Smartphones growing more complex, so teleworks must shop with care

November 3, 9:33 AMNY Telework ExaminerCarl Weinschenk

Previous Next

Comment Print Email RSS Subscribe

Subscribe

Get alerts when there is a new article from the NY Telework Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use.

Email Address   Include other special offers from Examiner.com Terms of Use

Window shopping – or its modern equivalent, Web surfing – is a favorite activity of people who love gadgets. As we’ve said before, the line between work and consumer gear is quickly fading. A concurrent trend is that mobile devices are becoming more complex and the variations between them is greater.

This all means that it is important to shop carefully for smartphones. Teleworkers, of course, are big beneficiaries of the trend toward more complex and functional equipment, but these folks also run the risk of ending up with gadgets that don't do what they want them to. Here is a nice photo essay from Newsday that looks at one or two models each from Blackberry, HTC, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, Virgin (the actual manufacturer of the device is not mentioned), Motorola and LG.

The piece is useful because it provides both photos and the key information. Smartphones constitute a huge category with a tremendous amount of variety. Shoppers should carefully assess what they are going to use the phones for and shop accordingly. Issues such as security, keypad, the reach of the networks the phone is support by and other factors should be considered. If a device is to be used for business, rash or impulsive decisions based on the overall look are ill advised. The bottom line: For a teleworker, shopping for smartphone is like shopping for a business computer.