"Smartphones" redirects here. For the song by Trey Songz, see SmartPhones (song).
Samsung Galaxy S5 - Android Smart Phone.(Camera and Heart Rate Sensor)
The front and back of an iPhone 5Ssmartphone, launched in 2013
A smartphone (or smart phone) is a mobile phone with more advanced computing capability and connectivity than basic feature phones.[1][2][3]Smartphones typically include the features of a computer with those of another popular consumer device, such as a personal digital assistant, amedia player, a digital camera, and/or a GPS navigation unit. Later smartphones include all of those plus the features of a touchscreen computer, including web browsing, Wi-Fi, 3rd-party apps,motion sensor and mobile payment.
Currently, about 84% of handset sales worldwide are for devices driven by Google's Android withApple's iOS mobile operating systems a distant second at around 12%.[4][5]
Contents [hide]
- 1 History
- 2 Mobile operating systems
- 3 Application stores
- 4 Market share
- 5 Issues
- 6 Other terms
- 7 See also
- 8 References
- 9 External links
History[edit]Early years[edit]Devices that combined telephony and computing were first conceptualized by Theodore G. Paraskevakos in 1971 and patented in 1973, and were offered for sale beginning in 1993. He was the first to introduce the concepts of intelligence, data processing and visual display screens into telephones which gave rise to the "Smartphone." In 1971, Paraskevakos, working with Boeing in Huntsville, Alabama, demonstrated a transmitter and receiver that provided additional ways to communicate with remote equipment, however it did not yet have general purpose PDA applications in a wireless device typical of smartphones. They were installed at Peoples' Telephone Company in Leesburg, Alabama and were demonstrated to several telephone companies. The original and historic working models are still in the possession of Paraskevakos.[citation needed]
Forerunners[edit]
IBM Simon and charging base (1993[6])
The first mobile phone to incorporate PDA features was an IBM prototype developed in 1992 and demonstrated that year at the COMDEX computer industry trade show. A refined version of the product was marketed to consumers in 1994 by BellSouth under the name Simon Personal Communicator. The Simon was the first device that can be properly referred to as a "smartphone", even though that term was not yet coined.[7][8][9] In addition to its ability to make and receive cellular phone calls, Simon was also able to send and receive faxes and e-mails and included several other apps like address book, calendar, appointment scheduler, calculator, world time clock, and note pad through its touch screen display. Simon is the first smartphone to be incorporated with the features of a PDA[10]
The term "smart phone" appeared in print in 1995, for describing AT&T's "PhoneWriter(TM) Communicator" as a "smart phone".[11]
PDAs[edit]In the late 1990s, many mobile phone users carried a separate dedicated PDA device, running early versions of operating systems such as Palm OS, BlackBerry OS or Windows CE/Pocket PC.[1] These operating systems would later evolve into mobile operating systems.
In 1996, Nokia released the Nokia 9000 which combined a PDA based on the GEOS V3.0 operating system from Geoworks with a digital cellular phone based on the Nokia 2110. The two devices were fixed together via a hinge in what became known as a clamshell design. When opened, the display was on the inside top surface and with a physical QWERTY keyboard on the bottom. The personal organizer provided e-mail, calendar, address book, calculator and notebook with text-based web browsing, and the ability to send and receive faxes. When the personal organizer was closed, it could be used as a digital cellular phone.
In June 1999, Qualcomm released a "CDMA Digital PCS Smartphone" with integrated Palm PDA and Internet connectivity, known as the "pdQ Smartphone".[12]
In early 2000, the Ericsson R380 was released by Ericsson Mobile Communications,[13] and was the first device marketed as a "smartphone".[14] It combined the functions of a mobile phone and a personal digital assistant (PDA), supported limited web browsing with a resistive touchscreen utilizing a stylus.[15]
In early 2001, Palm, Inc. introduced the Kyocera 6035, which combined a PDA with a mobile phone and operated on Verizon. It also supported limited web browsing.[16][17]
Smartphones before Android, iOS, and Blackberry, typically ran on Symbian, which was originally developed by Psion. It was the world's most widely used smartphone operating system until Q4 2010.
Mass adoption[edit]In 1999, the Japanese firm NTT Docomo released the first smartphones to achieve mass adoption within a country. These phones ran oni-mode, which provided data transmission speeds up to 9.6 kbit/s.[18] Unlike future generations of wireless services, NTT Docomo's i-mode used cHTML, a language which restricted some aspects of traditional HTML in favor of increasing data speed for the devices. Limited functionality, small screens and limited bandwidth allowed for phones to maximize the slower data speeds available.[19]
The rise of i-mode helped NTT Docomo accumulate an estimated 40 million subscribers by the end of 2001. It was also ranked first in market capitalization in Japan and second globally. This power would wane in the face of the rise of 3G and new phones with advanced wireless network capabilities.[20]
Outside of Japan smartphones were still a rare feature, although throughout the mid-2000s, devices based on Microsoft's Windows Mobile started to gain high popularity among businessmen and businesswomen in the U.S. The BlackBerry later gained mass adoption in the U.S., which in 2006 popularized the term CrackBerry due to its addictive nature.[21] The company first released its GSM BlackBerry 6210, BlackBerry 6220, & BlackBerry 6230 devices in 2003. Also released was the Blackberry 7730 which featured a color screen.[22] In 2006 and 2007, both operating systems were in a large lead in the North American market, although while BlackBerry was popular among both business people and young people, Windows Mobile was only popular in the former.
