POLL: What's Actually BETTER To Do On A Smartphone Than A PC?

Smartphones are the computers of the future: They're getting very powerful, they can work all day without charging, and they can go everywhere with you.

For many people, a mobile phone will be their first or only computer. But there are also drawbacks like small screens and crappy typing capabilities.

As we plot out how people will use their phones in the future, we'd love to know: What do you like doing BETTER on a smartphone than a desktop or laptop computer?

After you're voted, don't miss our FUTURE OF MOBILE special report.

For the latest tech news, visit SAI: Silicon Alley Insider. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Join the conversation about this story »

See Also:

• HISTORY LESSON: How The iPhone Changed Smartphones Forever
• "The Future Of Mobile Is The Future Of Everything"
• SPECIAL REPORT: The Future Of Mobile

POLL: What's Actually BETTER To Do On A Smartphone Than A PC?

Backlink: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/typepad/alleyinsider/silicon_alley_insider/~3/cgXcxap6FoA/poll-smartphone-future-mobile-2011-6

Here's Why Microsoft Buying Nokia Might Actually Make Sense (MSFT, NOK, RIMM)

Today's wacky mobile industry rumor is that Microsoft could be interested in buying Nokia's mobile phone division, on the heels of the companies' Windows Phone 7 partnership.

Now, this is pretty out-there. The deal would be huge -- Nokia's market cap is $32 billion -- and it would be a big shift in Microsoft's focus. So it's easy to laugh this off as a big, silly rumor.

But there's one reason why Microsoft potentially buying Nokia actually makes sense.

Because it's the only way that Microsoft could ever make enough money off Windows phones to matter.

Apple, HTC, and RIM have shown that when a smartphone company is performing well, there is a healthy amount of profit to be made. Apple likely makes a few hundred dollars in profit per iPhone sold, for example.

Meanwhile, Microsoft has been trying to use the Windows model for mobile operating systems for the last several years, and that just doesn't really work in mobile. The per-device license fees are just too small -- likely less than $15 per phone -- and don't add up to big-enough numbers to make much of a difference, especially for a company as big as Microsoft.

If Microsoft did buy Nokia, and could somehow, miraculously, figure out a near-Apple-like quality of hardware and software integration, and sell a bunch of phones, there's quite a lot of profit that can be made. (Especially if they can do something creative with Skype, which Microsoft bought last week.)

And that's why Microsoft may want to own the whole thing, and not just sell Windows Phone 7 licenses to Nokia, who makes the real profit on the device sale.

(Yes, this could potentially alienate other potential partners, like HTC, Samsung, etc. But if it's not going to get Android-like distribution from those companies, that's a risk worth taking if Microsoft can make all of the profits from Nokia smartphone sales. Meanwhile, a Nokia-Microsoft deal would almost certainly end the potential for Microsoft to acquire RIM.)

Again, this is way out there, and would be very risky. But it's not completely stupid.

Read: How To Use Your iPhone On Vacation (The Right Way!)

For the latest tech news, visit SAI: Silicon Alley Insider. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Join the conversation about this story »

See Also:

• The Ad-Supported Kindle Is Amazon's Best Seller
• Google And Amazon Leave The Door Wide Open For Apple's "Music Locker" To Dominate
• Microsoft: Skype Buy Is About Business, Not Consumers

Here's Why Microsoft Buying Nokia Might Actually Make Sense (MSFT, NOK, RIMM)

Backlink: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/typepad/alleyinsider/silicon_alley_insider/~3/tuR93IIKBOg/microsoft-nokia-windows-phone-2011-5

Well, What Do You Know: Flash Video Actually Looks Good On The PlayBook (RIMM, ADBE, AAPL)

Despite our skepticism, Adobe Flash video actually looks good on the BlackBerry PlayBook, which we've been testing today.

Above is a screenshot from Hulu, where the 480p video plays smoothly on the PlayBook. Now let's see how quickly Hulu blocks the PlayBook, forcing people to sign up for Hulu Plus. (We've reached out to Hulu for comment, but haven't heard back.)

Meanwhile, Major League Baseball's Flash-based MLB.TV also looks good and works okay on the PlayBook. Netflix, which uses Microsoft's Silverlight software, does not work on the PlayBook.

There are some issues with Flash-based user interfaces -- they aren't designed for touchscreens, so there are some issues when typing is required, etc. And browsing the web in general is awkward on the PlayBook. But, specifically, the Flash video at least plays back smoothly in our brief testing.

