Business Mobile World

The figures are in for December 2009 and we can now reveal the best selling business mobile phone for the month. And the winner is........

The Samsung M110. Back on top after a four month break, although it has never left the top 6. This hard-wearing phone, ideal for those in manual trades, is dustproof, water resistant and shockproof. Free on even the lowest of tariffs it makes sense for businesses where breakages of "ordinary" mobile phones are commonplace.

A re-entry at 2 for the Nokia 6303. A solid unit for business users everywhere, this no fuss handset sells by the bucketload to businesses with basic mobile needs of talk and text.

Third place was occupied by the Apple iPhone. The intuitive nature of the iPhone's user interface is catching on with business users who like their touchscreen phones. Plus the constant media attention means that this handset is never far away from the thoughts of many looking for a new phone.

RIM take fourth and fifth with their BlackBerry 8520 and BlackBerry 9700 respectively. We have no problem selling BlackBerry phones to businesses where email is a prime driving force behind their choice of handset. Still the first choice manufacturer for many business users.

Nokia fill four of the remaining places with their 6300, 2700, 6600 and 7100. Samsung break in at 7 with their B2100. Another phone built along the lines of the aforementioned M110 this is a rugged phone for hardworkers.

A top 10 filled with sensible business mobile choices (iPhone excepted!). Each month is becoming fairly similar with only 4 manufacturers represented. No sign of LG or Sony Ericsson, they seem to be very much concentrating on consumer mobiles.

No entries for HTC either. They make good phones for the business user but many seem to shy away from them as they are not a household name. Their recent TV advertising may address these issues so look out for them making an appearance in the top 10 in the coming months.

Finally a reminder - we can help your business with its mobile phones and we don't only stock the phones shown in our top 10 listings. We can get you any handsets on a variety of business mobile tariffs with all of the major mobile networks. Contact us for your free quote.

Reports are that over the Christmas period Samsung have been outselling Nokia and have gained the crown of most popular mobile phone manufacturer. This is for all mobile phone handsets, including consumer phones, rather than just business mobile phones, where Nokia are still the best sellers, at least according to our own in-house figures.

The rise of Samsung is led by a series of fun and funky handsets, often low cost, that appeal to the generation buying the most handsets. For business users the colour and design of a phone is less likely to impress. It's the phone features at the top of the list when choosing a handset.

Samsung do make mobile phones for business users, notably the durable and hardwearing "builders" phones. The Samsung Solid Extreme is one such example offering water and dust resistance and compliance with MIL-STD-810F. This means it can survive military standard testing including exposure to high and low temperatures, rain (including wind blown and freezing rain), humidity, sand and dust exposure, shock and random vibration.

Nokia, on the other hand, are still producing good, solid phones, ideal for business users but without any great innovation or fanfare that is going to rival Apple's iPhone or Google's new Nexus One. They persevere with series phones, such as the N series, even though they are tarnished by bad reviews and software problems in the past. Once people become aware of such problems they are less likely to trust such phones in the future, even when the problems have been sorted.

Expect a fightback from Nokia soon, although with a host of non-traditional manufacturers such as Apple and Google entering the market as competition with their own USP it is going to be hard work to win back a sizeable chunk of market share in the consumer arena.

The business mobile market is moving too and new technologies will be adopted by business buyers looking for better ways to interact with their customers. It moves much more slowly but it is definitely moving. BlackBerry and Nokia need to be on their mettle if they are to keep up with the young guns, particularly if Google do decide to aim their next handset at the business user as is rumoured.

Business mobile buyers also need to keep their eyes on the new technology and think how it could help improve their business efficiency. For some free advice get in touch with us and let us show you how the latest handset technology can help you connect with your customers and make more sales.

Technology moves on apace and no area is moving faster than mobile phones. With the continuing rise in sales of SmartPhones, including GPS and always-on connectivity, the possibility to provide location-based services combined with mobile phone payment will be here soon.

This will allow you to receive information, offers and discounts on products and services based on your location. You might be walking along the high street nearing a large retail store and suddenly your phone beeps and a discount voucher appears on your screen. You visit the retailer, swipe your voucher to receive your discount, and swipe again to pay for your goods.

