Google has decided to name different versions of Android according to sweet pastries. According to a recent interview by Erick Tseng Android’s next big interation will be known as FroYo. Froyo is the Short Term for “frozen yogurt” and another creative name in the Android version history:
Initial Version = Android 1.1 – Release Date: 10.02.2009
So it will not be Flan for the “F” version of Android (alphabetical order), as most of you thought. So we will see when Froyo actually is officially released and what the “G” version of Android might be. Any suggestions for G? I think Android will success its sweet journey in 2010 at least until H. I think we will see a lot of usability improvements for the next versions.
ESRI is well known for providing professional GIS solutions from desktop to server. But they always struggling with mobile GIS. For a long time ArcPad was ESRI’s reference application when it comes to mobile GIS. ArcPAD tries to be the baby ArcGIS for mobile devices, with very limited functionality and cumbersome user interface. Of course mobile devices are very limited in their funktionality few years ago and the Windows Mobile platform is a still a hassle, but ESRI has difficulties finding their strategy for mobile GIS solutions both for expert and the broader community.
With their new ArcGIS server platform and REST based APIs ESRI also realized a technology for mobile use. It is easy to embed maps and layers in different environments including mobile phones, PDAs, tablet PCs etc. The following video shows a more professional way to use ArcGIS mobile and in the second part of the movie a demo is given on the iPhone where Base Maps from an ArcGIS Server are visualized within an iPhone App.
The demonstrations of new options for mobile workforces are based on ArcGIS Mobile 9.4, and will be available soon.
Now the questions is will this strategy become successful?
In my opinion ESRI has now a huge potential to gain ground in the mobile GIS world, also for a wide user group. Essential in my opinion will be the continuous development and extension of their ArcGIS Server APIs. For example it is expected to have direct Geodatabase read/write access with the JavaScript API in version 2.0, coming with ArcGIS 9.4. On the other side it is important to have easy to use client software for all major mobile platforms, including iPhone OS, Android, Blackberry, PalmOS and Windows Mobile. ESRI should provide “demonstrative” applications for different use cases ranging from experts (or data collectors) to “traditional” Google Maps users. It will be very important to open up building blocks for application building on mobile Platforms (very important Android and iPhone OS) so that developers could design and implement their own applications based on ArcGIS mobile. It should designed like ArcObjects building blocks on the Desktop and Server.
If ESRI can take this challenge for 2010 the GIS market leader will also play an important role in the mobile GIS sector.
It was very hard to find the new stylish placemark icons of Google Maps Mobile 3 (GMM 3) in the web. Therefore I tried to create a icon which look like those optimized for mobile devices. In my opinion they look much more modern like the traditional placemark icons of Google Maps. You can download this icon and use it for your Google Maps mashup or mobile maps application.
For an optimal visualisation please re-size to 32 px or so.
Please tell me if you know where to find some more icons in this new style.
Recently the SDK for Android 2.0 was published. Developers can now adapt their applications to Android 2.0. Watch the video to get an impression about new features.
I assume someone will generate an updateable ROM for actual phones very soon. So stay tuned for an Android 2.0 update.
Multiple accounts can be added to a device for email and contact synchronization, including Exchange accounts. (Handset manufacturers can choose whether to include Exchange support in their devices.)
Developers can create sync adapters that provide synchronization with additional data sources.
Quick Contact for Android provides instant access to a contact’s information and communication modes. For example, a user can tap a contact photo and select to call, SMS, or email the person. Other applications such as Email, Messaging, and Calendar can also reveal the Quick Contact widget when you touch a contact photo or status icon.
Email
Exchange support.
Combined inbox to browse email from multiple accounts in one page.
Messaging
Search functionality for all saved SMS and MMS messages.
Auto delete the oldest messages in a conversation when a defined limit is reached.
Camera
Built-in flash support
Digital zoom
Scene mode
White balance
Color effect
Macro focus
Android virtual keyboard
An improved keyboard layout to makes it easier to hit the correct characters and improve typing speed.
The framework’s multi-touch support ensures that key presses aren’t missed while typing rapidly with two fingers.
A smarter dictionary learns from word usage and automatically includes contact names as suggestions.
Browser
Refreshed UI with actionable browser URL bar enables users to directly tap the address bar for instant searches and navigation.
Bookmarks with web page thumbnails.
Support for double-tap zoom.
