Rants And Ramblings About Mobile Technology
Anders Borg writing about the fun and crazy world of mobile and Internet service technologies.
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Sunday, March 11, 2007
Flash Lite more viable, but not a replacement for Java ME yet
It's no doubt that from a developer's point-of-view Flash Lite has a lot going for it when it comes to graphics/ media-intensive applications, and with the later additions of Internet communication etc it's an option also for service frontends. Java ME / MIDP is though still a much more generic and widespread solution, so don't unlearn Java ME just yet.
Hence 'Watch Out Java, Here Comes Flash Lite' is right in that Flash Lite is getting more competitive and a viable alternative, but it definitely can't replace Java ME as the main after-market application platform any time soon.
'Flash Lite has also needed to encourage more development on the GSM phone standard'
What's needed in GSM to support Flash Lite? It's apparent from the following text that this is a misunderstanding.
'[Adobe] has not gotten as much play on GSM handsets as it does with ones embedded with BREW technologies'
Of course not. BREW is like Java ME a platform for after-market applications. Hence adding Flash Lite to a BREW phone is about downloading and installing a new application, not involving the phone manufacturer at all. To add Flash Lite to non-BREW phones means either embedding it (which is very tough to convince a manufacturer to do) or make it into a Java ME, Symbian, Windows Mobile or Palm application, depending on targeted phones. I doubt that Adobe would ever make a Flash Lite MIDlet for competitive and technical reasons. That's like Microsoft making a Java version of Office.
Hence 'Watch Out Java, Here Comes Flash Lite' is right in that Flash Lite is getting more competitive and a viable alternative, but it definitely can't replace Java ME as the main after-market application platform any time soon.
'Flash Lite has also needed to encourage more development on the GSM phone standard'
What's needed in GSM to support Flash Lite? It's apparent from the following text that this is a misunderstanding.
'[Adobe] has not gotten as much play on GSM handsets as it does with ones embedded with BREW technologies'
Of course not. BREW is like Java ME a platform for after-market applications. Hence adding Flash Lite to a BREW phone is about downloading and installing a new application, not involving the phone manufacturer at all. To add Flash Lite to non-BREW phones means either embedding it (which is very tough to convince a manufacturer to do) or make it into a Java ME, Symbian, Windows Mobile or Palm application, depending on targeted phones. I doubt that Adobe would ever make a Flash Lite MIDlet for competitive and technical reasons. That's like Microsoft making a Java version of Office.
