J.D. Power & iPhone Business User Satisfaction?: a Statistical Fluke

Apple proudly announced in a full page ad in today's Wall Street Journal that J.D. Power and Associates, which rates consumer satisfaction in numerous markets, "...ranks [Apple's iPhone] highest among business users."

Apple, however, left out two sub-headers in the J.D. Power release. "One-Fourth of Business Smartphone Users Report Experiencing a Software-Related Issue with Their Current Device."

"The study finds that one-fourth of users report experiencing at least one software-related issue or problem with their current smartphone device. The software-related issues reported most often include the need to reboot the phone, application malfunction/freeze and issues related to touch screen malfunction. Among those owners who have experienced a software problem, 44 percent report having to reboot their device at least once on a weekly basis during the past 12 months, while 34 percent report experiencing either an application malfunction or application freeze at least once per week. "

The survey of 1,388 "business smartphone users" rated six smartphone manufacturers: Apple, RIM (BlackBerry), Samsung, Motorola, HTC and Palm. The iPhone was rated 778 on a 1,000 point scale, RIM's BlackBerry's at 703 and Samsung just below RIM at 701.

J.D. Power conducted the survey before the release of RIM's BlackBerry Bold (AT&T) in July, the G1 (T-Mobile/Google) in late August and the BlackBerry Storm, which only recently hit Verizon stores. Other smartphone manufacturers such as Nokia, which holds a 38% share of the world's mobile phone market amd Sony-Ericsson at 23% were noticeably absent from the study, most likely due to low availability rates in the U.S.

J.D. Power and Apple fail to define the "business smartphone" market. Despite the iPhone supporting exchange server syncing and security protocols--mandated by IT managers--neither J.D. Power nor Apple define a "business smartphone user." Most likely, the majority of iPhone users surveyed are self-employed, work for a small business or use the iPhone along with an approved business handset, such as the BlackBerry, in larger companies, where few IT managers have yet to approve the use of iPhones on company servers.

Another statistical fluke not addressed in the survey release is skewed ratings. Apple has only released a single smartphone with fewer than 10 million in use. HTC, Samsung, Nokia and others, on the other hand, have distributed hundreds of millions smartphones worldwide.

As the number of rated smartphone handsets rises, the overall rating of the iPhone, bolstered by Apple's promotions and hype, rises higher than the rest as a whole, because the iphone ratings are based on one handset out of dozens.

I searched Phone Scoop for handsets I consider meet the minimum "business smartphone" requirements for U.S. carriers.

All phones: *

• have Calendar
• have Data-Capable
• have Email Client
• have Multiple Numbers per Name
• have Packet Data (EDGE or 1xRTT or 1xEV-DO r0 or 1xEV-DO rA or WCDMA (UMTS) or HSDPA 1.8 or HSDPA 3.6 or HSDPA 7.2)
• have PC Sync
• have To-Do List
• have WAP / Web Browser

More than 20 phones met the minimum requirements. Click here to view them.

As I've written before in MTM and elsewhere, Steve Jobs and Apple are masters of marketing hype. But they can't legitimately escape the laws of statistics. The iPhone, although a breakthrough device in many ways, represents a drop-in-the-bucket in mobile telephony.

* Some phones listed may not be available from U.S. carriers. Check eBay and other sources on the Web.

Google's G1 vs. the iPhone: Major Construction and Design Flaws Emerge (Revised 11/2/08)

Unlike the the V1 iPhone, running on AT&T's slow EDGE data network, T-Mobile/Google's G1 hits the street 3G enabled. (T-Mobile's 3G network is now operational in the San Francisco Bay Area and numerous other metros around the U.S.)

Application developers, who take advantage of Google's open Android OS, is also in question. Currently, over 3,000 applications have been written for the iPhone, and Google and T-Mobile have a strenuous journey ahead to convince developers to write code.

I had an opportunity today to visit a T-Mobile store and check out the G1 more closely. Two concerns immediately came to mind: The G1's flat, non-tactile keyboard and its plastic casing. When I first picked up the G1, its lightness alerted me to potential problems, since I had just come from an AT&T store checking out the 3G iPhone again.

iPhone 3G Dropped Call Problem: Understanding Mobile Devices

Without contributing to angry 3G iPhone customers worldwide--nor criticizing Apple, the carriers or Infineon, the chipset maker currently under siege--let me reduce the "irritation thermometer" a degree or two.

