Special mobile devices for accessing the Internet and Email terminals will be replaced by the smart phone.
[+] Mobile Email service requirements
Do you feel uneasy if you do not receive any Email for an entire day? To us in this modern world, Email is more than a mere tool of communication. It is a kind of mental comfort that assures us the existence of a connection with the outside world.
However, it is quite doubtful that anyone would want to buy a portable device to send and receive Emails only because of this mental requirement. In general opinions, people with such a requirement are those in the business community that cannot do without Emails for even a minute.
Because of their jobs, such people must have access to information and give responses anytime necessary, which is particularly important for those who have been out of office for a considerably long period of time. Without such strong requirements for the Email service, other groups (e.g. students) are less interested in such terminal (or service).
So far, PDAs have been able to synchronize with Email software, and copy Emails from Outlook for reading outside of the office. Having replied Emails on road, one will have to synchronize the device again with his/her computer when he/she gets back to the office so as to send those Emails through Outlook.
That, of course, is a troublesome process. By employing a mobile device for managing Emails, one certainly wants to be able to receive and send Emails instantly. Although there are other devices like the PDA Modem that provides dial-up Internet accessing, there are few users for additional expenses incurred by using such devices.
Nevertheless, that requirement does exist. A few years ago, telecom operators introduced a service that converts Emails into SMS. However, as SMS is not a sufficiently cheap service (at least Emails received through the Internet are not charged by pieces), and inputting information into and operating a handset are somehow not an easy work, there were few users for that service, either.
[+] Various mobile Email terminals
Let's leave aside the issue of fee rates and prices for a while. To enable mobile Email receiving and sending, input methods and operating interface are the first things to be considered. Restricted by the design of the buttons, handsets are certainly not an ideal tool for the purpose. Is it necessary, then, to have a special device?
Fortunately, there has been one: Blackberry, which has been very popular recently. Developed by a Canadian company named RIM a few years ago, the product is seeing steady increase of the user number each year. Its most distinct feature is the ability to push Emails into users' Blackberry terminals.
With the existing fee rates of telecom operators, users can reply Emails anytime they want and are charged a monthly fee only. Blackberry devices, which was designed exclusively for sending and receiving Emails, can now be used to make mobile phone calls and access the Internet, too. It even supports WLAN to make VoIP calls.
More information on Blackberry is available at: http://www.blackberry.com
The prospering market has attracted many rivals. Companies similar to Blackberry mainly produce terminals and collect monthly fees, which they share with telecom operators. However, there are also mobile device manufacturers, such as Nokia, that develop their own Internet accessing devices.
More information on Nokia N770 is available at:reviews.cnet.com/Nokia_N770_Internet_Tablet/4505-3127_7-31396042.html
Nokia N770 Internet Tablet accesses the Internet mainly through WLAN. It has a Web browser and special software to receive and send Emails. Of course, the user can get connected to the Internet through the handset (as a modem) connect to N770 if he/she wants to. However, that would be a little laborsome.
What's interesting is N770 is the first product of Nokia that has nothing to do with any GSM operator. As it does not access the Internet through the GSM mobile network, it cannot be used to make mobile phone calls, in which case, of course, it is not entitled to any handset subsidy provided by telecom operators. Therefore, it does not depend on the communication community for its sale.
[+] Market positioning of different devices
Question No.1: will anyone buy a mobile device exclusively for accessing the Internet anytime anywhere? Question No.2: hasn't the smart phone already offered such functions (and the handset-associated keyboard and software too)?
In the meantime, there are many multifunctional PDAs and miniature notebooks in the market. With their networking abilities, those devices, of course, would enable receiving and sending Emails. Where, then, is still the niche for a special-featured Email receiving and sending device?
The key to the answer is the difference in prices. Of course, more functions mean higher prices. If what a consumer needs is only receiving and sending Emails outdoor, spending a lot of money on a smart phone or handheld notebook is obviously an act of waste.
Compared with a full-functioned device (mainly for making phone calls or with functions similar to a PC), a special device, for receiving and sending Emails or for accessing the Internet, will have to depend on a lower price for its survival. There will be a group of customers willing to accept that cost-performance ratio.
On the other hand, there will be many hardcore users wishing for an all-in-one too. In addition to offering a sense of high-tech, such products could save the trouble of bringing too many mobile devices outdoor. Willing to pay more, these people are the target users of the smart phone.
However, no manufacturer would want to be tied to just one market segment. Priced at about USD 199, Blackberry offers almost all the functions of a handset. With the additional Internet accessing feature, it is already infiltrating into the upstream smart phone market. The trend of the hybrid device is getting stronger and stronger.
What's smart about Blackberry is its cooperation with telecom operators, which has ensured a stable source of income every month (monthly fees could be charged for mobile Email services). Bundled with wireless services to sell, that might prove to be a way for hardware manufacturers to break away from the situation of low gross profit. With regard to Nokia's portable Internet accessing device N770, however, it is really hard to understand its strategy.
2005/07/10 - By Digitalwall.com - Way to
China Internet/Telecom )
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