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Smartphone Purchasing Guide for LSPs:Recommendations for First Quarter, FY 2009Specifications effective July 1, 2008From Gartner: Unlike other mobile phones, a smartphone has an identifiable operating system, like Microsoft Windows Mobile or Symbian, that can run third-party applications. Smartphones are devices that integrate phone functions with a digital organizer and can accept multiple forms of user input – handwriting recognition and/or (attached/unattached) keyboard. These devices are intended to integrate and replace the functionality of carrying several different devices: a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a mobile phone, and – in limited cases – perhaps even a laptop. The ongoing convergence of cell phones and organizers has broadened the smartphone category beyond the traditional handheld PDA. These devices tend to come in two major form factors emphasizing either the data functionality of a PDA (tablet design) or the telephony functionality of a mobile phone (typically a clamshell or "flip" style design). They are usually very expensive relative to pure PDAs or pure mobile phones, although costs are declining. This review does not cover BlackBerry devices as they are in a class of devices by themselves. Please see the BlackBerry Purchasing Guide for more information. ISC Support Statement:On July 9, 2007, ISC Networking and Telecommuncation began offering email accounts on Microsoft Exchange 2007. As there are many options for synchronizing various handhelds to this server, smartphones meeting or exceeding any of the following criteria are considered supported devices by ISC:
NOTE: There are many versions of Windows Mobile available on smartphones.
The main differences between the two minor versions are that Windows Mobile 5 for Smartphone, and Windows Mobile 6 Standard lack touchscreen support -- They are intended for physically smaller devices that may lack the range of input devices availble for larger units. Cellular Influence:Different cellular providers carry different devices, so be sure to check with your preferred carrier before making a commitment to one device over another. ISC Networking & Telecommunications has partnered with AT&T and Verizon Wireless to provide discounted cellular phone service for Penn affiliates. Where available, we recommend purchasing insurance on these devices, as replacing them outside of the warranty period is expensive.Whenever deciding on which smartphone to purchase, keep in mind how it will be used. For example, if end users intend to travel internationally, it's best to choose a service that will be compatible with the overseas cellular networks of their destination. Please see the Provider Notes article on cellular standards for more information on the various cellular network protocols. 3G network (third generation high speed cellular network) availability is growing in the US. If your users are getting newer smartphones, keep in mind that not all of them are 3G capable. At this point, it does not make sense to purchase a smartphone that is not 3G-capable if a suitable 3G unit is available. Receiving data on non-3G devices is like continuing to use dial-up when broadband access is just as cheap. Recommended Devices:The phones below are not the only models that meet the recommended specifications. These are examples of phones that have been tested and work well with Penn's central infrastructure. CaveatSmartphones running the Symbian OS (such as the Nokia N95 ) are not included in the recommendations below. While we feel that there are many capable devices worldwide that are running this OS, the choices in the US are limited at this time, and none of them have been centrally tested against the University's desktop or networked environments. Palm OS:Any of these devices include the Exchange Active Sync (EAS) connector, and will synchronize with Microsoft's Exchange server.
Windows Mobile:We are only recommending Windows Mobile 6 based devices in our list below. There are still a few Windows Mobile 5 based devices available, but we do not think that this is a wise investment.
AppleThere is only one model of iPhone available (the iPhone 3G), and it is only available on AT&T
Page maintained by Robert L. DeSilets, Jr.
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