Category: Smartphone
August 6th, 2014 by Elma Jane
Scanning your groceries yourself with the supermarket’s handheld scanner is something you may well have already done. Instead of waiting in line for a cashier to scan, tally and bag your groceries, you save time by scanning as you go and doing your own check-out. However, now in certain grocery stores you can go even further by using a bar code scanner app in your own smartphone to scan each grocery item you’re buying and to expand your shopping experience by receiving personalized offers, syncing with loyalty cards and tracking your budget while you shop. The first supermarket company in the United States to make this available to customers has been the Stop & Shop Supermarket Company LLC, with its Scan It! Mobile app service. Starting with three grocery stores and plans to roll out the capability to 45 more of its stores in Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut. The company could extend the service to the 400 or so grocery stores it operates in total, including the other states of New Hampshire, New York and New Jersey.
How Can You Use a Bar Code Scanner App?
By using a grocery shopping app like this in your smartphone, you can not only get directions on how to find the store in the first place, but once you’re there, you can also get relevant and specific offers according to where you are in the store and what you’ve already bought. With targeted coupons being sent to your smartphone for each shopping trip, you can save money as well; Stop & Shop estimates possible savings for customers on groceries of between $250 and $500 per year. The grocery shopping app also gives customers access to online accounts, including checking for gas points, A+ School Rewards and personalized savings, as well as to daily information about sales promotions for stores in general. To use the app to scan your groceries, you aim the camera of your phone at the bar code of a grocery item to see the price on your phone screen and to add it to an electronic shopping basket. When you’ve finished shopping, the bar code scanner app transmits the information via the supermarket’s Wi-Fi network to the point of sale, where you pay as you would normally. The same wireless network also allows the retailer to send you personalized information.
Happy customers and increased sales are not the only benefits for grocery stores making such bar code scanner apps available to customers with smartphones. Because the customer has in effect already financed the scanning device (the smartphone), grocery stores can envisage making corresponding savings by reducing the amount of in-store scanners they have to buy, as well as decreasing labor costs, which are typically between 12% and 15% of their total expenses.
Check Your Smartphone Compatibility
Using your mobile to do this means having a compatible smartphone. Currently for the Scan It! Mobile grocery shopping app you’ll need either an iPhone 3GS or 4G, or a compatible Android device. The list validated so far includes Android 2.2 running on Nexus One, Motorola Droid1, Samsung Galaxy, and HTC Thunderbolt 4G. The app can be downloaded for free at the Apple App Store or the Android Market.
Posted in Mobile Payments, Mobile Point of Sale, Smartphone Tagged with: Android device, Android Market, app, Apple App Store, bar code, bar code scanner app, coupons, electronic shopping, HTC Thunderbolt, in-store scanners, Iphone, loyalty cards, mobile app, Mobile app service, Mobile grocery shopping app, Motorola Droid1, Nexus One, online accounts, point of sale, Samsung Galaxy, scan, scanner, shopping app, smartphone, Stop & Shop, Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi network, wireless network
July 21st, 2014 by Elma Jane
PayPal has begun testing a new loyalty program called PayPal Select that seeks to promote use of the digital-payments network by offering more rewards for its most active members. The program launched by invitation only based on users’ history on PayPal and follows by about 18 months the cancellation PayPal’s previous loyalty program, PayPal Advantage. As PayPal looks to continue to build its volume of use on mobile devices off of eBay, driving repeat use and loyalty will be key. The challenges for the offer part will be the same as any other deal/offer program – namely the quality of the offers and inbox-offer fatigue. Like any big-screen concept that gets downscaled onto mobile, there is the challenge of how to hook people in the first couple of screens. CreditCall is not involved with PayPal Select. The payment platform is a division of San Jose, CA-based online auction giant eBay. It offers both a mobile app and an m-dot site for mobile payments.
Posted in Mobile Payments, Smartphone Tagged with: CreditCall, digital-payments network, ebay, loyalty program, m-dot site, mobile, mobile app, Mobile Devices, Mobile Payments, PayPal, PayPal Advantage, PayPal Select, rewards
July 14th, 2014 by Elma Jane
French financial services company LCL has introduced a service that securely issues payment card PIN codes to customers via SMS texting. The programme has been introduced initially for cardholders who forget their confidential code when out shopping or withdrawing cash. In a second phase, the bank intends to extend PIN issuance to coincide with the mail-out of newly-created cards.
