HansaWorld SmartApps for Nokia unleashes the power of smartphones

Enterprise software company HansaWorld has released SmartApps, a development environment for Nokia`s E-series smartphones. The move is expected to trigger an explosion of new application development, says HansaWorld SA Country Manager Kevin Clarke.

"Smartphones have become powerful computers in their own right," says Clarke. "We`ve matched that with a simple, accessible development environment that will enable people to create their own applications for E-series phones."

Clarke says SmartApps is an unusually easy development tool: "Until now, many applications have been too difficult or too expensive to write. Now just about anybody can use SmartApps to create fast database applications, from private individuals to people with new business ideas and professional programmers."

SmartApps also includes a full synchronisation engine and support for rich content such as pictures and voice, creating wide scope for innovative business and consumer applications.

Clarke anticipates two primary categories of use. "Firstly, people will want to create mobile versions of existing applications like timesheets, expense claims and travel logs," he says. "But we also expect to see many new applications that are only possible with a mobile device."

"For example, imagine a technician who is called out to repair a piece of equipment at a customer site and finds the problem can`t be fixed immediately. Our rich media support and synchronisation engine means it`s simple to create an application that would allow him to photograph the problem with his phone, type in the serial number, add the GPS co-ordinates for the location and upload the entire package for his colleagues."

"This is just the beginning," says Clarke. "We can see exciting possibilities for real estate agents to send individualised portfolios to their clients` mobiles, for the creation of online marketplaces and for news feeds, to cite just the business uses. There are also many private uses, for example, for communities and interest groups to share information, including pictures, comments, GPS data about anything from restaurants to bird-watching sites to crime hotspots."

The development tool is free to download and use - and developers will be paid for applications that find users. "We`ve created an absolutely transparent business model," says Clarke. "Anybody can download SmartApps to develop anything they want and publish it. End-users pay HansaWorld to use the applications, and in turn we pay developers."

"We`re hoping the tool will trigger an explosion of new application development for the E-series phones," adds Clarke. "There are tens of thousands of possible applications. We`re looking forward to seeing what people come up with."