Comments on: Computers are More Capable than Mobile Phones

By: Computers Are Better than Mobile Phones, For Now « Educational Technology Debate

Fri, 09 Mar 2012 02:31:39 +0000

[...] change, but most commenters disagreed. They were more aligned with Bob Kozma’s assertion that computers are more capable than mobile phones and to be useful, phones need to converge into [...]

By: David Banes

David Banes — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 10:47:00 +0000

The simple fact is that you need to utilise a selection of technology to meet the needs of a given scenario. An overall approach based on the concept of one size fits all is always likely to fail as it fails to take account of individual user variances. This is especially true in communities where users require adaptive or assistive technology to access core information and communication.

If you want to look beyond the debate between mobile phones and PC’s consider the functionality offered by an mp3 player or ebook reader, both are cheap and low cost and recent models incorporate web browsing etc – what is challenged is the form factor of the desktop PC in an era dominated by portability and mobility. with that challenge comes the need to explore both form and the range of functions that technology offers to meet the apsirations of the users.

Technology does not and should not dominate the debate, the specification of the equipment is based upon the needs and aspirations of users, once that is defined the choice of platform is then a matter of specification

By: Ian Lynch

Ian Lynch — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 15:38:09 +0000

OLPC is not a bad concept, it is just not at the right place at the right time or the right price. The world of information – and much of learning is about information – is indeed revolving around technology. There is a bit of a chicken and egg. Digital learning resources need to be freely available such that they can replace more expensive media, the price of accessing those resources also needs to be low. These things are getting closer but we are not there yet and one without the other won't work. Give it 5 years maybe 10.

By: Tom Abeles

Tom Abeles — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 00:39:18 +0000

Let me posit a scenario: Suppose we take a village or several villages. Now completely "wire" the community- high speed, low/no cost access and a zero fault computer. I am not having problems imagining such a scenario even for a whole village, not just a "school". I can imagine this in a rural village removed from easy physical access and I can see this in a barrio in a larger community. In fact I have seen both where such efforts have been promoted. I can even imagine the village copy machine able to produce 3D objects- maybe even a star trek matter converter?

What is missing from this picture? My concern is that:

a) we see the world revolving around and/or driven by technology. Humility and service seem in short supply
b) high speed knowledge movement does not equate 1:1 with social/political change. Do we have a hammer/nail vision problem?
c) time is a critical element. What is needed today and what will be needed tomorrow is a dynamic issue. How do we think about the future?

OLPC anyone?

By: Vikas Kanungo

Vikas Kanungo — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 16:33:10 +0000

In my view, the debate does not have to be either / or scenario on whether to use computers or mobiles. It has to be an innovative combination of both. There are certain advantages of mobiles when it comes to user led education initiatives and of computers when its about classroom or online education.

By: Ian Lynch

Ian Lynch — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 16:31:20 +0000

Unix was once the premise of minicomputers, it now runs on a phone. You can learn a lot from history. Prices fall with volume, good enough technologies move up into the space previously dominated by more complex technologies. Read up on disruptive innovation and find out why Smartphone technologies will force PC technologies into specialist niches. The only uncertainty is how long it will take.

By: j Tim Denny

j Tim Denny — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 16:01:27 +0000

Ian

1 yes a smartphone is a computer and a phone is a computer and a calculator is a computer and your microwave has a computer in it also… I think Kozma's argument is about phones… he says that the issue is about a basic $10 phone… even make that a $100 phone… more if you like… it is still not a device with the capabilities of a PC not yet at least…

2 just a few days ago I saw a Samsung Wave playing a video game connected to a large screen DVD… let me see the Wave comes in about nearly $700 and the large screen LCD was pretty pricey also… but whatever it may be it is not trivial… it is expensive, the technology is not readily available… I did a search on GSMarena.com to see what devices have HDMI… as far as I can see only the top level smartphones… we are talking devices in the $600-$1000 range…

3 the web is the current platform – simple phones are incapable of displaying the web, furthermore they often do not have the correct performance nor software to handle the web

4 there are far more phones than PCs… yes… but that is not an argument in itself..

Cheers
T

By: peter

peter — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 16:09:08 +0000

The normal mobile phone most have are basic ones displaying characters rather than rich graphics computers are capable of.

The most important one is that … there are already millions of ready educational software to use.

Compare this to the basic phones most people have. What can you learn anything from that small device?

No .. PC beats mobile phone hands down.

By: Ian Lynch

Ian Lynch — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 15:12:41 +0000

1. A Smartphone is a computer
2. Adding a large screen and keyboard to a Smartphone is trivially simple – Bluetooth and HDMI
3. The web is the future platform
5. There are already more phones than PCs.

The writing is on the wall.

By: Inevitable: Mobile Phone Inspiried Educational Change « Educational Technology Debate

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 12:52:34 +0000

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