Creative Strategies - Mobile Computing Analysis
Flash for Mobile Devices
Thursday, 29 July 2010 15:21
With the release of Android 2.2 AKA Froyo comes the support for Adobe Flash with a player update of Flash 10.1. I've had the opportunity to use a Android Froyo device with Flash Player 10.1 on it for a few weeks now and I am impressed with the experience overall. I am pleased that we will finally have a full flash player for mobile devices. Technologically the software is solid, however the Flash developer market will now begin to think about developing Flash content beyond the PC.
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The Android Opportunity - Core Apps
Thursday, 29 July 2010 15:21
Google's Android operating system has proven itself a growing force to be reckoned with as adoption rates among manufactures and consumers continue growing at considerable rates. I feel that Android 2.1 has finally reached a point where it is ready for the mass market. I've also had the opportunity to use a Nexus One with the next release 2.2, AKA Froyo, for the past two weeks and have found it even more ready for the mass market and perhaps even the enterprise.
Android continues to advance in virtually all areas and compared to Apple's iPhone OS, it represents the only really viable alternative, for now. As I pointed out in my last article The Fate of Windows 7, Microsoft is way behind this curve, and even if they were caught up at a pure OS level, they are still at least two years behind on the the app ecosystem. Conversely, Android is well behind Apple with the core apps.
Netbooks vs. Tablets: How to Decide
Thursday, 29 July 2010 15:21
I had the privilege of speaking at last week's Netbook Summit in San Francisco. The event was created well before the introduction of the iPad, when netbooks were still all the rage. Since Apple introduced its tablet, the value of netbooks over tablets has been called into question amongst consumers. This was one of the show's major topics. I had a session on Tuesday, in which I discussed how my analyst group, Creative Strategies, predicts the iPad will affect the market.
During my presentation, I noted that, while netbooks aren't going to go away, there will be a sort of bifurcation occurring around what we call a "content consumption versus content creation" focus, driving both product categories in the future. Laptops and netbooks are optimized for content creation. But in any given day, content creation only takes up 25 percent of the time most people spend on computers. The other 75 percent is spent consuming content.
The Fate of Windows Phone 7
Thursday, 29 July 2010 15:21
With the Kin entering the market, HP's acquisition of Palm, and a number of other industry events, I have been asked quite a bit about Microsoft's chances of success with Windows Phone. Microsoft is losing traction in this market rapidly and is in desperate need of strategy that will keep their operating system competitive in a market dominated by RIM, Apple, and Google.
If you look at the numbers released by Gartner toward the end of last year projecting mobile OS market share, they projected in 2012 Microsoft to rank 4th on the list with just over 12% of the Smartphone OS market share. 12% of the market is not bad and would come out to roughly 70 million devices in that year. That being said, I can't imagine Microsoft being content with 4th place. So what do they need to do to be successful in a fragmented Smartphone OS landscape in which we expect some consolidation to happen in the next few years?
Analysis of Steve Jobs Letter Regarding Flash
Thursday, 29 July 2010 15:21
I have been taking calls from reporters this morning as well as receiving a number of client inquiries asking for some thoughts regarding Steve Jobs' letter. Apple's reasons for not supporting Flash have been greatly speculated upon from only a minimal amount of evidence given that Apple has made only brief remarks. Given that Apple has faced much scrutiny over not supporting Flash, this letter was well planned. There are a number of things to point out of significance in this letter, and I will highlight the few I think to be most significant.
The first important thing to point out is that the letter references the long history Apple and Adobe have had together. This is important because the media has painted Apple's lack of support as some kind of evil scheme to take Adobe down or that Apple is taking some kind of corporate grudge out on Adobe by choosing to hamper their innovations on their platform. By acknowledging that Apple and Adobe have had a long and respected history, the message clear: this is not about Adobe. Apple's decision to not support Flash is a purely technical one.
The next element comes as Steve Jobs discusses what should be "open" and what is acceptably "closed."
The Reason HP Bought Palm
Thursday, 29 July 2010 15:21
If you think about how smart phones have evolved, especially since the iPhone came out, it is clear that they are really just small PCs. The fact that they fit in your pocket and are mobile adds to their functionality and capabilities, but in most ways they have become just smaller versions of a personal computer.
Unfortunately, the major PC players did not get that at first and only over the last couple of years have they started to embrace this idea. Perhaps Dell was the most proactive since they brought in former Motorola phone execs to run their PC business and are now starting to bring out smart phones under the Dell label. However, HP which has the iPaq line with Windows Mobile inside was forced to let it languish as they waited for Microsoft to enhance their mobile OS. But as they waited for Microsoft to move, Apple, Google (with Android), RIM, and others bulked up their line of smart phones and took the lion’s share of the smart phone market away from HP.
