Guide to VoIP or IP phone solution

There's a lot to consider when deciding on the right VoIP or IP phone solution. Use these buying guides and comparison sheets to see all your options and get all the facts before making your decision.

» IP Phones Checklist The information in this comprehensive document will help you effectively negotiate, lay out your business requirements up front, assess trade-offs and prepare for future possibilities. Access this free content » » The IP Phones Comparison Guide This easy-to-read guide provides you with all the information that you need to evaluate which leading IP phone solution is best for your unique situation. Get all the facts - features, support, pricing, weight, and so on - as well as the inside scoop on which solutions work best for which businesses. Access this free content » » Hosted VoIP Comparison Guide VoIP -News compares the basic functions and features of seven of the leading Hosted PBX providers for small businesses. Vendors compared include AccessLine, Aptela, Bandwidth, Covad, Global Phone, Packet 8, Speakeasy, Smoothstone and Vocalocity. This in-depth guide features side-by-side comparisons of multiple topics. Access this free content » » Hosted PBX Buyer's Guide Hosted PBX systems provide an easy way for small to medium (and even some large) businesses to move to VoIP and get a wide range of new features and capabilities for their phone systems. In this buyer’s guide you will find details on what to look for, how to buy, what you can expect to pay, and how to get the most out of your investment in VoIP. Access this free content » Contact telCade.com to supply xDSL filters, Cable & Wires needs!

2Wire and Thomson Gain Wi-Fi Market Share

2Wire and Thomson were big winners in the 2008 Wi-Fi market, growing their shipments by nearly 60% annually. Each significantly out-performed the overall market, gaining market share, reports In-Stat. 2Wire achieved 11% share, while Thomson’s share grew to almost 8%. Market share among the other leading competitors, Linksys, Netgear, and D-Link was flat or down in 2008 compared to 2007. In 4Q08, worldwide revenue for the overall WLAN market decreased by 2.4% year-over-year (YoY), down from $1.19 billion in 4Q07 to $1.16 billion in 4Q08. Despite the overall market decline in 4Q08, revenue and shipments of draft 11n products grew by over 80%. While all markets are challenged in the current economic climate,. We expect Wi-Fi to continue to do well as its low cost, flexibility, and maturity make it a valued technology for both businesses and consumers. Recent research by In-Stat found the following: Quarter-over-quarter (QoQ) worldwide Wi-Fi revenue declined by 5.2%, with shipments also declining YoY and QoQ. In the consumer/SMB category, D-Link, NETGEAR, Buffalo, and 3Com, all had increases of draft 11n AP shipments in 4Q08. Q4 2008 market share for Draft n NICs was 31.6%, 22.3%, 19.7%, and 12.5% for Linksys, D-Link, NETGEAR and Buffalo, respectively. The research, “WLAN Market Share Report” (#IN0904490WL), examines the WLAN market for 4Q08. Market shares for enterprise and SOHO/consumer vendors are provided, based on unit shipments and manufacturer's revenue for the quarter. The data is segmented by air standard and equipment form factor, including: Total, Access Points, NICs Multimode, 802.11g, Draft N By Region: North America, EMEA, Asia Pacific, ROW

The Future of Networked Warfare Begins with Apple

"The future of 'networked warfare' requires each soldier to be linked electronically to other troops as well as to weapons systems and intelligence sources," says a new report in Newsweek, and the product of choice appears to be the iPod Touch.

According to Newsweek, both the iPod Touch and to a lesser degree the iPhone are increasingly being used by the U.S. military because of their versatility, ease of use and comparative low cost.

The report notes that the iPod fulfils the military's need to give soldiers one device that can perform many different functions, and this device has the added advantage that it can often be controlled with one hand.

Software developers and the U.S. Department of Defense are busy developing military software for iPods in an attempt to gives soldiers even more functionality. A new program called Vcommunicator produces spoken and written translations of Arabic, Kurdish and two Afghan languages.

