Choosing smartphones for your nonprofit

Originally posted on community.npowerseattle.org/npowering on April 12th, 2011.

There are more options than ever for smartphones now, but which is the best one (or ones) for your nonprofit? It's important to determine your needs and wants in a new phone before you purchase one instead of hoping that the one that you purchased does everything you need. Start by taking note of the most important phone features for you, so that you can make good decisions to meet your needs.

Email and Calendar - For most business-use phones the top priority is access to your work email, calendar, and contacts, so it’s very important to spend time making sure that your phone will connect well and easily with your network. Most of our Managed Service clients use Microsoft Exchange to handle their email, and all of those nonprofits will want to make sure that their smartphones support the ActiveSync feature. Phones that have this feature will be a breeze to setup in order for your staff to access their emails and calendars on the go. If your nonprofit uses Exchange and you choose a smartphone that doesn’t have ActiveSync, you can expect to spend more time and money to get your phone connected and to maintain that connection. Which phones support ActiveSync?

• Windows Mobile – As you may expect, all versions of Windows Mobile have ActiveSync, and will work very well in Exchange Environments.
• iPhone – All but the first generation of the iPhone have included ActiveSync, and so these can also be a very good option for your staff looking to access email on the go.
• Android – The new versions of Android (2.0 and later) include ActiveSync support, but you still need to double-check for this feature on each device. As each carrier and hardware manufacturer can make changes to the Android operating system, this feature may not be on all models. Due to the differences between devices, we recommend that you read some reviews regarding ActiveSync for a model that you are considering purchasing, as it works better on some phones than others.
• Blackberry/RIM – We do not recommend Blackberry phones to our clients, because they don’t provide ActiveSync support. There are some third-party applications now to connect newer Blackberry phones to Exchange, but they have some significant costs associated with them.
• For more details on each platform's ability to use ActiveSync well, check out this comparison chart from Microsoft TechNet.

For nonprofits that are using Google for their email, the Android phones will be able to sync with Gmail very well, as will a Blackberry and any phone with ActiveSync.

Cellular Network - After email, the most important consideration is the phone's network. You will definitely want to make sure that your phone will work everywhere that you need it to, and that their data connections will be fast enough for your needs. While most carriers provide coverage maps to tell you if your neighborhood is covered, you'll need to do a bit more research to make sure you don't have a coverage black hole in your office. Check if any of your co-workers have issues getting connected in the office, or just make sure you test thoroughly in the first few days with your phone (when you can still get out of your contract). If you travel for work (or pleasure), check to make sure that you will have coverage at your typical destinations. International travelers should also familiarize themselves with prospective carriers' call and data costs outside the U.S.

You may also want to look into additional policies that your carrier may hold. For instance, some carriers allow tethering (using your phone's data plan to access the internet on your computer) and many do not. Of course, you'll also want to look into finding a plan that will give you the minutes, data, and texts that you need for a fair price.

Other Features and Programs - Once you are sure that your phone will easily be able to connect to your nonprofit's email, the other features are going to be dependent on your personal preferences. Here are some to consider:

• Physical or on-screen keyboard - Those that frequently write long text messages and emails may prefer using a physical keyboard over the on-screen ones common on touch screen phones. Many newer phones with physical keyboards also offer the on-screen keyboard to give users more options. On the downside, the addition of the physical keyboard adds to the weight and size of your phone.
• Screen Size and resolution - Most phones hover between 3.5 and 3.7-inch screens, but there are new devices, especially on the Android platform, with screen sizes of 4 inches or more. If you are looking at a device with a larger screen, make sure to get some hands on experience using it to be confident that you will like working with it day to day.  As long as you are buying a new, current generation phone, your screen resolution should be high enough to display movies, images, and small text well.
• Apps - All four major smartphone players provide a market place with both paid and free apps to help you do more with your phone.  While we may instantly think of games when we hear "app", there are many out there that could help you do your work more effectively on the go. Look into the programs that you use frequently at the office, such as your database, email marketing tool, or social network monitoring tools, to see if they have a smartphone app, and if it's available on one phone platform over the others.
• Battery Life - Battery life has improved considerably over the last couple of years, but you should still check on this. This is especially important if you do a lot of web surfing (or game playing), use a  bluetooth device, or tether your phone to your laptop.

We hope that this helps you as you choose a new smartphone for your organization. Our Managed Services clients can also ask their consultant for advice in choosing phones that will work best for their needs.

- Elaina Buzzell