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Apple iPhone 'not too smart'
Time to open up?

By Jo Best

Published: Friday 26 January 2007

The long awaited Apple iPhone can't be classified as a smart phone, according to analysts, as it isn't as open as rival devices created by the likes of Microsoft.

According to two analysts at ABI Research, the iPhone can't be called a smart phone, despite running a stripped down version of the Mac operating system, because it doesn't use an open OS.

While the definition of what constitutes a smart phone is still up for debate, most pundits agree that a smart device must have an open operating system that can support third-party applications.

Apple's iPhone does not have an open OS, however, as all third-party apps must be vetted by the Cupertino company before being let loose on the phone - a move necessary to protect the network using the phone and the device itself, according to Apple boss Steve Jobs.

An operator-controlled environment, such as the one used by Apple for the iPhone, is typical of a high-end feature phone. Such phones don't benefit from the same "cutting-edge, rich applications" associated with smart phones, the analysts noted, adding that feature phone apps are often "weak and limited".

While the analysts therefore said the iPhone cannot be called a smart device, it "is nifty in design and has some high end capabilities", they concluded.