"Snipers in Iraq and Afghanistan now use a "ballistics calculator" called BulletFlight, made by the Florida firm Knight's Armament for the iPod Touch and iPhone. Army researchers are developing applications to turn an iPod into a remote control for a bomb-disposal robot (tilting the iPod steers the robot). In Sudan, American military observers are using iPods to learn the appropriate etiquette for interacting with tribal leaders," the report says.

According to an Army official in Baghdad, the devices have yet to be successfully hacked and at $230 a pop, the iPod may fit right into President Obama's 663.7 billion dollar defense budget.

The State of the Smartphone: iPhone is Way, Way Ahead

A new industry report from mobile analytics firm Flurry reveals some unique insights into the smartphone industry as of right now. Because their firm focuses not just on iPhone, but also on Android, RIM Blackberry, and JavaME, they have the ability to see platform-spanning trends, instead of just those tied to Apple. So what can we learn from their deep dive into their company's data? Anything surprising? Actually, what the report confirms is what we've been hearing for some time now: the iPhone is king, smartphones are the new laptops, and iPhone applications can and do make money.

iPhone Has a Commanding Lead

Perhaps what's most surprising about Flurry's report isn't simply how prevalent and popular the iPhone and iPhone applications are today, but how far ahead it is of its nearest competitors. From an application perspective, the iPhone is killing on all fronts: number of developers, number of applications, and number of consumers using these applications.

Keep in mind when viewing these numbers, we're looking at data from Flurry, a snapshot sample computed from 100 applications, 8 million consumers, and 4 platforms (Apple iPhone, Google Android, RIM Blackberry, and JavaME). While these charts can give you insight into the mobile trends, they can't necessarily be extrapolated to the entire mobile smartphone industry. For example, because Flurry only deals with a small number of Blackberry developers, they can't provide any statistically relevant numbers relating to Blackberry apps. But then again, notes Flurry VP Marketing Peter Farago, "why haven't Blackberry developers signed up for analytics?"

What you can glean from the info they've gathered, however, is that iPhone has a commanding lead over Android and the others right now. Unless Google has some big tricks up their sleeve, catching up with Apple's iPhone is going to be tough.

Smartphones are the New Laptops

Smartphones are the new laptops - we sort of knew this one already, didn't we? Although historically, only 10% of the installed-base used mobile applications on a daily basis, today, that number is changing...and changing fast. Smartphone applications are now heavily used and many are even used daily. Among those used daily, the frequency of use is also high with some applications being used as much as 20 times per day.

Are smartphones really replacing laptops and are applications really replacing web sites? Maybe "replace" isn't exactly the right word to use, but there is definitely a shift in user behavior occurring right now where people are using their smartphones more than ever.

Yes, iPhone Apps Make Money

According to Flurry, iPhone applications can and do make money. Not all apps make it, of course, but those that do can actually make goodmoney. A strong publisher with two titles a month can expect $10 million to $15 million in sales through the iPhone channel, if the titles are well-marketed, says the report.

But "well-marketed" is the key word here. The iPhone app industry is beginning to resemble the music industry with its "hit-driven" nature. One "hit" gets a developer on the map and gives them the chance to sell more apps. Successful apps often resemble successful songs: you need a good artist, a good producer, a strong distributor, and plenty of promotion.

Boosting Sales in a "Hit-Driven" Economy

It's also worth noting that you can't live forever off one "hit" alone. With iPhone games especially, users tend to get bored rather quickly. Flurry estimates that the average lifetime for a game is about 3 months. Publishers should keep that in mind when planning for their refresh cycles and updates.

But even still, refreshes provided by updates may not be enough. Flurry is seeing a trend that, to be honest, was surprising: only 10% of users are updating their applications after download. That means new features pushed out via an update aren't being seen by a large group of the app's users.

Instead of trying to drive engagement of your current user base through updates, it seems you may be better off going after new users. Cross-promotion of applications - that is, advertising for one app within your other app - is very effective. Giving away a free trial can boost sales of your paid application, too.

