| Once upon a time our mobile phones were only for | | | | the market, its success has clearly opened the eyes |
| making telephone calls. Today, more of us want our | | | | of other mobile manufacturers about the needs and |
| mobile phones to be fully loaded with every imaginable | | | | wants of consumers. While smartphones, like those |
| feature: Internet accessibility, MP3 capabilities, GPS | | | | created by Blackberry, were once considered only |
| navigation, email devices. As these so-called | | | | desirable by on-the-go business professionals, |
| smartphones become increasingly popular, some are | | | | consumers today seem to love the idea of being |
| predicting 2008 will be the year they go mainstream. | | | | constantly connected to the world around them. They |
| Apple's iPhone: Starting it All | | | | want news, entertainment, communication, music, and |
| The rage over smartphones didn't start in 2008. It | | | | navigation all wrapped up in a single, sleek package. |
| actually began last year when Apple released the | | | | And the best news for phone makers is that |
| iPhone to an eager audience of buyers. Within its first | | | | consumers clearly don't mind paying extra for these |
| year, the original iPhone sold 5 million units despite being | | | | added features. Remember the iPhone originally |
| available only in the United States and select parts of | | | | launched at an astronomical US $499 for the 4 GB |
| Europe. Was it any wonder that the 3G iPhone would | | | | model and that was including a discount for signing a 2 |
| shake the industry up in a much bigger way? | | | | year contract with a service provider. |
| Industry Statistics: Telling the Story | | | | New Smartphones on the Horizon |
| Just as the 3G iPhone was preparing to make a highly | | | | With the popularity of the iPhone, it's no surprise that |
| anticipated launch around the world this July, the mobile | | | | other mobile phone companies are going to be hitting |
| phone industry released its latest statistics on the | | | | the market soon with their own smartphones. |
| smartphones and their impact on the market. | | | | Samsung, for example, is releasing the Tocco which is |
| According to Gartner, Inc, smartphone sales have | | | | smaller and thinner than Apple's model. It has a |
| increased worldwide by nearly 30% just since 2007. | | | | touchscreen and allows for the dropping and dragging |
| In the first three months of 2008, many parts of the | | | | of widgets for the user's convenience. |
| market saw enormous leaps in sales for these | | | | Still at the forefront of mobile phone sales, Nokia isn't |
| devices. More than 11.7 million smartphones were sold | | | | going to be left out of the smartphone race. They are |
| from January through March in Europe, Africa, and the | | | | currently working on a touchscreen model prototype |
| Middle East, for example. That was up almost 40% | | | | currently referred to as Tube. With built-in GPS and a |
| over the previous year's first quarter results. | | | | nice widescreen display, the phone will fit in nicely with |
| In North America, however, the rise is even more | | | | the competition. It's also believed to support handwriting |
| prominent. During the same period, sales for | | | | recognition. |
| smartphones increased by 106%. That means their | | | | Blackberry is also releasing its own 3G model known |
| sales more than doubled in comparison to the first | | | | as the BlackBerry Thunder which should launch in Q3 |
| quarter sales of 2007. | | | | of 2008. |
| Apple's Impact on the Mobile Market | | | | Clearly, Apple is leading the way for a great year in |
| Even though the iPhone isn't the only smartphone on | | | | smartphones both for consumers and for the industry. |