Feature Articles

A Call from the Past - 10 Years of Mobile Phone Development

By Seow Tein Hee - 11 May 2009

Timeline: 2008 and Beyond

2008 and Beyond


  • The road has been a long, yet fruitful one for us at www.hardwarezone.com and our fellow readers who have been following our adventures in the tech world for just as long. The technological standards are now in place, and the plethora of devices that come with GPS, Wi-Fi, integrated cameras of at least 3.2 megapixels in resolution, and many others have become a common sight. In a short span of seven months, consumers have gone through a rollercoaster ride with the introduction of newer and more powerful devices. With 5-megapixel cameras on track, devices are now closing the gap between dedicated digital cameras and camera phones, and moving one up, there are the 8-megapixel cameraphones coming right up, notably the Sony Ericsson Cyber-shot C905 as reported in our CommnuicAsia 2008 coverage , and the Samsung INNOV8 8-megapixel camera.

The Samsung INNOV8, powered by the Symbian S60 platform, will be one of the first few devices with an integrated 8-megapixel camera that eliminated the distinction between camera phones and dedicated compact digital cameras.

  • On the Windows Mobile front, just one year after the launch of the Windows Mobile 6 platform, Microsoft pushed for an intermittent update with the introduction of the Windows Mobile 6.1 platform in the earlier half of 2008. Notably, the 6.1 version adopts a makeover for the smartphone category, making it even more intuitive to use. As with last year, the Windows Mobile 6.1 platform is introduced in tandem with product launches, and HTC brings in a new wave of innovation with the HTC Touch Diamond and the all improved TouchFlo interface now dubbed as the TouchFlo 3D .

Windows Mobile 6.1, TouchFlo 3D and a VGA screen on the Touch Diamond. In a year's time, HTC's presence in the Asia Pacific market has grown tremendously and brought smiles to the consumers.

  • Focus on storage capacity came back into the limelight with appropriate offerings from major manufacturers. With the HTC Touch Diamond, it had 4GB of internal storage - been there, done that. But, with Samsung and Nokia, the story is so much different with the Samsung Omnia and Nokia N96, both equipped with 16GB worth of internal storage and comes with external memory expandability. The real reason for huge storage capacities? To enjoy your music and movies on-the-go. DivX support on the Omnia, WMV playback capabilities on the N96 and DVB-H too when the standard comes to fruition in the region, these are only the precursor of things to come beyond the next few months.

The Omnia's generous screen real estate will definitely enhance the video experience during your daily commute. And in close contention by the end of August...

 ...there's the iPhone 3G that has been the talk of the town since the beginning of 2008. And yes, this time, it officially came to Singapore for our grubby little hands to lay on. Judging from the sales figures it made just in the short months leading to the end of 2008, the iPhone 3G was a hit here.

Devices such as the HTC Touch HD and the Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 (above) are perfect examples of how the mobile devices have slowly encroached onto the multimedia scene with its larger than 3.0-inch displays with VGA resolutions.

  • As we reach the closing of a decade of mobile phones in review, the expectations are high for the future development of the mobile phone market. While hardware developments are just as exciting, the real center of attention in 2009 is the rise of mobile internet services. Various examples are abound, such as the Nokia Music Store that promises millions of music tracks for download, and Nokia's Comes with Music, the unlimited music download service.

Apple's iTunes App Store is the herald of what's to come for mobile devices and its integration with the web. Taking a two-pronged approach, we will be seeing manufacturers focus on not only the hardware development, but also the software front.

  • Apple has also made great strides in creating a strong presence for application purchase on the iPhone 3G, and by now, the iPhone App Store has broken the one billion download mark. This will be followed closely by Google and Microsoft's same move into the market with both the Android Market and Windows Marketplace. On the OS front, Windows Mobile 7, Google Android and the S60 V5.0 OS are on the horizon. Add to that are the rise of the 8-megapixel cameraphones and the anticipation level is at an all-time high for both ourselves at www.hardwarezone.com and consumers alike. Exciting times to come? We think so too. In ten years down the road, we may just reminiscence once more of the good old times.

    Meanwhile, stay tuned to www.hardwarezone.com as we continue to bring you the best of consumer technology.

 

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