LCL is using Gemalto’s Netsize platform, which offers direct connections to more than 160 mobile operators globally for message delivery. LCL recognizes the mobile channel as a new opportunity to support their continued drive to optimize card activation rates and be the top-of-wallet choice for payment. Enabling cardholders to get their PIN code on their mobile phone prompts them to start using their banking card as soon as they receive it.
Posted in Best Practices for Merchants, Mobile Payments, Smartphone Tagged with: bank, card, cardholders, codes, customers, mobile, mobile channel, payment, PIN, Rates, sms, wallet
June 12th, 2014 by Elma Jane
QR: The Bridge to the Modern World
Involvement devices have come a long way from the time of Clearinghouse mailings, where you would peel off a label and stick it onto another page before dropping it back in the mail.
Today, print’s best involvement device is the QR code. It works as a portal or bridge into the mobile online world where the cataloger’s brand lives and breathes in real time. Even better, it can lead the customer from the catalog page to the checkout button on their smartphone within minutes.
The printed catalog delivers rich colors and a personal, tactile experience still not attainable through any mobile device. In many ways, though, it is a vestige of a bygone era, and an expensive one at that. Catalogers know this. Even the U.S. Postal Service also knows this. That’s why the USPS is running a postage discount promotion for the second year in a row this summer to encourage the use of QR codes by direct mailers.
Let’s take a quick look at the way a few catalogers are using QR codes.
Anthropologie
Anthropologie’s marketing strategy is more about selling a lifestyle than selling products. That explains why making it easy for customers to move toward actually buying something doesn’t seem like such a big priority in their catalog. They did not include a QR code anywhere. The closest they came was one line next to the address: For store information, go to www.anthropologie.com. Their 800 number, they do take phone orders is printed only once in tiny type, so having no QR code seems to fit in with their attempts to play hard to get. Marketing critique aside, by not using a QR code on their catalog, they are missing the opportunity to draw customers into closer involvement with their brand, whether or not they intend to make an immediate sale.
Best Practices
With these few examples in mind, it’s time to look at best practices for using QR codes in catalogs, which can be a two-sided equation. There is the technical aspect and the branding/selling aspect. As far as the technical side goes, customers need to use their smartphone to scan the code successfully, and the destination on the other end must be optimized for mobile access. Sometimes the hardest part is organizing the resources required to execute the backend side of things, especially if the goal is to make an immediate sale.
The main thing to consider is that QR codes work as a bridge and that bridge is a smartphone, iPad, or some other tablet with all their usual constraints (screen size, internet connection, quality of camera, QR reader app, user proficiency, etc.). Also, don’t assume that everyone has a QR reader or even knows what a QR code is. Especially in catalogs, where customers have been seeing postal service barcodes for years, people may assume that the pixelated square thing is just something else for the USPS to lose money on. Instead, including a brief call to action to scan the QR code should do the trick.
Crossing the Bridge
Getting customers to scan the QR code is only half the battle. Now you need to make sure they feel it was worth their while to scan. It’s all about the next steps in your customer relationship. If you have an Apple or Android app, then that’s where to send people if you know that you can convert sales successfully on mobile devices. Sending them to your Facebook fan page is an option too, but not a big win if a majority of your customers are already fans.
Special promotions, optimized for mobile access, will certainly earn your QR its keep. If your goal is to inspire a trip to one of your stores, then do what Brookstone does and send customers to a Google map with all store locations within a hundred miles. It’s also possible to send scanners to a dedicated page, again, optimized for mobile where you give them a number of options: Facebook, shop, app, etc.
Delia’s
By appealing to fashion-hungry American teens via retail stores, web, and catalog, Delia’s sold over $220 million in 2011. In the single catalog we looked at, Delia’s had a QR code on its back cover. When scanned, the code points to Delia’s Facebook page. That’s certainly one way to build involvement with the Delia’s brand, but it may not be the best. Delia’s has an Apple app with full e-commerce capabilities, so Delia’s could be missing out on the opportunity to help the customer cut to the chase and get straight to their virtual shopping bag. Still, at least they’re using the code.
