Are our handheld GPS systems in danger of going the way of the betamax? Let’s take a look.

Ok, here comes a huge spoiler: I don’t think handheld GPS systems are going anywhere. Smartphones are awesome and have their place. I think building GPS receivers into them is a good idea provided it can be done cheaply, and when the price point is good enough I’ll probably get a phone that has a GPS built in as well. That said, it’ll never fully replace my standalone GPS.

The reason is that they’ll perform two different functions. Its kind of like cameras, we all have them in our phones now, but did that stop us from also purchasing standalone cameras? For most, the answer is no. There are certainly times when I don’t have my camera with me that I’ll want to snap a quick pic, just like there are times when I won’t have my GPS with me and I’ll want to grab some quick directions or record a location. However, if I know I’m going to be shooting a lot of pictures I’m taking my camera with me, just like if I know I’m going to be out in the woods relying on a GPS for directions I’m going to take my GPS with me.

A lot of the smartphone momentum is based around marketers capitalizing on the tough economic times, and there is certainly going to be a market for people that don’t want to shell out for handheld GPS systems when they can kill two birds with one stone by buying one built into their phone. However, that does not by any means comprise the vast majority of people who buy a standalone GPS. I just cannot foresee a time when geocachers, hunters, fishermen, etc do not want the features that a handheld provides.

You also have to consider ergonomic factors. To return to the camera analogy, you are inherently going to be able to get a control layout that is more optimal for the specific task when you are dealing with a dedicated device. Since it doesn’t have to worry about being used for everything from texting to making calls to recording video, your dedicated GPS is always going to have a more pleasing control layout and larger screen.

To recap, yes smartphones will be adding in GPS and many of us will use them. No, this won’t kill off dedicated handheld GPS systems, they are here to stay!

Cellphone and Service Store

It seems only yesterday I was battling against mobile phone operating systems, trying countless different versions almost on a monthly basis to figure out which suited my personal and clients needs.

However things have improved, the release of the iPhone made a number of manufacturers and OS developers review their platform, how it interacts with applications on the device and more importantly how easy it is to operate.

Smartphones are at a key point in their product life cycle, the demand is there, the public have a real appetite for social media fuelled by the need to Twitter or upload pictures and statuses to Facebook. Industry analysts predict an explosion in sales combined with significant price reductions through 2010.

Within the last couple of years we’ve seen a shift from manufacturers claiming their handsets can access the internet to what today I feel is the most important element, ‘how well’ they access the internet and content delivery.

One of the big shifts in recent times has been BlackBerry or RIM (Research in Motion), the developer of BlackBerry, the traditional user was a business person but the company has transformed itself with a range of handsets reaching far beyond this original corporate demographic. Last month RIM announced sales of 65million Smartphones worldwide. That said it is still way behind Apple when it comes to the distribution and availability of applications, an iPhone user has access to over 85,000 whereas the BlackBerry user 2,000.

October 2009 sees the launch of the much anticipated Palm Pre resurgence from Palm into the Smartphone market having lost their way over recent years. The device has been in development for seven years and debuts its own operating system – webOS – which aims to mimic desktop operating systems allowing users to switch between applications in the same way as programs are multi-tasked on a home computer, it will be very interesting to see how this ultimately competes in this market sector. It’s been touted as an iPhone killer in the US and early figures suggest at least a keen interest, a recent survey of UK O2 customers showed that 27% were “keen to buy” compared with 17% waiting for the iPhone prior to its launch in 2007.

The key to the Palm Pre being a success if how easy users can access key applications and device content, with an “information on demand” society this will be crucial. Palm’s marketing position has been “everything you ever wanted in an iPhone and were tired of waiting for”. Most notable among these features is a little slide out keyboard and the mythical copy and paste function. The Pre has also been released at a time when early iPhone adopters contracts are drawing to an end.

2010 is going to be an interesting year in the battle of the Smartphone, watch this space!

PC Mobile Phones

I need a phone from Verizon for typing lyrics and what not, so basically typing long paragraphs. Need a phone/smartphone that is good for storing paragraphs, typing fast, and typing comfortably. Need all suggestions.

Thanks!

Translation Cellphones