T-Mobile announced their plans to market the first smartphone based on Google’s open source mobile operating system, Android.  The new phone, built by HTC and called the G1, will be generally available by October 22nd in the US (and in the U.K. in November, and the rest of Europe in early 2009), and will cost US$179 with a two-year voice and data service contract.  It includes a number of powerful features, including:

• a touchscreen interface
• a slide-out QWERTY keyboard
• a trackball for application navigation
• a 3-megapixel camera
• GPS
• Wi-Fi connectivity
• 3G (with dual-band UMTS)
• quad-band GSM support
• multimedia messaging
• e-mail support (but not Microsoft Exchange integration yet)
• instant messaging
• a rich HTML web browser
• the ability to run multiple applications simultaneously
• a music player (with automated access to the Amazon MP3 store)
• integrated Bluetooth wireless headset support

Indeed, T-Mobile’s G1 possesses a lot of advanced smartphone functionality, but by far its most interesting feature is the operating system which manages all of these features, the new Android OS.

If Google’s aspirations come true, Android will become a very popular platform for mobile devices - they expect 400,000 Android-based phones to be sold before the end of 2008 alone.  At that rate, Android may very well become one of the most pervasive operating systems for smartphones in 2009, rivaling Symbian and Microsoft’s Windows Mobile, and also increasing competitive pressure on Apple’s iPhone and RIM’s BlackBerry lines.

What does Android mean to salespeople?

Sales professionals should take note of the official market introduction of Android for several reasons:

• Even if you never buy an Android-based device, the new OS should keep the cost of smartphones low.  That means better buys on any smartphone in 2009, no matter what make or model you select.
• Five mobile platforms will vie for your attention over the next year: Apple’s iPhone, Windows Mobile, Google’s Android, Symbian from the Symbian Foundation, and RIM’s BlackBerry OS.  Of these, only Android and Symbian are open source platforms, which means that developers can create applications at significantly lower cost.  That means more choices for you in how you configure and expand the functionality of your smartphone device.
• Android’s open source aspect gives it a significant competitive advantage, at least in the short-term.  Apple is now getting flak from users about their entirely proprietary, walled-garden, iTunes-based AppStore, as they block applications that they very broadly deem competitive with any of their offerings.  Microsoft recently announced that they are delaying the launch of the next version of their proprietary Windows Mobile OS until the “second half of 2009″.  Symbian is still re-organizing as an open source foundation, and will need more time to develop and launch a new version.  This means that we should see a huge influx of new applications available for Android devices in the next few months and well beyond, giving the platform more extensibility and adaptability than any other platform by the middle of 2009.
• Android’s user experience rivals the Apple iPhone’s multi-touch interface - although for pure elegance and simplicity, the nod would have to go to Apple here.  Still, Android is remarkably simple to operate and customize on the G1, making it one of the friendliest devices on the market.  As Sprint and other carriers release their Android phones over the next few months, this ease of use should make Android very attractive to new users in the smartphone market.
• In 2009, Android will be available on virtually every carrier, in a wide variety of configurations, and all at relatively low price points.  Apple is tied exclusively to AT&T in the U.S. market, at least for the next year or so, which will become a significant competitive limitation.  The newest releases of  BlackBerry devices - such as the Bold, Storm and Thunder - should help RIM maintain its growing market share in smartphones, but by the middle of 2009, the number of new Android phones should explode well beyond the limited number of models that RIM will provide.  The next releases of Symbian and Windows Mobile won’t make an impact until the end of 2009, at earliest - and by then, Android’s momentum may be too much to stop.

In short, Android’s impending ubiquity, extensibility, expandability, ease of use and low cost should make it a very formidable competitor in the smartphone market in the next year.

More importantly, these features may make Android the ideal mobile computing platform for sales professionals, as it is designed from the core outward with “cloud computing” in mind.  In addition to making voice calls, Android smartphones should excel in connecting to the Internet for web browsing, data searches (remember: it’s from Google), hosted applications (such as CRM, for example), navigation (using services such as Google Maps), text messaging and e-mail.  As additional functionality becomes available in the Android Marketplace of third-party applications, sales pros will be able to configure their devices to suit their individual requirements at very low cost.

