5 Pros and Cons of the Mobile Desktop

As CEOs take the stage and talk about the next big thing, as they often do this time of year, reality is getting a little distorted.

This year, without a doubt, it’s talk of the mobile enterprise and the idea of BYOC (bring your own computer) to work. This is an undeniable trend, but we also have to look at the issue objectively. We see a race emerging for the next platform to virtualize. Desktop virtualization is coming to the mobile landscape.

With that in mind, here are five advantages and disadvantages to adopting mobile virtualization in your enterprise environment:

5 Advantages of Mobile Virtualization

1. A strong desktop virtualization solution can wall off important data but still allows for ubiquitous use across the enterprise.
2. Mobile virtualization means you can access applications that are also on your desktop.
3. It can be less expensive than equipping people with a laptop.
4. Easy to work anywhere, any time,
5. People can use their own devices, which they often prefer to do.

5 Disadvantages of Mobile Virtualization

1. Switching between the OS and the virtual environment can cumbersome and unwieldy.
2. The OS can consume a lot of resources leading to poor performance of the virtualized applications.
3. There are actually few people in the enterprise who have smartphones or tablets capable of running a desktop-style virtualization environment.
4. Battery performance is still quite poor on most smartphones and tablets, limiting mobile capability.
5. New security policies and device ownership policies need to be established.

What do you think? Are there other advantages or disadvantages to consider?