There has been a lot of noise in the news this past few days about the release of Apple’s new 3G iPhone (unfortunately still not available here in Dubai).  While the second generation iPhone improves nicely on the previous version with its cheaper price and 3G capability, from a computing point of view I find the launch of Apple’s new App Store is a lot more interesting.

App Store

Why? Well I believe that the iPhone and the iPod Touch provide a newer, more advanced mobile computing platform than anything that had been available previously. But perhaps more importantly,  what is it that gives any computing platform its power? The applications!  By providing the software development kit (SDK) to attract developers and leveraging the App Store and iTunes to distribute the applications means that there will be many more applications available than Apple could ever manage alone, which is only going to strengthen the platform further. Some of the presently available applications may seem a waste of time,  but others will definitely enhance an already impressive platform. The iPhone is more than a phone and iPod Touch is now way beyond just being a MP3 player with a bit of a nifty interface.

iPod Touch

Now if you still think that iPhone is too expensive , it is not available where you live, or you are happy with your existing phone then my recommended way to move to this platform is with an iPod Touch. All the benefits and hey you where going to upgrade that iPod anyway!

Rivals

Now of course Apple isn’t the only game  in town and Nokia for instance has provided a mobile applications store for its Symbian platform for a while already, but I think that Apple have taken everything to a new level.  The good thing for all of us consumers is that Microsoft, Nokia, Google and the like are not going to just take all this lying down. So expect some great things in mobile computing in the near future.

Have you tried the Apps Store?

The big news from yesterday of course is the release by Apple of the next generation of the groundbreaking iPhone. So why should we be interested in the iPhone on a computing blog like Blogbytes? Well it is because of the growing importance of mobile computing and the convergence between the “normal” computing world and that of the mobile phone. The iPhone is a innovative computing platform that is leading this convergence and pulling all the established players with it. My feeling is that Apple do appear to have got it right this time around, answering the majority of criticisms of the initial version.

What’s new? 

So what is new? Well first off it is a 3G device which means that data download on mobile networks speeds will be significantly improved. The lack of 3G was probably the major criticism of the original model, after all how could you truly make use of all the innovative features of the platform if everything just crawled? Secondly there is built in GPS which will tie into the growing area of location services - providing information and services based on your actual location. Thirdly Apple is beginning to add features that will appeal to corporate users providing features that will provide syncing with Microsoft Exchange,  allowing it compete with the Blackberry.

The other major aspect which is new is the price. Apple announced that the new device will only cost $199 in the US and a similar price in all other countries. (UK prices are expected to be released tomorrow). This is a huge price drop compared to the original price and may leave early adopters feeling a little deflated. The new price appears to be a recognition by Apple that the price was the big blocker to a significant uptake by people who were interested in the device but didn’t actually go ahead and get one. There is likely also a recognition that the competition is only going to grow. All in all at this price the iPhone does seem to be a much more complete package with a price that is more sensible, moving it away from just being an expensive toy and broadening its appeal.

Now even with the new prices you still might find it a little out of reach. If you want access to the majority of the capabilities of the platform, but are perfectly happy with your six year old Nokia mobile phone then the iPod Touch is the way to go.

Do you think Apple have got things right this time?

Probably like a lot of people I would quite like the opportunity to own one of Apple’s iconic iPhones. One reason why I don’t is that they are not available in Dubai, at least not unless you have bought one in the US and have managed to unlock it. The main reason though, both for myself and I guess a lot of people in the UK for not getting one is the cost, not only for the handset itself but also the required 18 month contract.

Price cut on 8Gb iPhone

The big news in the mobile computing world today is the surprise announcement by O2 that they are cutting the price of the 8Gb model iPhone by a huge £100. The 16Gb model will remain at the same price. A lot of people have been speculating that this is price cutting on the cheaper model to shift existing stock prior to the imminent release of a 3G iPhone. This actually sounds plausible although of course no one from Apple has ever mentioned 3G officially.

iPod Touch

As I have said before the best way and most cost effective to access the iPhone platform is to go for the iPod Touch, which provides all the features except the phone capability.

I have been on a visit to the UK from Dubai for the past week. One thing that I have done while in the UK is to get back into the swing of using Skype again. Skype is officially not available in the U.A.E although it will work occasionally it is not reliable and as such I avoid using it. So being back in the UK and with access to decent broadband I was once again amazed by both the quality of the sound and the game changing usefulness of the Voice over IP (VOIP) technology.

For a lot of people I know, Skype or similar VOIP technologies have become the way they communicate and do business. The way that most people actually do this is by using their computer and a good set of headphones combined with a microphone. But sometimes when sitting at home, the office or the local cafe, it would nice to be able to use Skype on a standard handset, rather than having to wip out the laptop.

So I have had a quick look at WiFi phones and was quite interested by the Belkin Wi-Fi Phone for Skype which does not need a PC and can log on to any WiFi signal that doesn’t require a web based logon. The phone includes the Skype software allowing you to just call up anyone on your contact list.

Do you use Skype? How do you access the service?

Dell is to remain focused on the computer business, so said Michael Dell yesterday. Dell has been touted as a potential buyer for the struggling Motorola group, and they really don’t want to talk about phones. Which of course means that Dell probably do have a phone in the works, or perhaps are looking at Motorola. If Dell really are looking at bringing out a phone, or buying an existing manufacturer, I am not sure that would be a good move for the company. It would show that Dell have moved from being a leader in logistics and efficient manufacturing to a follower of trends. Whenever they have tried that sort of thing in the past it has not really been too successful. What do you think? Should Dell stay focused on computers?

Motorola have also been in the news for having been passed by Apple in Q4 for numbers of “smart” phones shipped. That is pretty good going from a standing start at the beginning of 2007.

Apple does not look to be slowing down either, with the release today (in the US) of a new 16GB iPhone model in the States. So no 3G yet! In fact nothing else has changed on the new model except for the boost in capacity. The iPod Touch also gets the same treatment with a new 32 GB model being released, also just in the States at present.

There is no news yet when these models will be available in the UK, but I doubt that there will be too much of a delay.

Update: Good news! Both the models are available in the UK. The UK apple site must have been updated only hours after I wrote the above!