Top 10 highlights of 2011 and predictions for 2012
2011 has been an exciting time for the mobile industry seeing many changes take place, some of which were on the cards and others totally unexpected. With consumers increasingly using their mobile devices for more than just calling and texting, internet usage and app downloads soared leading to a highly competitive smartphone and tablet marketplace.
Looking forwards, certainties for 2012 include the release of new iPhones and iPads from Apple. New BBX based RIM smartphones. Further Windows Phone updates from Microsoft and the new Windows 8 designed for tablets and other touch devices.
So, as the year draws to an end let’s take a journey through some of the significant highlights of 2011, and cast our gaze into the future to make some predictions for 2012.
2011 highlights
1. The number of smartphones sold worldwide saw a 63 percent increase compared to the same period in 2010
2. The growth of Android continued, rising 194% from Q3 2010 to Q3 2011. Carriers now sell many more Android phones per month than iPhones
3. Android released the Ice Cream Sandwich update at the Galaxy Nexus launch. This is a significant update melding the tablet and smartphone operating systems together, while also adding new features including speech recognition and Android Beam which uses NFC to let a pair of phones share data on contact
4. Nokia abandoned its Symbian and MeeGo operating systems in favour of Windows Phone 7
5. Whilst the iPad has lead the tablet market in 2011 the launch of the Kindle Fire at the end of this year may prove to be one of the biggest threats to the iPad dominance in tablets. Amazon have reported shipping 3 million Kindle Fires to meet demand for the $199 tablet
6. Adobe pulls Flash support for mobile devices, HTML5 is ushered in offering a much easier method for developers allowing them to create one build that runs in the browser on any device you use
7. The cloud grew significantly during 2011. Organisations and consumers alike are seeing the benefits and shifting into the cloud
8. Amazon reports that it now sells more e-books than print books as demand increases for e-readers
9. Google took steps to ensure its remains in this position by buying Motorola, gaining not only its massive patent portfolio but also a hardware division for its mobile OS.
10. HTML5 has gained enormous traction this year, with strong backing from Google, and Pandora, Kindle Cloud Reader, Facebook, Twitter all launching HTML5 sites.
2012 predictions
1. Facebook is confirmed as the most popular mobile site in western countries. The social network also ranks in the top 5 mobile app platforms (by downloads and revenue), along with iOs, Android Market, Amazon and Opera Mobile
2. Pay per play dominates subscription-based services for streamed media, especially music. Amazon sells more streamed video content than DVDs
3. The media shifts its attention to Android over Apple as the platform that shapes technology for the mobile market. Apple finally releases an iPhone and iPad with LTE / 4G technology in the USA
4. More leading internet giants declare mobile is the heart of their corporate strategy. Most seek to partner with mobile experts to gain a competitive advantage and differentiate
5. Athletes run faster than ever in the 2012 Olympics but UK mobile networks strain under the load of millions of people visiting London for the games
6. RIM launches one of the best looking and most advanced smartphones yet seen. But it is marketed and distributed by a different company……
7. Sizable mobile NFC deployments continue to be slow to materialize. More mobile wallets enter the market
8. Law firms forecast a record year for fees billed on the back of mobile patent litigation
9. Apple mulls a bid to takeover Microsoft
10. 2012 does not turn out to be the end of time, the apocalypse, geomagnetic reversal or….
