Apparently, you can secure venture-capital funding and launch a successful business all from an iPhone.

Case Study: Amos Winbush

Occupation: Founder and Chief Executive Officer, CyberSynchs

Gear: iPhone 3GS loaded with Citibank (to keep track of startup finances), Facebook (to keep track of CyberSynchs' fan page and connect with fellow entrepreneurs), and Twitter (to stay abreast of business news and keep followers informed)

Who knew that Pret A Manger at East 17th and Broadway could be such a locus of wheeling and dealing?

Listen, we know you love your MacBook. And we love ours. But consider what a hassle it can be when you’re working on the road. A MacBook has to be painstakingly removed from a messenger bag or backpack and plugged in regularly for power (good luck with finding that A/C adapter). And you can’t really use it unless you’re sitting down. And you have to manually connect to whatever Wi-Fi hotspot you can find. And then there are the interminable delays while you boot and launch applications. Plus your MacBook apparatus weighs you down mightily--five pounds or more, and that’s on a good day.

Yet for most professionals--especially at the executive level--getting work done without a computer is foolhardy at best, impossible at worst. The notebook is a necessary evil that represents a basic cost of doing business when you aren’t anchored to a desk.

Amos Winbush took that conventional wisdom and slapped it in the face. When he launched CyberSynchs, a company that makes data-synchronization software, in 2008, he did it with little more than the iPhone in his pocket. Apparently, computers are no longer necessary for entrepreneurs in the startup phase. As Winbush himself blogged on Under30CEO.com, “When CyberSynchs received Series A funding from Momos Capital, the entire deal was orchestrated--on my end--from my jacket pocket. Everything from conference calls to agreements were handled via smartphone.”

Winbush attends a meeting in Manhattan's Union Square Park.

Winbush is the kind of guy who’s always on the move, cruising the streets of New York City with little time for anything besides the occasional bagel. So how do you hire a CTO, track down programming talent, and put together distribution deals when you never stop for a breath, much less a lingering latte? Chalk it up to the hefty computing power of the iPhone, which let Winbush review and approve contracts, read spreadsheets, post ads on Craigslist, field responses via email, and read résumés and cover letters without having to resort to a full-blown computer. In fact, thanks to the iPhone’s simplicity, Winbush says managing his information was actually easier via the handset than it would have been on a laptop.

The other big advantage of an iPhone-based business? The bottom line. Office space in Manhattan isn’t exactly affordable, especially for a bootstrapped startup, and Winbush felt it made little sense to invest in even basic offices--and the IT infrastructure that goes along with it--until his company was well underway. “I really wanted to put the money where it mattered,” he says, “and that’s into the product.”

Of course, you can’t do quite everything via an iPhone, and Winbush estimates he still spent 10 percent of his working time on his computer at home. Editing spreadsheets, for example, isn’t a simple operation on an iPhone (though it is possible; see 5 Apps for Mobile Moguls, below). And then there’s the little issue of compatibility. Although CyberSynchs’ software is available for numerous mobile platforms, there’s one key device that still isn’t supported. Winbush says an iPhone version of his software is pending.

5 Apps for Mobile Moguls

Mac|Life recommends the following software for running a business from your phone:

iMargin

This simple, handy profit-margin calculator helps you reach critical pricing decisions. There are four open fields: unit cost, unit sell price, margin percentage, and gross margin. Enter numbers in any two fields, and iMargin completes the remaining two fields. Whether you’re chasing a magical margin percentage or simply trying to figure out what prices your market will bear, iMargin provides quick answers. ($.99, SUI Solutions, www.suisolutions.com/iphone)

Spreadsheet

Everyone knows you can display spreadsheets that have been emailed as attachments, but did you know you can edit spreadsheets on your iPhone? You can. Spreadsheet packs in amazing functionality--92 common spreadsheet functions are available, so it’s almost like working directly within Excel. We wouldn’t suggest using Spreadsheet for intense projects, but it gets the job done for simple tasks, and you can export your work as XLS files. ($5.99, Softalk Ltd, www.softalktd.com/products/spreadsheet)

Currency

Globe-trotting business folks need to know the dollar value of pork belly futures in Argentina and Japan--or so we’ve learned from watching cartoons and sitcoms. With Currency, global exchange rates are at your fingertips and are always up to date. The app provides conversion of more than 90 world currencies, quickly and easily. (free, Jeffery Grossman, www.currencyapp.com)

Free Translator

Okay, so you’ve decided to finally buy those Argentinean pork bellies. You don’t know Spanish, so how are you going to make the buy? Free Translator provides a slick app-wrapper for Google’s Translate program and provides near instantaneous translation of 39 different languages. Just choose your source and target languages, type in a phrase, and out comes a written translation. (free, Codesign, www.codesign.cz)

SitOrSquat

If you follow Winbush’s lead and forgo a physical office entirely, you might do well to know the locations of the cleanest bathrooms open to the public. SitOrSquat provides a good collection of user-generated, err, bathroom reviews--and it’s sponsored by those wacky Charmin bears to boot! (free, Densebrain, www.sitorsquat.com)