:


where to get this SDK from??? on www.sendo.com there is only a promise of this SDK!!!! (and they are first company to relase actual phone with it)

[JonnoB]

Hmm...I don't know whether this will be acceptable or not for a phone interface. A little too menuish.


No more menuish than a WAP internet site. I think people are becoming accustomed to it.

[Jason Dunn]

...so much doubt and negativity! :cry:

[JonnoB]

...so much doubt and negativity! :cry:


I am excited by anothing that furthers the market penetration of Pocket devices. The SmartPhone I think is a winner from these pictures, but the observations made on useability have to be considered. I am sure that MS has spent alot of time to refine how it would be used with various study groups... they won't repeat the mistake of the first WinCE devices.

[kettle]

I think phone makers don't want to go down the same Microsoft road that PC makers have gone. Look at the shape their in now. Anyone know if the Smart Phone will have Blue Tooth built in?

[isrjt]

Ok, after that last post I thought I should chime in. WOW that looks awesome. I only wish I was special enough to get my hands on that SDK, but I will survive with just the knowlegde that at least it exists. Every bit of info and solid information means that we are on step farther from vaporware. I agree that MS may be the underdog here, but I think that brings out the best in them.

The possibilities are endless what a good phone like this could offer. I know the java enabled phones are out there too. But have you actually tried to write an application on one. I have and am. Not only is it confusing as all @uc$, but there's just not the resources that MS users have created. Take for example a block of code you just can't get rihgt in VB or eVB. Ten minutes on the old Internet and you have a pretty good idea how to accomplish the task, On the other hand I can not even find a great place to go for Java help. I know that eC++ is faster, but I just don't like C and never will.

I hope this phone rocks. Take the Pocket PC, remove the erronious stuff, cut the screen in half, keep a storage method, add a good battery and I don't think they can loose. PDA's are too geeky, but everyone from the trailor to the mansion has a cell phone - even me and I live in Nebraska...

just some thoughts, not necessarily in order or logical

[JonnoB]

just some thoughts, not necessarily in order or logical


That's what I like about this site....

[JohnnyFlash]

we are on step farther from vaporware.

:lol: don't worry, we have two events in near future: Cannes, France this week and CeBIT, Hannover, Germany in March 13-20. I think that we will see first MS SmartPhone on 1 of them. I am personally coming to CeBIT...

So don't despair people, THIS YEAR we will see major development in smart phone area.... very soon...

jpzr from http://WirelessSoftware.info

[innersky]

Anyone know if the Smart Phone will have Blue Tooth built in?


The Sendo Z100 will not have bluetooth built in, but will be available as an addon as an aftermarket product. I don't know about other manufacturers that might build one.

[JMountford]

Jason I am not neccesarily negative just realistic. As you your self have noted there are Problems with the platform and CDMA is always slow in getting the new toys. I honestly would love to get a hold of a Smart Phone but it will never replace my PPC and Cell Phone. Well not together any way it may replace my Cell Phone if it is CDMA and has Bluetooth built in.

As far as the Menus and what not I think it looks great. The world can always use more color phones.

[ThomasC22]

...so much doubt and negativity! :cry:


Yup, I'd say I'm pretty negative on this topic at this point. You can only be excited about a product for so long before reality starts to sink in and you realize that something is very wrong here.

I mean, I, a normal, average, everyday person, saw a working model of the stinger phone over a year ago. That means they've had working models for about two years (as they wouldn't show anything to the public until they'd both tested it interally and shown it to the trade press). Which means the project in general has been around for probably 4 years.

Now, I know what your thinking, at least they're taking the time to do it right and not rushing it but Microsoft has shown in the past that they don't EVER take their time to do it right. As a matter of fact, what they do is release buggy software and then patch it / upgrade it until it works. This has always been their way. They say their taking their time to do it right only when the project is so messed up that they can't get it out the door. They did this with Win2000 (btw, if you'd like to read the real story Windows 2000 was delayed I suggest Breaking Windows by David Bank) and that is almost certainly what they're doing now.