So, should salespeople buy an Android phone now?

If you are in the U.S., and use T-Mobile, you should definitely consider the G1 for your next smartphone.  It does almost everything that a sales professional needs in a mobile phone.  It only lacks Microsoft Exchange integration - but Google expects this to be addressed in the next few weeks as application developers complete work on a solution.  One other potential problem is the limited availability of 3G networks from T-Mobile, although they expect to expand 3G coverage aggressively over the next year - still, check the coverage map for your area before jumping in.

If you are using a carrier other than T-Mobile, or using another smartphone platform (such as Symbian or Windows Mobile) and are locked into a service contract, it’s almost certainly not worth switching just to get the G1.  Instead, just wait for your carrier to introduce their own Android-based phone, and upgrade when your contract expires.  Sprint intends to release an Android device by the end of 2008, and virtually all other carriers will release their own devices in the first half of 2009.

If you are using a BlackBerry or iPhone, and are perfectly happy, don’t panic.  Your own platforms are as useful as when you first bought them, and they will continue to be so, even as Android’s presence in the marketplace expands.  But monitor the progress of Android over the next year or so - you may very well be tempted to switch by 2010.

Tags: Android, T-Mobile G1

 

 Selling Geek 013-Best web browsers for sales pros [41:00m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

In this episode of the Selling Geek podcast, we review the top five most popular web browsers, and evaluate them in terms of their utility to sales professionals.  We also provide specific web browser recommendations to salespeople using Macs, Linux-based systems, or Windows-based computers.

Links to resources mentioned in this show:

• List of available web browser applications
• Flock
• SeaMonkey
• Microsoft Internet Explorer
• Mozilla Firefox
• Google Chrome
• Apple Safari
• Opera

Please give us your comments and feedback on our U.S. toll-free message line: 877-345-7763, or from anywhere in the world at: +1 404-418-4970, or leave your comment below.  In each podcast episode, we award US$20 to the best voice mail, email or blog comment we receive.

Tags: Apple, Chrome, Firefox, Google, Internet Explorer, Microsoft, Mozilla, Opera, Safari, web browser

Last in a six-part series

In Part One of this series, we defined what an operating system (OS) is, and speculated that changes in the most significant OS platforms could affect the way that salespeople do their jobs over the next few years. In this part, we summarize our findings and provide sales professionals with some clear recommendations about the kind of OS they should use.

So, what should salespeople do about their computer operating systems?

For many years now, most of the world rallied to one standard desktop operating system: Microsoft Windows.  It was a nice place to be - very consistent and predictable.  People could transfer their computer using skills from one place to the next with relative ease.  Information flowed.  Commerce thrived.  All was well in the kingdom.

Three accelerating trends are occurring now, however, that are beginning to disrupt this idyllic scene.

Let’s call the first of these trends the “good enough” syndrome.  Over the last few years, most computer users - especially mobile sales professionals - watched the incremental improvements in processor speeds as they developed, looked at their existing hardware, and said, “I think I’ll just live with this a while longer - it seems plenty good enough for the moment.” This is one big reason why Microsoft stumbled with their latest version of Windows: Vista.  They assumed that computer users would continue to upgrade their hardware, and follow the latest trends in state-of-the-art processors and supporting systems, just as they always had in the past.  But Microsoft supposed wrongly.  Unlike cutting-edge users of high-end gaming and other processor-intensive applications such as media creation, most businesspeople only need a solid, reliable machine that is good enough to get the job done.

A second trend is the rapidly rising reliability and availability of fast, ubiquitous Internet access.  This trend further reduces the need for powerful personal computer hardware, making super-robust client-based operating systems even less important.  As long as users can “jack into the cloud”, their computer need only be a reliable user interface and communications platform.

