It would be pretty funny if Nokia decided to drop their proprietary OS entirely and take that of BlackBerry. This video is obviously some crazy hack or entirely fake, but it’s still a fun idea. Personally, I’d like to see more BlackBerrys running different operating systems. Wouldn’t it be fun to have a Bold 9000 running Android?
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Nokia 5700 Running BlackBerry OS 4.6.0.305
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The Distimo Report is a monthly look at the five big application stores: Apple App Store, BlackBerry App World, Google Android Market, Nokia Ovi Store and Windows Marketplace for Mobile. This month’s report is based on December 2009 data, and has some interesting findings including:
- In Google Android Market, 65% of the publishers are located in the United States, 12% in the United Kingdom, 20% in Europe and 3% in Japan.
- Publishers located in Europe price their applications highest with an average of $4.42, which is 49% higher than publishers located in the United States.
- Applications in Apple App Store, Google Android Market and Nokia Ovi Store are priced at around $3.50. Windows Marketplace for Mobile and BlackBerry App World are more expensive, averaging $6.99 and $8.26 respectively.
- Because of Microsoft’s market validation guidelines and additional fees for distributing applications in more than one country, the number of applications available in some countries is only a small percentage (<5%) of applications available worldwide.
GigaOM and Mobclix have put together a nice chart showing the average cost of a paid application on each smartphone app store. We have talked a few times about how App World has the highest priced apps relative to the other smartphones, and to date, it still leads by over a $1 compared to the next highest Windows Mobile. RIM should be much more active in helping developers drive these prices down. At the very least, App World needs a better promotional system similar to the BlackBerry Cool Store, so they can offer a Deal of the Day, BOGO campaigns and MobileHeist sales.
Gartner has released a slightly revised version of their outlook for the 2012 mobile operating system. The latest predictions put Symbian as the top OS, followed by Android, with BlackBerry in third and iPhone in fourth.
The interesting part of this research is the positioning of BlackBerry relative to the iPhone. The advantage of BlackBerry is that it will always have enough devices to cover the entire gamut of potential smartphone users. While you may not love every device that RIM ships, there will always be a device for you.
While Gartner believes that Open Source OS markets are the future, we aren’t seeing much proof of this. Developers aren’t making enough money on either platform for the devices to be of much of use. We have said this countless times on BlackBerry Cool, it’s the software that determines the winner and hardware is fast becoming secondary with regards to the competitiveness of a device.
Gartner has placed a large degree in confidence in Nokia after their partnership with Microsoft. The thought is that the partnership will allow Nokia to deliver Office Mobile, as well as full SharePoint integration, allowing Nokia to steal some of RIM’s enterprise market share. Perhaps this may look good to an analyst at Gartner, but it simply won’t happen. Unless Nokia comes out with a product that rivals BES, hosts an equally robust developer community as well as provides the security of a BlackBerry, the partnership is just talk. If SharePoint is the only advantage, you will have to prove that it is significantly better than what Wicksoft can offer.
Overall, the predictions are as follows:
1. Symbian
2. Android
3. BlackBerry
4. iPhone
5. Windows Mobile
While we may not know the final outcome until 2012, rest assured it’s the developers who will decide the final victor. So if you’re a developer looking to make that killer app, don’t let Gartner become a self-fulfilling prophecy. Go to the brand you trust and ultimately, go to the brand that’s making you money. I guarantee you it’s not Symbian, Android or Windows Mobile.
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SMS VCard Add-on is a BlackBerry app that enables your BlackBerry to receive, import and send contacts using the same SMS protocol as Nokia.
If you’re not familiar with the feature, with a Nokia device you can bring up a menu that allows you to send someone else’s contact information to a friend via SMS, MMS, Bluetooth and InfraRed. Note that only the Name, Phone and Email fields are sent due to SMS size restrictions.
On Wednesday, Microsoft and Nokia announced an alliance to bring enterprise software to smartphones. The move is an explicit targeting of RIM’s core business and dominance in the smartphone market.
The alliance looks good on paper with Microsoft Office representing the vast majority of office software, and Nokia representing the majority of global handsets. Nokia’s VP, Robert Andersson, has already started calling out RIM.
“This is giving some of our competitors — let’s spell it out, RIM — a run for their money,” said Nokia executive vice-president Robert Andersson, in a telephone interview. “I don’t think BlackBerry has seen the kind of competition we can provide them now.”
The alliance will make Microsoft Office readily available on Nokia devices and provide greater integration of Microsoft products into Nokia devices.
So what does this mean for BlackBerry? Well it isn’t obvious just yet. Microsoft products are already easily viewed on a BlackBerry, and there are a host of options for users creating, editing and sharing Microsoft products from their BlackBerry device. So far, the alliance is boasting that the Nokia E-Series will now be imbued with the following features:
- The ability to view, edit, create and share Office documents on more devices in more places with mobile-optimized versions of Microsoft Word, Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Excel and Microsoft OneNote
- Enterprise instant messaging and presence, and optimized conferencing and collaboration experience with Microsoft Office Communicator Mobile
- Mobile access to intranet and extranet portals built on Microsoft SharePoint Server
- Enterprise device management with Microsoft System Center
The number of organizations that use the E-Series device is relatively small in North America and the above features are easily implemented in organizations that use BlackBerry. While there may be some cost savings on the software side for organizations, it isn’t enough incentive for an organization to change their entire device structure.
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