????世界日益移動化，操作系統平臺就像命運之神，它決定了誰將統治移動市場——或是至少決定了誰能在移動市場的“圈錢盛宴”中占有一席之地。不管是賣手機還是平板的，搞移動廣告還是搞應用開發的，你的業務能有多成功都取決于你所選擇的移動操作系統。

????如果把市面上已有的移動操作系統和正處于研發階段的系統都算上，那么我們已經有了不少移動平臺。不過真正有影響力的平臺只有三個，分別是蘋果（Apple）的iOS、谷歌（Google）的安卓（Android）和微軟（Microsoft）的WP8。為了鞏固各自的操作系統，這三家公司都已經開始生產硬件設備。谷歌和微軟都是近期才開始涉足硬件，而蘋果生產設備已經有了多年的歷史。他們要么是通過專利授權，要么就是自行設計設備，以便借此鞏固操作系統的地位。

????這三家公司也都向開發者們伸出了橄欖枝，希望通過他們構建的應用吸引消費者。過去幾周里，蘋果、谷歌和微軟都召開了軟件開發者大會，向開發者介紹公司的新軟件、新設備和新戰略。所有這一切都是為了維護、提高自家系統的市場份額。

????這三家資金雄厚的大公司構成了一個龐大的產業，它們形成鼎足之勢，互相競爭，快速創新。現在讓我們簡要地看看這三家公司最近在智能手機和平板電腦上的創新，以及它們的相對優勢和劣勢分別在哪里。

?????蘋果

????最新動態：在6月初的世界開發者大會（Worldwide Developers Conference）上，蘋果發布了iOS 6操作系統的一些細節。這個系統有望搭載在將于今秋推出的新iPhone上。iOS 6共有200多項新功能，其中很多新功能不算是很大的創新（比如撥號鍵采用了新布局），但是也有一些新功能值得注意。比如如果有些電話無法即時接聽，那么可以選擇“稍后回復”功能。另外iOS 6深度集成了Facebook，可以無縫分享所有的iPhone活動。另外用戶還可通過手機網絡使用Facetime，同時它還添加了一個能把iPhone變成一張信用卡的電子錢包應用Passbook，最后蘋果還引入了令人印象深刻的自家地圖應用。

????本次世界開發者大會上發布最重頭的產品是搭載了視網膜屏的Macbook Pro。同時蘋果還提供了Mountain Lion操作系統的細節。這個操作系統使iOS和Mac操作系統進一步趨同。像微軟一樣，蘋果也希望近一步模糊筆記本和平板電腦以及智能手機之間的界限。雖然要想完全同化兩個系統還需要很長時間，但這條漸近式的道路上產生的摩擦可能也會更少。

????意義：這些創新說明蘋果付出了極大的努力來維護自己在移動世界中的創新優勢。雖然沒有人會因為想體驗一下Passbook或蘋果的地圖應用就丟掉自己的安卓手機，但是蘋果的用戶體驗的確一直都很吸引人，在這方面暫時還沒有人能超越蘋果。

????iOS系統的前景如何，很大程度上取決于即將推出的iPhone 5能否比安卓或WP8手機更有吸引力。許多iPhone用戶都希望新iPhone能兼容高速的LTE網絡——如果此次升級真能支持LTE的話，很多應用將會變得更加強大。但目前來說，蘋果在LTE上還略遜對手一籌。

??????微軟

????最新動態：今年夏天，科技行業最大的驚喜就是微軟自行設計生產了自己的硬件設備。這還是幾十年來的頭一遭，因為微軟一貫都是把做硬件的活交給戴爾（Dell）和惠普（HP這種公司來干。不過這次微軟想做一款稱心如意的平板電腦，因此它親自操刀生產了這臺Surface平板電腦，這幾乎是所有人事先都沒有預料到的。

