MobileCon 2012 is the U.S. convention formerly known as CTIA MobileCon 2012. This isn't just a fall session of the CTIA convention in New Orleans.
It's a San Diego gathering of movers and shakers in the mobile computing scene, as well as tons of journalists and IT professionals looking to be moved and shook by the latest ideas and innovations in the field.
MobileCon 2012 will feature keynote speeches from industry leaders and demonstrations of the latest tech about to deploy in the enterprise workspace. Topics range from BYOD (bring your own device) security, cloud computing and peer-to-learning, to name a few.
MobileCon 2012 will be the convention for IT professionals and anyone whose lifestyle makes them a frequent telecommuter.
Huawei's growing pains
No, it's not "Hawai'i." Huawei's U.S. mobile device division has been in the country for more than five years, yet the company is still struggling to gain name and brand recognition.
Though phones like the Mercury help, deals that are "happening" with major carriers like Verizon will help elevate Huawei where it needs to be.
Will mobile payments take over in the US?
A panel of five executives took the MobileCon 2012 keynote stage to engage in a discussion as to what mobile commerce looks like and where it's going.
Success, to one exec, looks like one out of four Americans using a mobile wallet in 5-8 years. The issue of adoption, some said, lies in educating consumers on the need to actually chuck traditional payment modes.
OtterBox branching into water proof next year
It's hard not to like OtterBox, the plucky protective case company that's taken off thanks to its durable covers. The company had its paws at MobileCon 2012, showing off its new iPhone 5 cases as well as sleek tablet covers.
Look for a water proof case next year plus a host of other innovative devices, an Otter rep said.
Hands-on with the LG Mach
Do you miss the days of full QWERTY keyboard phones? Well, the folks at Sprint must. They'll be the exclusive carrier for the LG Mach, which combines a touch screen and slide-out keyboard for real texting power.
The LG Mach will take advantage of Sprint's 4G service, where available. Like the LG Optimus L9, it runs Android 4.0: Ice Cream Sandwich and LG's own Optimus 3.0 UI.
LG talks budget phones alongside flagships
While the Optimus G has gotten a lot of attention lately, LG isn't neglecting other sectors of the market. The T-Mobile exclusive Optimus L9 got to shine at MobileCon 2012, as did the LG Venice.
The Venice, priced at $219.99, hit Boost Mobile Wednesday, bringing an Ice Cream Sandwich Android to consumers looking for a deal.
Hands-on with the Nokia Lumia 810
When will we finally get to play with Windows 8 on a smartphone? Nokia's Lumia 810 was on the show floor, but we weren't allowed to turn it on and experience the OS goodness inside.
The Lumia 810 will be exclusive to T-Mobile's network in the U.S. The carrier hasn't yet started talking about release date or price, but has released the full hardware specs for the phone.
RIM demoes BB10, says to expect it Q1 2013
RIM CIO Robin Bienfait and Jeff Gadway, senior brand and marketing communications manager at RIM, talked up the company's upcoming OS, pointing to how it will revolutionize not just devices and OS's, but how users interact with their mobile machines.
It's inching closer to completion and final functionality, so look for it early next year.
Hands-on with the LG Optimus L9
On the show floor, LG unveiled the latest addition to its L-series of smartphones, the LG Optimus L9. This 4G capable phone will launch exclusively with T-Mobile.
The LG Optimus L9 packs a 1GHz dual-core processor and 1GB of RAM. Those specs put it heads and tails above its predecessor, the LG Optimus L7.
Hands-on with the HTC One VX
After the release of the awesome HTC One X, HTC is already refreshing its smartphone lineup. We got our hands on the HTC One VX, the budget minded but peppy handset with a 4.5 inch screen.
In the US, HTC's new line of mobile phones will be exclusive to AT&T. That's not just the One X+ and One VX, but also the Windows Phone 8X. They're all stylish devices with impressive specs.
Verizon coming up on big 4G LTE milestone
Oct. 18 is a day of celebration for Verizon as it rolls out its 400th (and then some) 4G LTE market, the carrier announced at MobileCon 2012 Tuesday.
Expect to see AWS devices and Voice over LTE in the coming year, too, while 4G LTE looks to take up as much spectrum space as 3G, the company's CTO said.
Sprint announces quartet of 4G LTE devices
Sprint came out swinging during the first official day of MobileCON 2012, revealing it will add four new devices to its lineup.
Among the gadgets are the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 and LG Optimus G, plus a nifty Tri-Mode USB and the QWERTY-carrying LG Mach.
Before the kickoff of MobileCon 2012, TechRadar created a list of products and news that we hoped to see at the CTIA-powered conference. Take a look at the 10 things we wanted to see at MobileCon.
1. Keeping up with the iPhone 5
The elephant on the exhibit floor and in the conference rooms will be how to compete with the iPhone 5. Apple, which won't be at MobileCon 2012, released the phone of the year (at least from a consumer perspective) and companies at this conference, like RIM, LG, Motorola, and HTC, need to lay the groundwork for a fruitful future moving forward.
Will introducing devices with features like NFC (which the iPhone 5 lacks), better maps (for which iOS 6 have been universally panned), and better coverage (we'll get to 4G LTE later on) be the ways these manufacturers at least stay in the same waters as Apple's latest offering?
We'll keep our eyes peeled for how carriers who don't have the iPhone 5 (here's looking at you, T-Mobile and Boost Mobile) and makers who don't produce iPhones can keep up with the hottest device to land in a very long time.
2. The future of NFC
The iPhone 5 is here, sans NFC. A bit of a surprise, considering those early reports that swore up and down that the chip had been spotted in Apple's new baby. It's even more surprising since iOS 6 introduced Passbook, an app that seemed perfect for near field communication. Perhaps Apple's distribution of the new OS to so many old iDevices made reliance on NFC impossible?
