There is a huge storm that is brewing in the world of mobile phones. It is one that has been coming ever since Apple threw out the gauntlet challenge a couple of years ago. Everybody could see that the next digital world to be conquered after desktop computers was Internet while you are on the go. There were several ways to do this. Laptops, special Internet only devices, and even some weak mobile phone devices were the most popular ways of doing this. But Apple embraced the Internet on the phone concept and introduced the IPhone. When people first saw it, they could tell that it was made with the Internet in mind first. All other phones with Internet capabilities were created with the Internet features as an afterthought. For years, the Iphone has dominated the smart phone market with very little competition. Now Google has introduced the Nexus One. Will it be able to compete?

The Nexus One has taken the idea of the IPhone and has upgraded it. When the engineers at Google were creating this phone, you can tell that the phone had no other purpose but to be an IPhone killer. The people at Google think so highly of it, that they have labeled the phone a “super phone”. This shows a lot of confidence in a phone that has not even reached the market yet. But they have good reason to be cheerful. The hardware on the phone is unrivaled by today’s standards. They have a bigger screen than the IPhone and a 1 Ghz processor made by Qualcomm. Apple announced shortly after Google introduced it’s phone that they were going to go with Qualcomm as well. This definitely lends credence to the fact that Google made the right decision in their processor choice.

Many IPhone lovers have said that this phone is a rip off of the IPhone. This may be true but it is a very well done rip off. As of right now, IPhone still has the advantage in the application category and already installed user base. The Nexus One does force Apple to have to step up to the plate with a great phone, the next hardware upgrade cycle. There is competition now and the IPhone is getting a little stale. They do not want to fall in the Motorola Razr category.

The jury is out in the case of who will win the IPhone vs Nexus One debate. As of right now, Apple has a huge lead but Google is a strong company that has the resources and the technology know how to quickly catch up.

Over the last three years, people who are smart phone users, have come to expect a lot from their devices. It is no longer enough to have only the best phone features around. Items such as call quality and network coverage are very important but other features also come into play when a consumer is choosing their phone. The other options that a user might look for are whether the phone comes with a good suite of applications and robust Internet capabilities. How good the data plan is and will it allow the consumer to tether devices to the phone are also features that are important. To today’s smart phone user, these items play an important part of the decision on whether they will purchase the phone or not.

With the IPhone, users have become enticed by the amount of applications that they provide. There are so many though, that it has become hard for the average person to choose which one would be right for them. There are a ton of bad applications and time wasters that are available through the app store. One thing that the average user of the Iphone does not have, is time to waste on choosing an application. So how does one decide which application is right for them?

The first thing that you want to do, is narrow down the category that you are looking for. Are you looking for a business application? Or are you looking to find a game that you would like to play for a long trip or to entertain your kids with. The key to finding the right application, is that you know what you are looking for when you start to digitally walk down the app store aisle ways. Know what you are looking for and stick to it. It is real easy to get distracted by all the applications that the app store offers.

After you have chosen a category to look at, check the ratings for the application itself. User ratings are very helpful in determining which applications are good and which ones are junk. Every application will have a couple of negative ratings but if it seems like there is a theme brewing, it is probably best to steer clear of that application. If most people seem to have a problem with the program then it is most likely not the right one for you.

If picking a category and paying attention to the ratings are not enough, then you can search online for the answer. In the last two years there have been many blogs that have popped up, for the sole purpose of reviewing IPhone applications. They test the applications and give their opinions on it. Even if you don’t follow their opinions directly it should give you a good ideal on what the application does and if it is right for you.

Choosing which application is right for you on the IPhone can be hard. Yeah, there are a few standards that all people choose to use but once you go on your own and try to find something new, it can be difficult. Just trust your instincts and don’t be afraid to try something new out. You might be surprised.

In the short time that it has been out, the IPhone has taken America by storm. It is the number one most desired phone in all of the key spending demographics and it is considered the “it” phone to have. More and more people have been signing up to get one and it is starting to see its share of copy cats. Everyone wants a piece of the success that Apple has experienced with the IPhone. Also with this success, comes people that will try to exploit it for their own personal gains. They will try to find holes in the phone and use it against people who are not tech savvy and can prove to be an easy victim. This leads to one question that should be asked, is your IPhone safe?

For the most part, the answer is yes. Your IPhone is safe to use and you should have no problem with it. But you have to remember, it is similar to a mini computer and just like any computer there will be holes for hackers to exploit. The IPhone is not as open as other systems, when it comes to the ability to be able to find these holes, but it can be done. As a matter of fact is has been done, several times now. The good thing about these holes being found is that it didn’t affect most users and they were patched up pretty quickly. There was a case of a boy in Australia who was able to take the IPhone and change users background wallpaper without their knowledge. This was mainly done on hacked versions of IPhones but other more experienced hackers found out how to do it on un hacked versions as well.

The fact that there are modded IPhones out there, show that the security on the phone is not completely safe. Several years ago, a group of hackers that wanted to make changes on their IPhone, set about trying find a way to do that. Once they found out how to do this, they released an executable onto the Internet that allowed others with IPhones to participate as well. Apple created patches to stop this activity but the hackers defeated the fixes every time. This shows with only time and some very knowledgeable people, the security of the IPhone can be compromised.

The security intrusion that most people should worry about, when using their IPhone, is when they are using the Internet features. They can fall victim to a phishing attack, the same as anyone using a computer. For some reason, people think that there are a new set of rules when you access the Internet from the phone, than it is when you access the Internet from a computer. It is the same thing. The same damage to your credit and reputation that can be done on the computer can happen on the phone as well. If you follow the same rules as you do when you are on the computer, you should be relatively safe.

For most people, security on the IPhone should be an afterthought. There are no serious attacks out there to worry about. But do not get too confident. There is someone out there right now, working on an attack vector for IPhone users. If you are careful, you should be fine.