Looking at reviews of the iPhone 4, from both consumers and writers on technology websites, it’s hard to find any that don’t give it a very high review. For example if you type ‘top ten smartphones’ in to Google, the iPhone 4 is listed as number one in seven of the first ten relevant results. This shows that the iPhone is regarded as one of the very best and most advanced smartphones on the market.

Admittedly, the choice of smartphone is all down to opinion and iPhones are not without their critics. It is often criticised for its ‘closed’ system in the App Store, where all apps are vetted by Apple before being allowed in the store. This is the opposite of its main competitor, the Android operating system, which has an ‘open’ system. This means that there are no restrictions on the content that can be created, but this has led to apps being potentially virus ridden, whereas the Apple app store is a safer alternative. The iPhone 4 was also heavily criticised for its reception problems, which meant that some phones required a rubber ‘bumper’ to improve the signal.

Opinion aside, the iPhone’s sales figures are very impressive. The iPhone 4 sold an estimated 13.5 million handsets in the 3rd quarter of 2010. The Android operating system has sold 20 million in the same quarter, but this is spread across dozens of handsets with varying features and power. The iPhone 4, as the name suggests, is only the fourth handset from Apple and one of only two still in production. No single handset has come close to selling the same amount as the iPhone 4.

The major breakthroughs and selling points of the original iPhone have become a standard feature expected on any high-end smartphone bought today. The most recent offerings from Samsung (Galaxy S2), HTC (Sensation) and LG (Optimus 2X) can match an iPhone 4 for performance and the majority of features available. The three phones, all running on the Android operating system 2.3, called Gingerbread, have been met with very positive reviews. All three phones use a dual-core processor, which increases the processing capabilities of the phones and the Samsung Galaxy S2, according to official specifications, is a full 0.7mm thinner than the iPhone 4.

There are a number of exciting new phones and new innovations that will make the competition even fiercer. The Windows Phone 7 operating system, while still in its infancy, has been met with positive reviews. Windows Phone 7 has also recently announced a partnership with Nokia, who are still the market leader in the overall mobile phone market. There is also a 3D offering from LG just a matter of weeks away. We must also remember that the current iPhone is now a year old and even though potential features of the new model are under wraps, we can expect considerable improvements when it is finally released.

The arguments over the best smartphone will rage on and it’s all about opinion and what features you look for in a phone. It may be smarter to ask whether we will see a smartphone that can offer something that will tempt the fiercely loyal Apple consumer away from the lure of a new iPhone. These are exciting times in the world of smartphones. However, the iPhone 4 reigns supreme in the battle for sales, at least for the time being.

There was a substantial amount of media buzz, this week regarding ‘leaked photos’ of a Sony PlayStation phone using the Android system. Sony were rumoured to have applied for a patent four or five years ago for a portable gaming device with the capacity to be a mobile phone, and many online believe the time has come for the long awaited PlayStation phone. The topic spread round the internet like wildfire with YouTube videos, Facebook statuses and Twitter updates all trending the ‘release’ heavily, showing the level of interest there would be if the rumours were true.

What would the release of a Sony smartphone do to an already crowded market? Would it revolutionise? Or would it blend in with the vast array of smartphones in store windows? If the phone is real, with the sheer wealth of knowledge Sony has of the mobile communications market, a PlayStation phone would pack a heavy punch before the gaming aspect were to even become involved. PlayStation also has such a massive fan base combined with the draw of the Google Android operating system; the phone would have the potential to compete with the latest handsets using the newest operating systems. The Android system is becoming increasingly popular, along with the updated Symbian and most recently the Windows Phone 7 system.

As operating systems are becoming increasingly advanced to cope with complex programmes and functions, more and more people are turning towards a Smartphone for the apps available and satisfaction gained from it. Figures published by Gartner Newsroom show that the Symbian operating system is used in 41% of handsets, an incredible figure considering the popular Android system is used by 17% and Apple’s iOS in 14%. Are we moving into a time when consumers care more about the System the phone uses, then the handset itself?

