The Smart Mobile Application Framework (SMAF) - Exploratory Evaluation in the Smart City Context

What makes mobile apps "smart"? This paper challenges this question by seeking to identify the inherent characteristics of smartness. Starting with the etymological foundations of the term, elements of smart behavior in software applications are extracted from the literature, elaborated and contrasted. Based on these findings we propose a Smart Mobile Application Framework incorporating a set of activities and qualities associated with smart mobile software. The framework is applied to analyze a specific mobile application in the context of Smart Cities and proves its applicability for uncovering the implementation of smart concepts in real-world settings. Hence, this work contributes to research by conceptualizing a new type of application and provides useful insights to practitioners who want to design, implement or evaluate smart mobile applications.