Barack's back on the iPhone, BlackBerry brews up a Storm and your Nokia handset is listening to every word you say

Kia Ora!

Arthur C Clarke was once asked what the next big human revolution would be, and his reply was one of global communication (and considering he first proposed the concept of geostationary satellite orbits, he was probably the right man to ask). That anyone, at anytime, anywhere in the world would be able to contact whoever they wanted. Judging by this week's Pocket update, he was not wrong.

Our Pocket Picks research Octospiders have been delving deep into the world of mobile communication after last week's technological extravaganza. Now all these amazing, next generation handsets are in full public view, it's time for them to start impressing us with their software. Naturally, the iPhone kicked things off with the announcement of its first approved VoIP application. Fring has been cleared for release, and although it doesn't have access to the iPhone's 3G function, it's at least a free download.

T-Mobile is also taking its communications show on the road by offering a free Dell Inspiron Mini 9 ultra portable laptop to 24-month contract customers. With built in mobile broadband and up to 3GB per month of data, it's a very tasty offer for the mobile office worker who doesn't mind being tied to a double length contract – especially considering the favourable reviews the tiddly lappy has been getting. This comes at the right time for any early adopters of T-Mobile's new Android equipped smart phone, though perhaps carrying two full QWERTY's around in your coat is a bit extravagant; even for the Clarke generation.

It it's extravagance you're looking for, however, the quiet release of the new BlackBerry Storm should get your eyelids flickering, as its specifications come as close to the iPhone's as any other new handset thus far released. With the BlackBerry brand falling behind of late, the Storm comes at just the right time to woo its large install base with a tactile multi-touch screen, GPS, accelerometer, Bluetooth, microSD support and 10,000 other features. Also, it looks freakin' sweet.

What we don't know yet is whether its battery is removable, as those blokes in Brussels apparently woke up on the wrong side of a gin fuelled stupor and decided it was time to interfere with mobile manufacturers. The EU's 'New Battery Directive' is set to mandate user-serviceable batteries and openable compartments that will allow older power cells to be removed, which is serious news for the likes of Apple's designers who prefer their batteries to be locked away from prying public fingers.

And these aren't the only politicians looking to get their name on the mobile news. US presidential candidate Barack Obama has proven his love for technology by releasing his very own iPhone app. Obama '08 is "your official, comprehensive connection to the heart of Barack Obama and Joe Biden's campaign." We also believe it comes with a neon light function for users to point at their face to make their teeth appear whiter than a supernova – something that's been statistically proven to make a huge impact on an American election.

If you don't much feel like routing all your enquiries through Barak's application, mobile users will hopefully soon be seeing the alpha build of Mozilla's superb web browser on their handsets. Built-in browsers are all the rage with new handsets, so it's definitely good news for the end user that Firefox is refusing to be left out of the pocket surfing race.

To wrap up this week's software communication spectacular we're going back to Nokia, who's just signed a deal with Nuance Communication to bring speech recognition to its handsets. In theory, this system could be put to use not only in the dictation of text messages and emails, but possibly in picking up keywords from conversations and adding information to the phone as you chat. You've talked through your phone for a long time, so is it finally time to start talking to it? Arthur C Clarke would undoubtedly say it is.

Kia Ora!