Will the iPhone Become the First True Mobile Internet Device?

Sun Microsystems' (JAVA) plans to tune the micro Java Virtual Machine to the iPhone -- leveraging the new SDK to characterize the JVM as an "application" -- could quickly turn the iPhone into a powerful business tool that IT executives can love too.

The iPhone may have hit the trifecta with Microsoft (MSFT) Exchange support (take that RIM (RIMM)!), the new SDK, and now the probable June arrival of a native JVM. These add up to an enterprise-ready mobile endpoint that ushers the iPhone from a smart phone/PDA/browser into the first (but not last) true mobile Internet device [MID] for fun and work.

Apple's (AAPL) SDK and targeted VC funding to spur on native iTunes apps will pay huge dividends eventually for consumers and the media hungry power users. But businesses looking for better mobile endpoints won't rush to another client platform.

The enterprise trend is away from supporting client-installed applications to embracing RIAs, web services, SOA-supported SaaS, and such client frameworks as Flex/Flash/AIR and Silverlight. The browser is king, more than ever, forever. Java can still play in this game quite well, however, and (performance willing) extend enterprise investments in Java to the edge.

Sun will need to make the JVM on iPhone scream. The iPhone and its MID ilk could be what client side Java has needed all along. There will need to be some compelling apps right away for this Java-iPhone mashup to gain traction. That is certainly doable, give the global stable of Java developers.

iPhone won't have the MID field to itself for long, so time is of the essence. There will be JVMs elsewhere, and Android and the OHA could quickly bear fruit. This is a huge potential market. Apple needs to seduce developers and IT architects and executives now. The Safari browser and "pinch" UI are Apple's competitive edge on the edge.

So what will immediately intrigue enterprise IT departments? Secure connections to mainstay enterprise browsers, along with email and groupware. The Microsoft Exchange announcement last week takes care of that. And the OSGi-based Lotus Notes et al from IBM (IBM) should follow suit.

Incidentally, look for some compelling OSGi runtime announcements at this month's EclipseCon. OSGI, having come from the embedded world, makes total sense for iPhone.

And there is more than one way to skin the enterprise iPhone cat. You may also recall that Sybase highlighted a way to bring enterprise email and PIM, as well as some apps, to the iPhone several months ago at some additional expense to use their servers. For shops already using the iAnywhere approach, this may be the way to go.

But secure web browser connections to existing enterprise web applications is the real treat the iPhone can deliver to enterprises that would encourage them to actually buy iPhones en masse for their workers. It may be an offer they can't refuse.

I hope that the Mozilla Foundation takes the iPhone SDK and develops a lightweight Firefox browser for the iPhone ASAP. Combine the web apps that the iPhone Firefox and Safari together support, toss in SSL via Java, and create the means to easily set up VPNs -- and that's when iPhone becomes the darling of the mobile enterprise.

Of course the critical mass of such adoption pushes iPhone beyond the role of MID and begins to eat away at the definition of a personal computer. Use bluetooth or USB to hook up the enterprise iPhone to a keyboard and mouse and maybe monitor and get rid of those PCs altogether. All mobile, all the time. The iPhone becomes the ubiquitous enterprise thin client, at less than $500, and it's a phone too. And you can take it anywhere and work. One device. Nice.

But for now, I don't see the cost-benefits in writing native iPhone apps or porting existing enterprise apps to iPhone. Maybe never. You don't need native computing and local data storage to make great use of iPhone for businesses purposes. As the PC goes to mostly browser use, the MID takes over.

Yes, there will be oodles of interesting innovation, native iPhone apps that can aid user productivity and make them better connected wherever they go.

The iPhone can become the MID for business, and start to replace the PC outright for a significant portion of workers. The only question is whether the users will buy the iPhone and have their IT departments set it up for enterprise use, or whether the IT departments will buy it for the workers first.

Comments

[Seriously ?]

So I am confused as to what your point is:
"but for now, I don't see the cost-benefits in writing native iPhone apps or porting existing enterprise apps to iPhone. Maybe never."

&

"The iPhone can become the MID for business, and start to replace the PC outright for a significant portion of workers. "

I thiiinnnkkk I agree with your general point...

and in answer to your headline question:
"Will the iPhone Become the First True Mobile Internet Device?"