First, I must make clear that I'm not defending Apple, AT&T, other worldwide carriers, Infineon or God. Without divine knowledge, I can tell you that everyone else preceding God is working on the dropped call problem currently attributed to Infineon's chipset. The reported problem appears to relate to iPhone connection transfers from cell tower to cell tower. This explanation may change as Apple, the carriers and Infineon further investigate.

Mobile phone users need to understand that signal-related problems with cellular devices usually stem from a number of related factors--not just one. Here are the main factors:

1. Components
   
   Mobile devices contain a myriad number of individual components--some related to signal/RF functionality, others to cameras, music players, chipsets, displays and other components. The components, as with your PC or Mac, interact with each other, sometimes causing system crashes, dropped calls, weak signals and other problems. Generally speaking, the non-RF components, such as a camera, are unrelated to RF components, such as the phones antenna or 3G chipset. Components, similar to computers, are chosen from numerous suppliers and frequently change as the mobile device evolves: more features, identified buggy components, cost, etc.
   |
   
2. Firmware
   
   Firmware are the hard-coded chips built into a mobile device, controlling video displays, RF signal output, touch screens and most other phone functions. Firmware manufacturers, such as Infineon, provide flash firmware updates to fix problems or increase performance. Wikipedia's short article on firmware is a good introduction to the subject.
   
   
3. Software
   
   Little need be said here. Mobile users--especially iPhone users--are very familiar with the software already embedded or occupying internal memory on the iPhone. But keep in mind, especially with the opening of Apple's new Application Store, that adding any software to a mobile phone, just like a computer, has inherent risks. Application developers have rigid protocols for testing software before release, but it's inevitable you will eventually load a software program on your iPhone that causes problems. Software problems are easier to diagnose and fix. First step: remove the software and see if the problem goes away. Like firmware, software developers release upgrades and updates that resolve problems and increase functionality.
   
   
4. Carrier Infrasructure (Towers, cellular radios, etc.)
   
   If you read my previous post here on MTI, you're aware of AT&T's steps to install more cell towers, 3G radios and other RF devices that control its network. However, AT&T, as with all carriers in the U.S. and abroad, rely on roaming partners (covered next) that handle cell phone call pass-offs as you move out-of-range of the current tower.
   
   
5. Roaming Partners
   
   Cell phone carriers share towers and other RF equipment with other carriers to avoid duplication, effectively increasing the geographic areas offering coverage. Without roaming partners, U.S. and other other carriers would have significant coverage gaps, resulting in an increase in call drops. 3G or broadband coverage areas are one of the weaknesses in U.S. coverage and that, in part, accounts for both voice call drops and slow data downloads, most especially on a data-intensive device such as the 3G iPhone. Until recently, T-Mobile, which uses AT&T and other roaming partners, didn't have its own network. It piggy-backed off coverage supplied by its roaming partners. (Check out GSM World, a great site that explains roaming and lists carrier roaming partners.)
   
   
6. Location
   
   "Location, location, location"--the often-used explanation for real estate prices--is even more true with cellular. Forget the carriers' TV commercials ("More Bars," "Best Network," "Fewer Dropped Calls"). Cell phone RF strength varies from moment-to-moment, especially when you're mobile, and no carrier can predict the strength and quality of the signal on your handset at any point in time. Generally, speaking, you'll get a stronger, more stable signal, if you're outside away from buildings, trees and other RF obstacles, but RF signal strength and call drops are unpredictable, despite the coverage maps carriers show on their websites.
   
   
7. Weather
   
   Inclement weather affects RF signals from your handset to-and-from cell phone towers. As you move through space in your car, bus, train or walking, weather conditions, as with tower locations, will affect signal strength, call quality, 3G availability and, yes, dropped calls. Read this short article on weather and other factors affecting your mobile phone.
   
   
8. Voice & Data Traffic
   
   (See my previous MTI article on the 3G iPhone straining AT&T's network.) In general, as greater demand is placed on mobile carrier networks, performance deterioriates. The carriers continue monitoring network quality, making adjustments in cell tower switching, installing additional antennas and adding roaming partners. RF propagation is very complex, as you've probably sensed by now.
   