These successive waves of phone technology allowed users to email, fax and make traditional calls, making it a useful tool for business travelers. As the Blackberry gained customers, less sophisticated users were attracted to its many communication options.
In Europe, Windows Mobile was never a large player in the market, and BlackBerry didn't make a notable impact in the market until around 2008. Symbian was the most popular smartphone OS in Europe during the mid and late 2000s. This was largely led by Nokia, which has always been a popular brand outside of North America. Initially Nokia's Symbian devices were focused on business, the same way as Windows Mobile and BlackBerry devices at the time. From 2006 onwards, Nokia started to make entertainment-focused smartphones, which were popularized by the Nseries. The N95, for instance, had breakthrough multimedia features for its time, and marked the start of a broader market of smartphones within younger people, and not just business. In Asia (except Japan), the trend was similar to Europe's.
Another company that made a breakthrough was the Palm. Although originally PDAs, Palms later turned into business-focused smartphones, largely competing with BlackBerry and Windows Mobile in the U.S. market, and was less popular in Europe and Asia.
All leaders of the 2000s suffered following the release of the iPhone.
iPhone & Android[edit]In 2007, Apple Inc. introduced the iPhone, one of the first mobile phones to use a multi-touch interface. The iPhone was notable for its use of a large touchscreen for direct finger input as its main means of interaction, instead of a stylus, keyboard, or keypad typical for smartphones at the time.[23] 2008 saw the release of the first phone to use Android called the HTC Dream (also known as the T-Mobile G1).[24][25] Android is an open-source platform founded by Andy Rubin and backed by Google.[26][27] Although Android's adoption was relatively slow at first, it started to gain widespread popularity in 2010, and now dominates the market.
Both of these platforms led to the drop of the previous leading companies. Microsoft, for instance, started a new OS from scratch, in the form of Windows Phone, which is now the third largest OS. Nokia abandoned Symbian and partnered with Microsoft to use Windows Phone on its smartphones. Palm was bought by Hewlett-Packard, turned into webOS, and later demised. BlackBerry also made a new system from scratch, BlackBerry 10.
The iPhone also had a knock-on effect on smartphone form factors. Before 2007 it was common for devices to have a numeric keypad orQWERTY keyboard in either a candybar or sliding form factor. However, by 2010, there were no top-tier smartphones with numeric keypads. As of 2014, BlackBerry Limited – with a 0.6% share of the market in Q4 2013[28] – is the sole remaining brand of high-end smartphones with physical keyboards.
The future[edit]In 2013, the Fairphone company launched its first "socially ethical" smartphone at the London Design Festival to address concerns regarding the sourcing of materials in the manufacturing.[29] In late 2013, QSAlpha commenced production of a smartphone designed entirely around security, encryption and identity protection.[30] In December 2013, the world's first curved-OLED technology smartphones were introduced to the retail market with the sale of the Samsung Galaxy Round and LG G Flex models.[31]
Foldable OLED smartphones could be as much as a decade away because of the cost of producing them. There is a relatively high failure rate when producing these screens. As little as a speck of dust can ruin a screen during production. Creating a battery that can be folded is another hurdle.[32] Samsung fully foldable phones are expected around 2016 to 2017.[33]
A clear thin layer of crystal glass can be added to small screens like watches and smartphones that make them solar powered. Smartphones could gain 15% more battery life during a typical day. The first smartphones using this technology should arrive in 2015. This screen can also work to receive Li-Fi signals and so can the smartphone camera.[34] The cost of these screens per smartphone is between $2 and $3, much cheaper than most new technology.[35]
Near future smartphones might not have a traditional battery as their sole source of power. Instead, they may pull energy from radio, television, cellular or Wi-Fi signals.[36]
In early 2014, smartphones are beginning to use Quad HD (2K) 2560x1440 on 5.5" screens with up to 534 ppi on devices such as the LG G3 which is a significant improvement over Apple's retina display. Quad HD is used in advanced televisions and computer monitors, but with 110 ppi or less on such larger displays.[37]
In 2014, Wi-Fi will continue to become the primary network for smartphones. As these devices do more and more with data and Wi-Fi becomes more prevalent and easier to connect to, Wi-Fi First smartphones service will start to take off.[38][39][40]
Since 2013, water and dustproofing have made their way into mainstream high end smartphones instead of specialist models with the