King Schools
Unless you’re a pilot in training or know one fairly well, you have probably never heard of King Schools. They offer more than 90 flight training courses, plus all sorts of accessories for pilots-in-training. They have no retail stores, but that’s all the more reason to mention them here, retailers can learn a lot from King Schools about how to use QR codes in their catalogs.
In the one catalog, King used a QR code on the front cover and the back cover. Now, the iPad shows enormous potential for use in general and commercial aviation, so King is smart to use their QR codes to point customers directly toward their mobile apps and offerings. In fact, King Schools uses QR codes on the Take Courses on Your iPad landing page itself.
In most cases it seems counterintuitive to display a QR code on a website for people to scan. After all, they’re already there. It’s a smart use of codes in this case, for two reasons. First, the codes lead the customer directly to the Apple app store, so it actually makes sense to scan the codes even though the customer is already on their website. The customer is now just a few clicks away from buying and installing the app. Second, there is one QR code for their app store in general, and then there are unique codes for individual apps.
Technicalities
The content in a QR code tops out at 4,296 alphanumeric characters, but catalogers only need a fraction of that to get the customer to where they want them. However, even when the character count is down to a few dozen, size does matter, because QR codes with more data embedded in them are more complex visually. This means that even smartphones with the latest and greatest optics will have trouble reading densely populated codes. Make sure the QR code is big enough. Even the simplest codes will frustrate the scanning process if they are too small or if there isn’t enough white space around them. Maybe a QR code isn’t the most photogenic thing in the world, so it’s a good challenge for catalog art directors to incorporate it into the design without shrinking it into oblivion.
More sophisticated catalogers will want to use personalized QR codes. Today, even local printers are likely to have the means to print unique QR codes for each recipient in a mailing. This creates the ability to track scans back to the individual, a marketer’s dream when it comes to one-to-one marketing relationships.
Innovation can get you traction within the social media realm and that’s money in the bank. Whether you’re a major catalog player or using QR for something completely different, always consider getting the marketing and PR people involved to leverage any novelty aspects of the application.
The benefits pile up quickly to those catalogers who take the time to get smart about QR codes. Thick catalog books can be thinned down a bit if QR codes succeed in pulling customers from the page and onto their site or apps, cutting postal costs for the millions of mailings every year. And, even if the cataloger doesn’t go to the extreme of printing unique QR codes, the branding value of offering that connection from the old-style printed piece to the dynamic world of interactive mobile technology makes it well worth the effort.
The ink needed to print a QR code on a major retailer’s catalog might weigh only a fraction of an ounce, but when used right, it’s worth its weight in gold. Too bad the majority of catalogs seem to be squandering the opportunity by underutilizing the code or worse, not including any at all. In a world where an integrated multi-channel approach is a must-have for any retailer to survive, the stakes of leveraging every opportunity for interaction are higher than ever.
Posted in Best Practices for Merchants, Smartphone Tagged with: Android app, Anthropologie, app, Apple, bank, barcodes, Best Practices, Brookstone, clearinghouse, code, commercial aviation, Crossing the Bridge, customer relationship, data, data embedded, Delia’s, e-commerce, Facebook, google, Google map, interactive mobile technology, ipad, King Schools, marketing, mobile, mobile access, mobile device, mobile online, mobile technology, multi-channel, phone, portal, Postal Service, QR code, QR reader, retail stores, scan, scanners, smartphone, social media, tablet, USPS, virtual shopping, web, website
June 3rd, 2014 by Elma Jane
Apple announced new Touch ID API better known among the masses as fingerprint ID, which will allow app developers to use fingerprint authentication for mobile payments and other applications.
This means that in addition to protecting the mobile device itself, the technology can now be used also to secure individual applications on the device against unauthorized use. Customers could potentially use prints from different fingers to control different apps. For instance, right thumbprint for access to the device, left index finger for access to the mobile bank app within the device.
The new feature for third party software developers provides a logical progression for the removal of password protection across a range of applications, including payments.
Financial services providers who offer the convenience of a mobile application for their customers can now also offer said customers an additional layer of security for the information that application holds.