I say, 99% sure... YES.

and it's not really that I know what a "true mobile internet device" is really, but I know that the iPhone is already much more capable than any other smartphone and will only continue to accelerate it's lead with the SDK/iFund etc.
My point is: I simply expect the tech on this thing to grow so fast we shouldn't expect to be able to imagine what we will see even 0.5 -1 year out.

IMHO Jobs is doing just about everything right with the iPhone, the only major whole I can find is lack of Flash...

( I vaguely understand it's a processor/power issue at heart, but jesus...Steve.... no Flash!?!?... ).
OF course this can worked around in most cases...( see: google and youtube ) but why give the developers this headache when so many internet ( ergo mobile ) apps/games/etc have already been built with flash... ( check out finance.google.com and play with their charts w/ news flags for an example of a how mindboggling fast a flash app can be whilst delivering a nearly inconcievable amount of information... think about it... you can freely pinch and squeeze the time scale of these charts...and hey free google NEWS integration ( information overload...just think about all the info you are gettting and how fast it is... ) ) ....

Ok... I am nesting parenthesis...time to lay off the ritalin / venti macchiatos...

sorry for the blabbering... but this is a blag-o-bloob on the intertubes afterall...

o and besides the flash the only thing I "worry" about with the iPhone... how will Android compete with this ? I mean we know schmidt is on both boards ( obviously more vested interest in AAPL > GOOG ) but, have they agreed to "stay of each other's lawns ? " I cannot completely imagine how this deal might work, GOOG has the servers and software... and AAPL has the hardware/software ...

I can't help but think that ANDROID could easily begin eating into the iphone market share ( im thinking 2 years outish.. in an iphone dominated world ) with very cheap and rich hardware. I don't doubt that the iPhone will be able to continue to lead in "richness/feature... , but I simply can't imagine a very cheap open-source "android" based phone that woulnd't seem more attractive to someone who can shell out $500/$400 for a phone.

.... now I am thinking that they are both ultimately UNIX devices so it may not really matter in the end...idk... unfortunately for all but the VERY MOST savvy of us; GOOG & AAPL know ALOT more than we do..

disclosure...I am long a bum's amount of AAPL and GOOG and in general more biased from being a "fan" in both of their favors than a being a "shareholder"... ( though... I need to use all this dopamine to geek out on currencies because I'm sure 1 share of GOOG = .75 euros by now and I recently sold off alot of $$$ to travel... time to buy the EURO ? .... or is at a topish ...idk ....idk..... )

[User 162347]

Dana, no amount of unsupported wishful thinking will make the iPhone the device you play it up to be. Apple is slow enough with its release of a 3G version of the iPhone, I can't help but doubt the other improvements it would need to be such an ultimate "mobile Internet device".

The SDK apple released should make things interesting, time will tell, although I think it will follow suit with the mobile JVM's use: running sudoku puzzles and silly games rather than enterprise applications.

Are you really going to do most of your work, even when on the go, on an iPhone? Is that something you look forward to doing? Unless you've invested heavily in AAPL, I doubt it.

[Davewrite]

The iPhone's interface allows the device to change to whatever the user requires, e.g. a college student's iPhone interface will be different from say a doctors (who will be using his as a diagnostic aid) -- this a paradigm shift for mobile devices. IPhones and future iDevices are more mini-computers running a very advanced OS a modified OsX, Rim and the others are years behind and don't have the resources to catch up (it's taken 20 years for Apple to get OsX to this stage). Also for future iDevices usability is important and in this respect nobody comes close to Apple. After 8 months iPhones already have bigger market share in the U.S than all the other mobile devices like Palm, Windows Mobile, second only to Rim. Google says 50 times more searches come from iPhones than any other cell phone.

The future is Apple's, that's why John Doerr (the guy who financed Google and Amazon) is setting aside 100 million to finance iPhone app. development.

Take a real estate company, if your competitor is using the iPhone to keep up with contacts, locate properties with Google Maps, seamlessly integrate information like listings and leads generated with headquarters computers, do banking, calculate mortgages etc. plus have access to every tool on the net, and you are not using the iPhone you're going to feel very outgunned. The iPhone is many situations will seem like a portable powerful 'bionic' enhancer. Watch the Apple SDK presentation, the iPhone is a game changer.