About Flurry

Flurry is a mobile analytics firm with a "freemium" offering. Right now their core product is free, but in the future some additional optional services including development support and monetization opportunities will be added. Their company offers some unique measurements for developers of multiple smartphone platforms. One such measurement is user path tracking which is a feature much beloved by user experience designers as it lets them see the path a user took to get through a game or application.

Another feature of Flurry's platform is the ability to track dynamic parameters, which are completely custom parameters designated by the developer. Flurry also sets themselves apart from some of their competitors by what they don't do. They don't do advertising and don't want to be an advertising network.

You can check out a demo of Flurry's full service with live reporting data here: flurry.com/demo or you can view this slideshow of Flurry's analytics platform instead.

Camera Phones, Embedded PC Cameras Propel Image Sensor Market - Aptina, MagnaChip,OmniVision Technologies, Sharp, Sony, and Panasonic

Continued uptake of cameras in mobile phones and notebook PCs is driving growth in the area-array image sensor market, reports In-Stat (http://email.in-stat.com/cgi-bin4/DM/y/hBQOy0NpQCa0K560DHgc0EH). Worldwide unit shipments of image sensors in camera phones continue to rise, mostly as a result of the continuing penetration of dual-camera phones in Asian markets. These phones utilize both a traditional point-and-shoot camera, as well as a second, inward-facing camera for two-way video communication or videoconferencing.

A worldwide image sensor shipment forecast graphic is available here.

A promising new image sensor application is also taking hold. Currently a small segment of the market, embedded PC cameras will surpass digital still cameras to become the second-largest application for image sensors by 2011. A few years ago, only Apple incorporated cameras into desktop and laptop computers; in 2008, nearly all major PC manufacturers offered embedded PC cameras in mobile PCs.

Recent research by In-Stat found the following:

• Camera phones comprised nearly 81% of area-array image sensor shipments in 2008, a share that is expected to shrink only slightly through 2013.
  
• Other key applications include: Digital Still Cameras, Camcorders, Security Cameras, Web Cameras, Consumer IP Cameras, Embedded PC Cameras, Embedded LCD Monitor Cameras, Toys, Automotive.
  
• CMOS sensors dominated image sensor shipments in 2008, with more than an 87% share.
  
• CMOS will make up 62% of security camera image sensors by 2013.
  
• While CMOS is gaining in digital still cameras, it will not surpass CCDs until 2013.
  
• Among the many competitors in this market are Aptina, MagnaChip,OmniVision Technologies, Sharp, Sony, and Panasonic.
  

The research, "Image Sensors 2009: Camera Phones Continue to Dominate Shipments" (#IN0904458MI), covers the worldwide market for image sensors. It includes:

• Worldwide unit shipment forecasts for CMOS and CCD sensors through 2013.
  
• Worldwide image sensor forecasts by product category through 2013.
  
• Analysis of the markets for various sensor applications.
  
• Profiles of image sensor suppliers.

J:Com Offers World’s Fastest Broadband at $20 Per Home. Comcast and Cablevision Lags.

By SAUL HANSELL

If you get excited about the prospect of really, really fast broadband Internet service, here’s a statistic that will make heart race. Or your blood boil. Or both.

Pretty much the fastest consumer broadband in the world is the 160-megabit-per-second service offered by J:Com, the largest cable company in Japan. Here’s how much the company had to invest to upgrade its network to provide that speed: $20 per home passed.

The cable modem needed for that speed costs about $60, compared with about $30 for the current generation.

By contrast, Verizon is spending an average of $817 per home passed to wire neighborhoods for its FiOS fiber optic network and another $716 for equipment and labor in each home that subscribes, according to Sanford C. Bernstein & Company.

Those numbers from Japan came from Michael T. Fries, the chief executive of Liberty Global, the American company that operates J:Com.

His larger point: “To me, this just isn’t an expensive capital investment,” he said.

The experience in Japan suggests that the major cable systems in the United States might be able to increase the speed of their broadband service by five to 10 times right away. They might not need to charge much more for it than they do now and they’d still make as much money.

