Andrew Orlowski

Collected Journalism

Tag: smartphones

  • Why didn’t Nokia become the next Sony?

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    Andrew Orlowski

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    When, a few years ago, I described Sony and Nokia as the only two companies who could call the shots in consumer electronics, a few eyebrows were raised. Sony, yes. But Nokia?

    I anticipated that success in smartphones would be a beachhead into a bunch of other consumer electronics markets. Few noticed that Nokia already made TVs and set-top boxes. It had just launched a games console, too.

    In fact, Nokia had began planning for “mobile multimedia convergence” in the

    … Read More

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  • Panic in smartphoneland

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    Andrew Orlowski

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    Google is set to give the mobile phone business a body blow today – the second punch in the guts it’s had this year. Apple delivered the first blow, by turning the operators’ subsidy model upside down – as well as making rival manufacturers look like knuckle-dragging Neanderthals. But Google’s arrival may prove to be more dramatic and far reaching for the business.

    Google is expected to give away the platform required to create a sophisticated smartphone to OEMs. Its … Read More

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  • Why I want the iPhone to succeed

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    Andrew Orlowski

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    The new thing

    I’m glad the iPhone’s is here – and I have very selfish reasons for wanting it to succeed. That’s because even without the cellular telephony, it looks like something I’ve been wanting to buy. But it’s also because after years of writing about smartphones, I’ve seen the established players become lazy and complacent, go down blind alleys, or standardize on horrible designs and feature sets. So the iPhone should focus minds wonderfully – it should raise the bar for everyone.… Read More

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  • Whatever happened to… the smartphone?

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    Andrew Orlowski

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    At one time, the future of mobiles looked simple. The smartphone was a new kind of gadget that was subsuming the pager, the camera, the PDA, the Walkman, and almost every other iece of technology you could carry – and offering it in volume at an irresistible price. Often free. Over time, every phone would become a smartphone.

    Expectations were sky high.

    A few years ago an American business consultant and author published a very silly book called ‘Smart … Read More

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