This article is from RCRWireless and is written by Bill Stone, CEO and president, Handango.

He talks about three benefits that the iPhone brings to the application marketplace - consumer awareness, competition, and expansion of alternative distribution models for smartphone content. Definitely worth checking out.

I certainly agree with Bill's first point.

Bill Stone:

Today, most consumers define a smartphone by its hardware features or its e-mail capabilities rather than by its ability to add third-party applications, which is the primary benefit of a smartphone over a feature phone.

Knowing that you can add 3rd party products to SmartPhones was a huge shock to me when I first realised.

I'm not too sure about this comment

Bill Stone:

The increased focus will generate more applications, more distribution and more downloads for all devices.

There are already 18,000+ apps for Windows Mobile.

Bill Stone:

The iPhone is a great catalyst to accelerate consumer awareness of the ability to add third-party applications to their devices.

Will it? It would be interesting to see if this is the case, or whether the Average Joe thinks that this is an iPhone only ability.

 

The original iPhone forced all manufacturers and developers to reconsider how important the UI is.

The new 3G iPhone seems to have played catch up with the features already available to the other manufacturers.

 

I think that  iTunes made it so easy and such fun to purchase music and vidoes, and now it has done the same for iPhone applications. And how clever (?) of Apple to not offer free trials !! 

I think most people - whether they have Apple or MAC - have iTunes on their computer. I know that I do if only to listen to podcasts.

There's just no similar program for Windows Mobile devices. There are application stores like Handango and Pocketgear, and places to buy music, but no one-stop store. We need a Windows Mobile supermarket.

Laura Rooke:

There's just no similar program for Windows Mobile devices. There are application stores like Handango and Pocketgear, and places to buy music, but no one-stop store. We need a Windows Mobile supermarket.

That's very true. A one-stop store would make finding the right software a breeze. There is Windows Mobile Total Access, but I find it hard to find my way around it. And it still doesn't have a large collection of applictions, and I found it to be a bit buggy (some links don't work).

Either way, you raise a good point Laura.

What I would also love to see are Windows Mobile shops - where you can get to see most of the devices running Windows Mobile, you can try all different applications on in-store devices. There's a repair shop, a tech support desk.... yes, I know, I'm just dreaming - but one day when I win the Super Lotto - this will happen

 It would be cool if there were stores with enlarged touch screens, maybe 7 inches diagonally, to let you experience Windows Mobile and see how it can be customized. It could run a special 'über resolution' version of WM6.1 and then the new WM7.

That would be great for training new and existing users and the sales staff.

Me and my co-worker had this conversation about a month ago. If Microsoft could incorporate XBOX Live Market Place for its mobile devices as well as its video game division, that would be the ideal place to gain access to OTA downloads to mobile devices just like Apple did with iTunes.

Hey, all -

I just posted about the new mobile-optimized version of Total Access! It does a lot of the things we've been discussing here.

 

Mayhem12:

Me and my co-worker had this conversation about a month ago. If Microsoft could incorporate XBOX Live Market Place for its mobile devices as well as its video game division, that would be the ideal place to gain access to OTA downloads to mobile devices just like Apple did with iTunes.

 A couple of us guys at work were talking about this the other day. Imagine being able to download over Xbox live, AND then being able to use the WiFi (or USB) capability of the Xbox to install it on your WM device. Imagine that, download music, films, applications etc over the Xbox UI, and then it just installs to your device while it's sat in your pocket. That would be utterly awesome.

I'm really surprised Microsoft hasn't done anything with WM and the 360, or even WM and MCE . It's just screaming out for it IMHO. The possibilities are limited only by the imagination. Live Arcade titles you can play on both your console and your WM device (lets face it, WM is screaming out for new games).  Plan your next gaming sessions with your Xbox friendlist over Live messenger on WM. Play Xbox live over HSDPA, or use your Xbox as a WAP to sync your WM device or browse the web on it. 

The Iphone has iTunes. Imagine what this could do for WM? It would be an awesome way for MS to lever WM into the lives of the general public and be a great conduit for supplying media to the masses.

 

 

 

 With J Allard behind both, maybe this is something we will see soon.

Woudln't it be awesome?

I would be speechless to say the least....that would push me over the edge and make me go buy an XBOX just for that purpose. Also then I could unwrap my copy of Halo 3 I got from the Windows Mobile Training site! 

 I'm on the front lines, and every day I get at least 5-10 people that go, "I didn't know that phones had applications.  Just like computers?". Most normobs (normal mobile users) think of a phone as a texting/calling device, or a Blackberry for e-mail.  It takes everyone to show what devices can do now to get public opinion changed over to a "mobile device" rather than a "phone".

 People get a really dumb look on their face when I tell them that I use my Blackjack for everything except editing video and playing World of Warcraft.

Well I have an Xbox 360, and a WM device.... ready and waiting!!!

Biomehanika:

The original iPhone forced all manufacturers and developers to reconsider how important the UI is.

... exactly what i've been saying!!!.... personally, i feel that past devices have been much more worried about productivity, productivity, productivity (how much can you do with your mobile device as opposed to the overall experience)... and the introduction of the iphone has changed that... i've always loved Windows Mobile (have owned: Samsung i607, Samsung i617, currently own: HTC 8925 TILT) but have felt that the UI could have been a bit more refined... and we can see those changes already coming with the HTC TouchFlo 3D and the Samsung TouchWiz UI... (dying to get my hands on the Samsung Omnia)

 

Biomehanika:

The new 3G iPhone seems to have played catch up with the features already available to the other manufacturers.

 

another great point..... i'm constantly hearing iPhone users go on about 3G data communication, GPS navigation, and push E-Mail,... yet these are all features that i have been using for a couple of years now on my Windows Mobile devices...