????微軟也像蘋果一樣給Surface蘋果添加了一些巧妙、直觀的硬件設計，增加操作軟件的易用性——比如它把鍵盤設計在了保護套里。Surface平板獲得了不少評測者的贊美之辭。不過也有些記者說，在發布會現場親手測試的時間實在太有限，因此測試結果意義不大（這位marketingland.com的記者剛拿到Surface平板，想點擊“設置”看看它的分辨率是多少，就被微軟工作人員手疾眼快地“搶”了回去。）Surface平板讓微軟在平板電腦市場占有了一席之地，尤其是微軟如果在新的零售商店里推廣它的話。

????Surface平板所搭載的Windows Phone 8系統也有望與安卓和iOS一較高下。WP8將支持雙核芯片、多種屏幕分辨率，以及無線電子商務交易中需要用到的近場通訊技術。另外它也具備像Passbook一樣的電子錢包功能，而且搭載了自家的地圖技術。

????In a world increasingly going mobile, platform is destiny. The operating system will determine who rules -- or at least who has a seat at a lavish feast. Whether manufacturing phones or tablets, selling mobile ads or developing apps, the operating software running the show will determine how well it succeeds.

????Although there are several mobile platforms in the market or in development, only three really matter: Apple's (AAPL) iOS, Google's (GOOG) Android and Microsoft's (MSFT) Windows Phone 8. Each company creating these platforms have taken to manufacturing devices -- Google and Microsoft recently, Apple years ago -- to strengthen their software, whether through patents or device design.

????And all three companies are reaching out to developers, who build the apps that in turn draw in consumers. Over the past several weeks, Apple, Google and Microsoft have held conferences for software developers, introducing new software, new devices and new strategies -- all aimed at building or maintaining each company's respective market share.

????Together, they show an industry where large, cash-rich companies are vying against each other and rapidly innovating. Here is a quick look what Apple, Google and Microsoft announced in smartphone and tablet innovation, and where their relative strengths and weaknesses are.

????Apple

????What's new: At its Worldwide Developers Conference in early June, Apple offered details on iOS 6, expected on new iPhones this fall. The upgrade will have 200 new features, many not very big (new dialer layout) but others that are notable: a reply-later option for phone calls you can't take immediately, Facebook (FB) integration baked into iOS for seamless sharing of all your iPhone activities, Facetime over cell-phone networks, a Passbook app that could turn the iPhone into a credit card and the introduction of Apple's impressive new maps app.

????While the biggest announcement from the conference was the Macbook Pro with Retina Display, Apple also provided details on its Mountain Lion, which inches iOS and the Mac operating software closer together. Like Microsoft, Apple envisions the lines between laptops and tablets/smartphones blurring. It's taking Apple longer to merge the two, but that slower approach may yield fewer glitches.

????What it means: These announcements represent a lot of incremental additions that add up to a substantial effort to keep Apple at the innovative edge of the mobile world. No one is going to ditch their Android phone just to they can use, say, Passbook or Apple Maps, but the iPhone has always been about a compelling user experience, and no one has surpassed Apple on this front yet.

????Much will depend on how alluring the coming iPhone 5 will appear against offerings from Google and Microsoft. Many iPhone customers have been waiting for a version that will work on high-speed LTE networks -- an upgrade that will make many apps more powerful. For now, this is Apple's race to lose.

????Microsoft

????What's new: The biggest surprise in tech this summer has been Microsoft's move to design and manufacture its own devices, a practice it's been content to let Dell (DELL), HP (HPQ) and others handle for decades. But Microsoft wanted to get a Windows tablet right, and so it unveiled the Surface tablet, a move that almost nobody was expecting.

????With Surface, Microsoft is channelling its inner-Apple: adding a subtle, intuitive hardware design -- such as the keyboard built into the tablet cover -- to enhance the usability of the operating software. The Surface won rave reviews from those who tested it, even though some said hands-on tests were too limited to be useful. The device could make Microsoft a player in tablets, especially if pushed in Microsoft's new retail stores.

????The software inside the Surface also promises to be competitive with Android and iOS. Windows Phone 8 will support dual-core chips, multiple screen resolutions and near-field communications used in wireless e-commerce transactions. It also offers a Passbook-like wallet and a native map technology.