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The Best Business Phone Will be the iPhone

Thursday, April 26th, 2007 at 12:50 PM - by

Microsoft has suggested that Apple's coming iPhone will be irrelevant for business users. In fact, just the opposite is the case, according to Alykhan Jetha, CEO of Marketcircle.

The key to Microsoft's FUD campaign is focusing on the enterprise, large companies that fold the smartphone into their business practices, such as e-mail connected to an Exchange server, spreadsheet applications, and custom apps.


In reality, there is a whole sector of business, small to medium sized businesses, that don't require this infrastructure and will benefit greatly from the iPhone.

"If you are in business, you need to adopt things that have a short learning curve (we learn this lesson everyday), because you just don’t have much time to learn stuff. The beauty of the iPhone is that is presents to you just the interface you need when you need it. And because the interface is dynamic, the iPhone can take up the whole screen when you are doing that one thing," Mr. Jetha wrote in his Blog.

What those overworked, preoccupied small businessmen really need is an easy to use phone that has the key components for their daily work. TMO spoke with Mr. Jetha who pointed out that, "small business users aren't interested in custom business applications. What they need is Web access, e-mail, a calendar, and contacts, all integrated as part of their daily workflow. And the iPhone has a terrific Web Browser in Safari."

Those are the tasks that independent businessmen on the run really need, and the iPhone makes them accessible and easy to learn. That's the key issue that other analysts are overlooking. Corporations may roll out a mobile phone system and support it with approved mobile phones, even supply training. But for people who want to get down to business quickly, the iPhone will have great appeal.

This is just the side benefit of a phone that appeals to the masses. "...the enterprise market is not one of Apple’s core strengths, but the small business market is a different story. And we all know that there are more consumers and small business users than there are enterprise users," he wrote.

Finally, Mr. Jetha pointed out that the iPhone will be a great tool for small businessmen "because they want to use it, instead of being forced to use it."

That Apple insight may be, in fact, what has Microsoft so worried that they've developed a FUD campaign designed to deflect the issue over to their turf. There's just never any joy in FUDville.

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A guest said: (hide)

Thu Apr 26, 2007 3:22 pm

There seems to be a lot of confusion about the market for the iPhone and of course Microsoft is happy to feed it in its role as the world's largest purveyor of FUD to the gentry.

I don't get why people don't get it. The iPhone is the phone for the rest of us. It's your iLife in your pocket. It's the anti-Blackberry for people who don't want an electronic tether to work. It is entirely unsoiled by the evil of Microsoft Exchange. How great is that?

Like the iPod, I don't think most people will get it until they hold one. I know a non-geek who has played with one. His response? I'm getting one of those as soon as they're available. He'll use his work0provided Blackberry for work and his iPhone for pleasure.

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Biff said:

member since 08 Apr 2004 with 1479 posts, unranked, send him a message or view his profile

Thu Apr 26, 2007 5:03 pm

OOH! I smell another hot topic!

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gslusher said:

member since 13 Nov 2002 with 2088 posts, unranked, send him a message or view his profile

Fri Apr 27, 2007 1:24 am

Biff wrote:
OOH! I smell another hot topic!

Well, not quite yet, but it could be.

If you want to understand the appeal the iPhone will have, try using a Treo for a while. It can drive one nuts. The Blackberry is little better. There's even a condition that some surgeons calle "Blackberry thumb," a repetitive stress injury from using the teeny thumb keyboards. I have had four PDAs--Handspring Visor Deluxe, Handspring Treo 90 (not a phone, but the size of an older flip phone), Palm Tungsten C, and Palm TX. The Treo 90 & Tungsten C had thumb keyboards. When the Tungsten C starting dying, I thought about getting a Treo 600-series, but then looked at the TX (same form factor as the T5)--huge screen (with MORE pixels and great color), can flip to landscape mode, dynamic keyboard (or I can use Graffiti--the keyboard is much faster), full screen for movies, photos, games, etc.; Bluetooth and WiFi (so-so email program, crappy browser). (Does this sound familiar?) I will never have a PDA with a built-in keyboard again. I have a simple Samsung flip-phone--no camera, no Internet capability, but it is a pain to use. There is this complex web of heirarchial menus, many of which don't make much sense. Entering a name and number in the contacts list is a chore and easy to screw up.

I'll be getting an 8GB iPhone in late summer, depending upon finances, after I check that Cingular does cover the stable where my horses live. (That was a major reason I switched from ATT to Verizon almost 3 years ago.) I can then get rid of my 2GB iPod Nano 2G--especially if the iPhone can play through the dock connector. (I have an after-market iPod connection in my Prius, mostly for audiobooks.) I won't even need to carry the 30GB iPod 5.5G, which I keep in my car mostly to show videos and photos. The TX will probably go up for sale, too, especially if someone comes out with an application for the iPhone that allows me to read word processor and spreadsheet documents. (I use spreadsheets mostly as flat databases.)

Oh, yeah--my cost (list prices).

Palm TX $299

1 GB SD card $50 (now free with TX bought directly from Palm, but not when I bought mine; can get them for $15-30 now)

Cel Phone $ 0 (cheapy, with 2-year subscription)

2 GB Nano 2G $149

Total $498

4 GB iPhone: $499

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JonGl said:

member since 12 Jan 2006 with 113 posts, unranked, send him a message or view his profile

Fri Apr 27, 2007 2:25 am

gslusher wrote:
Biff wrote:
OOH! I smell another hot topic!

The TX will probably go up for sale, too, especially if someone comes out with an application for the iPhone that allows me to read word processor and spreadsheet documents. (I use spreadsheets mostly as flat databases.)

Well, if the scuttlebutt on the street is correct, will Google Docs suffice? You would be able to access them via the web browser. That's a positive step.... and it may get better...

-Jon

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VSeward said:

member since 28 Jun 2001 with 972 posts, TMO Staff, send him a message or view his profile

Sat Apr 28, 2007 11:10 am

gslusher wrote:
Biff wrote:
OOH! I smell another hot topic!

Oh, yeah--my cost (list prices).

Palm TX $299

1 GB SD card $50 (now free with TX bought directly from Palm, but not when I bought mine; can get them for $15-30 now)

Cel Phone $ 0 (cheapy, with 2-year subscription)

2 GB Nano 2G $149

Total $498

4 GB iPhone: $499

You make an excellent point here Glusher, The iPhone, with all its capabilities can cost less than the separate items.

I have a Razr ($30 will 2 year contract)

I keep addresses and numbers in the razr and 1st gen 4GB iPod nano ($149 to replace with a 2nd gen 2GB nano)

Mail sucks on my Razr so I don't bother. I can't do much of anything else on my Razr except show a few photos or play Sudoku.

I use the heck out of my iPod, but the screen is too small for good photo showing.

So, in order for me to get a device with a bigger screen, plays music and games (maybe vids too), lets me check email, lets me surf the Web, AND is easy to use, and can have other applications running on it so that I can do some, if not much of what I can on my desktop, well, such a device does not exist yet, but the iPhone could be it.

Fingers crossed.

Vern Seward

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