The phone market gets smarter

Although the majority of Americans still have regular “feature” cell phones (i.e. not a smartphone), Nielsen Wire is reporting that the number of smartphone users is growing so much so that by the end of 2011, half of the country will be smartphone users.

This probably isn’t a surprise to anyone. Smartphones are a newer a better technology and the longer it’s around, the more people are going to buy. What Nielsen doesn’t report on is how many smartphones are being made. After all, 21 percent have smartphones right now compared to 14 percent a year earlier. But how many more different types of smartphones are available now as compared to a year ago?

Not only is quantity contributing to the ever-increasing rise of smartphone users, but price is a huge factor. I’m a Verizon customer (thus, no iPhone for me), and if I’m going to buy a smartphone I can get the Samsung Omnia from as low as $9.99. The Droid Eris is $79.99 and the BlackBerry Storm 2 is $99.99. Overall there are 14 Verizon phones for under $100 (all of these prices include two-year contracts).

My next phone (when I get the money for it)

And other carriers aren’t skimping on smartphones for under $100: Sprint and AT&T both have nine each. The more inexpensive smartphones get, the more people who are going to buy them. The option is basically buying a smartphone for, say, $49.99 where you have the option of downloading apps and browsing the Web, or spending the same amount of money and not being able to do that.

Yes, smartphones do cost more per month. That’s where they get people. I’ve seen it happen to myself and my friends. What happens is that you get hooked on using those extra features.

While smartphone growth has been steadily increasing, Nielsen is showing that the country is getting hooked on smartphones. It’s expected that the amount of smartphone users will start growing more rapidly.

By 2012 there will be more smartphone in the market than feature phones.

The iPhone dominates apps, but is that good?

When people are looking to buy a new smartphone, seeing how many apps (especially how many free apps) are available might help make the decision. All the others — Android, Symbian, Windows Mobile, RIM — have a few thousand and don’t even combine to equal Apple’s tally. After all, Apple has more than 100,000 apps by now.

When Peter Paul Koch pointed out (not without some swearing) that the iPhone only has 15% of the smartphone market he made a point that a lot of Americans (and I mostly mean the people I know) forget: there are other phones out there. The iPhone (and Apple in general) is considered hip. But RIM, with the popular Blackberry, has 20%, and Nokia is leading the charge with 39%. Android trails with 4%, but I don’t expect that number to stay so low.

Koch’s point is that web developers are going out of their way to make apps look good on the iPhone when they could be making apps for Symbian and getting 30% more people. (Symbian is Nokia, plus some SonyEricsson and Samsung, Koch explains). All the stats come from Tomi Ahonen.

All of the focus on a smartphone that has a small share of the market will eventually mean everyone will want that smartphone or web developers will start making apps for other phones. I sincerely hope it’s the second.

Some holiday shopping

Getting cool gifts for people is difficult. Getting tech gifts for people can be even more difficult because of the price tags attached to everything. But now that Thanksgiving is over and the leftover turkey is finally out of your fridge you can start looking for those gifts you still haven’t bought for the upcoming holidays.

On the low end:

For someone into fitness there are two cool options out there: The Nike + iPod kit and the Fitbit.

Now Nike + iPod is initially cheaper at $29, but it works with a Nike+ shoe, otherwise you should buy the pouch for the shoe sensor. This kit is nice because you can go online where your results will post and, thanks to the nature of competition, you can try to be better than others.

Fitbit is $99 and can automatically synchronize with your computer within a certain distance of it. Fitbit is also small so it can slip into your pocket or clip onto your clothes. The device also monitors your sleep patterns and soon it will also be connected socially online.

In the middle:

The Flip Video camera can be bought from as low as $149. It’s cell phone-sized camera records videos and can capture still images from the videos. Also, it has a built-in USB connector so you don’t need wires and cables to connect to a computer.

The high end:

There are so many to count, so I’ll give a general nod to smartphones and netbooks. These are expensive.

Smartphones, like Droid, Blackberry, iPhone, etc. are usually around $150-$200, but I’ve added them into the “high end” category because to make a smartphone really worth it the monthly fees for e-mail and Internet will really get the price up.

Netbooks are so convenient, especially for the person who doesn’t want something too big but wants to be able to get online. The Toshiba Mini NB205 is small with a 10 inch screen but it has a long, 9 hour battery life. And it’s $400.

Another neat netbook is the Litl. The screen flips so it can be used like a regular laptop or stood up like an easel or picture frame. However, this is pricey and will run you $700.