Support for HTML5:
Database API support, for client-side databases using SQL.
Application cache support, for offline applications.
Geolocation API support, to provide location information about the device.
<video> tag support in fullscreen mode.
Calendar
Agenda view provides infinite scrolling.
Events indicate the attending status for each invitee.
Invite new guests to events.
New Platform Technologies
Media Framework
Revamped graphics architecture for improved performance that enables better hardware acceleration.
Bluetooth
Bluetooth 2.1
New BT profiles: Object Push Profile (OPP) and Phone Book Access Profile (PBAP)
New Framework APIs
Android 2.0 includes several new developer APIs. For an overview of new APIs, see the Android 2.0 version notes.
I have tried out to compare mobile application stores by their number of available applications. Starting with Apple mobile application stores have become very popular to download programs and games directly to the userssmartphone. Now nearly every big player has launched a platform where different applications are hosted. I have compared platforms of the 5 major players in case of application variety:
Name of the Store
Platform
Company
Apple AppStore
iPhone OS
Apple
Android Market
Android
Google
Palm AppStore
Palm OS
Palm
Ovi Store
Symbian
Nokia
AppWorld
Blackberry OS
Research in Motion (RIM)
All in all it is not so easy to compare the total number of applications, because there are no official or correct information available. Most headlines give the impression platforms start with 10000+ applications, but if you take a closer look at different applications you find out that these numbers are utopian. By June 2009 there are good numbers about Apples AppStore. They provide about 50000 applications and games, where 11000 of these are free (~87 % Market Share). Android Market has nearly 6000 applications which is about 10 % Market Share. Palm claims to have about 3000 applications available, which is about 5 % Market Share. But I get the impression this number include also Windows mobile applications. Nokia has only about 250 application available for their Symbian S60 v5 phones (0.5 % Market Share). And Blackberry has only 15 featured applications listed in their online platform. I could not verify the total number of BlackBerry applications because therefore you need a BackBerry phone.
Market Share by total number of Applications
In conclusion it can be said that the success of a mobile platform or operation system depends on the variety and number of application. It is a very easy equation that allows you to predict the success of an application:
The higher the amount of applications the higher the success of a platform!
Recently the first Mobile Monday in Austria took place in Vienna. The major topic was about the mobile landscape in Austria. For this reason following poster was presented. The pictures gives some figures from the RTR Austria describing the market share of Austrian operators and companies working in different branches of the mobile sector. Enlarge the picture to see all details.
From my knowledge there is no Austrian company visualized in the landscape map, which is primarily dealing with mobile geospatial solutions. But maybe some of these are dealing with some geospatial issues. If someone has more information on this please feel free to comment.
The videos gives the impression that the event is strongly driven by mobile marketing. I hope that there will be also some slots for technical discussions and introductions of innovative services.
All in all I think it is a great event and I’m happy to there that futures events are already planned. The next Mobile Monday is planned for June 2009.
There are a lot of LBS ideas which are not really applicable. In my opinion “Locale” is one of the more promising examples for LBS.
The following text on the start site of “Locale” points out why this tool could be useful:
In March 2005, Judge Robert Restaino jailed 46 people when a mobile phone rang in his New York courtroom and no one would admit responsibility.
So we invented Locale. Problem solved.
Locale is an Android application that allows to create situations under which your phone settings should change. These situations depends on your current location. For example you can set a situation “At Work“. which refers to your working location 100 Main Street. If you are at this address your ringtone is set to mute and vibration is turned on. With this application you can manage different phone settings for various locations. This is not only applicable for ringtones. You can also display messages, if you enter your home and your battery power is less than 20%, reminding to charge your phone.
Locale utilize Android positioning features like A-GPS and WiFi positioning. The user interaction is mainly done via the touch screen. Locale is extensible through an API, where developer could integrate third party plug-ins. By the way Locale is one of the winners of Google’s Adroid Developer Challenge.
There’s a rumour abroad that very soon a whole bunch of new Android phones will come to the market in early 2009. On 26th of January the replacement of the G1, called G2, should be available and should include following differences to the G1 and features:
Android OS
3G capable ( where available)
Full touch Screen
WiFi capable ( no word about UMA)
5 Megapixel camera with aoutofocus and flash
EDGE and GPRS
Instant Messaging
Megatones, HI-Fi tones and wallpapers
Memory card Slot ( up to 16GB)
Mobile Backup
Music and Video Player
Photo Caller ID
Picture Messaging
Real web browsing
Speakerphone
Speed dial
Stereo Bluetooth connectivity ( finally)
Sync with PC ( better than air sync)
Task list
USB interface
Video capture and playback
Video Messaging
Voice Dialing
It is expected that the G2 will not be available exclusive at T-mobile.
