NASA grounds iPhone: not "enterprise ready"
updated 03:25 pm EDT, Tue July 31, 2007
No iPhones at NASA
NASA officials have decided that the iPhone is not ready for use intra-office by its astronauts and other employees according to meeting minutes obtained by InformationWeek. Deeming the iPhone not "enterprise ready," Jeff Stephens of NASA's Outsourcing Desktop Initiative (ODIN) reportedly made an announcement that the phone would be barred from the workplace. The minutes did not provide any exact reasoning for the iPhone ban, but did indicate that the BlackBerry 8800 from Research In Motion and the Palm Treo 750 would soon be certified for employee use.
We previously reported that analyst firm Gartner is warning IT managers to avoid integrating the iPhone into their companies, saying that the mobile device is built for personal use rather than the workplace, with most of its e-mail services tailored to individuals and no security measures to guard data on networks or against loss. The device "changes the game" for the average user but is misplaced in offices, according to senior analyst Ken Dulaney. Specific complaints include a lack of Exchange, Lotus Notes, and PBX support.
but NASA has...
07/31, 03:40pm reply
always been anti-Apple. But their judgment is poor at best on a good day.
smitch
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Joined: Nov 2005
give it time
07/31, 03:44pm reply
NASA will eventually be iPhone-ready.
pascalpp
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Joined: Nov 1999
Drunk dialing
07/31, 03:47pm reply
Drunk astronauts need voice dialing for drunk dialing old girlfriends. Until Apple fixes this flaw, the iPhone ain't ready.
trenchcoat77
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Joined: Aug 2003
Enterprise?
07/31, 03:51pm reply
As for NASA being anti-Apple, would you mind explaining why so many of the Mars rover team laptops in the following photo are PowerBooks? http://marsrovers.nasa.gov/people/20040103_Sp_EDL_01-br.html
(In other news...Apple declares that some NASA astronauts may be too drunk or love-struck to be enterprrise-ready...)
corsair
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Joined: Sep 2005
OK
07/31, 03:57pm reply
I guess I'm glad my iPhone is not "enterprise ready" since Exchange and Lotus Notes both totally suck. I use mine at work with no problem.
MacnTX
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Joined: Apr 2004
Hate to say this
07/31, 03:58pm reply
Nasa did the right thing. iPhone is just not ready for business or enterprise use. For fun and playing around its great. For real work or real integration with businesses not so great. I wish it were, but not right now.
SLURPY
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Joined: Jul 2007
But hey, it's a phone too
07/31, 04:15pm reply
Banned? It's still a good cell phone. I think this is more about NASA politics and their IT folks being anti-Apple
chabig
Professional Poster
Joined: Jun 1999
So
07/31, 05:03pm reply
Everyone already knows its not enterprise ready. h***, for no other reason then you can't enable it with a business account should be sign enough, let alone lacking enterprise apps.
I also don't think its been 'barred', per se, just barred from being purchased in house, since its not an approved phone (in the same sense that a Razr is probably barred because its not approved).
As for Nasa being Apple-unfriendly, I guess you just assume that because they 'barred' the iphone. Of all the government agencies, contractors, support groups, etc, you'll probably find more macs under the NASA umbrella then anywhere else.
testudo
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Joined: Aug 2001
hard to use
07/31, 05:23pm reply
Does being harder to use make it enterprise ready? If the iPhone is not good enough for NASA, Microsoft products certainly aren't.
bhuot
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Joined: Nov 2003
Lets be realistic
07/31, 07:59pm reply
I love my iPhone. Love my Apple BT headset, work great and nice and clear. But still, even a Mac fan like me can see that the iPhone is nowhere near enterprise or business ready. It lacks basic PDA/SmartPhone apps. The biggest glaring mishap is not have ActiveSync or anyway to connect to the Exchange. C'mon, NASA wasn't being prejudice to Apple, their just being practical.
SLURPY
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Joined: Jul 2007