   Before U.S. users started rapidly switching from wired to wireless phones, the problems encountered were due primarily to old analog networks (TDMA is a one example.) When the carriers went digital, they improved call quality and coverage, but U.S. users increased dramatically. Penetration is now approaching 85% of the entire population with 260,000,000 handsets in use.
   

For an excellent summary of how cell phones work, check out "How Stuff Works," a great site that answers questions on almost any topic.

My Penance: Writing an iPhone Review That Someone Will Hate

In a previous post here--"My Sin: I Bought an iPhone"--I dramatized, just a bit, the experience of buying a mobile device that's been the "talk of the town" for over a year. I've intensely tested the iPhone for a few days now. This post is my penance.

It's interesting to observe how cell phone/mobile phone users write and react to consumer electronic reviews. Reading Engaget, one would think mobile warfare is imminent. Phonescoop reviewers seem more sedate, but you still read "the best phone I've ever bought" right next to "the worst phone created by God." The reviews are interesting to read if you realize how personal mobile devices have become to a lot of people. What pleases one person causes fury in another. I covered this human behavior in an eBay post called: "Choosing a Smartphone." Six of nine people liked it. This confirms the SW/SW/SW principle: "Some will, some won't, so what?"

Now that the iPhone is in the hands of a few million people--and Apple has released a few software updates to fix some bugs--it's now safe to step back and take a look at this evolutionary device. (My iPhone is resting comfortably next to my laptop as I write this; so unless Steve Jobs has inserted some C4, I think it's safe to write this review.)

I still believe my eBay blog post over a year ago about personal icons is valid. I wrote: "The icons became a statement of me. Whether it's the Apple iPhone or an expensive audio device or a WIFI mobile telephone--it doesn't matter. Consumers worldwide now lust after an increasing array of iconic symbols, symbols that give meaning and definition to one's self, symbols that rapidly change as we acquire more of them. Just as the Internet has rocketed information access to the masses, new objects, new icons appear on the market with increasing rapidity and variety. It's as if the cosmetics industry has taken over the definition of oneself. The icons spread, we buy them, and we let them define who we are. So...as you lust after the Apple iPhone and consider paying $1,500+ for a shimmering sliver of light, remember that you are buying the latest icon--something that defines you as a person and next year at MacWorld, Jobs will have something else for you, a new object you think you need....but only for the moment."

I'm going to try avoiding features of the iPhone--"Cover Flow," screen resolution and size and the "two finger squeeze"--that others have written about ad nauseam. Rather, I'm going to comment in bullet format what I like and don't like about the device--features and functions of value. If I skip your favorite "cool and awesome" iPhone feature, consider it a sin of omission.

Here we go...duck for cover:

• Screen Clarity. The iPhone has the best screen clarity for text and graphics I've ever seen on a mobile device. It's absolutely striking in all applications from Safari to email to maps. The iPhone should win an award if, for nothing else, Apple engineering on screen brightness, contrast, color and readability in portrait and landscape. Outstanding.
  
• Touch Screen Smear. All cell/mobile phone users create smears on their phones' screens--whether a flip or touch screen phone. I found the iPhone smear worse than other touch phones and very difficult to clean. Luckily, the iPhone's crisp display overcomes the smear, but other smartphones with large screens are less prone to dust and smears. (The Sony Ericsson P910 and Palm Treo's come to mind.)
  
• Phone Sound Quality--Earpiece and Speaker Phone. Superb with occasional hiss courtesy of AT&T Mobility. Sound distorts on the speaker phone as well when signal strength drops.
• Calling Features. The ringer off switch on the left side of the phone is too small and difficult to engage, but the large dialing pad is a welcome addition to touch phones. It's also interesting that Apple, the inventor of the iPod and iTunes, didn't include voice control for calling or opening applications. The HTC Touch, my model for an Android-enabled phone
  has both, plus a lot of Samsung and other phones offer voice dialing.
• Quick and Automatic Switching from AT&T's EDGE Network to Wi-Fi. I entered my home network information once, and the iPhone switched back-and-forth swiftly. (My home network is powered by a dedicated Speakeasy DSL line (1.3Mbps) connected to Apple's latest Airport Base Station. When away from my home network, the iPhone automatically alerted me to other Wi-Fi networks within range. While connected to Wi-Fi, I easily used one finger to navigate each screen quickly. The iPhone UI is best-of-breed touch screen technology that sets a new standard for competitors.
  
