Mathias On Mobility: 2011 The Same, But Better

Many of us would like to wave goodbye to 2010 and not look back. IT staff are just plain weary -- they're tired of budget cuts, long hours and dealing with an ever-increasing array of both deployment and support issues as well as seemingly endless lists of requests for new features and enhancements. And then there are those budget cuts.

We have, I believe, entered a period that will indeed be the new normal. We can deal with this situation via effective management and investments in capital equipment that make those on the operational side more efficient and productive. This strategy will see increasing emphasis in 2011 -- and that's in fact very good news indeed. But the news gets even better.

Consider just a couple of trends that will see gather steam in 2011. The enterprise WLAN will continue to grow in scope, including both coverage and capacity. All wire -- except power cords! -- to the desktop is dead, as voice and even video on the WLAN become common. Automated solutions to potential interference challenges will similarly appear everywhere, and we'll even see a few 600 Mbps 802.11n products on the market. I'm also optimistic that we'll see the first few gigabit-level WLAN products as well. Having fun yet?

What about 4G? The ITU's definition of 4G starts at 100 Mbps, and we're not likely to see any of those systems deployed for quite some time (around 2020, I think). But products based on the more marketing-centric definitions of 4G (which is simply faster than the 2 Mbps upper bound of 3G) will soar into many applications in 2011. HSPA+ from T-Mobile and LTE from Verizon (and soon AT&T) are already deployed in some locales, with much more to come. Many users will see throughput on a par with cable modems and DSL, pointing the way to a mobile future that really is, finally, unequivocally, broadband.And at the end of all those broadband connections will be an increasing array of ever-more-powerful, ever-more competitive subscriber units. Will tablets replace notebook PCs? For many users, they already have. I'm particularly impressed with quality of the browsing experience on modern enterprise-class handsets. Couple this with 4G, and web/cloud services and virtualization will assume key roles in mobile strategies in 2011. Device diversity will be addressed to a great degree by mobile device management solutions and personal-liability policies, and, while definitive solutions are still some ways out, big progress will be seen in the next year.

You might be getting the idea that 2011 will be more about evolution than revolution. That is the case and it's a good thing -- the non-stop evolution of wireless and mobile technologies has given pause to more than a few CFOs, and even a few CIOs, over the years; these folks like stability and predictable ROI. But with a little stability and a clear path to cost-effective solutions now in place, it's time to buy. And IT professionals everywhere will find that the latest crop of products is much easier to integrate and use than has ever been the case in the past. Budgets will be constrained; this is, again, the new normal. But those budget dollars will buy solutions that will really make everyone happy. I've worked in mobility for more than 20 years now, and I've never been more excited than I am about the capabilities that are available today.

SEE ALSO:

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Craig Mathias is a Principal with Farpoint Group, a wireless and mobile advisory firm based in Ashland, MA. Craig is an internationally recognized expert on wireless communications and mobile computing technologies. He is a well-known industry analyst and frequent speaker at industry conferences and trade shows.