Sun bringing Java to iPhone
Now that Apple has announced the release of the iPhone SDK, Sun Microsystems has announced that they will be bringing Java to the iPhone. The company will be developing a Java virtual machine that works on the popular smart phone. By creating an iPhone native version of their Java Micro Edition any application that currently runs on Java Micro will work on the iPhone as well.
What does this mean for the average user? For most people who use the phone to be social it means they will have access to Java based games and other fun phone applications. Games their friends are talking about playing would be available to them too, as well as some of the communications and social tools like instant message aggregators would work on the iPhone as well, giving it an edge over many smart phones.
It has even bigger implications for Apple in its fight to launch the iPhone as a viable business option in competition with other smart phones and PDAs like the ever-popular Blackberry line. By allowing Sun to develop Java Micro it will enable the iPhone to have some of of the productivity applications that work in Java as well. Having access to contact management applications, money management and more on the iPhone, more business people may switch from the clunkier Blackberry interface.
Sun doesn’t plan to stop at Java micro, either. Sun’s representative, Java marketing Vice President Eric Klein, sees a more advanced future for both the iPhone and the newer iPod Touch after reviewing Apple’s SDK. He mentioned the possibility of Java Standard edition desktop level applications and a possible animation-driven mobile framework based in JavaFX. In the past, Apple has resisted adding Java to the iPhone in spite of user requests, so this unexpected development should be a welcome addition.
Java has been accused of being a clunky, older application platform rife with problems. Be that as it may, it is one of the most popular application development bases with hundreds of available applications already. Until someone develops something else that is not only better but also as popular, Java is the way to go for many. Having it available on the iPhone and iPod Touch will be advantageous.
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