• GPS, after a few attempts, clearly showed roads, highways and traffic patterns with quick screen re-draw as I moved my finger in all directions. Since I have GPS in my Toyota Prius, I'd never use the feature while driving but might use it when lost in a big city. Unfortunately, downloading megabytes of data from AT&T's EDGE network would be frustrating. (Good news: Gizmodo just announced AT&T is working on "Fine Edge" to increase data download speeds.)
• Safari Browser. As Mac users know, Safari is light years ahead of any competing browser. The iPhone can hold 8 mini-screens in memory and they open and close rapidly with stunning resolution, far better than screen rendering on Nokia's N80. When returning to some of the minimized Safari browser windows, the mini-screens were blank with the webpage title at the top; however, as soon as I touched the screen, the correct page maximized correctly. Zooming in with Safari at first delivers slightly blurred text. A second or two later, it's crystal clear. (Again, I'm using my home network--not AT&T's.)
• Automatic Landscape Viewing Brilliant. I was able to view a readable Wall Street Journal page in Landscape with little text size adjustment.
  
• Lack of Flash Support. This issue was reported seven months ago. I was unable to retrieve my voice messages on GrandCentral because the website requires Flash. (Skyfire, a start-up company in Mountain View, California, just announced a free browser that automatically adjusts page formatting with video support for high-end smartphones. Availability is mid-2008.)
• Re-Arranging Icons and Creating Multiple Home Screens. Great time saver.
  
• (Data Plan Cost and EDGE Comment). I believe that Apple obtained an agreement with AT&T on the $20 unlimited data plan and 200 text messages because both knew most iPhone users would surf the web using Wi-Fi rather than EDGE. (The status screen on my iPhone shows only 3MB of EDGE data downloading, while my Wi-Fi downloading during the three days test must be several hundred megabytes.) AT&T's other data plans for BlackBerry's and Smartphone/PDA's cost $30 to $50 using either EDGE or 3G.
• Suggestion for Apple and AT&T. In Safari preferences, allow users to turn off picture and graphics downloading. HTC already does this on their Touch device, and Microsoft Office 2007 automatically blocks picture downloads in email for security reasons. Downloading text only on AT&T's EDGE network would significantly improve performance. (Taking this step would also address the industry's increasing concern about mobile viruses and spyware.)
  
• Text Data Entry. While the iPhone's QWERTY keypad is the largest I've seen, using one finger to enter text takes time to learn despite help from the confirming larger alpha-numeric circles that appear when pressing a letter or number. Frequently, three or four letters with accent marks appeared while pressing a button. Moving my finger to the proper button didn't change to the correct letter.
• Fonts Change Size. When switching from portrait to landscape, Safari increased font size. Upon returning to portrait, the original font size displayed.
  
• Word Completion Needs improvement. After typing "N," then "O," the iPhone suggested "NOI" rather than "NOW," which I intended. Other manufacturers, especially Sony Ericsson, deliver greater accuracy when using T9 text entry.
  
• Pressing Space Bar Twice for Period. Good feature, used by BlackBerry users for years.
• Large Positioning Circle for Editing. Excellent idea and reduces eye strain and errors.
• Using Two Thumbs to Enter Text. No way. This works on a BlackBerry due to the full QWERTY keypad with the BB's weight shifted to its top. The iPhone's weight is evenly distributed, lacks a rubberized back like other smartphones--making it easier to hold the phone--and switches to other screens and applications on its own. Will cover that in a second.
• "M" key is to the left of the back key. Several times, I erased entire words when my finger was too close.
  