This is when the authenticity of the so-called rumours comes into question. Why would Sony wait so long to launch a smart phone containing the PSP console? The Sony Ericsson branch has such huge power and resource, combined with the technological advancement of PlayStation, the specifications for a Sony PlayStation phone would look very promising for a gaming enthusiast or an admirer of the latest technologies. However, the controversy arose due to the poor quality of the photographs, showing a dirty screen and un-focused close ups, bringing authority of the photographs into question. Yet the idea of the phone was greeted with enthusiasm and excitement, leading to comments discussing all the directions in which the phone could go.

Whether it is real or not, Sony have created a stir throughout the technological and gaming world, which shows it would have the potential to do extremely well in the lucrative smartphone market. Sony, if they were to launch a PlayStation phone, would certainly not look out of place amongst the leaders of the market, Nokia, Apple, Samsung and HTC and the contest would also be an interesting one to watch. With each company trying to better the next with faster, sleeker and more technological models, how would they each respond? Sadly however, Sony rejected claims the ‘leak’ had made that a PlayStation phone would be released by the middle of next year leaving those so wildly caught up in media storm, scratching their heads and wondering if the time would ever come?

The tech press was abuzz this week with rumours from seemingly well-placed sources that social network giant Facebook was developing a mobile phone designed to compete head-to-head against Apple’s iPhone, Google’s Android OS and Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 offerings.

Facebook attempted to quash the story early on with a curiously-specific statement of; “we are not building a phone”, which only served to add fuel to the rumour as it followed a similar tone to Google’s claims during the development of the now-established Android mobile OS. The inference being of course that Facebook could still be preparing some sort of an assault on the mobile market with third-party device manufacturers such as HTC and Samsung doing the actual phone ‘building’.

With Facebook’s dominant and constantly-growing position on the social networking scene and 500m+ registered members already sold on the web, a mobile OS based around the service would certainly make sense to a vast number of people.

While it remains to be seen whether there’s any truth in the Facebook-phone rumours, the story adds yet more weight to the viewpoint that mobile is the key area in which the major players will battle for the foreseeable future.

Although smartphones have been around in some form for a number of years, it’s only now that they’re finding their way into the pockets of the average mobile user, and they’re certainly not limited to the tech-savvy corner of the market as previously. The functionality of the latest batch of competing smartphones – full internet, html email, apps, GPS, HD video recording and playback, hi-res digital cameras, music, video calling, organisers and of course voice calls – underlines just how far the technology has come, along with how many other areas it is successfully invading.

The landscape of the mobile market these days means that the decision for the consumer isn’t as simple as choosing a phone anymore, it’s more often than not a 24 month commitment to a company and its operating system, and everything that comes with it… and it’s not hard to see why Facebook would want their share of that.

The humble subject line has long been an overlooked element of email marketing, often taking a back seat to design, copywriting, imagery and call-to-action refinement during the development of a campaign.

Yet, despite its lowly status on this list of specialist areas, the subject line has actually always been an important factor in email marketing. A good subject line, basically, can make the difference between an email flyer being opened and acted upon or ignored altogether. You can have the best looking email marketing in the world but without a decent subject line to back it up it’s never likely to fulfil its potential.

Now, with mobile devices becoming ever-popular, the subject line is more important than ever to email marketing because of one simple fact;

Smartphone inboxes only display subject lines and from fields.

No images. No preview panes. It’s all down to your subject line. So it better be good.

With the explosion of smartphone use in recent years – the ubiquitous iPhone and Blackberry, along with the rapidly phenomenal Android OS phones (which grew 350% in the last quarter here in the UK) – more and more of us are accessing our emails on the move, or even opting to use smartphones as in-office business devices due to their ever-increasing performance benefits. Smartphones aren’t the preserve of business or the technically-minded, they’re for everyone. And it seems everyone has got one.

Microsoft, which has stayed on the fringes of the smartphone market for the last few years, is moving closer to the launch of its “Windows Phone 7″ operating system – a hi-spec platform that will doubtlessly be backed up by a gargantuan marketing budget when it emerges before 2010 is out. The new Windows offering will present users with yet another super-capable handheld option – and it’s only going to get bigger.

Of course, email on the move simply presents yet another way to use email marketing to communicate effectively and efficiently with your target market. So it’s unquestionably a good thing.

But next time you’re crafting a campaign that will spring into life on iPhones, Androids and as yet unimagined super devices, make sure you don’t forget the importance of the element that has been around from day one of email – the subject line.