This will undoubtedly make life easier, particularly in paying for small items when you don't have any cash in your pocket. However the temptation to overspend will definitely be there for some. Also a lot of small impulse purchases can soon add up to a tidy sum at the end of the month.

It is also be possible to use your phone as a shopping assistant, taking a photo of an item in a shop and using an app to find info about it and get the best price. Apps could also be involved in money transfer between phones, so you could see car boot sales where the goods are bought by a shake of a couple of mobile phones and the money transferred from buyer to seller.

The security of the mobile payments will need to be excellent and combined with transaction limits to limit spending if people are going to adopt this technology. But any minor objections from people are likely to be overcome and many of the iPhone generation are going to want to get involved with this straight away.

They are the same people who will be using the new features on social networking sites which will enable you to see where your friends are and broadcast your location to your friends to meet up. The issue of privacy here is paramount but not insurmountable. There may be plenty of people who you don't want to know where you are!

Business applications for location tracking are already in use by many businesses who use device tracking systems to keep track of vehicles and employees during working hours. This enables the business to make savings and efficiencies and the systems can pay for themselves within a relatively short space of time.

By obtaining a free review from Business Mobile World you will find out how much you could save. Not only that but we can provide you with advice relating to the latest technology and handsets and how they could improve your business communications.

We appreciate that your time is precious so we make it as easy as possible for you to get the best current deal and move seamlessly to a new network provider if necessary.

We can provide quotes and savings illustrations by phone, email or face-to-face whichever is easier for you.

With one of our small business plans you can get:

• Between 100 and 3,000 inclusive mobile minutes (dependent upon chosen tariff)
• Unlimited calls between all company mobiles
• Unlimited calls to all 01, 02 and 03 landlines
• Rollover unused minutes for 30 days
• Dedicated account manager
• Latest handsets free of charge

We can also provide small businesses with landline telephone services saving you up to 40% on your call charges, as well as a range of other services designed to help small business users. Get in touch with us for your free quote.

For larger business users we have a range of plans from the major networks and can provide integrated communication solutions bringing together mobiles, landlines, broadband and IT.

The use of wi-fi hotspots is set to treble within 2 years, fuelled mainly by the popularity of the Apple iPhone.

Wi-fi enabled mobile phones can access the internet and email via hotspots, often free of charge. They can also access these services in your home if you have a wireless router. The advantage of this is that wi-fi access falls outside of a standard contract and does not incur data charges.

However, not all mobiles have wi-fi capability and you need to check before you buy. Some cheap phones do have it yet some more expensive phones don't. It is likely that the vast majority of new phones will feature wi-fi.

The free public wireless network in Swindon, allowing all of the towns inhabitants free wi-fi access, is due to be completed in April. Should this prove successful it is likely other towns will follow suit. Access to Swindon residents will be time-limited each day with a charge for use beyond their initial limit. Visitors to the town will also be charged.

A solid choice if you are looking for a wi-fi mobile phone with internet and email is the BlackBerry Curve 8520 (pictured right). Ths features a full QWERTY keyboard which is useful for email and also for entering URLs for web browsing.

It doesn't cost a packet either. Contracts start at £25 per month with 500 mobile minutes, unlimited landlines, 250 texts and 500 MB of data. This includes a free handset (this deal is for business mobiles users).

Other features include:

• 2.64 inch screen
• full QWERTY keyboard
• touch-sensitive optical trackpad
• memory expandable up to 32GB
• Bluetooth
• 2MP camera
• BlackBerry OS (512mhz processor)
• BlackBerry's legendary mobile email
• Organizer
• MP3/MP4 player.

We offer a full range of wi-fi mobile phones for business users. Get in touch to find out more and for a free quotation.

The start of a new year is an ideal time to take stock of your business and plan your success for the coming 12 months. As well as gearing up to sell more of your products and services you should be looking at ways of saving money on your costs in order to maximise your profits.