Bottom line, this has me really, really worried because I strongly suspect this project is a mess (also note the Mobile Solutions Group has been handed off several times in Stinger's development cycle) and Microsoft really needs to release a first version with no bugs here if they are to even come close to winning this market. Plus, with none of the big cell. phone manufacturers supporting it, things do not look good :(

[JohnnyFlash]

Plus, with none of the big cell. phone manufacturers supporting it, things do not look good :(


hey! is Sony plus Ericsson not big enough?

See http://wirelesssoftware.info/show1news.php?&ID=40 for details!

And people: stop complaining about smart phones!!! You don't understand one thing: 3G networks and services are coming soon to the average Joe and smart phones are totally needed to bring these all services to people so whether you want it or not: vendors have to go out of closed with smartphones!!!

By now the only very succesfull (it even beaten Palm and PocketPC in Europe in 1 quarter) smart phone is nokia communicator 9210/9290. But of course this year we will see more.

I repeat: smart phones are needed for 3G => smart phones will be very popular, the only question: which platform?

[JohnnyFlash]

Take the Pocket PC, remove the erronious stuff, cut the screen in half, keep a storage method, add a good...

I think that this is the problem, not the solution. It took Micro$oft some time to realise that a Handheld PC is not a Desktop PC. Now, judging by the pictures, they think that a Handheld PC is a PocketPC.

From the screenshots, it seems that once you get past the very nice Welcome Screen, you just get the usual cut down software, accessed using a GUI that simply lacks style.

Where's the functionality. The calendar hasn't been scaled to fit the new screen, just chopped with fewer views than a resident of camp X-Ray.

Nothing seems to have been added (apart from more bubbly icons), only modified. I thought software mattered?

As for Microsoft being the underdog, don't kid yourselves. Bill may not be able to say the 'S' word, but he's well able to market ice to eskimos and, in a few years time, we may well hear about how Microsoft invented the smartphone and was the first to release one.

Try harder Micro$oft, if you want my pennies, but I think Tony Blair's purchase order is already on the way since it would seem, at the moment, that this Smartphone is all presentation and no substance.

[JohnnyFlash]

hey! is Sony plus Ericsson not big enough?


Hmmmm,

Sony? See http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/4/24096.html
Have you ever used a Sony phone? I have and I've never used such a poor piece of equipment (and I've gone through some brands in my time and there's only one brand that I've come back to - it's not Sony).

Ericsson? Hmmmmm... Maybe not.

[innersky]

3G networks and services are coming soon to the average Joe


Soon ?
In Belgium 3G networks will roll out at the end of 2003 !

That's not soon. Besides, GPRS will do fine at this moment...

[Andy Sjostrom]

YES! I just saw that! This will be a breakthrough deal, if it really happens!

I have read the comments on this post, and understand the scepticism.
What I have seen, though, is very different than typical version 1.0 products. Windows CE 3.0 is a third generation OS, and the core applications are tried and tested from the Pocket PC... BUT (!) the software implementation has a very clear goal:

to be a great phone first. Microsoft has been very clear on that goal. They seem to be extremely committed to not make "another" PDA device, but a great mobile phone. This goal has resulted in a number of key decisions implemented in the SDK.

I am glad this has taken the time it has for many reasons: networks have matured, public awareness regarding and usage of high-end mobile phones has significantly increased just the last 6-12 months, development tools and technologies have matured, corporations are beginning to ramp up large scale evaluation projects, and maybe foremost: the time past has allowed many talks with key phone makers.

The Sony-Ericsson news is very nice, indeed. If I am not misinformed, they are the fourth largest mobile phone maker which is not bad. But with their last couple of years performance, I would love to see Nokia (won't ever happen, I believe), Motorola (won't ever happen, I believe), and/or Samsung (will happen, I believe) also build Smartphone 2002 phones.

This is the type of major efforts I want to see much more of!