[User 162347]

Davewrite: No. Your paradigm shifts are nothing more than poor made-up examples of your own imagination.

Apple will be successful, but not in the made up examples that you gave. Why aren't their computers the de facto standard in medicine or real estate, or whatever other industry your fanboyism is imagining?

The iPhone is a bionic enhancer? Maybe you should submit a patent application for the new iBionic, I'm sure it's going to make you rich....

Apples phone plays music well, can browse the web, looks good, and can make calls. It's going to get smaller, look better, and be faster...but your doctor isn't going to cure you with it.

Come back to planet Earth, will you?

[User 162347]

P.S. Here's an insightful article of where the iPhone is actually headed: www.engadget.com/2008/.../

Hint: it's not the doctor's office...and chances are it won't replace your laptop either.

[Davewrite]

User 162347, you my comments "Your paradigm shifts are nothing more than poor made-up examples of your own imagination", yet did you ACTUALLY watch the SDK where the company demoed the doctor's Epocrates program? (boggles my mind that people keep opening their mouths without watching or understanding the SDK's potential).This is just the start. Already the news is being featured in medical sites like doctorgadgeds.com. No example I have given is beyond the iPhone's capabilities. Look at the other examples done by commercial companies in the SDK presentation, and this is just the tip of the iceberg. Arguing with PC lovers is pointless, they think the Zune is advanced, put that against the iPod touch (soon after the software 2 release in June there will be thousands of programs for the Touch).

[Davewrite]

Hey user User 162347, this is what Information Week says:" E-Health Provider Epocrates Hails 'Business Friendly' iPhone. CEO Kirk Loevner says more than one in four U.S. physicians use his company's services, which could thrive under the smartphone." www.informationweek.co....

User 162347 they ALREADY demoed the program for the iPhone and will release it soon (iPhone software 2 out in June needed for native apps.). This is just a start, no doubt many other specialist firms will be writing apps. like this for the iPhone. You said these were all "poor made-up examples of your own imagination. Come back to planet Earth, will you?" what do you say now -- just shows your profound ignorance. Do some research before you spout off next time, ok.

[User 162347]

Dave, I've watched the SDK demo, I urge you to watch it again and tell me which part of it is revolutionary. The Epocrates application is an interface, with a few more bells, to the data they're already making available via their m.epocrates.com web page.

Why would you even mention the Zune? Lets stay on topic, on the issue of what the iPhone is and what it isn't. It's a PHONE which is well embraced by the the public, but lacks the features that an enterprise phone needs. Apple is now trying to close that gap.

It's not going to make the iPhone into an XRay machine like you envision, neither will it topple a light-weight laptop with a cell card in the real estate business. It's a phone that plays music, lets you browse the web, slowly, and will soon have a bunch of games on it.

The only paradigm shift it will accomplish any time soon is the capability to send MMS and sort missed calls alphabetically.

Tell me, as a developer, what features of the SDK makes you believe that the applications developed for the iPhone will bring about the changes you envision. Or are you just impressed by curvy buttons and touch screen interactions.

[stevenhmiller]

One word...FLASH. lacking that at this point knocks you right out from being a true Internet device.

[User 162347]

In regard to the InformationWeek article, you realize Loevner, the CEO of Epocrates, "led Apple's software division and was an outspoken advocate for the Macintosh". If you base your assumptions without taking that article with a grain of salt, then carry on to the drum beat, all your illusions of what the iPhone will be will soon come true (of course if they don't it's because it was way to ahead of its time).

[blah-blah]

User 162347 - very well thought out arguments

The excessive hype left in AAPL(seems drained from GOOG these days) is so thick you need a knife to cut it. I would love to see a serious contender in Android, if nothing other than to bring the fanboyism back to reality.

[User 162347]

BlahBlah, you mean the iPhone won't do brain scans, even with the new SDK released?