A telecoms review from Business Mobile World will analyze all of your current communications including mobile phones, landline phones, broadband and mobile broadband showing you where savings can be made.

Additionally we can also help with new products and services including telephone systems, VoIP systems, website hosting, design and promotion - we offer a fully converged telecoms solution.

The benefits of a review for your business include:

• Saving money on each product
• Ensuring all products work together optimally
• Simplifying your billing (one monthly bill)
• One point of contact

At the moment you will probably have a number of different contracts for each of your communication components with different renewal dates. We can arrange for a smooth transition for each of these as they become due for renewal.

And the downside of getting a review? If we cannot save you money or improve your communications then you have total peace of mind that your current deal/s are the best available in the market. It's a win-win situation.

Best of all it's a free service. It won't cost your business a penny to see how much you could be saving and how your communications could be improved. Just contact us for your individual quotation.

This may be the last post before the 25th so a Happy Christmas to all of our customers, new and old, and a prosperous New Year.

Talking of New Year, the date for Vodafone's iPhone launch is now known. It will be on the 14th January 2010. Pre-orders are now being taken direct via their website although there don't appear to be any tariff details as yet.

Don't expect to see any startlingly different tariffs from either Orange or O2. It is likely that they will follow the other two networks both in terms of pricing and length of contract.

For the cheapest iPhone deals the best option could be Tesco Mobile who are offering 12 month contracts. It does mean that you have to contribute towards the cost of the phone initially but you are better off in the long run in terms of total cost. It also allows you to upgrade after 12 months which could be useful as it is likely the next generation iPhone or a variant will be released by then.

These are the deals for individual customers. For iPhone business mobile contracts get in touch with us for your tailored quotation. We have a wide range of business mobile tariffs from all of the major networks and can assist with a single iPhone or multiple iPhones for all of your employees.

The New Year is an ideal time for businesses to take a look at all of their outgoings. Remember we can help with a wide range of telecoms providing your business with an integrated solution and saving you money in the process. Our quotes are free and without obligation.

Recent research suggests that over a quarter of UK businesses are unhappy with their broadband. This might be because the service is poor, with dropped and interrupted connections, or because the service is slooooowwww.

Many of these same businesses might have caused this problem themselves by choosing consumer grade broadband. This is the cheapest option, and, if you are only an occasional or light user, will probably do an OK job. However, these days businesses are more and more reliant upon email, the internet and mobile data devices. Having a slow connection is going to slow your business down.

The reason consumer broadband is always going to be cheaper than business broadband is the contention ratio. This is the maximum number of users on the line at the same time. With business broadband there are always going to be fewer users meaning that you get a bigger slice of the available capacity. This means a quicker and more reliable service for your business.

Admittedly it does cost more, but it is only a few pounds each month and you should really notice the difference. To find out more visit the business broadband page.

It's a similar story for mobile broadband. If you sign up on the cheapest deal you can find you are likely to experience problems with connection and speed. Before taking out a mobile broadband contract make sure that the coverage in your area, and in the areas you are likely to use it, is excellent. Also check the maximum download speeds.

Not all mobile broadband is the same and some networks offer a slower connection than others. When you bear in mind that the figures quoted are the maximum you could receive, rather than what you are likely to receive, a slower connection could be even slower than you thought.

What is the best business mobile contract for your business?

There is no easy answer to this question as all businesses are different and will use their handsets in different ways. Some will want a contract with lots of inclusive minutes but little else, others will be more focused on data and a mobile email solution.

Getting the right business mobile contract is especially important as contract terms get longer and longer. Very few 12 month contracts now exist and the norm is 18 or 24 months, with 36 month contracts also available.

If you are paying over the odds for your business mobile contract you could be stuck paying too much month after month for 24 months. This additional expense could add up to several hundred pounds, or even more for large users, over the course of a contract.

So how do you find the best deal for your business? Whilst there are only 5 main networks each of them have a wide range of business tariffs. If you multiply the number of networks by the number of tariffs by the number of available handsets the total you come up with is staggering.