[JohnnyFlash]

... public awareness regarding and usage of high-end mobile phones has significantly increased just the last 6-12 months...


:wink: Good thing someone has been innovating then.

[Andy Sjostrom]

Good thing someone has been innovating then.

Yes, absolutely! Although, I wouldn't label many current DOS-promptish "high end" mobile phones as innovative... :wink:

That said, I've seen prototypes, marketing, spec sheets of what's coming from competition. It's going to be an extremely fierce competition.
Microsoft's upper hand is software and Internet focus. Competition's upper hand is manufacturing, hardware quality and brand.

The last couple of days in this forum can probably be summed up in two words: Innovation wins.

[Marc Zimmermann]

Bottom line, this has me really, really worried because I strongly suspect this project is a mess [...]

The phone market is quite different from the Pocket PC market, basically meaning that the device needs to work right out of the box and without any or extremely little support. If the network operators determine that the Stinger phones are too costly to provide and support, they won't sell them. There are test runs being conducted by the network operators and when the phones actually show up, you can be sure that they're pretty good.

Also, keep in mind that the network operators will be able to have their own branded phones based on Stinger and have them manufactured by some Taiwanese OEM. Stinger doesn't really need a major cell phone manufacturer to take off. It needs to fly with the network operators.

[Kre]

Smartphone is what Ive been waiting for. I believe Samsung or Sanyo will be one of the companies to manufacture it. Look at the phones that Sprint offers. Two of the nicest color, high feature phones out there right now, as far as the States are concerned, are made by Samsung and Sanyo. Actually, for the US, these are the only two really nice color phones that I know exist. All the nicest phones are overseas or in other countries. Apart from Sprint, all the other wireless carriers here offer nothing but butt ugly, boring, monochrome garbage.

John Dvorak from pc magazine once wrote, that Europe makes fun of the fact that the US doesnt have these feature rich phones, and that all we offer are these lame choices, but that it doesnt matter, because we Americans dont care about all of that, and that as long as it makes a simple phone call, thats good enough... thats all we care about. Yeah, ok, whatever. I couldnt DISagree more, and never wanted to kick him in the head more after reading that. John is getting tired and boring in his old age, to say the least. I DO want more choices, myself. I want the bells and whistles. I want the added functionality. I want the color, storage options, Bluetooth, and mp3. IMO, we need more feature rich, color phone choices in the States. A lot more. And Smartphone would be fantastic. Not to mention, it would be perfect, for me anyway, for a number of reasons. Easy to work with like a normal cell, without having to always fumble with an earset like you might always have to with a handheld, without the massive bulk of a handheld serving as a phone, and a perfect alternative for those times that I want to leave my ppc behind, without having to give up all of the data capabilities and fun that a ppc could and does provide, like a color screen, music, expandable memory, some pim features, email, graphical web and maybe a few simple games, among other things. I cant wait.

For voice, GSM is far too expensive and not wide spread enough in the States right now, so CDMA has to be the way to go, especially when thinking about 2.5 and 3G.

If Microsoft does go with GSM in the States, at least to start out with, theyll be making a huge mistake. Voicestreams GSM network is a joke because they dont have adequate coverage and everybody knows it. The only other carrier with GSM is AT&T, and they only offer GSM in Washington and Oregon. Hardly useful. I cant say if Cingular has GSM, but if they do, I know its not national. They dont even have national coverage for their TDMA network. So choosing TDMA to play on AT&T and Cingular, I think might be a mistake as well, especially when thinking about 2.5 and 3G, like I mentioned before. I believe CDMA is going to be the best bet. At least to start out with. Because Im thinking of initial market penetration here, which is what Microsoft is going to need to get Smartphone enough attention to stick. CDMA on Sprint and Verizon I believe would be the best choice. They both have national coverage with no long distance, and very good coverage on their networks, and theyre migrating to 3G. Especially Verizon, which additionally offers no roaming on some of their plans. Sprint needs to get rid of their stupid roaming charges! But these networks would allow Smartphone to garner the most users initially, IMO, while keeping the road to the future open. I know this could be tackled at different angles. This is just the one that makes the most sense to me. Id be very curious to see what others think about this.