• iPhone Movement Causes Problems. The phone's movement sensitivity is set too high. In multiple cases, moving the phone slightly or laying it down on a table caused other applications to open. For example, when I laid the phone down, Safari or the Favorites screen opened. Several Web pages minimized on their own.
• Finger Slide AND Home Button? One thing mobile manufacturers attempt doing is eliminating excessive steps in menus and such. Why does the iPhone require a finger slide from left to right plus pressing the home button to awaken? The home button is recessed so swiping one's finger across the base of the phone is not going to cause problems. "Simple strokes for simple folks."
  
• Construction. The iPhone's exterior metal casing is too smooth, causing the iPhone to shift in your hand and possible drop it. HTC, Nokia, Sony Ericsson and other manufacturers provide a better grip. Plus the bottom black base beneath the connection port easily scratches. Change the color, Apple, or make it rubber for easier handling and stability.
• Camera Quality O.K. No zoom and no streaming video, but the indoor pics are better than I expected without camera controls. The plant above and eagle to the right are untouched iPhone shots.
• Multiple Email Account Navigation. While scrolling through and viewing emails in full HTML is fantastic, unlike a BlackBerry, you have to press multiple buttons to access the inbox of each email account--a hassle that also plagues Sony Ericsson and Nokia phones. Like a BlackBerry or, for that matter, Apple Mail or Outlook, there should be ONE inbox showing all your emails. Kudos to Apple for allowing one or more preview lines in email settings.
• Email Download Size Limit and No Push. Perhaps AT&T got in the way on this one. Standard setting options are auto-check, Show (number of most recent messages), Preview, Minimum Font Size, Show To/Cc Label, Ask Before Deleting, Always Bcc Myself, Signature and Default Account. Not bad. Let's add, as with other email clients, "download headers only," "download entire message" or "only download XX kb." And, since Yahoo has now teamed with Apple on push email (it works), why not POP3 and Imap accounts as well. And, if Apple wants to get the business market--Microsoft ActiveSync on Exchange servers.
• MMS Messages to AT&T Website? I ran a few MMS messages from T-Mobile to the iPhone and received an email to retrieve the message on an AT&T website. No, Apple, let's do it the normal way.
  
• No Calendar Weekly View. There's monthly, daily and list views but not weekly. Almost every phone on Earth offers a weekly calendar view. Let's get it on the product spec sheet, Apple programmers.
• Limited Bluetooth Profiles. I gather Apple feels, like Verizon for many years, that crippled bluetooth is kosher. Sorry, hands-free is not enough and running all synchronization of pictures, songs and such through iTunes creates a "sync monopoly." My two Macs with bluetooth can't directly exchange pictures with the iPhone. Back to the drawing boards.
• Quit Using the Word "Easy." My last request. Tell your marcom people that their salaries get docked $10 every time they write "easy" in a user guide. Read my post about the Apple website.
  

Well, folks, that's it. All in all, Apple set the bar significantly higher for the mobile phone industry. Let's hope the industry, including Apple, responds with easy-to-use (oops), sophisticated communication devices and applications. The U.K., Europe and especially Asia already dominate mobile technology. I believe there's hope for the United States as well.

The HTC Touch: A Closer Look

Want to learn more about the HTC Touch? When I identified it as a model for the ideal Android phone in MarketingBeyond and here at MTI, I didn't fully write about the two key issues impacting touch screen mobile devices. Read my latest eBay review for details. Oh...it's day two with my iPhone and I'm still checking it out. Will comment shortly.

My Sin: I Bought an iPhone

I committed the ultimate sin yesterday. I walked into an AT&T store and bought an iPhone. Yes, after blasting Apple, Steve Jobs and the iPhone for over a year, I succumbed to the temptation. I couldn't stand the hype and glitz any longer. With my knees shaking--and my declared perfect Android phone with me--I did it.

As I opened the package, my trembling hands picked it up, gazed at its glimmer, clutched it carefully as I inserted the USB connector to the phone and my MacBook Pro. Agonizing pains shot through my fingers as I started activating the device by agreeing to all of the legalese created by Apple's and AT&T's lawyers.

Stressed out with trepidation, I entered my credit card number and other information. Pausing just a moment, I clicked on "activate." Ah, the sin was nearly complete.

Apple's iTunes and AT&T's verification servers went into action, telling me on the screen what was happening and the emails I'd soon get.

