High Speed Internet Access (HSIA): Mobile Internet

A new crop of netbooks is on the horizon with the first models due to be shown at Computex in Taipei this week.

Except that they may not be called netbooks. A group of manufacturers are working to replace the netbook terminology with the new description “smartbooks”. The reason for this is that netbooks so far have been built using Intel’s Atom chip. This new breed of small computers is built around the ARM chip which the manufacturers say will distinguish them from netbooks in the following ways.

• Battery times will be longer
• The devices will be lighter and slimmer
• The pricing will be cheaper than netbooks possibly around a third of the cheaper priced netbooks
• The smartbooks will have less computing power
• Windows will not be available as an operating system so the smartbooks will be Android or Linux based.
• The smartbooks will have much better connectivity in that 3G mobile broadband will be standard and will be “always on”.

The whole experience will be more like a smartphone than a netbook hence the push towards the new name smartbook. They have been described as a smartphone with a larger form.

So, although the “netbook” name has become the most used after competing with mini notebook, tiny laptop, ultra-portable laptop etc, it now seems likely that another breed of portable devices will necessitate clarification on just how it differs from the existing forms.

3 Mobile Broadband have released the pricing for the much awaited HTC Magic plans which will be available the middle of June.

The pricing has three components:

• A data charge. You can opt for 1GB, 2GB or 3GB of data. This is a 50% saving off the existing X-Series Ultimate Pack data bundles.
• A Voice plan cap charge. There are 8 choices ranging from the $29 cap plan through to a $199 cap.
• A monthly charge for the HTC Magic handset. The handset is free on the higher cap plans and there is a monthly charge on the lower cap plans.

The following table shows all the prices.

The response to requests for pre-registration has been huge according to Three Mobile.

The HTC Magic features:

• Google Android 1.5 Operating System
• Fantastic, bright, sharp screen
• Lightweight, slim design
• Elegant curved design
• On-screen keyboard (but no physical keyboard)
• Easy to use trackball

Apple is conspicuously missing from the netbook market. Steve Jobs dismissed netbooks as a piece of junk a few months ago. He said “We don’t know how to make a $500 computer that’s not a piece of junk”.

Apple CEO Tim Cook more recently repeated the sentiment as reported by CNN. “Netbooks, he said, are “principally based on hardware that’s much less powerful than we think customers want, software technology that is not good, cramped keyboards, small displays.”
“We don’t think people will be pleased with those products,” Cook added. “It’s a category we watch, we’ve got some ideas here, but right now we think the products are inferior and will not provide an experience to customers they’re happy with.”

In spite of the derogatory comments about netbooks, Apple are avoiding dismissing the possibility out of hand. They do concede that consumers want portable, low priced devices to do things like email and web browsing while on the go. Apple’s answer at the moment is that the iPod or iTouch fills this need. In addition, Apple offer an ultra-thin notebook for portability in the form of the MacBook Air.

As far as future product offerings go Apple say that they are working on ideas for a netbook type product. Speculation, based on a patent, is that this could be a touchscreen netbook.

Apple have just posted a 15 per cent increase in quarterly profit. This was primarily driven by iPhone sales that were up 123%. In contrast, Apple Mac sales fell however and this was put down to the poor economy.

Netbooks have made an impact on computer profits industry wide. The profit margins on netbooks are smaller. The success of netbooks has seen a reduction of laptop sales. It has also caused an expectation in the minds of consumers in terms of lower prices.

If it’s true that a good number of people would prefer a product that was bigger than a netbook but in the same price range then the reports that Apple may slash the price of the entry level Mac might provide the answer. There are also bigger netbooks about to come on the market like the Acer Aspire One 751 with a. 11.6″ screen.

However, the small size and weight of netbooks will always be the key selling point for some consumers who want a computer with a bigger keyboard and screen than a smartphone but don’t want to carry around anything bigger than the current crop of netbooks.

One thing’s for sure, the netbook market is gearing up to evolve even more in the coming months and it will be interesting to see how Apple respond.

The popularity of 3 Mobile’s offering of the Biggest Loser has caused some discussion about the commonly held viewpoints about the way mobile content is consumed.

Downloads of The Biggest Loser by 3 Mobile customers to watch on their mobile phone has set new records for 3. Perhaps more surprising has been two other stats:

• The average time spent watching The Biggest Loser on the mobile was 11.4 minutes
• The peak time for watching was between 10pm and 2am

The reason these figures were surprising is that it’s generally accepted that mobile entertainment is part of what’s been dubbed “snack culture” where people want bite sized entertainment and have a miniscule attention span. Content made specifically for mobile averages 3 minutes so an 11 minute engagement time is surprisingly long. The viewing time is surprising because we have an image of people consuming mobile entertainment whilst on the go. Typical scenarios usually cited are waiting for a bus or on a coffee break. The night viewing time observed by 3 mobile seems to suggest that people are watching when they don’t have anything particularly pressing to do. They’re not snatching a few moments out of a busy schedule and they’re probably not on the go either. They’re quite likely to be in bed.

