The Next Big Wave in iPhone Accessories

Generally speaking, I buy accessories for my mobile devices either to protect them, or to improve their usability. For the iPhone, that's led to a number of different case purchases (same with the iPad, incidentally). Now I find myself searching for a new kind of supplementary hardware, and I'm not alone.

I'm talking about accessories that extend my iPhone's video capabilities. The iPhone 4 shoots HD video, as does the latest generation iPod touch.  But that's only half the story. The other half is FaceTime, which just got a major user boost thanks to the introduction of an app for Macs.

The Demand is Here

The success of startup efforts like the Kickstarter-backed Glif, which is a universal tripod mounting bracket for the iPhone 4, shows that people desperately want good solutions when it comes to taking advantage of the iPhone's improved photographic and video capabilities.

Thomas Gerhardt and Dan Provost, the creators of the Glif, exceeded their Kickstarter goal of $10,000 early on in the funding, and now have more than 12 times that amount pledged. If you pledge $20 before Nov. 2, you get a Glif when it goes into active production, so if you're looking for a tripod mount for your device, it's an affordable solution.

Major Players are Missing the Boat

Joby is a good example of a company missing the boat by not providing an updated solution specifically for Apple's latest devices. The Gorillamobile for iPhone 3G/3GS was great, and anticipated the curve, but now when it stands to gain the most, the accessory maker is behind. Even experienced players are slow to react with this latest opportunity to capitalize on Apple's success.

What Will Succeed

Users will want a flexible mounting solution that lets them use FaceTime on the move, at home, wherever they happen to be. This could mean cases with integrated stands and clips, something which will be popular with the crowd that prefers an all-in-one solution. I've just received the Marware SportShell Convertible for iPhone 4, which is a worthy successor to th...

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