See how easy it is to use iPass to connect to Wi-Fi, avoiding bandwidth download limits, offloading your roaming charges and giving you faster bandwidth.
With iPassConnect on the iPhone 4, you do have to go to the Settings first to turn on Wi-Fi because iPhone does not allow apps to interact with the Wi-Fi radio. But once that’s done, the iPhone does the work.
See a faster and simpler connection experience with Open Mobile on an Android platform. Start the iPass app, and you can start Wi-Fi within the app and then immediately see all networks available. If there is a network that you’ve previously linked to, you will be auto-connected.
I saw this article on useful Android apps for a Droid X for a business traveler. With our recent release of Open Mobile for Android, and the fact that I just got a Droid X, I like the timing of this article. But to be fair, I also highlight some other articles that I’ve saved for the iPhone and the iPad.
In a recent poll that we conducted on our website, we asked, “Are you planning to move to an Android phone?” Although admittedly biased towards our readers (both mobile employees and IT Admins), in light of recent news, the answers were not too surprising:
No: 43%
Yes, within 12 months: 38%
Undecided: 13%
Yes, later than 12 months from now: 5%
In a recent Forrester report titled, “Insights for CIOs: Make Mobility Standard Business Practice,” the Android platform is beginning to make inroads into businesses, with 13 percent of organizations supporting this operating system. Michele Pelino, with Forrester, also noted this earlier, when commenting that more of these devices are entering the enterprise:
“We are also seeing increased adoption of devices using the iPhone and Android operating systems. During the next few years, we expect most enterprises will support two or three operating systems to address a variety of enterprise user application requirements and geographic network specifications.”
However, “Will Android Smash the iPhone?” isn’t so much about Android taking over, but showing the market share strengths of both Android and the iPhone. Al Sacco’s article, Why I Switched from BlackBerry to Android: Conclusions, discusses Blackberry vs. Android, with the conclusion of his preference for the Android, but that Blackberry provides other benefits. That’s IT’s homework – to figure out the user scenarios and balance the features and benefits (along with user preference). Since there are a mix of mobile employees, a mix of devices can support the diverse enterprise mobility needs. Many users prefer the multimedia and access to Google apps provided by Android devices.
Our poll showed us higher than expected responses of people moving to Android. For some user scenarios, where security is not a priority, or can be managed, an Android can be added to the mix.
Each enterprise will need to decide what works best for their workforce. But the writing is clear (and the comments voluminous), that variety will be the new norm.
On Monday’s post, I discussed the proliferation of screens that you are using, business and personal. These devices add up, in more ways than one. The buzz yesterday was about the addition of another device for worker connectivity and productivity. In digging into our survey data, I saw that:
An iPad is an “add-on” device. For those users that have an iPad, they are more likely to have a laptop AND smartphone/cellphone (one or the other).
Employees that pay their own bills are more likely to have or plan to buy an iPad. Perhaps they are more familiar with mobility costs and will justify the expense.
92 percent plan on using the iPad for some work, with 41 percent using it equally for work and personal.
As you add more devices, do you add more screen time? For most users, the answer is yes. If it’s the iPad or other tablet that you’ve added, then you have an overlapping, but not replacement, device. But remember, you have to pay for that bandwidth access and use.
With multiple devices, are you paying too much for bandwidth? But now multiply this complexity across an organization. As an IT Director, are you missing out on the ability to lock in lower contract prices for volume use? And can you easily determine how much you are actually paying for connectivity to all of these separate devices? What part of your costs can be considered personal use, and what should be billed back to the company? Does your company pay for all of the user’s connectivity, or do they pay out of pocket?
No doubt, it is an administrative nightmare for users and businesses alike to add up all of these separate costs and keep track of multiple, over-priced contracts. Clearly, the number of screens per user is increasing. And the likelihood of one device solving the needs of every user and application is nil. IT will need to accept and “embrace” this chaos and look for strategies that can control, automate, and make connecting more efficient and safe, leaving themselves more time for strategic projects.
According to a post on ReadWriteEnterprise, by Klint Finley,
In a recent poll that we conducted on our website, we asked, “Are you planning to move to an Android phone?” Although admittedly biased towards our readers (both mobile employees and IT Admins), in light of recent news, the answers were not too surprising:
