I was just reading over at FierceWireless Lynette Luna’s comments on the expectation that the iPod Touch will be an important part of Apple’s earnings report to be released tomorrow. The reason, Ms. Luna writes is because,
The iPod touch offers a pretty good alternative for those who don’t want to be tied down to AT&T or add another wireless contract. I recently bought the iPod touch because I wanted an iPhone but couldn’t justify adding another wireless plan on top of two contracts I already have with two different providers, one a broadband access plan and the other a family plan.
Ms. Luna references an AppleInsider story on how the iPod touch is seen as a small but stealthy asset in [the] Apple lineup which in turn references a few other reports:
The J.P. Morgan report views the iPod touch as Apple’s netbook, of sorts. At least, the analysis says, until Apple officially enters the netbook market – something the firm expects the Mac maker to do.
“We think the iPod touch provides the portability, Internet browsing, and email features that are the hallmark of the netbook PC experience,” the report states. “With the iPod touch, the main limitation is the small screen size relative to netbooks. While we continue to believe that Apple will introduce its own netbook-like device, in the interim, the iPod touch should help the company benefit from the latest computing trend related to the netbook.
Mobile Enterprise Implications
A mobile strategy is not just about smartphones and not all your mobile workers necessarily need a voice plan. (But you knew that already)…
Apple does include the iPod in its iPhone Enterprise Deployment Guide, and in fact the title of its first chapter is – Deploying iPhone and iPod Touch:
This chapter provides an overview of how to deploy iPhone and iPod touch in your enterprise.
iPhone and iPod touch are designed to easily integrate with your enterprise systems,including Microsoft Exchange 2003 and 2007, 802.1X-based secure wireless networks, and Cisco IPSec virtual private networks.As with any enterprise solution, good planning and an understanding of your deployment options make deployment easier and more efficient for you and your users.
When planning your deployment of iPhone and iPod touch consider the following:
- How will your company’s iPhones be activated for wireless cellular service?
- Which enterprise network services, applications, and data will your users need to access?
- What policies do you want to set on the devices to protect sensitive company data?
- Do you want to manually configure devices individually, or use a streamlined process for configuring a large fleet?The specifics of your enterprise environment, IT policies, wireless carrier, and your computing and communication requirements affect how you tailor your deployment strategy.
Your organization may have controls (or even just policies) in place that prevent you from even considering this option. However, there is a strong likelihood that sooner or later both the iPhone and the iPod will meet your enterprise requirements.
How can you leverage the iPod Touch for those workers that do not need a voice plan? What about mobile campus workers or those micro mobile employees (ie. hallway)? Are you thinking about it? Or is it not part of your plans yet?
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