As Smartphones have become readily available in the market
and not to mention affordable, an increasing number of professionals have
started using them as business devices to stay in touch with clients,
co-worker, subordinates, managers and even family members. This trend is only
expected to increase throughout the current year especially since broadband deals are aimed
at smartphone users. The same projections were made at the Consumer Electronics
Show (CES) last month that was held at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
According to recent figures, approximately 174 million units
of business smartphones were shipped globally during the previous year, 2011.
The projections for the current year stand at approximately 216 million units
to be shipped globally. This estimate may exceed, but there are very few chances
that this is an overestimation. If anything, it is a very conservative
estimate.
Business Smartphones Gain Popularity
At the CES a horde of slim business smartphones were
launched this year. The CES is considered as the biggest event of the year in
terms of consumer technology advancements and molding the latest industry
predictions. This year’s CES was proof of the increasing popularity of business
smartphones. According to Strategy Analytics, a global consulting and research
firm, the trend for choosing slim business smartphones is expected to continue
upwards due to the generally increasing popularity of smartphones being used as
devices for business purposes.
Business Smartphones and Security Issues
As Strategy Analytics researched further about the
increasing popularity of business smartphones they came across the security
issue that many organizations are facing. A reason for this increase in
smartphone usage was that great broadband deals are offered with them. As an increasing number
of organizations are giving their employee’s smartphones to keep them connected
with the company, they are also facing the issue of making these smartphones
secure to be used as business devices. Their main concern is to protect the
privacy of the organization and its business dealings.
It is a fact that being mobile has become a very important
factor for all executives. This is because they have realized the advantages
that being mobile can bring to a business opening by multiple opportunities for
them. But that also means that organizations are now focusing on devising
mobility strategies in order to protect their sensitive information from
competitors.
Plus, there are many organizations that have saved on costs
of providing a laptop or smartphone by the increasing adoption of BYOD
(bring-your-own-device) policies. All they have to do is make sure the access
to their information is secure. This is a ‘personal-liability’ user model
created to ensure a secure login and limited access to data and applications of
the organization.
Strategy Analytics also predicts that almost 55% of the
business smartphones in the world will be used on the personal-liability user
model. This suggests that organizations all over the world will be threatened
with many security issues to protect their information, which they need to
start addressing immediately if they want to control this issue ahead of time.
Most Popular Smartphones
Apple’s iPhone continues to be the most popular smartphone
used for business purposes, followed by Blackberry. This is expected given the
popularity of iPhone in general, but not good news for Blackberry as its main
target market is business professionals. Gaining up fast to these two are
Android based smartphones. iPhone holds about 45% of the market share, as of
last year’s ending quarter’s assessment.
Staying Connected: Effect on Professionals
In a survey carried out by iPass last year, it was
discovered that one-third of their respondents said they were getting less
sleep just because they are constantly connected to their business-matters
through their tablets and smartphones.
It was also discovered that almost 42% of the respondents
will have an emotional reaction if they are not able to access their smartphone
for any reason at all. 40% of these went out to say that they feel completely
disoriented if they are not able to access their smartphone.
Conclusion
Staying connected with a smartphone has perhaps become an
addiction. The constant updates and emails and receiving them real time makes
it all the more interesting. Plus, if you are bored there are thousands of apps
and games that you can download and pass your time. The convenience of using a
smartphone is hard to ignore and it is no surprise that the global shipments
for Smartphones are expected to rise by almost 42% in this year alone.
About the Author:
Eva
K is a Freelance and Staff writer who writes informative & creative
articles on Technology for various technology company. Her expertise
are in writing articles related to internet providers, broadband deals , mobile applications etc.