[Davewrite]

User 162347, you said that iPhones won't be used for medicine, I debunked you and showed your ignorance now you're saying:"It's not going to make the iPhone into an XRay machine like you envision, ". And where exactly did I say the iPhone will become an Xray machine? Can you quote me saying that? My single original post on medicine just stated "a college student's iPhone interface will be different from say a doctors (who will be using his as a diagnostic aid)" Which is exactly correct. READ dude, don't just imagine.

The simple fact is now you can EASILY configure and carry all kinds of data with you on an OFF THE SHELF tool (versus expensive specialist device), try taking a laptop as you go from patient bed to patient bed or be carried by paramedics for example. My point is the iPhone and future Apple mobile devices can have their interfaces configured for all kinds of tasks (unlike other 'smart' phones), the tech and os is way ahead of others. Already colleges are configuring them and ipod Touches to be used in a school setting.

I didn't say it'll take over the laptop but it is a paradigm shift in mobile devices.

You say "Tell me, as a developer, what features of the SDK makes you believe that the applications developed for the iPhone will bring about the changes you envision". Look at my post (instead of just imagining what I wrote) and tell me if anything I envision like the real estate stuff with google maps is impossible.

When people like you have NO facts to back you up you go back to old "mac fanboy" stuff. Are you calling a hard nosed investor like John Doerr who is putting up 100m for iPhone developers a fanboy as well? I have no doubt that Doerr (Amazon, google financier) is hell of a lot smarter than you.

[User 162347]

Opps, I didn't mean to hit enter on that last post. Dave, I'm coming off as too cynical, and I apologize.

I believe Android can make a big impact. Google seems to be tediously slow in releasing its products; I'm curious as to what kind of time line they have in mind in regards to its Android's release. The way I see it is the more they wait, the bigger the expectations are.

[User 162347]

Dave, I challenge you to think for yourself and stop trying to follow the obvious bread crumbs no matter what billionaire is funding it ("think differently" ehh).

There are current devices that run on open source software that can arguably do everything the iPhone does cheaper and better. It is not a paradigm shift just because you happen to run into a couple of news stories that excited you as much as a product demo which was meant to sell you on their product.

You are correct in your line of thought that the currently superior user experience will drive up the market share of the iPhone. You are wrong on the real future uses of the iPhone.

[Davewrite]

I like Google, they are run by smart dudes. Interesting to see where Android will go. Google CEO and chairman Schmidt is on Apple's board. Some good technology like the maps on iPhones (using cell tower triangulation to mimic GPS) is Google's (People don't flame me on this, note I did NOT say iPhones are BETTER than true GPS!)

But Google and other mobile devices are going to have a hard slog. The iPhone runs modified OsX which is took something like 20 years to develop (growing out from Next Os) so for them to get an OS working as well as iPhones and future iDevices, it's going to be tough. The Os foundation (like the rendering optimization) is already hard enough to match, Apple's ease of use poses an even a bigger challenge. Already the iPhone's marketshare (smartphones) has overtaken Palm, Windows Mobile and second only to Rim. Google says 50 times more searches come from iPhones than any other hand held mobile device so the iPhone has something there. Will iPhones dominate the cellphone market? probably not anytime soon as simple phones are the vast majority, Apple is only aiming at 10 million in 2008 out of 1 billion market, but the potential is there and Apple's iPhone and future devices will grow market share. It took years for RIM selling in many countries to reach 12 million users, Apple in about half a year in four countries has already 4 million.

Applications on the iPhone (iPod Touch and future iDevices) will be huge, whether corporate, scholastic, scientific or entertainment. When the SDK was released Apple servers couldn't keep up with the traffic. Gameloft (makers of Rainbow Six) for example has announced 15 games coming to the iPhone. Games using the iPhones accelerometer is already creating buzz.

[Tom B]

"But for now, I don't see the cost-benefits in writing native iPhone apps or porting existing enterprise apps to iPhone. Maybe never."

Java=schmava. The benefit-- and this is something the press misses-- is that the SDK is lightyears ahead of anything else in the market. I have buddies who still wax poetic about doing NeXT software development in the 1980's, and the iPhone SDK is a descendant of NeXT's tools. Faster, cleaner code = faster, bigger pots of money for developers. And more developers that "grok" Mac OS X COMPUTER app development. Think "halo" effect directed at developers rather than end users.