Posted in Credit Card Security, Mobile Payments, Smartphone Tagged with: app, Apple, bank, device, financial services, Financial services providers, fingerprint authentication, fingerprint ID, mobile, mobile application, mobile bank app, Mobile Payments, payments, Security, software, software developers, Touch ID API
May 30th, 2014 by Elma Jane
Southwest Airlines is now accepting mobile boarding passes at 28 total U.S. airport locations, its newest convenience feature that enables fliers to pass security and board an aircraft simply by waving their mobile device.
Following a tiered rollout from last year, the paperless boarding system requires minimal user action. Passengers check in via the Southwest mobile site or branded app and choose to view their boarding pass. The image will open in a new browser and can be saved to a device’s photo gallery upon request.
Mobile apps are critical touch points in the customer journey. Native and hybrid apps are continuing to dramatically increase the ability to deploy and optimize digital strategy. If you’re customizing the experience on mobile Web only, you’re missing a huge opportunity.
Long awaited arrival
New airline initiatives are offering a level of customer service that has never before been possible, and is transforming the experience of traveling to create a new barometer on which carriers will be judged.
Southwest offers two ways to attain an e-boarding pass: have one sent directly to a mobile device though electronic mail or text message when checking in online, or use the airline’s app to check in and have the pass appear with the option to save a replica to the photo gallery. When ready for boarding, passengers present their screen at both security checkpoints and gate entrance to be scanned by staff. In addition to mobile boarding pass support, the app also now includes upcoming trip cards that display flight information such as boarding position, gate location and access to flight tools such mobile check-in from the home screen.
IT takes flight
An industry wide Airline IT Trends Survey shows that more than 90 percent of airlines are increasing their investment in mobile capabilities to ease the hassles of getting through the airport and improve the in-flight experience. American, Delta, Continental and United are the biggest adopters of e-boarding support, offering the service from at least 75 airports. Mobile boarding passes are the preferred method for frequent fliers, as business execs and the like are constantly engaged with their handhelds. Paper passes also become more likely to be lost or wrinkled.
Another advantage of the electronic offering is that some travelers may not have access to a printer, and so a mobile boarding pass relieves the frustration of waiting on line at a kiosk. Of course there are also obvious drawbacks that may hinder the proposed convenience factor, one being that a mobile device may malfunction or run out of battery, resulting in a delayed trip or even a missed flight.
Mobile passes may also present a challenge if multiple people are traveling under one reservation. U.S. Airways and Continental restrict the service to one person per reservation. Other airliners allow each group member to check in line and have a separate pass sent to appropriate phones. While certain cons defeat the purpose of going mobile for efficiency reasons, the benefits offer peace of mind as airline carriers continue to improve the technology.
The option helps deliver more personalized and relevant experiences to on-the-go consumers leveraging a unified customer profile to collect, own and act on data not only on mobile apps, but also across kiosks and other platforms. This approach to mobile apps uniquely sets marketers free in terms of customization and delivery of the experience, and has delivered great results.
Posted in Smartphone Tagged with: airline carriers, airports, American, app, boarding pass, cards, carriers, consumers, Continental, customer service, data, Delta, digital, e-boarding pass, electronic mail, hybrid apps, mobile, Mobile Apps, mobile boarding, mobile device, Mobile passes, mobile site, mobile Web, phones, platforms, Security, technology, tools, U.S. Airways and Continental
May 29th, 2014 by Elma Jane
A point-of-sale facial recognition system that uses NFC to help combat card fraud has been created during a recent company hack-a-thon, together with a group of engineers and designers from Logic PD. Hackathon was an opportunity for experts to explore the possibilities of useful solutions to today’s challenges, with the recent significant breaches in security at leading retailers, the need for this type of solution is particularly meaningful.
The solution, is a multi-modal security platform for card purchases, uses NFC authentication combined with camera imaging to protect users. When users make a mobile payment at the point of sale, the kiosk snaps a picture of the purchaser. This image can be incorporated via the cloud into the user’s digital transactional record, which was stored and distributed via SeeControl in this example, allowing users to identify who made each purchase, and easily identify those that are fraudulent even before banks and financial institutions.