A third trend is the increasing blurring of device specialization.  In the good old days, you had a computer, a cell phone, a fax machine, a stereo, a television and maybe a VCR - each device performed its own special task.  Today, your computer, phone, instant messenger, email, music player, Internet browser and many other capabilities can all be wrapped up into a very small number of portable devices - and for some users, perhaps only one.  As long as people can get to their data, in a form factor that is comfortable to use, they don’t care what device they use.

These three trends - good enough power, ‘net access, and device consolidation - have huge implications for the kinds of operating systems that salespeople will use on their computers in the next few years.  Recognizing this, let’s now make some practical suggestions for sales professionals, along with a few bold predictions:

• First, most of the world is using Windows today (albeit mostly XP, not Vista), and that won’t change anytime soon.  So, if you’re using Windows now, and it’s all working fine, keep doing so.  You’re in good company, and there’s no need to panic.
• However, if you are using Vista today, or if you’re considering buying a new Vista-based machine, and your hardware doesn’t have the power to take advantage of the advanced user interface capabilities, consider “downgrading” to XP - you almost certainly will find a more stable environment there, and get snappier performance.
• If you are using a Mac today, and it’s getting the job done for you, keep doing so.  There’s no compelling reason to switch to any other operating system if you are happy in your insulated, safe Apple architecture - at least, for now.
• Monitor the development of netbooks closely - they will be the vehicles that drive widespread acceptance of “cloud computing.”  Netbooks are now cheap, highly portable, quick-performing platforms that are becoming especially compelling for mobile sales professionals.
• Consider buying one of the currently available, inexpensive netbooks with an “instant on” (probably Linux-based) OS as a second computer before the end of 2008, and begin to experiment with Internet-based storage and applications.  It will likely become your favorite “road machine”, and you’ll leave your heavy duty client computer at home for more processor-intensive work.
• Microsoft has probably learned enough from the Vista experience to make Windows 7 much more scalable, lean, and user-friendly OS.  The early indications that they are incorporating touch and gesture-based user interfaces will give Windows 7 enough of a “wow factor” to convince most users to upgrade to that platform in 2010.
• Even in 2010, we think that Apple will most likely continue to hide in its comfortable closed architecture, and cater to its relatively small legion of dedicated fans.
• By 2010, an increasing number of netbook users will be familiar with Linux, but most won’t realize that is what they are using - to them, it will just be the “instant on” usability feature, and they’ll use it only to the extent that they need to get connected to the Internet.
• We think that Microsoft’s Windows 7 short-term upgrade surge will be a somewhat hollow victory.  By then, enough netbooks will be in use to make cloud-based operating environments common.  By 2014, just as Microsoft ends formal support of the venerable old XP OS, it’s likely that most computer users will be “jacking into the cloud” far more frequently than they will be using disconnected, client-based computers.
• What will the dominant cloud-based OS be in 2015 and beyond? Unfortunately, there are far too many experiments in different ‘net-based operating systems today to know for certain.  Most likely, all of the currently significant OS platforms - Windows, Mac OS, and Linux - will each evolve cloud OS capabilities, thereby preserving some semblance of today’s market shares.  In other words, the brands will be the same, but they will each operate very differently than they do today.

If you take nothing else away from this series, consider this: operating systems are going to change the way that salespeople use computers over the next few years.  Those that stay on top of this rapid evolution will find exciting new ways to get the information they need to find, sell, close and service customers - those that try to cling to the status quo will be left behind, and fairly quickly.  It is that important.  Take heed.

Tags: cloud computing, Linux, Mac OS X, Microsoft Windows, Operating System, OS

Fifth in a six-part series

In Part One of this series, we defined what an operating system (OS) is, and speculated that changes in the most significant OS platforms could affect the way that salespeople do their jobs over the next few years. In this part, we speculate about what could be emerging as a new OS alternative.

