Microsoft isn’t offering up any dates or final product names, but it is breaking with Windows Mobile tradition and is talking about future features. It’s not hard to see why Microsoft’s Windows Mobile team is uncharacteristically willing to share its roadmap. The Apple iPhone has all the buzz and, according to at least one market researcher, more of the the Web-browsing market share than Windows Mobile does. Here’s what Microsoft has shown/told a select handful of bloggers, journalists and other sundry “influentials.” Coming early next year is Windows Mobile 6.1, a minor update to the current Windows Mobile platform that includes a number of interface enhancements. Next on the horizon is Windows Mobile 7, which will add zooming, scaling and a new suite of Win Mobile apps, including Internet Explorer, email, SMS and photo/music management, according to Gizmodo’s account.
View: Full Story @ Mary Jo Foley's Blog
View: Full Story @ Mary Jo Foley's Blog
At least Windows Mobile are trying to up the ante. Competitors in the field including the now significantly popular iPhone with a version of OSX underneath, have taken the onus away from Windows mobile. By divulging aspects of what could be coming next may work in their favour. However, they have been caught napping at the wheel and have a lot of work to do if they wish to catch up on Blackberry and iPhone.
iPhone still doesn't have any ActiveSync support so it's not likely to be accepted by corporations until there is a way to manage the device.
There is a point behind ActiveSync and BES. The most important aspect of both of these programs is that you are able to properly secure your devices and remotely erase the devices should it be lost or stolen. With BES you can even use GPS tracking to see where the device is located. iPhone is not capable of this.
Most companies are probably using Exchange Server. Windows Mobile 6 is awesome. I don't see how you can say it's not a useful OS. I don't know what I would do without my phone. All of my work e-mail, calendar items, tasks, voicemail, and contacts are synchronized with the phone so I always have the information I need. I can also view office documents and surf the web. I can also slide the screen open and I have a QWERTY keyboard underneath. Oh, lets not forget I can just drop on any mp3 and have a new ringtone. iPhone will not let you do that.
I have seen an iPhone and it looks cool, but the other drawback is that the phone is tied to one provider. Yes, you can hack it and not receive any support for it.
So let's see:
= Yawn
BTW - that new program / beta they released that is a rip off of the dragging that iphone has, is buggy and horrible. I hope they fix that.
as far as I'm conserned windows mobile is already well beyond crapberry and iPhone. as far as blackberry goes, I could not even imagine having a non-touch screen device. As far as iphone goes, lets see, unlocking bricks your phone, 3rd party sdk is lacking severly, and its an apple product. 3 strikes for me. the iPhone just like most Apple products is not for a person who wants/needs to be productive... it is for people who do not know how to use stuff and need kid gloves to do everything. I've said it beofre and I'll say it again "I do not need a stupid airplane to fly across my screen to tell me I am in flight mode, the "!" next to my antenna icon is enough for me"
I think bby and iphone devices have a long way to go before catching up to windows mobile
just my $0.02
lol sry, we have so many acronym's in our IT dept, sometimes Its hard to break away from using them
I haven't had a single mobiel phone yet that had 24 or 32bit color... heck I haven't had a single LCD montior that supported true 32bit color that I know of... (well 24bit if you exclude the alpha colors)
In only a matter of months iPhone has trumped Windows Mobile. How very, very sad, but characteristic of Apple.
And again, MS is playing catch-up - late to the party yet again.
Nothing to see here, move on.
Don't forget you are not locked into one mobile provider!
Those are the number of people "alledgedly" online with the iPhone. Not market share, in terms of units.
And yes, very characteristic indeed...that is why apple has a 50% PC market share.
In recent years the hardware of these devices and their ever expanding capabilities has been phenonomenal and with Microsoft not paying close attention to the WM division its easy to see how they let it slip them by that these features, potential and decreasing costs of these devices could easily lead to:
1. Enhanced further for business use
2. Make better use of the actual techology ie touch interfaces not just stylus interfaces
3. Consumer market could be targeted rather than the business market microsoft control.
If it has the OS to back it up.
Even now, WM devices still run rings around the iphone in term of specs, what the iphone has that WM doesnt is
1. Storage. WM devices have been good with expandable storage but poor with internal storage.
2. Interface.
I mean only last month for the first time ever did I see a Windows Mobile ad. Relatively speaking the news of future versions is the first time Microsoft Windows Mobile have actually been open. If they want to keep the community involved, upto date and discussing WM thats what they have to do. Advertise, discuss and support in partnership 3rd party software makers and importantly the hardware vendors as well.
But I still see Microsoft are using the old LOnghorn language there, with claims WM8 will be "revolutionary"...where have I heard that before, and is a full touch WM edition really that revolutionary now Microsoft, little own in 2-3years time?
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