Here is Why Apple’s iPhone 3G is Not Ready for Enterprise

According to ResellerNews, the iPhone 3G is cool, but it’s still not ready for the enterprise. They claim Apple’s 3G iPhone remains “less competent and less tested than its BlackBerry and Windows Mobile counterparts.” Matt Hamblen and Eric Lai identified 5 issues preventing iPhone 3G from being up to enterprise standards.

They are (1) manageability and security, (2) network and deployment, (3) technical support, (4) application ecosystem, and (5) cost and carrier choice.

From a manageability and security standpoint, “The Windows Mobile implementation of ActiveSync is… far superior,” while RIM’s BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES) “lets IT managers enforce more than 200 security and other IT policies, as well as create their own.”

From a network and deployment standpoint, “Most consumers will add applications to their iPhone via the iTunes client…That setup is unacceptable to most companies, who generally prefer a larger degree of control,” and “relying on employees to sync their iPhone with their PC is slower and less reliable than directly pushing out apps, updates or patches wirelessly, which both BlackBerry and Windows Mobile allow.”

From a technical support standpoint, “Multiple, escalating levels of support - widely available for BlackBerry and Windows Mobile users - didn’t appear to be an option today [for iPhone].”

From an application ecosystem standpoint, there are ” more than 18,000 applications available for Windows Mobile at public Web storefronts such as Handango.com,” and “there are still nearly 4,000 BlackBerry apps…along with thousands more custom business apps.”

From a cost and carrier choice standpoint, “the true cost for an enterprise switching to the iPhone comes from the substantial investments in money, time and personnel those firms have already made in BlackBerry devices, multi-year contracts, BES servers, and the like… And there is the matter of Apple’s preference to sign a single carrier… in contrast to the multi-carrier availability of BlackBerries and Windows Mobile phones.”