Explanations that have been put forward are plausible. TV episodes are time sensitive in that people generally want to be up to date with free to air viewing so they can discuss with friends the next day. Entertainment creating specifically for mobile consumption tends not to be time sensitive in this way. The other point made was that people in Australia are generally worried about large excess data bills. The Biggest Loser content from 3 Mobile is unmetered but most tailor made content for mobile contributes to data downloads and therefore people are unlikely to sit and watch for long periods of time.

All this just shows that it’s early days for mobile content. Content providers and creators are still learning about the viewing habits of mobile users and these habits are likely to evolve as the distinction between mobile and fixed content blurs.

The Google Android platform is hitting the news again today. A few days ago there was some excitement surrounding the first android netbook. Now some more details have emerged on this venture. Computerworld spoke with the China based company, Skytone, who confirmed that they will have prototypes of the Alpha 680 ready by June and products on the market a couple of months after that. The company is aiming at making a $100 device so the netbook market is set to be revolutionised both in terms of price and capabilities.

In other Android news today, Samsung have announced the release of an Android smartphone, the touchscreen i7500.

It’s due for global rollout around June and features touchsceen only (no keyboard or alphanumeric keypad), camera, 3GHSDPA, 802.11g wireless and GPS.

Anssi Vanjoki, the Executive Vice President of Nokia’s New Market’s Unit has some thoughts on the trends  in mobile technology in a recent interview with Venture Beat.

On asked about the focus on Apple and the iPhone he says that while the iPhone is a fantastic product, its downfall will be the closed platform. He sees the future being in open systems such as the Nokia platform, Symbian.

He goes on to say that the most successful companies will be those who focus on applications rather than hardware and make the devices compelling for people to use: “we have converted ourselves over the last three years from being a hardware company to a software company. Today we are a software company that monetizes through hardware sales. We have to make great devices in the future. But we have to make services and solutions that use devices.”

A point of difference for Nokia will be the applications store which has a relevance engine. The technology behind the store learns from the usage history of the user, the user’s location and the user’s interaction with friends. This means that the content of the store will, in theory, be much more useful on a personal level rather than containing thousands of irrelevant applications never likely to appeal to that person.

He has some interesting thoughts on the way a phone interacts with the desktop. The iPhone is tied to the desktop creating the idea that the PC is the master and the phone is the slave. Anssi Vanjoki sees the relationship between phone and desktop differently in that the master should be the device that is the closest to the person which is usually the phone. The PC is important but only in the role of managing the whole environment.

3 Mobile have announced their Blackberry Bold mobile plans. This is good news for Blackberry fans who have been waiting for 3 Mobile’s offerings. All four Australian networks are now offering the Blackberry Bold and 3 Mobile’s plans are good value, particularly the mid level $99 plan.

There is a choice of 3 plans, an entry level $89 per month, a mid priced $99 per month and a high end $129 per month.

Each plan is on  a 24 month contract basis with the Blackberry Bold smartphone included with no additional monthly fee. The plans all include unlimited email, web access to 3 sites and 3GB of data within the 3 Mobile zone.

I’ve been using skype a couple of times a day in recent weeks speaking to family members in the UK who are shortly arriving for a visit to Australia. I make the calls on the PC using a headset and microphone but I’ve been reading with interest about the Skypephone from 3 Mobile.

It integrates standard mobile phone calls with skype calls or chat to other skype users. There is a  monthly allocation of 4000 skype-to-skype minutes plus 10,000 chat messages. That’s pretty good, it’s over 2 hours a day of free calls. The skypephone is free on the $29 Cap plan with a $29 minimum monthly spend over 12 months. More details are available on the 3 mobile website.

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The launch of the Google Phone, Android Phone or G1, whatever you prefer to call it, was the biggest mobile broadband news over the last couple of days.

However it doesn’t like we’ll see the latest smartphone any time soon in Australia. It’s doubtful whether any of the carriers will carry the Android phone this year. It’s looking more like first quarter next year. ZDNet called Telstra, Optus, Vodafone and 3 Mobile as well as the top handset makers and received no news of any impending arrival in Australia.

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The HTC Touch Pro smartphone will be available in Australia at the end of September. 3 Mobile are the sole carriers until mid October and the phone can be purchased with their $69 plan on a two year contract. Outright the phone will cost $1,099.

The pre-cursor to the Touch Pro, the Touch Diamond, has been hugely popular. The Touch Pro looks almost identical but is slightly thicker.  The reason for the extra thickness is that the smartphone incorporates a slide out qwerty keyboard. One of the drawbacks with the Touch Diamond is the lack of keyboard functionality especially for business users. The Touch Pro also has an increase in memory compared with the Touch Diamond and better battery life. Business users will be pleased with the TV-OUT functionality enabling data projection and presentation.