Does Apple's choice not to embrace NFC spell trouble for the technology, or does it create an opportunity for its competitors? With Google Wallet, Android may have the chance to lay down an infrastructure before its Cupertino competitors. With the show's focus on enterprise-level mobile solutions, MobileCon 2012 could be the place to unveil the beginnings of such an ecosystem.
3. 4G LTE, moving forward
Now that the aforementioned iPhone 5 has 4G LTE connectivity (Apple's first iPhone with the 4G force) and U.S. carriers are turning more and more of the country into an LTE zone, we want to know where carriers and manufacturers are taking the coverage moving forward.
During Pepcom's MobileFocus press event, we want to get our hands on what's next in the mobile and wireless space. With phones like the LG Optimus G, Motorola Droid Razr HD, and even the ZTE Anthem 4G by MetroPCS sporting quad-G capabilities, it's time to see where the industry is ready and willing to take it.
With a lot of catch-up left to do with Apple, how companies plan to compete connectivity-wise with the unofficial leader in mobile communications will be a huge part of this conference.
4. Samsung Galaxy S3
iPhone 5 or no iPhone 5, one of the 20 best phones on the market is still the Samsung Galaxy S3. While there are rumors of the Samsung Galaxy S4 on the horizon (though quickly denied by Samsung), and there seems to be no end to the legal troubles between Apple and Samsung, the S3 is still the flagship device. We'd like to see Samsung demonstrate how the S3 can be a true competitor to the iPhone 5.
The iPhone 5 has a letter of feathers in its cap: it's new, it's tall, it's thin and it's made by Apple. The S3, however, has NFC capabilities, a quad-core processor and a maps app that isn't struggling in its infancy. This is the showdown we want to see, and we're hoping Samsung will launch its a plan of attack at Mobile Con 2012 (one that will take place outside of a courtroom, preferably).
5 . PC relevancy
In a world where the portability and speed of tablets and smartphones have users turning to those devices before booting up a desktop or even opening a laptop, what is the future of dedicated computing devices? Will they morph into combination tablet/laptop machines like the Asus Vivo Tab or the HP ENVY x2? And what about desktops? Will they be for hardcore users only until they go the way of the dodo?
Are these the kind of questions IBM will address with its keynote at MobileCon 2012? Or will it confirm a headlong dive into the mobile space? In August we saw the IT giant sniffing around BlackBerry-maker Research in Motion with a possible acquisition in the air. IBM has been steadily expanding its cloud-based services like IBM SmartCloud for years now.
As a true force in the enterprise space, we're excited to see IBM's thoughts on the future of mobile and business, and how it plans to move forward and "build a smarter world," as the company likes to say.
6. The future of Blackberry
Blackberry was one of the companies that ushered in the smartphone revolution, introducing Internet-capable phones with full keyboards and color displays. Best of all, they could still make a decent call connection, something other phones struggled with for a long time.
However, just as quickly as they helped make sweeping changes to mobile devices, the company's market share began to shrink due to massive competition, and a network outage that damaged its reputation for reliability.
Blackberry needs a comeback, and it does seem possible. The BlackBerry Curve 9350 and BlackBerry Curve 9320 were both great smartphones, and we've seen good things from the upcoming BlackBerry 10.
While it seems to be courting consumers with its new tiled interface, business-level users have always been BlackBerry's bread and butter.
Robin Bienfait from Research in Motion (BlackBerry's parent company) will give a keynote speech at MobileCon 2012. This could be the perfect opportunity to win back some IT users.
7. Borderless Networks
Borderless Networks, according to Cisco they'll be what connect companies across continents, allowing them to share information and resources no matter where they are. However, with cloud services and Google hangouts already connecting teams world-wide, how can Cisco, or another company, further unify the experience?
And how can they remain safe and reliable? Splitting resources across the globe can be an IT nightmare, and we're interested to see if any other companies will have something to add to Cisco's Borderless Network solution, or perhaps launch something of their own.
8. Keeping our data secure
As more and more financial information makes its way onto our smartphones and into the digital space, security becomes a growing concern. After the recent Apple ID leak and the threat of Android malware, security across mobile devices has never been a higher priority, on both the customer and provider side.
MobileCon 2012 will be hosting a series of talks on cybersecurity. Speakers range from representatives of sectors both public and private, including the US Department of Homeland Security, the National Institute of Standards & Technology, the US National Security Agency, the Defense Information & Systems Agency, as well as security software giant Symantec. We're curious to see what this panel will have to say about data security in a world of borderless mobile networks.
9. iPhone 5 accessories and apps
With the iPhone 5 in the process of boosting the US GDP (hopefully), accessories and apps for Apple's new phone are set to become an industry unto themselves. Cases are already here, and third-party Lightning adapters are on the way.
The shortcomings of Apple's new iOS 6 are also creating plenty of opportunities for app makers and competitors alike. For example, Apple's new Maps app doesn't do public transit, which has many bus and train riders looking to third parties to calculate their commute. We're curious to see what will be unveiled at MobileCon 2012 to capitalize on the strengths and weaknesses of Apple's latest toy.
10. More companies with Passbook support
Apple touted its Passbook feature as just as good if not better than NFC, but so far few companies have joined the movement. We'd like this to change.
As MobileCon 2012 is an enterprise meeting space, we want some of these businesses to jump aboard the Passbook boat. One analyst projected Passbook could help bring Apple App Store revenue to $4.9 billion by the end of the year, but for now the application is very much a fledgling service.
While we're sure it will grow in time, we want MobileCon to provide a glimpse at the real potential Apple says its native service offers.
Source : techradar[dot]com
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