Posted in Credit Card Security, Mobile Payments, Mobile Point of Sale, Point of Sale, Smartphone Tagged with: banks, breaches, card, card fraud, card purchases, cloud, digital, facial recognition system, financial institutions, mobile payment, nfc, NFC authentication, platform, point of sale, retailers, Security, security platform
May 21st, 2014 by Elma Jane
Mobile credit card processing is way cheaper than traditional point-of-sale (POS) systems. Accepting credit cards using mobile devices is stressful, not to mention a hassle to set up and customers would never dare compromise security by saving or swiping their credit cards on a mobile device. Some of the many myths surrounding mobile payments, which allow merchants to process credit card payments using smartphones and tablets. Merchants process payments using a physical credit card reader attached to a mobile device or by scanning previously stored credit card information from a mobile app, as is the case with mobile wallets. Benefits include convenience, a streamlined POS system and access to a breadth of business opportunities based on collected consumer data. Nevertheless, mobile payments as a whole remains a hotly debated topic among retailers, customers and industry experts alike.
Although mobile payment adoption has been slow, consumers are steadily shifting their preferences as an increasing number of merchants implement mobile payment technologies (made easier and more accessible by major mobile payment players such as Square and PayPal). To stay competitive, it’s more important than ever for small businesses to stay current and understand where mobile payment technology is heading.
If you’re considering adopting mobile payments or are simply curious about the technology, here are mobile payment myths that you may have heard, but are completely untrue.
All rates are conveniently the same. Thanks to the marketing of big players like Square and PayPal – which are not actually credit card processors, but aggregators rates can vary widely and significantly. For instance, consider that the average debit rate is 1.35 percent. Square’s is 2.75 percent and PayPal Here’s is 2.7 percent, so customers will have to pay an additional 1.41 percent and 1.35 percent, respectively, using these two services. Some cards also get charged well over 4 percent, such as foreign rewards cards. These companies profit & mobile customers lose. Always read the fine print.
Credit card information is stored on my mobile device after a transaction. Good mobile developers do not store any critical information on the device. That information should only be transferred through an encrypted, secure handshake between the application and the processor. No information should be stored or left hanging around following the transaction.
I already have a POS system – the hassle isn’t worth it. Mobile payments offer more flexibility to reach the customer than ever before. No longer are sales people tied to a cash register and counters to finish the sale. That flexibility can mean the difference between revenue and a lost sale. Mobile payments also have the latest technology to track sales, log revenue, fight chargebacks, and analyze performance quickly and easily.
If we build it, they will come. Many wallet providers believe that if you simply build a new mobile payment method into the phones, consumers will adopt it as their new wallet. This includes proponents of NFC technology, QR codes, Bluetooth and other technologies, but given very few merchants have the POS systems to accept these new types of technologies, consumers have not adopted. Currently, only 6.6 percent of merchants can accept NFC, and even less for QR codes or BLE technology, hence the extremely slow adoption rate. Simply put, the new solutions are NOT convenient, and do not replace consumers’ existing wallets, not even close.
It raises the risk of fraud. Fraud’s always a concern. However, since data isn’t stored on the device for Square and others, the data is stored on their servers, the risk is lessened. For example, there’s no need for you to fear one of your employees walking out with your tablet and downloading all of your customers’ info from the tablet. There’s also no heightened fraud risk for data loss if a tablet or mobile device is ever sold.
Mobile processing apps are error-free. Data corruption glitches do happen on wireless mobile devices. A merchant using mobile credit card processing apps needs to be more diligent to review their mobile processing transactions. Mobile technology is fantastic when it works.
Mobile wallets are about to happen. They aren’t about to happen, especially in developed markets like the U.S. It took 60 years to put in the banking infrastructure we have today and it will take years for mobile wallets to achieve critical mass here.
Setup is difficult and complicated. Setting up usually just involves downloading the vendor’s app and following the necessary steps to get the hardware and software up and running. The beauty of modern payment solutions is that like most mobile apps, they are built to be user-friendly and intuitive so merchants would have little trouble setting them up. Most mobile payment providers offer customer support as well, so you can always give them a call in the unlikely event that you have trouble setting up the system.
The biggest business opportunity in the mobile payments space is in developed markets. While most investments and activity in the Mobile Point of Sale space take place today in developed markets (North America and Western Europe), the largest opportunity is actually in emerging markets where most merchants are informal and by definition can’t get a merchant account to accept card payments. Credit and debit card penetration is higher in developed markets, but informal merchants account for the majority of payments volume in emerging markets and all those transactions are conducted in cash today.
