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Amobile device orhandheld device is a computer small enough to hold and operate in hand. Mobile devices are typically battery-powered and possess aflat-panel display and one or more built-ininput devices, such as atouchscreen orkeypad. Modern mobile devices often emphasizewireless networking, to both theInternet and to other devices in their vicinity, such as headsets orin-car entertainment systems, viaWi-Fi,Bluetooth,cellular networks, ornear-field communication.[1]
Device mobility can be viewed in the context of several qualities:[2]
Strictly speaking, many so-called mobile devices are not mobile. It is the host that is mobile, i.e., a mobile human host carries a non-mobilesmartphone device. An example of a true mobile computing device, where the device itself is mobile, is arobot. Another example is anautonomous vehicle.
There are three basic ways mobile devices can be physically bound to mobile hosts:
Accompanied refers to an object being loosely bound and accompanying a mobile host, e.g., a smartphone can be carried in a bag or pocket but can easily be misplaced.[2] Hence, mobile hosts with embedded devices such as anautonomous vehicle can appear larger than pocket-sized.
The most common size of a mobile computing device is pocket-sized, but other sizes for mobile devices exist.Mark Weiser, known as the father ofubiquitous computing,[3] referred to device sizes that are tab-sized, pad, and board sized,[4] wheretabs are defined as accompanied or wearable centimeter-sized devices, e.g.smartphones,phablets andtablets are defined as hand-held decimeter-sized devices. If one changes the form of the mobile devices in terms of being non-planar, one can also have skin devices and tiny dust-sized devices.[2]
Dust refers to miniaturized devices without directHCI interfaces, e.g., micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS), ranging from nanometers through micrometers to millimeters. See alsoSmart dust.Skin: fabrics based upon light emitting and conductive polymers and organic computer devices. These can be formed into more flexible non-planar display surfaces and products such as clothes and curtains, seeOLED display. Also, seesmart device.
Although mobility is often regarded as synonymous with having wireless connectivity, these terms are different. Not all network access by mobile users, applications, and devices needs to be viawireless networks and vice versa. Wireless access devices can be static and mobile users can move between wired and wireless hotspots such as in Internet cafés.[2] Some mobile devices can be used asmobile Internet devices to access the Internet while moving, but they do not need to do this and many phone functions or applications are still operational even while disconnected from theInternet.
What makes the mobile device unique compared to other technologies is the inherent flexibility in the hardware and software. Flexible applications include video chat, web browsing, payment systems, near field communication, audio recording etc.[5] As mobile devices become ubiquitous, there will be an increase of services which include the use of thecloud.[6] Although a common form of mobile device, a smartphone, has a display, another perhaps even more common form of smart computing device, thesmart card, e.g., used as a bank card or travel card, does not have a display. This mobile device often has aCPU and memory but needs to connect or be inserted into a reader to display its internal data or state.
There are many kinds of mobile devices, designed for different applications. They include, but are not limited to:
The history of the mobile device has been marked by increasingtechnological convergence. Early mobile devices—such aspocket calculators,portable media players,satellite navigation devices, anddigital cameras—excelled at their intended use but were not multifaceted.Personal digital assistants (PDAs) proliferated in the 1990s as a way to quickly write down notes, schedule business appointments, and set personal reminders, as a handheld supplement to bulkierlaptops.
During the same period, themobile phone evolved from supporting voice communication only to accommodatingtext messaging, Internet connectivity, multimedia, andvideotelephony.[7] Thesefeature phones eventually gave way to the modernsmartphone, which combined all the aforementioned devices, and more, into one device. Since the late 2000s, smartphones have been the most common mobile device in the world, in terms of quantity sold, owing to their great convergence of technologies.[8][9][10]
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By the early 2010s, mobile devices began integrating sensors such asaccelerometers,magnetometers, andgyroscopes, allowing the detection of orientation and motion.[11] Mobile devices may providebiometric user authentication, such asface recognition or fingerprint recognition.
Handheld devices such asenterprise digital assistants have become morerugged for use inmobile field management. This involves tasks such asdigitizing notes, sending and receivinginvoices,asset management, recording signatures, managing parts, andscanning barcodes andRFID tags.
In 2009, developments inmobile collaboration systems enabled the use of handheld devices that combine video, audio, and on-screen drawing capabilities to enable multi-partyconferencing in real-time, independent of location.[12] Handheld computers are available in a variety of form factors, includingsmartphones, handheldPDAs,ultra-mobile PCs and tablet computers (Palm OS,WebOS).[13] Users can watchtelevision through the Internet by IPTV on some mobile devices. Mobiletelevision receivers have existed since 1960,[14] and, in the 21st-century, mobile phone providers began making television available on cellular phones.[15]
In the 2010s, mobile devices were observed to frequently include the ability tosync and share a variety of data despite the distance or specifications of the devices. In the medical field, mobile devices are quickly becoming essential tools for accessing clinical information such as drugs, treatment, and even medical calculations.[16] Due to the popularity ofmobile gaming, the gambling industry started offering casino games on mobile devices, which led to the inclusion of these devices in the anti-hazard legislature as devices that could potentially be used for illegal gambling. Additional potentially unlawful actions could encompass the utilization of mobile devices in disseminating explicit material involving minors. Moreover, the legitimate adult entertainment sector's incorporation of mobile apps and technology to advance its operations raises concerns. There is also a prospect of leveraging mobile devices to facilitate cross-border services, warranting regulatory attention.
Within the military domain, mobile devices have introduced novel prospects for delivering training and educational resources to soldiers, irrespective of their stationed location.[17]
