Software puts muscle in cell phone

SAN JOSE, Calif. — You've probably bought programs for your personal computer and you may have bought games for a game machine.

But software for your cell phone? Probably not.

For a whole host of reasons, that may soon change. Expecting a new golden age of handset software, programmers are developing thousands of new applications that they're betting you'll want on your phone.

"People are getting used to the idea that there's more to a phone than talking," said Shiv Bakhshi, an analyst who covers the mobile phone market for industry research firm IDC.

Many consumers already use programs built into their phones to send text messages or take and send pictures. IPhone owners can install programs that let them tune into Internet radio stations or get directions to the nearest gas station.

But in coming months and years, phones will be able to do a lot more, analysts say.

--By simply using your phone's camera to take a picture of a bar code, you will find out instantly whether the store across the street or one online is selling a coffee maker at a lower price than the store you are at.

--Whenever your bank account dips below a certain balance, your phone will notify you, and allow you with one click to instantly move more money into the account.

--If you have a medical device implant, you will be able to use your phone to instantly and automatically alert the doctor to any troubling conditions.

--Your phone will be able to tell you when you need to leave your house or office to make an appointment on time, given existing traffic conditions along your route.

In short, your cell phone will soon be able to offer information specific to a time, place and circumstance. The applications will "mash" together information from the Internet, nearby sources, internal sensors and calendars and address books.

"The concept of mash-ups, that's going to be a big deal," said Ken Dulaney, a mobile computing analyst at Gartner. "That kind of integration will happen ... on the phone out of necessity."

Of course, many folks already do a lot on their phone other than just talk. Texting isn't just for teens any more, and many consumers use their phone's camera. Many phones come with games and music and video players.

Owners of smart phones, such as Research In Motion's BlackBerrys, Palm's Treos and Apple's iPhone, have long used their devices to check e-mail, surf the Web and use business applications.

What's new is that these powerful devices are starting to hit the mainstream. Smart phones, mobile devices that include an operating system and act almost like pocket computers, can be had for as little as $99.

As they've become cheaper, smart phones have become more popular. Some 10 percent of phones shipped worldwide, and some 19 percent of phones sold at retail in the United States, are smart phones.

Meanwhile, the mobile industry is making installation of programs on to smart phones and other devices much easier. Through the iPhone application store on iTunes, Apple has made buying and installing programs on its handset as easy as buying and uploading music to an iPod.

Google plans to offer a similarly easy application repository when phones running its Android operating system debut later this year. Meanwhile, older phone software stores, such as Handango, are shifting from focusing on business applications to consumer-oriented ones.

At the same time, carriers have begun to offer all-you-can-eat data plans, allowing consumers to use powerful, data-intensive applications on their phones without worrying about incurring excessive per-minute charges.

That's not to say phones will replace the PC anytime soon. Because phones have small screens, sometimes spotty network connections and tiny keyboards, PCs remain better suited for some applications, like writing long documents or playing more complex and time-intensive games.

And because there isn't yet a dominant mobile phone operating system, developers must pick and choose which ones they write programs for. So you might not be able to get a particular application for your phone, and the programs you buy today may not work on your next phone.

But many industry observers expect a shakeout will help resolve that problem, limiting the number of operating systems. In the meantime, few expect the problems will dissuade consumers from trying some of the new applications.

Installing software on a phone is the "clear direction" the mobile phone business is heading in, said Ross Rubin, director of industry analysis at market research firm NPD Group.