Whilst you could trawl through all of the options yourselves it would be extremely time consuming and you could not guarantee getting the best deal. This is because dealing direct with the networks can be more expensive than using a third party broker, such as ourselves, in many instances.

Additionally if you deal direct you are likely to be provided with a lesser level of customer service, particularly if you are a small business user. We don't have call centres and you speak to real people, including your dedicated account manager, when you need to contact us.

All we need from you is some idea of the type of handset you need - we can advise on the best ones for your usage based on your current bills or we can discuss handset options with you. If we have a copy of your current bills we can also tailor a contract based on your exact usage.

If your usage fluctuates greatly month-to-month we can analyze a range of different tariffs to see which one would work out the best option for you in terms of monthly spend.

Taking out a contract with us need not involve changing networks. We can take over your existing contract at expiry providing you with new handsets where needed and adjusting your tariff to the optimum.

If you need/want to change networks we make sure that your changeover is smooth and trouble free and help out with obtaining PAC numbers for you to keep your existing numbers if required.

Basically we make your life easier whilst saving you money! If that is something your business would consider a useful service please contact us for a free discussion and quote.

After a few days without posting we are going to catch up on some of the latest news from the world of mobile phones.

Aino and Satio back in business?

Sony Ericsson have been suffering some software problems on two of their latest handsets, so much so that they were withdrawn from sale by some retailers. The software update fixing all of these issues is now available for current users of these phones.

Too early to tell if this will help with sales in the run up to Christmas which must have been severely affected by the much publicised problems. Would you buy a handset with known problems when there is so much choice out there and plenty of reliable and proven phones?

Driving whilst using mobile on the increase?

It's hard to believe that people still haven't got the message. Apparently mobile phone use whilst driving has doubled in the last two years according to a recent study. This is despite the increased fines and penalties and the easy availability of hands-free kits such as bluetooth headsets.

If you know someone who is regularly driving whilst using a mobile, do them a favour and wrap them up a hands-free device for Christmas. They're cheap and easy to find and most of them work very well.

Can prolonged use of mobile phones give you brain cancer?

Whilst it is still very early days, it would appear that the incidence of brain tumours has not increased (in Scandinavia at least where the report comes from) since the 1990s when prolonged usage of mobile phones first started.  

It's always better to be cautious and limit use of mobiles where possible, particularly for children, but it would appear that the risks are relatively small for the time being. Longer studies need to take place and manufacturers need to continue to reduce radiation from their handsets where possible.

Smartphones continue to dominate people's wishlists

With SmartPhones getting smarter and cheaper all the time it is very likely many will be making the switch in the run up to Christmas and getting an operating system on their phone, similar to that on their computer. This allows the easy download of applications, synching with your desktop or laptop and using software that is already second nature.

In the same way that computing power has increased exponentially in recent years SmartPhone technology is likely to do the same. For those that haven't dipped their toes into the water a budget SmartPhone can be free of charge on a monthly contract costing a few pounds. This will get you used to how they work, ready for the jump to a more powerful model in the future as the technology evolves.

If you are due your upgrade in the coming months get in touch to see how we could help you take your first step with a new SmartPhone for both business users and individual consumers.

Well, the best sellers for November 2009 despatched by us in any case.

We start with the best selling business mobile, which was also the best seller last month, and that is the BlackBerry Curve 8520. This "budget" BlackBerry has a full QWERTY keyboard and offers the usual BlackBerry email and data experience which is why business users love them so much!

In second place is the Nokia 6300. This has occupied a top 3 spot in 5 out of the last 6 months and in the other month was the fifth best seller! Again a solid performer for business users looking for a phone that does what they need without any frills.

Making its debut at 3 is the BlackBerry Bold 2 (9700). A new phone which builds upon the already excellent BlackBerry Bold and adds new features. At 4 is the BlackBerry Bold 9000.

Rounding out the top 5 is the "builders phone" the Samsung M110. It retains a position in the top 6 which it has held every month so far since we started reporting the top 10 business mobiles.

At 6 is the phone people seem to love or hate - the Apple iPhone. Very much overrated for business users, and thus overpriced too, it retains a following with business people choosing style over substance!

