From the early 90's thru the release of the iPhone the biggest driver in the cell phone industry was making them smaller and cuter. The iPhone openned up new possibilities and we now know that smaller isn't always better. The iPhone was pretty close to the ideal compromise in size but the newer phones from HTC (HD2, Evo) and the obvious improvement in UI they offer show that as close as Apple came with the iPhone they erred a bit on the small side. This is not surprising given the 15 plus years of ever smaller phones that preceded the iPhone.
The Apple lawsuits against HTC are not likely to be successful on the merits and I think Apple knows this but if they can convince enough buyers to shy away from HTC then they buy time to upgrade the iPhone to close the gap with HTC. Now, as I've said before, I doubt the next iPhone will be physically larger and I think the screen resolution may also stay the same but if they change the screen the most likely change will be a higher resolution screen of the same size.
More broadly, smart phones will get bigger following the HTC path and the resolution will also increase. The uP will also get faster and as feature sizes continue to shrink the power needed will either stay the same or decrease. Of course the need for more memory is a constant. I see USB 3.0 and a next gen wifi that simplifies by eliminating the need for bluetooth.
On the OS/software side I see the phone becoming much more like a PC with file folders and the ability to run MS Office. I think the next year or two will see the smart phone become more printer friendly with direct to wifi printer output. The smart phone has made big inroads in the business world but the next push is likely to be in the consumer space. TV/AV remote controls WITHOUT the need for special third party boxes. Games. Operate/monitor machines.
Brian
The Apple lawsuits against HTC are not likely to be successful on the merits and I think Apple knows this but if they can convince enough buyers to shy away from HTC then they buy time to upgrade the iPhone to close the gap with HTC. Now, as I've said before, I doubt the next iPhone will be physically larger and I think the screen resolution may also stay the same but if they change the screen the most likely change will be a higher resolution screen of the same size.
More broadly, smart phones will get bigger following the HTC path and the resolution will also increase. The uP will also get faster and as feature sizes continue to shrink the power needed will either stay the same or decrease. Of course the need for more memory is a constant. I see USB 3.0 and a next gen wifi that simplifies by eliminating the need for bluetooth.
On the OS/software side I see the phone becoming much more like a PC with file folders and the ability to run MS Office. I think the next year or two will see the smart phone become more printer friendly with direct to wifi printer output. The smart phone has made big inroads in the business world but the next push is likely to be in the consumer space. TV/AV remote controls WITHOUT the need for special third party boxes. Games. Operate/monitor machines.
Brian
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