Mallesons to mix Apple and Berry

MALLESONS Stephen Jaques is evaluating Apple's popular iPhone mobile device for use across its business, but won't consider replacing the BlackBerry.

The moves by the law firm are among the first steps by a local enterprise into the Apple mobile sphere.

The experiment will no doubt set alarm bells ringing at BlackBerry manufacturer Research in Motion, which has so far been largely unchallenged in its quest for enterprise mobile device business.

Mallesons business technology executive director Gerard Neiditsch praises the BlackBerry's email capabilities but is critical of its limited scope for development.

"It is a fantastic email device, which is where it started, and for that purpose it is extremely reliable and very intuitive," Neiditsch says.

"I don't think its inventors were really thinking about web-delivered applications, however, when they came up with the device.

"They might be able to change the operating system to cater for that, particularly on the development tools, but that's not the case yet."

Specifically, Neiditsch points to collaborative Web 2.0 applications developed in the law firm, which have been difficult to port to the BlackBerry.

"We have a very powerful people directory, which allows us to interact and collaborate very widely in the firm. There is a very limited version that runs on the BlackBerry, but we're constrained by a limited development environment on that device.

"Many of our applications are web-delivered and would really benefit from a much richer and more intuitive platform than is available either on the BlackBerry or Windows Mobile."

The iPhone's development platform could make it easier and simpler to deliver such applications and functions, he says.

"That application would run very well on an iPhone, possibly even better than on a desktop, because the iPhone already has a large number of tools that are set to be used in a collaborative space.

"Apple is coming at it from a different angle. It has a very consistent development environment across the iPhone and other platforms."

Neiditsch hasn't been able to get his hands on the new 3G iPhone, but a number of his staff have, and the firm has been doing some tests with unlocked 2G iPhones and an updated iPod Touch.

He expects the evaluation to take about six months, at which point it will be decided how many units to use, and in which business divisions.

The key priorities on Neiditsch's radar are security, software distribution, cost and functionality, including email capabilities.

On cost, he is looking at the iPhone's data package as well the possibility of a massive phone bill due to global roaming charges. The company is concerned about "the ongoing cost of the device, the monthly charges and how to manage that", he says.

"For somebody doing instant messaging or email, BlackBerry is perfect. It's a very small device, very compact, and the global roaming arrangements are very practical.

"With iPhone's richer environment, the trade-off is presumably that global roaming won't work quite so well in the beginning or might be very expensive."

Apple has attracted criticism because of the fact that an entire iPhone must be sent back for service if a battery is faulty.

The matter of device availability is an irritant for even the most patient consumers, but likely downtime is a more financially sensitive issue for businesses.

However, Neiditsch says, that matter is not high on his list.

"Like everyone else we wish Apple had replaceable batteries," he says. "But it isn't a top priority because like the BlackBerry, the device can be wiped, sent back to Apple and repopulated when it comes back, just the way it was."

When it comes to the big day, he says, it won't be a case of dumping the BlackBerry for the iPhone.

The two will be used side by side, each in its area of strength. "The focus is on coexistence. We're very keen to support an alternative platform because it would give us advantages compared with what is possible at the moment with the BlackBerry.

"I see it as a once-in-a-decade change. The iPhone is a fully fledged computer that in some ways is more powerful than a desktop or laptop computer in the way people interact with it."