Samsung Electronics will release its first Google phone in the second quarter of the next year in North America. The launch of Google phone by Samsung is regarded as a signal of its plan for increasing the shares in the smart phone market by releasing handsets in various operating systems. Also, as Samsung joins the Android group led by Google, the competition among the mobile platforms like Nokia’s Symbian, MS Windows Mobile, LiMo and Apple’s Mac OS X will become fierce. The company is predicted to select a full touch screen phone for a form factor of its Google phone, the one that it adapted to Omnia and Instinct. The Google phone will feature the Google Map based location information service, messenger G-Talk, the G-mail application and Google Search.
An official of Samsung Electronics said, ”We will be able to release Google phone in the second quarter of the next year in the US market.”
The new Nokia N97 Symbian smartphone combines a touchscreen, QWERTY keyboard, GPS and 32 GByte memory. It connects to the internet with HSDPA or WiFi. With Nokia Maps it is possible to find your contacts near your actual location and the GUI can be customized using widgets.
The touch screen in the N97 has a 3.5 inch screen diagonal and displays up to 16 million colors at a resolution of 640 x 360 pixels. If you touch the screen, there is feedback through vibration, which should simplify the operations. According to the position of the phone the visualisation is in landscape or portrait mode. A sliding QWERTY keyboard allows easy text entry, although the display is slanted so that it is good to see.
The N97 is the first device from Nokia, which offeres the function of “social site”. For this function the integrated GPS receiver is used. The function “social location” is connected with the software Nokia Maps and displays the location of friends and acquaintances on the map in real time. Of course friends have to activate this feature first. The data arrives over a cellular connection on the device, so that a matching data plan should be posted. It is also possible to share photos or videos, with this new feature.
As you already know from other Nokia smartphones, the newcomer is equipped with Nokia Maps and there is a compass function to orient yourself. As a further innovation in Nokia Maps there is an electronic guide containing information about known buildings. This requires that the user photograph the object. The image is then detected by a server that provides buidling caracteristics. A photo of a movie poster for example, brings a trailer of the film and shows how the film runs movie theaters. The map software can be used free of charge, the full navigation functions can be used additional by paying a fee.
The 5-megapixel camera in 117.2 x 55.3 x 15.9 mm measured N97 has a Carl Zeiss lens. For a darker environment a dual LED light will be activated. The camera can record videos with a resolution of 640 x 480 pixels at up to 30 frames per second. The integrated media player plays music in formats like MP3, WMA, AAC, eAAC and eAAC and video files of type MPEG4, WMV, Real Video and Flash. The N97 includes 32 GByte of internal memory and provides a slot for Micro SD cards as well.
The UMTS mobile phone operates in GSM networks 850, 900, 1,800 and 1,900 MHz and supports GPRS, EDGE and HSDPA. Wireless technologies like WLAN 802.11b/g and Bluetooth 2.0 are on board. The smartphone is equipped Symbian S60′5th Edition, which is designed for touch-screen interactions.
Battery time: 5 hours UMTS/talk, 6.5 hours GSM/talk, 1 week standby and 37 hours of music playback. The Nokia N97 will be available in the first half of 2009 at a price of approximately 660 euros.
CloudMade was founded by Steve Coast and Nick Black in 2007 to provide services around open mapdata. Steve Coast is also the founder of OpenStreetMap (OSM), one of the most prominent source for free map data based on the wiki idea. Therefore there is a strong relationship between OpenStreetMap and CloudMade, with the aim to “continue the democratization of geo data and to expand access to open geo data through a range of simple yet powerful tools and APIs.”
The current version of their APIs allows developers to integrate OpenStreetMap data into mobile and web-based applications. The major differences between most of similar services (beginning with Google Maps API), the CloudMade team highlights to be free from restrictive licencing.
Currently their APIs are closed pre-Alpha and is only available to registered users. To take part on this program you can sign up. They follow a bottom up approach and try to reduce complexity in terms to use geographical tools.