Wireless devices are unreliable. Reliability is very often brought up as I think many businesses are wary of fully wireless setups. I think this is partly justified, but very easily mitigated, for example with a separate Wi-Fi network solely for point of sale and payments. With the right device, network equipment, software and card processor, reliability shouldn’t be an issue.
Posted in Best Practices for Merchants, Mobile Payments, Mobile Point of Sale, Smartphone Tagged with: (POS) systems, aggregators rates, apps, BLE technology, bluetooth, card, card processor, card reader, cash, cash register, chargebacks, consumer data, credit, credit card payments, credit card processing, credit card processors, credit card reader, credit-card, customer support, data, data loss, debit card, debit rate, device, fraud, fraud risk, hardware, industry experts, merchant account, Merchant's, mobile, mobile app, mobile credit card processing, Mobile Devices, Mobile Payments, mobile point of sale, Mobile processing apps, mobile processing transactions, mobile technology, mobile wallets, network, network equipment, nfc, nfc technology, payment solutions, payment technology, PayPal, phones, point of sale, qr codes, retailers, rewards cards, Security, Smartphones, software, Square, tablet, tablets, vendor's app, wallet providers, Wi-Fi network, wireless mobile, wireless mobile devices
May 19th, 2014 by Elma Jane
T-Mobile customers who use their carrier’s Mobile Money app and prepaid card will now have surcharge-free access to more than 43,000 Allpoint-branded ATMs across the United States, through an agreement with the Allpoint Network. The Mobile Money program unites a money management app, a T-Mobile Visa prepaid card and the Allpoint surcharge-free ATM network on a single mobile device to provide customers many of the features of a checking account. With Mobile Money, registered T-Mobile wireless customers pay nothing when they use their T-Mobile Visa Prepaid Card to withdraw cash at an in-network Allpoint ATM.
When T-Mobile began developing the Mobile Money program, a key goal was to use the smartphone to help consumers both manage their money and keep more of it in their pocket. The Allpoint Network helps accomplish that mission with 43,000 surcharge-free ATMs found in many of America’s most popular retailers, made even more convenient by a free, easy-to-use Allpoint ATM locator within the Mobile Money app.
Easy access to cash, preferably without the surcharge imposed by the ATM owner, is at the heart of the most successful general-purpose prepaid card programs. Having access to Allpoint, the T-Mobile Visa Prepaid Card is a core component of Mobile Money by T-Mobile. Eligible cardholders looking for the nearest surcharge-free Allpoint ATM can use the Allpoint Network ATM locator, available online and as a free app for their smartphones.
Posted in Financial Services, Mobile Payments, Smartphone Tagged with: Allpoint ATM, Allpoint Network, Allpoint surcharge-free ATM network, Allpoint-branded ATMs, ATM locator, cardholders, checking account, free app, mobile device, mobile money, Mobile Money app, Mobile Money program, money management app, prepaid card, smartphone, surcharge-free, T-Mobile, T-Mobile Visa prepaid card, T-Mobile wireless
May 15th, 2014 by Elma Jane
Looking to buy a new business phone? Wait!!! A slew of hot new smartphones are set to launch in the coming months, 2014 has already seen its share of major releases. This spring, HTC unveiled the new HTC One M8, which packs a slick all-metal body and Samsung debuted the featured-packed Galaxy S5. Nokia also released the Lumia Icon, its new flagship Windows Phone. But some of the year’s biggest releases are still to come, including a new version of Apple’s iPhone and a follow-up to Samsung’s stylus-equipped Galaxy Note 3. Meanwhile, a new Android phone from startup OnePlus could make a splash.
