BigTimeWireless Blog

Giving a new cell phone as a gift for Christmas can be an exciting thing, as there are so many options. The gift can include an ordinary phone, a smart phone or an Android phone.

The Apple iPhone 4S is a fast performance, dual-core phone with an 8MP camera. It comes complete with the digital assistant, Siri, that can send emails, open apps, create reminders and take dictation on nothing less than a voice command. The iOS5 enables you to mirror the iPhone to an HDTV through iCloud syncing of your photos and Apple TV, docs and music. Choose the network that operates the best in your area. Prices are from $199 on contract.

The lightweight Motorola Droid RAZR is a 4G LTE in a very thin shell and a much-anticipated phone. It stands to reason when you consider that it comes with a 4.3″ Super AMOLED display and has a 7.1mm profile. Add to that the 1GB of RAM and 1.2GHz dual-core processor and you have a dream gadget. This phone also comes with an 8MP camera and a 1080p video recording benefit. This is an Android phone and good for on-the-go media lovers. It has an 1800mAh battery, ensuring a long battery life and a splashguard screen. The price is $299 on contract and $650 off contract.

Samsung Galaxy Nexus is also an Android phone and has a curved design plus a huge 4.65″ Super AMOLED screen. In contrast to the Motorola Droid RAZR, this is a big phone. The camera can take 1080p video and “single motion panoramic” photos. With the possibility that it will have NFC and Google Wallet you will be able to tap and pay at participating dealers that have the necessary readers. The expected price is $300.

As for the BlackBerry Bold 9900/9930, keyboard fans will appreciate the glass touch screen of this smart phone, a classic, traditional BlackBerry phone. As is the case with many other smart phones, the battery life is not great and you might have to recharge at some point through the day. You can access your email, Twitter account and Facebook but at a cost. The BBM feature remains the selling point for the BlackBerry phones. Prices are from $199 on contract and $549 without.

The HTC Radar is a Microsoft smart phone somewhere between an iPhone and an Android phone. It comes with a 3.8″ screen and 512MB. The search features are upgraded with a voice facility, so you can command the phone what to find. The cost is about $99 on contract and $549 without.

Whether you prefer smart phones or Android mobile phones, there certainly is an interesting selection to choose from this year.

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Mobile technology is growing faster by the day and 2012 will be no different. The business website will go mobile in a big fashion and mobile website search engine optimization will become more critical. What this means is that your mobile website must be user-friendly. If it is not, you will lose ground.

Originally designed as scaled down versions of full websites, the mobile website is coming into its own. Mobile advertising will continue to grow and diversify. Already, SMS and MMS messages are in full use as are banner ads and mobile coupons. Mobile ad spending is expected to increase in 2012.

GPS based apps such as SCVNGR, Foursquare, Yelp and Facebook Places are becoming more and more popular. The advantages are twofold. Loyal customers are being rewarded with special offers and discounts and customers are sharing deals and sales with one another. More competition and growth is expected in this area. Video calling, already offered by Skype for Android smart phones, is going to gain widespread adoption. Free Wi-Fi has been around for a while and will expand in 2012. The availability of Wi-Fi brings new customers to businesses and is helping people to connect with brands.

QR codes are relatively new and its ability of turning a static piece into something fun and engaging is full of potential. You can, for example, use it to advertise an upcoming event. A person just scans your QR code and the event is loaded onto their iCalendar and voila, the advertising has been done.

The next thing to watch out for in 2012 is the advancing of mobile finances. Also called mobile commerce or m-commerce, retailers such as eBay and many financial institutions are piling up successes with their mobile apps. Square is a new tool which will allow you to accept credit card payments through a smart phone. Google Wallet`s tap and pay technology has also just hit the American market. It will expand to other countries and phones other than Android phones soon. 4G is here but it may take time to develop and will not be fully operational within the next year or so.

Blue Tooth is on its way to the health care industry. Cord and wires will be a thing of the past, as the doctor`s stethoscope will send signals to a screen nearby. GPS is also advancing. Traffic apps may be directly linked to traffic cameras and these apps will be able to send out updates to travelers to suggest alternative routes to their locations, for example.

Many more cool apps are on the up and up and your Blackberry mobiles will more than likely also surprise you with new technology.