3 Key Trends in Mobile Phone Market

The worldwide phone market grew again in the second quarter, but the dividing line between what's universally considered practical (low-end feature phones) and what's hot (higher-end smartphones) is becoming more obvious.

IDC recently reported the worldwide mobile phone market grew 11.3 percent year-over-year in the second quarter of 2011. Sure, that's down from IDC's anticipated 13.3 percent quarterly target and the 16.8 percent growth recorded in the first quarter, but 11.3 percent doesn't seem too shabby during a time when the US and euro-area economies are floundering through a politically charged debt crisis, high unemployment, and other malaise.

Mobile makers still managed to ship 365.4 million units in the second quarter, 37 million more than the comparable year-ago period. The trend that really caught my eye, though, was this one: The second quarter booked a weaker feature phone market, which declined for the first time since the third quarter of 2009, noted IDC. The firm doesn't expect things to get much better in the low-end, low-cost feature phone segment either; feature phone shipment growth likely won't exceed 1.1 percent in any year forecasted by IDC, according to the report.

Then, there was this report in The Wall Street Journal, which reinforced what we all generally suspected: Citing data from market research firm Strategy Analytics, The Journal noted Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. overtook Nokia Corp., the longtime leader, in the global smartphone market during the second quarter. According to the article, Apple's share of the smartphone market rose to 18.5 percent in the second quarter from 13.5 percent a year earlier. Samsung's smartphone market share jumped to 17.5 percent from 5 percent. And, Nokia... well, the once-mighty leader saw its global market share tumble to 15.2 percent from 38.1 percent a year earlier.

While it's still anyone's guess how this will all shake out and whether the phone makers lower in the rankings could do anything to break into what's shaping up to be a fierce two-horse race, there are a few trends to keep a watchful eye on.

Between iPhone 4 and Samsung Galaxy S II, Which is the Winner?

The iPhone 4 is without doubt Apple’s latest and most competitive mobile phone. Can you think of a handset that can closely compete with it in terms of design, performance, and capability? For me, one device comes to mind and that’s the Samsung Galaxy S II. Perhaps you’re aware that the Galaxy S II is Samsung’s latest pride and joy. So, if you are thinking of buying one of these two handsets, I hope this comparison will help you decide!

Hardware
There’s an obvious winner when it comes to this end and Samsung Galaxy S II is it! You see, this is equipped with a 1.2GHz dual-core ARM Cortex-A9 processor, Mali-400MP GPU, Exynos chipset and 1GB RAM while the iPhone 4 only has a 1GHz processor with 512MB RAM. In addition, Galaxy S II has 16GB/32GB internal memory with microSD card support. iPhone has 16GB/32GB internal storage as well but no support for microSD card.

Operating System
The iPhone 4 operates on the iOS 4, the operating system which Apple dubs as the “world’s most advanced mobile operating system.” iOS 4 brings an elegant and responsive user interface, which means an easier and fun time tapping, swiping, dragging, pinching, flicking or twisting your fingers when accessing apps. The Samsung Galaxy S II runs on Android 2.3 Gingerbread and TouchWiz 4.0 user interface. This also provides excellent customizability and multitasking. Both OS are superior so it’ll just be on the user’s discretion and needs which one he or she opts for.

Display
Samsung Galaxy S II has a bigger display at 4.3 inches. It is a Super AMOLED Plus capacitive touchscreen with 480 x 800 pixels. Apple’s iPhone 4 has the new Retina display with 960 x 640-pixel resolution. The iPhone’s resolution may be higher but its 3.5-inch screen is small compared to the Galaxy S II.

Design
If you are after a small phone, the iPhone 4 is the best bet. It only measure 115 x 58.6 x 9.3mm and weighs just 137g! Take note that its thickest point is 9.3mm. However, you might think that it’s heavy when you look at it because of its stainless steel and glass industrial design. Apparently, the stainless steel edges add to the phone’s durability.

Samsung Galaxy S II on the other hand measures 125.3 x 66.1 x 8.5mm. It’s kind of big but it is very thin! Thinner than the iPhone 4! And lighter too since it only weighs 116g. What makes it so light is its plastic cover at the back.

In this regard, which would you prefer, small but heavy or bigger but light? Your choice!

Camera
Camera capability is now a big thing among handset owners so both the Galaxy S II and iPhone 4 have it. Galaxy S II comes with two cameras. At the rear is an 8MP camera with LED flash and autofocus. Its other features include geo-tagging, touch focus, image stabilization and face and smile detection. It is also capable of 1080p video capture. In front is a 2MP camera for video chat.

iPhone 4 has a 5MP camera with LED Flash. It can also capture 720p video. Photo and video tagging is also possible with its camera. Don’t fret because iPhone 4 has a front camera as well, a VGA one that can get photos and videos up to 30 frames per second.

Well obviously Galaxy S II is the winner here. iPhone 4’s 5MP camera is puny compared to S II’s 8MP cam.

So, these are the important things you need to know about these two phones. If I were you, Id’ go for the winner. And in this case it’s obviously the Samsung Galaxy S II!

Mobile phone giant O2 launches £22m offers

MOBILE phone giant O2’s 22 million customers are being offered half-price books and cinema tickets as part of a new £6million campaign.

Priority Moments also gives people discounts, free treats or exclusive experiences at 30 big-name chains such as WH Smith, Pizza Hut, Halfords, and JJB Sports.

Surprisingly it includes half-price cinema tickets at Odeon, from Sunday to Thursday. This is a big kick in the teeth for rival Orange whose customers can get two Odeon tickets for the price of one – but only on Wednesdays.

The O2 scheme is an extension of the Priority initiative, which has enabled people to snap up 600,000 concert tickets before they went on general sale.

In many ways it is another extension of the money-off “coupon culture” which has spread like wildfire in recent tough times.

But instead of printing off vouchers or cutting out coupons the discounts are sent to your mobile.

As your phone knows where you are it can even detect local offers and direct you to them.

O2 marketing director Sally Cowdry said she hoped the scheme would boost loyalty by saving customers money and “putting them at the front of the queue”.

It may also be a reason for the 25% of O2 customers who don’t have smart phones to upgrade. More at www.o2.co.uk/prioritymoments.