Nokia fill three of the remaining four places with the Nokia 2330 (7), Nokia E72 (9) and Nokia 3110 (10) with the Samsung S5230 spoiling the Nokia run at 8.

Orange have reported that they sold more than 30,000 iphones on their first day of offering the handset to their customers. There is no stopping the momentum behind the iPhone, particularly now that Tesco Mobile have announced they will be selling it online and in their mobile shops.

Tesco currently have around 100 mobile shops within their stores, a number which is set to grow to 200 during 2010. No tariffs have been announced but they claim they will be offering a little "Tesco value" to their customers.

Does this herald the start of a price war? Orange getting the iPhone certainly didn't, with tariffs set almost exactly the same as O2. Vodafone come into the market in 2010 and this extra competition may start the prices heading ownwards.

However, how much room for manoeuvre is there in the price? If you are paying £30 per month over 24 months your total outlay is only £720. With an iPhone GS costing in the region of £500 (probably a bit less to the major networks) there isn't much of a profit margin.

Whilst we can supply the iPhone to our business customers, we find that other handsets from Nokia and RIM (BlackBerry) are much more popular. It did pop into our Top 10 business mobile handset chart for August 2009 but hasn't been seen since.

As a business phone it doesn't offer any extra features above many considerably cheaper handsets. Businessmen with their heads screwed on understand value and understand that every extra penny spent on their mobiles is a penny off their profits.

So if you are looking for a business mobile phone and are considering the iPhone get in touch with us for some free advice and some cheaper (and better) alternative handsets that will save your business money month after month.

How easy is it to carry out crimes on the streets from behind bars? Well first of all you need to know the right people and you need around £400.

This is why there has been a call to jam mobile phone signals from an inspector. This would stop crimes on the streets, including drug trafficking, and bullying within prisons.

It is believed that there are 3 times as many mobile phones in circulation than have actually been seized. So going on figures from 2008, 7000 mobile phones where seized, with a black market value of 9million.  This means that there are potentially 21,000 mobile phones in circulation in UK prisons.

The prison service say that blocking signals is a slow and costly process but the technology is out there. For each prison to have the technology would cost £250,000 per prison.

But…will signal jamming affect the public outside the prison? Is the technology there to be specific with the signal blocking? Or will they have each individual network track signals from inside the prison and maybe get an imei block? Would that be possible and more cost effective? Or would that be too much work for the networks?

Interestingly at this moment in time it is not against the law to be in possession of a mobile phone in prison, the only law is on smuggling the phone into jail.

The new UK Mobile Phone Deals website is now live and ready for you to visit.

As well as offering business mobile phones, it also has links to consumer mobiles with a mobile phone shop offering free mobiles, the latest deals, offers and mobile phone extras.

There is a blog, online polls, mobile broadband section and there will be plenty more to come in the near future.

We intend to keep it updated with the latest mobile phone news on a daily basis, at least during the working week, and it will have different content to the stuff posted here on Business Mobile World.

It is based on the MojoPortal content management system and is an experiment in terms of its effectiveness in search engine optimisation. We will be keeping a close eye on it in the search engines to see if it does better or worse than the old site.

Further to the meeting held by Peter Mandelson with all 5 major network providers to have a Spectrum reframe (to hit Labour's Mobile broadband targets by 2012).

T-Mobile and Orange are now telling the UK regulator that they do not want to give up spectrum in exchange for regulatory approval of their planned merger. This isn’t going to please OFCOM as the merger will have 37% of mobile customers and over 50% of all available spectrum.

It will be unlikely that Vodafone and 02 will give up any of the 900mhz bandwidth if T-Mobile and Orange are not going to let go of any of their spectrum to meet Mandelson's 2012 targets. It should be remembered that there is a General election coming up next year which could change things!

What is Spectrum?

According to Wikipedia it is "the range of all possible frequencies of electromagnetic radiation". For more information read the Ofcom pdf relating to the Frequency Allocation Table which contains 224 pages of further info.

Author: Simon Hunt

Position: Telecommunications Consultant with 21C Telecom