The emails arrived one-by-one, each giving me just a bit more information on my sinful decision. I wondered: Is this a venial or mortal sin? Which had I committed? When moving on to Heaven or Hell, would Steve Jobs be there to greet me?

The final email arrived. ACTIVATION! The phone was now ready to use. Just as I wrote about Vista and "Windows It's Alive," the iPhone sprung to life with the latest software update. Strange icons beckoned me to push them, my home network discovered in an instant. The iPhone was now a MePhone.

It enveloped my senses as I started pushing buttons. Then the ultimate cool and awesome experience--synching with iTunes. Apple now knew about my sin. They had acquired a new victim (I mean customer).

I was late for choir practice. So I left the shimmering piece of glass in its cradle, firmly attached to my Mac. But I knew when I got home, IT would be there...

Bluetooth Neuron Disease Spreading Fast at Starbucks

The American Academy of Bluetooth Physicians recently announced a new mobile illness called "Bluetooth Neuron Disease." Symptoms include loss of reality, increased musical abilities and bipolar depression. The disease is spreading rapidly among iPhone users who place Starbuck orders using a paired bluetooth headset. DaVido, a singer obsessed with Starbucks, recently acquired the disease.

In a recent study, the AABP observed cell phone bluetooth users at 50 Starbucks in Silicon Valley. Over 75% of BT users were talking to themselves and staring into blank space as they imbibed latte's, capuccino's and "Grande Big Gulps," 36 ounces of Starbuck's daily coffee blend. 

Suffering from bluetooth neuron disease, medical researchers believe the combination of caffeine and BT headsets results in solitary beings who prefer conversing with people they can't see. When researchers attempted removing the headsets, individuals started screaming "latte, latte" and required medical intervention.

Researchers speculate that wearing BT headsets on the left ear, combined with the caffeine, stimulates the brain's right hemisphere, leading to enhanced musical abilities. Downloading songs from iTunes to an iPhone at Starbucks may worsen the condition.

According to Star Buck, CEO and President of Starbucks in Seattle, "we are thoroughly investigating this serious situation and cooperating with the AABP." To ensure that Wi-Fi, available at most Starbucks, is not contributing to the illness, Starbucks' managers have turned off all wireless routers in the stores.

Twas the Night Before Christmas 2007 Cell Phone Review

Twas the night before Christmas when all through the realm

Not a Samsung was stirring not even a twelve-nine.

The iPhones were hung by the chimney with care,

In hopes that St. Steven soon would be there.

The children were nestled all snug with their phones,

While visions of Motos danced in their tones.

And mamma with her widget and I with my jack,

Had just settled down to play with our crack.

When out on the lawn there arose such a chatter,

I threw down my smartphone and sought out my fatter.

Away to the window I brought out my flash.

Tore open the shutters and threw out the Dash.

The tune in my breast as the new-fallen snow

Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects that GO.

When, what to my wondering eyes should appear

But a moguled Android and eight tiny reindeer.

With a little old driver, so googled and knoogled

I knew in a moment he must have been snoogled.

More rapid than nanos his courses they zuned

And he whistled and shouted, and called them ituned!

Now Dasher! now Dancer!, now Prancer and Vixen!

On, Comet!, On Cupid!, on Donner and Blitzen!

To the top of Redmond! to the top of Mountain View!

Now crash away! crash away! crash away all!

As dry leaves that before the wild tornado fly,

When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky

So up to the house-top the coursers they flew

With a sleigh full of Toys, and St. Steven too.

And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof

The ringtones and vibrations of each little hoof

As I drew in my head, and was churning around, 

Down the chimney St. Steven came with an iphone.

He was dressed all in denim, from his head to his foot,

And his clothes were all covered with logos and loot.

A bundle of Ipods he had flung on his back

And he looked like a peddler, just opening his pack.

His eyes how they twinkled, his dimples how merry!

His cheeks were like roses, he nose like a cherry!

His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,

And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow.

The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth

And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath.

He had a broad face and a little round belly.

That shook when he laughed, like a bowlful of jelly!

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,

And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself!

A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,

Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread.

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,

And filled all the stockings, then turned with a jerk.

And laying his finger aside of his nose,

And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose!

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,

And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.

But I heard him exclaim, 'ere he drove out of sight,

"Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!"