Galaxy Note 4
Samsung is expected to launch a follow-up to the Galaxy Note 3 this fall, one of the best business phones ever made, thanks in part to the included S Pen stylus, which slides out from a slot on the phone’s chassis and turns the device into a note-taking machine. The phablet also boasts a stunning 5.7-inch display that’s big enough for real productivity tasks. Samsung hasn’t officially confirmed any details about the Note 3’s successor, but there are a few safe bets. For starters, fans can expect the line’s trademark stylus to return for the Galaxy Note 4. Its display meanwhile, should rival the Samsung’s newer Galaxy S5 in terms of brightness and picture quality. Finally, considering Samsung packed a fingerprint reader into the S5’s home button, it’s likely the company will do the same for the Note 4. A fingerprint reader can make your business phone more secure, since only you can unlock the device with a quick swipe of your finger.
iPhone 6
Apple’s iPhone 5s is a great phone, but its compact 4-inch display could be too small for some people. Reports indicate that Apple might deliver a much bigger device in the iPhone 6, which is expected to debut this fall in 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch variants. That’s a big deal for business users who depend on their smartphone to stay productive but prefer a larger display. Both models are also rumored to include a blazing-fast A8 processor, an upgrade over the speedy 64-bit A7 chip found in the iPhone 5s. The iPhone 6 is also expected to include the same fingerprint reader that debuted with the iPhone 5s. The reader is embedded in the phone’s home button, and lets you unlock the device simply by placing your finger on the button. And of course, the iPhone is the only smartphone that gives you access to Apple’s App Store, which features the biggest and arguably the best, library of business and productivity apps on any platform.
LG G3
LG is preparing to unveil a successor to its flagship phone, the LG G2 this spring. The so-called LG G3 could be one of the year’s most noteworthy business phones if it retains the G2’s superlong battery life. The phone ran for up to 11 hours in tests that involved continuous Web browsing, making it one of the longest-lasting smartphones ever made. In addition to longevity, the G2 boasts a snappy quad-core processor, a roomy 5.2-inch display and a handy multitasking feature called QSlide, which lets you run a second app in a floating window over your main app. That’s a plus for business users who need to juggle tasks such as responding to email while conducting research in a Web browser. LG hasn’t yet announced which features will get an upgrade for the LG G3, but fans won’t have to wait long to find out. The company is expected to show the device off at a special press event on May 27, though it’s not yet known when the phone will hit store shelves.
Lumia 635
Windows Phone fans saw the release of a new flagship device in the Nokia Lumia Icon this spring. Now, Nokia is following that up with the Lumia 635. A new midrange Windows Phone with a lower price point, that could make it worth a look for budget-minded business users, especially since the device runs on Windows Phone 8.1, a new version of Microsoft’s mobile operating system. One of the phone’s standout features is Cortana, a voice-activated personal digital assistant that can notify you of upcoming appointments, flight information, weather alerts and more. Also, new in Windows Phone 8.1 is the Action Center, which is similar to the notification hub found on both the Android and iOS operating systems. Just swipe down from the top of your phone’s display to view all of your alerts at a glance, and like every Windows Phone device. The Lumia 635 is fully integrated with the desktop version of Microsoft Office.
OnePlus One
The OnePlusOne set to launch this June, is a powerful new business phone with a unique set of features. The 5.5-inch Android device packs a huge display, a top-tier processor and a high-capacity battery. The phone also adds features you won’t find in many flagship phones, such as always-on voice commands. So instead of fiddling with menus and touch-screen controls, you can set an alarm, place an appointment in your calendar or access turn-by-turn directions by uttering a few words – even when the display is off. The OnePlus One also offers a few notable security features you won’t find in most other smartphones. For instance, the phone’s Privacy Guard setting lets you block individual apps from accessing personal information stored on your device. The OnePlus One also ships with built-in encryption for SMS text messages to ensure your private business communications remain private.
Posted in Smartphone Tagged with: Android, Android and iOS operating systems, Android device, Android phone, App Store, Apple's iPhone, Apple's iPhone 5s, chip, Cortana, desktop, device, digital, email, encryption, fingerprint reader, flagship phones, Galaxy Note 3, Galaxy Note 4, Galaxy S5, high-capacity, HTC, HTC One M8, hub, integrated, iOS, iPhone 6, LG G2, LG G3, Lumia 635, Microsoft, Microsoft Office, Microsoft's mobile operating system, mobile, Nokia, Nokia Lumia Icon, OnePlusOne, operating systems, phablet, phones, platform, Privacy Guard, processor, QSlide, S Pen stylus, Samsung, Security, slot, Smartphones, sms, stylus, swipe, top-tier processor, touch-screen controls, voice commands, web, Web browsing, windows, windows phone, Windows Phone 8.1