The cable industry here uses the same technology as J:Com. And several vendors said that while the prices Mr. Fries quoted were on the low side, most systems can be upgraded for no more than about $100 per home, including a new modem. Moreover, the monthly cost of bandwidth to connect a home to the Internet is minimal, executives say.

So what’s wrong with this picture in the United States? The cable companies, like Comcast and Cablevision, that are moving quickly to install the fast broadband technology, called Docsis 3, are charging as much as $140 a month for 50 Mbps service. Meanwhile other companies, like Time Warner Cable, are moving much more slowly to upgrade.

Competition, or the lack of it, goes a long way to explaining why the fees are higher in the United States. There is less competition in the United States than in many other countries. Broadband already has the highest profit margins of any product cable companies offer. Like any profit-maximizing business would do, they set prices in relation to other providers and market demand rather than based on costs.

Pricing at Liberty varies widely by market. In Japan, its 160 Mbps service costs 6,000 yen ($60) per month. That’s only $5 a month more than the price of its basic 30 Mbps service. In the Netherlands, meanwhile, it charges 80 euros ($107) for 120 Mbps service and 60 euros ($81) for 60 Mbps. Mr. Fries said that he expected these prices would fall over time.

“Our margins go up,” he said. “But we are delivering more value.”

Cable executives have given several reasons for why many cable systems in the United States are going very slowly in upgrading to Docsis 3. There’s little competition in areas not served by Verizon’s FiOS system, which soon will offer 50 Mbps service. And some argue there isn’t that much demand for super-high speed.

Mr. Fries added another: Fear. Other cable operators, he said, are concerned that not only will prices fall, but that the super-fast service will encourage customers to watch video on the Web and drop their cable service.

The industry is worried that by offering 100 Mbps, they are opening Pandora’s box, he said. Everyone will be able to get video on the Internet, and then competition will bring the price for the broadband down from $80 to $60 to $40.

Aren’t you worried that the prices will fall too? I asked.

“Maybe,” he said very slowly. “We’ll see how it happens. We want to keep it up there for now. It is a premium service.”

In-Stat Applauds AT&T’s Move to Combine Home and On-the-Go Broadband Service

AT&T announced on April 1st a plan to sell a subsidized netbook in Atlanta for $50. As typically done in the wireless industry, the subsidized price requires a service agreement. In this case, agreeing to pay $60/month to AT&T will not only get the user a $50 netbook and 200MB a month of data on its mobile network, but also a DSL connection for the home and access to the company’s Wi-Fi hotspot locations. Since this was first announced during CTIA, all the focus has been on the wireless portion of the announcement, and the selling of a notebook in a traditional cellular phone manner. What has been totally overlooked is the combination of home and on the go broadband access as a single service. In-Stat feels the combining of home and on-the-go broadband is just as important a trend as the selling of subsidized netbooks. With growth in new home broadband service subscribers slowing, providers will need to steal existing broadband users away from other providers if they want to continue to grow their customer base. Our research shows that current broadband users would be willing to switch from their current broadband provider to one that could combine a home and on-the-go service. Clearwire has been using this strategy since last September to win subscribers in its two WiMAX markets. In a survey conducted in 2008 In-Stat found the following: Over 80% of respondents said they had some level of willingness to switch from their current broadband provider to one that combines both home and on-the-go service. Over 40% of respondents said they would be willing to pay their current home broadband provider an extra $10-15 a month for a home and on-the-go service. Network performance is important to users. Over 40% of both Wi-Fi hotspot and 3G laptop data users said they had been discouraged from using wireless broadband in the past due to poor or slow network performance. In-Stat’s research, Waiting for WiMAX — US Consumers Want More From Wireless Broadband (IN0803969WBB), covers what US consumers like and dislike about current broadband options and their desire to have a single service that combines both home and on-the-go service. It includes: Criteria used to select wireless broadband service. Measure of respondents’ interest in 3G cellular, Wi-Fi, and WiMAX services. The results from two surveys, one a general US consumer survey and another of just 3G laptop data users. The price is $3,495.