As far as the enterprise is concerned, sometimes I think that in order for Smartphone to enter this market, Smartphone is also going to have to have an integrated two way radio. Many companies use Nextel service with the Motorola iDen phones simply because of the radio capability which allows workers to keep in contact with one another quicker and easier than cellular, over a pretty wide distance, and at a much cheaper cost to the company overall.

Now if they can just get these Smartphones to work with BT enabled earsets and pocket pc`s...

[Kre]

After looking at those teaser screen shots, Im really glad Smartphone is arriving soon. This is one cool phone. 8) The only question is, when?

Id like to see the ability to record not just voice memos, but phone calls. There might be a legal issue with this in the States, though. Not sure. And I still think a two way radio would be a great addition. But I wont hold my breath for this.

Other than that, I think its great! :D

[Foo Fighter]

I'm curious to know what the pricing will be like, and which carriers will support these smartphones?

Anyone know?............. :?

[JMountford]

Are Smart Phones a SMART idea?

IMO No they are not. In this forum I have seen all kinds of reasons for and against. I have seen posters say that they expect Smartphones to become mainstream for one reason due to 3G networks.

Smart phones will be for smart or advanced users. Let's face it there are not that many of those out there!

Nokia will never make one because of their tight relationship with Symbian. I actually am suprised that Ericson will make one because I had heard that they were alos developing a relationship with Symbian. To be honest I could not give a ****e less whether either company produces a smart phone or not for one simple reason. They DO NOT PRODUCE CDMA PHONES. CDMA phones are produced by the lesser OEMs. CDMA users get shafted.

We have Motorola. Motorola = outdated crap.
Samsung = good for the normal user but lame for high end users.
Sanyo = They have started coming out with some nice phones and Infosync has some shots of a killer 3G phone from Sanyo so I am hoping they will take on teh Smartphone. Sanyo however has pathetic software. The phones have a crappy GUI.
LG = outdated crap. They even tried to make a PDA phone a little over a year ago. They used their own OS and though it was neat there was absolutely no expandibility and the hardware was very limited.
Kyocera = they make a Palm phone and not even a good one need I say any more there?
Audiovox = does not even make phones for Sprint PCS and heck they are Audiovox. Cheap car stereos.... Yes I know they have the Maestro. I don't really care.

These are except for maybe one or two the only CDMA OEMs out there. Sendo is GSM. Nokia is GSM and TDMA.

A lot of people that own cells can not or do not even use the advanced features. I wish I had the current statistics, but I know they are astronimically high. Smart phones will be for us.. the technophiles, the geeks, the nerds, the technologically hip, the inovators. Unfortunately we are in a relatively small group. If you do not beleive me just think back to high school. 8O

On top of that we are dealing with yet another MS OS. Don't get me wrong I love MS products. It's just that they are known for consistency, unfortunately they are consistently bad for the first three releases. ANd as other folks have mentioned they will only have one shot with the Smartphones. I just would like to see more partners especially in the CDMA camp. the whole world is not GSM and it actually angers me that big companies and even software makers do not realize that.

[Daniel]

I currently have an Ericsson T39 and I use Bluetooth.

I will be interested in a Bluetooth enabled CDMA2k 1xRTT smartphone in maybe a year or so.
I would also consider an Symbian based smartphone with the same hardware capabilities.