“The Cloud”

In the previous part in this series, we examined the emerging role of Linux on netbook computers for providing “instant on” access to web browsing and other simple computer functions.  Now, imagine if all computing functions resided not on your computer, but entirely on the Internet only.  If fast, reliable, ubiquitous Internet access is readily available, then you don’t really need to store anything on your computer - all your data and applications could be retrieved and executed from the Internet.

This is the definition of “cloud computing” - the ability to do all of your data processing entirely in the Internet, smoothly, safely and reliably.

A cloud computer only needs enough processing power and connectivity capability to reliably access the Internet.  Other than the operating system, which can be loaded from an onboard ROM chip, there isn’t much need to store anything in a cloud computer - all files can be stored on the ‘net.  A good cloud computing device is more of a communications appliance than it is a standalone computer.  Tech pundit Om Malik outlined the ideal criteria for a cloud computer as follows:

1. Instant On
2. Doesn’t generate too much heat.
3. Minimum 5 hours of battery life.
4. Must feature at least four communications options: WiFi, Ethernet, Bluetooth & Wireless Wide Area Network connection to, say, an EVDO or HSPA Network.
5. Less than three pounds (batteries included).
6. Screen size of 3.5-8 inches (wide-screen proportioned)
7. The primary function of the computer should be cloud-based activities that can include everything from listening to live music, reading blogs and watching videos. Writing research reports or cranking out spreadsheets isn’t the primary purpose of these machines.
8. It should cost no more than $300. This isn’t a computer; it’s a communications device. It should really be an on-the-go device. It is a device for the moments when your cellphone isn’t enough, and laptop is too much. An iPhone should qualify.
9. Its innards, ports should be geared for Internet-based activities — from making calls on Skype to consuming RSS feeds — though it should be able to handle external peripherals.
10. In the future it should move away from the keyboard and have a touchscreen interface that allows one to sift through large amounts of data (or web pages) quickly, as cramped keyboards and touchpads can be hard to use.

Based on these critieria, ultra-portable netbooks certainly fill the bill as the ideal cloud computing device.  In fact, many technology industry observers believe that netbooks are already driving more users to Web-based operating environments.

Many users are already doing cloud computing, but may not be aware of it. Google Apps is a good example of ‘net based computing.  Millions of users routinely access Google Mail and Calendar every day, and more are beginning to use Google Docs for simple word processing and presentations - all driven entirely on the web.  The only thing the client computers do is drive web browsers and maintain the connection to the Internet.

The next step in cloud computing is desktop virtualization - which essentially simulates a computer system in software, which can be based on a connected system somewhere on the ‘net.  This gives a user a full computer experience, but it is actually happening somewhere else - the user simply interacts with the system through their web browser.  Virtual computer operating systems, such as G.ho.st, are showing that cloud computing experiences can be as easy to operate as any client-based, fully featured OS.

Microsoft has recognized the potential threat of cloud computing models to their Windows OS dominance. They have been experimenting with web-centric OS technology, most recently with a project called Midori.  Some analysts speculate that Midori might be “version 8″ of Windows, to be released sometime after Windows 7 appears in 2010.

Microsoft is also experimenting with distributed, web-based storage and computing models, such as Microsoft Live Mesh. Apple has also recognized the importance of web-based computing, introducing MobileMe for data synchronization and storage in July.  Although both platforms are not yet perfect, they clearly represent the rapidly accelerating trend away from the individual client computer towards the web.

As MobileMe’s early technical problems indicated, cloud computing, so far, hasn’t been totally reliable.  In fact, new services such as CloudStatus have emerged to monitor cloud-based systems availability.  If business enterprises are to become more reliant on the cloud for their distributed computing needs, then they will need to constantly monitor and evaluate how those systems are operating.

Still, the trend seems inevitable - the move to the cloud is accelerating, and sales professionals that rely on their computers would be well served to adapt.

Next in this series: So, what’s a salesperson to do?

Tags: cloud computing, CloudStatus, G.ho.st, google apps, Live Mesh, Midori, MobileMe, netbooks