As I previously noted, my Motorola Q is up for replacement in September, which is when my Verizon contract expires. And, as I previously noted, I had said I’d stick with Verizon at that point because of their stand on open access, which I still have no real reason to question. But I also said that I’d consider an iPhone 3G, even though it’s lacking a few features I need. And AT&T seems to like open access as well.
As I’ve written before, however, the fundamental limitation in picking a new mobile communicator isn’t the carrier, it’s a phenomenon inherent in mobility itself, which I call the single-device paradox. Simply put, the paradox is that we seem to have all of the technologies required to build a single device that can serve all of our communications and computing needs, and yet no one has been able to do so. New mobile devices appear at an astonishing rate, with the shelf life of fashion. Fashion, in the form of styling, in fact, drives the industry. Technology cannot, because there are simply too many competing technical elements involved in the design of a mobile device. By mathematical analogy, we have in this case more variables than equations, so the answer will never be nice and neat. A similar phenomenon has traditionally driven the automobile industry, although I suspect the price of fuel is about to change that industry forever.
I decided to refine my list of features that my ideal mobile communicator should have, and here they are:
Must have:
- Touch screen (I miss this on the Q)
- Full “desktop” browser
- Media player for audio and video
- Camera (still images)
- GPS with cartographics
- Wi-Fi (at least .11g; .11a or .11n would be nice)
- IMAP-based e-mail client
- The usual personal-productivity apps (calendar, to-do list, etc.)
- Ability to view MS Office files
Nice to have:
- Video camera (I doubt I’d ever use this, but you never know…)
- Removable battery (external battery OK if available)
- Ability to edit MS Office files
- Expansion memory slot (miniSd or microSD)
- USB interface
- Video-out interface
- Real-time traffic info and audio directions for GPS
- Car dashboard mounting hardware (for GPS use)
I am, BTW, not a big IM or SMS user, and I don’t care about mobile video at this time. I don’t (and have no plans to) use Exchange. I will still use a small flip phone as my primary cellular device because PDA phones are just too big to take everywhere (unless you carry a purse, which I don’t – women have a real advantage in mobile electronics). And it’s OK if some of the items above are available as add-ons if necessary.
It looks to me like an iPhone 3G might actually do the trick, but there are others, although nothing really from Verizon. But what I’d like to know is what you want in your next mobile communicator. What combination of features would make you happy? Do you have an enterprise-class phone you really like? What’s it missing? And do you think it’s possible to get everything you need in a single device?
