Specifically, I was personally curious about whether this new phone could be the all-in-one device that could keep me from lugging my laptop around every time that I travel. Could the iPhone liberate me from my home office to the extent that I could truly work anywhere?
(Of course, it's important to note that the iPhone is being marketed as a consumer device and not a business device.)
To answer these questions I turned to two sources:
In the ZDnet review, the reviewer pointed out that an iPhone has no more disadvantages in the areas of security, mobile e-mail, and backup than a traditional mobile phone. In fact, the reviewer felt that small office and home office users were among the users that would find the iPhone particularly appealing. The reviewer did not the lack of a memory slot.
As I reviewed the iPhone features I started to look at features that could be used for home businesses. I skipped over all of the entertainment features such as the ability to watch a movie on it or listen to music.
It was immediately evident that a home business user who works primarily on the phone would definitely enjoy using this phone. The phone automatically syncs with a PC address book and the conference calling ability appears very user-friendly.
Nearly every home business receives e-mail and one of the strengths of the iPhone is the ability to read and respond to e-mail. I could certainly see convenience of this feature for freelancers of all types.
The ability to listen to business podcasts anywhere could definitely be of use for the home-based entrepreneur. Imagine going to the park and listening to a business podcast while the kids played on the playground.
There have been a lot of times that I've wished I had a camera with me (my current mobile phone doesn't have one). With the iPhone's built-in camera I can get that perfect shot for posts or articles.
I have to say, I was not impressed by the tiny little touch screen "intelligent" keypad. The Apple promotional material claimed that after about a week users would be able to type fairly quickly on the keypad. Well, maybe, but could I ever type on that little keypad as quickly as I can touch type on a traditional keyboard? I seriously doubt it.
An additional concern that I have with the touch screen keypad is sturdiness. We bought a kitchen appliance with a touch screen a few years ago. Even though the appliance is like new, it has be discarded because the touch screen is worn out. As a writer I type all day long. I don't think that touch screen could hold up to the amount of typing that I do.
Could I write an article or post to Work From Home Momma on the iPhone? From what I've read, probably not. This isn't quite the all-in-one device that can function as my office when I am out of the office. I'll probably still need to lug around my laptop when I travel.
For other home business owners, particularly those who work by phone, the iPhone may be just the tool that they've waiting for.
Image by Frijole, Creative Commons 2.5, via Wikipedia
You might consider a Palm. My mother recently let me borrow hers (purely selfish: she could not figure out how to use it and wants me to learn so I can show her, and she was tired of me asking her if I could use her laptop when we were out.)until I get my laptop. It allows you to connect to the internet using in various ways including wirelessly or using your bluetooth phone as a modem and you can work on documents as well. Of course in order for it to truly become a mobile work station you would have to get the wireless keyboard, but so far it's been working out pretty well. I take my camera for pictures, it is 6 MP instead of 1.2 on my Blackberry or 2 for the iPhone. Why am I still going to get a laptop? Because for me, there really is no substitute for a computer and when I add up all the stuff I need to make the Palm work like one.
Posted by: Kimberlee Morrison | July 17, 2007 11:05 AM | Permalink to Comment