It's hard to tell how Flash video is affecting the PlayBook's battery, but this is potentially the biggest concern. We'll try to perform additional tests on this in the future.

If the PlayBook had launched a long time ago with this quality of Flash video support, that could have been a real advantage over the iPhone and iPad, which don't support Flash. But these days, almost all the video worth watching on an iPad is available through an app.

It's hard to see Flash video support being the reason someone would buy a PlayBook over an iPad, but it's nice to see that it works.

Earlier: Here's The Best Thing About The BlackBerry PlayBook... And How RIM Is Blowing It

Here's another screenshot of Hulu on the PlayBook:

For the latest tech news, visit SAI: Silicon Alley Insider. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Join the conversation about this story »

See Also:

• Here's RIM's Only Chance For The BlackBerry PlayBook
• Here's The Best Thing About The BlackBerry PlayBook... And How RIM Is Blowing It
• BlackBerry PlayBook Launch Party: Orlando Magic Star Dwight Howard Steals The Show

Well, What Do You Know: Flash Video Actually Looks Good On The PlayBook (RIMM, ADBE, AAPL)

Backlink: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/typepad/alleyinsider/silicon_alley_insider/~3/tLHVzt1_KXM/playbook-flash-video-2011-4

Here's Why Apple's iPhone "Delays" Might Actually Be A Good Thing (AAPL, GOOG)

It sounds like Apple's iPhone rollout is going to happen a little later this year.

While some may see this as an "un-Apple like" "delay," this habit-breaking might actually be a good thing -- for would-be iPhone buyers, Apple fans, and investors.

Why? Because Apple needs another smartphone breakthrough, like the first iPhone was in 2007.

A look around the smartphone industry shows that Apple's iPhone 4 is still the best all-around product on the market, in terms of hardware, software, apps, etc. 

But Apple's lead is shrinking. Rivals, powered by Google Android, have gotten close, product-wise. And Android has already overtaken Apple in market share, fueled by widespread operator distribution.

If Apple wants to extend its lead, it eventually needs a major update that will leave the copycats scratching their heads.

Perhaps that's what's taking so long.

Specifically, it sounds like Apple will wait to reveal its next iPhone and iPad operating system, iOS 5, until June at its Worldwide Developers Conference. For context, this has happened in March or April the past three years.

Then, it might not launch the new iPhone hardware until later this year, or maybe not even until next year. This has traditionally happened right after WWDC, in June or July, since Apple started shipping the iPhone in 2007.

If true, there could be many reasons for this shift in schedules.

Apple may simply be rotating its product launches to make the iPhone release closer to the holidays, its biggest sales period. (In the meantime, this could potentially hurt summer sales, during the typical launch period, would could force analysts to lower their June or September quarter estimates.)

Apple may actually be delayed due to Steve Jobs' medical leave, extra time spent on the new Mac OS X Lion, production problems, or whatever. (That wouldn't be a good thing, if it becomes a habit.)

Or Apple may need more time because it's doing more work than in the past few years, to make the iPhone a radically better product, through new components, software, and services.

Like what?

At TechCrunch, MG Siegler has a good wrapup of what could be coming:

• "iTunes in the cloud" -- a launch of a bunch of new cloud services for the iPhone, potentially including music, video, social stuff, location, etc.

• A whole new layer of "artificial intelligence and assistance technology" built into iOS 5, based on Apple's acquisition of Siri.

• 4G network support -- faster Internet access, better video streaming, etc. -- because of new, better LTE components becoming available. Potentially very useful for all the new cloud syncing and/or network-based services built into the phone.

Add those up, and it could be one heck of an iPhone update.

And it had better be. Because there's only so much more mileage Apple could get just by making the iPhone 4 thinner, giving it more storage capacity, better video chip, etc.

Instead, this sounds more promising -- like Apple could potentially have another breakthrough product, which could take the Android camp more than a year to replicate.

And that would be worth the wait, for everyone involved.

Don't miss: Here's What We Want For The iPad 3

Join the conversation about this story »

See Also:

• Apple's New iPhone Software Might Not Launch Until Fall
• If There's No New iPhone At WWDC, Will Steve Jobs Even Bother Showing Up?
• iPhone 5 Might Not Launch Until Later This Year... Or 2012?

Here's Why Apple's iPhone "Delays" Might Actually Be A Good Thing (AAPL, GOOG)

Backlink: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/typepad/alleyinsider/silicon_alley_insider/~3/BDZ5_RqOONQ/iphone-delays-2011-3