Microsoft (finally) has some really serious competition in Nokia. They are the leading handset maker. Microsoft telegraphed Stinger so well that Nokia has been able to work with Symbian and release their own "smartphone" (although, forget the camera, that's just lame). In some ways this is really great though because it actually legitimises the "smartphone" market. It also expands the market rather than taking market share away from MS necessarily.
Microsoft really has a lot of bad will from consumers however. Talk to any "normal" (non-tech) person about PCs and they will usually complain about how difficult it all is. This stigma is really a big problem for MS in my opinion. I don't know if MS will necessarily be able to downplay the link between their desktop strategy and with this product enough to satisfy the general public that they won't have to reboot their phone every couple of days.
I'm not suggesting that MS smartphones will be bad, just that the public's perception may be the greatest impedement to MS taking a large part of the "smartphone" market.

That's my 2c anyway.

daniel

Jason/spg: I also want to be able to install linux on my SmartPhone, in fact, it should be a dual boot situation. ;)

[Daniel]

...If you do not beleive me just think back to high school. 8O

What are you saying? :cry:


;)

daniel

[JMountford]

Yeah like everyone on here doesn't know what I am talking about.

[Daniel]

Yeah like everyone on here doesn't know what I am talking about.

So you're insulting everyone then? ;)

daniel

[Kre]

I agree with some of what JMountford said. But I think Smartphones are a great idea. I think people will adapt to it. I think one thing that will be key, is to design the phones in such a way that users can navigate easily throughout the menus. I dont think its all that complicated. I believe the reason why most dont use the advanced features of their phones is because currently, these phones have a butt ugly DOS like, text only interface, and people dont respond well to that. The more graphical the GUI becomes, the easier it becomes, and the more people will use it.

I believe Smartphones are the future, and I believe that people will use them more than they use their current phones. The argument that these new phones will only be used by the geeks, etc., because the technology will be too complicated, Im sure was used when cell phones were first coming out. Users will adapt to the phones just fine. If people can learn how to use computers, and most of us do, if not at home, then at work, Im confident theyll be smart enough to adapt to a little cell phone.

I really believe that the usage issue has more to do with the interface, than the features or technology itself. The nicer the GUI, the easier and more useful any device becomes, including cell phones. Right now, current cell GUIs are just too cryptic and ugly for most. Smartphones, I believe, will allow the advanced features to become more practical and more easily accessible for users.

Just my thoughts.

[JMountford]

Just please don't let MS put a resizable Start/Task Bar on the Smart phone. I would feel so sorry for the tech support guys.

[Rafe]

Just please don't let MS put a resizable Start/Task Bar on the Smart phone. I would feel so sorry for the tech support guys.


Dont worry - there will be the alternative Symbian phones, in fact they'll probably be 80% of the market. They actually study UI and intuitive design when creating their UI (Symbian AB employ around 70 people to do this sort of thing). Thus the OS is considerably easier to use because its been desinged for its purpose with no constraints on it need to look like somthing.

Rafe

[JMountford]

Rafe it was a joke. Any tech support person will understand.

I don't really like the symbian OS and I don't really like Nokia, but thank you for the information as I am sure other people may be interested.

[Rafe]

JMountford - Yes I thought it might be! I thought I'd post anyway - wouldn't suprise me if the button area was resizable ;)

Sorry to hear you don't like Symbian or Nokia if you dont mind me asking why is this? What makes the alternatives better (likeable) by contrast?

Cheers
Rafe

[SwitchBlade]

TBH I always new that the mobile system in the US was inferior to the rest of the world, I didn't quite believe it though and felt is was more a joke on the US. After reading through these posts it appears to be true, you have incompatible (with the rest of the world) networks and you only have second rate phone manufacturers. At the moment the world is GSM, and soon to be GSM+ or whatever 3G is gonna be called in the end, if the US networks aren't part of that it's no wonder that they aren't getting phones as the majority of phone manufacturers are in Europe and Asia (both GSM surprisingly).

This is where I see M$ only strong point, they will release their smartphone on the US networks and probably clean up there (if they ever get it to ship), using american manufacturers (HP being their current sign-up and I'm expecting them to grab other PocketPC manufacturers) to produce for the american audience. While the rest of the world happilly runs on Symbian's open system, free of M$, it's claptrap and it's din.

SwitchBlade
-my 2p-