Filed under: Windows Mobile

With the Mobile World Congress now just around the corner on February 15th, details of Windows Mobile 7 have started to leak -- and judging by the comments over at PPCG, it doesn't look like good news. It seems like, for all intents and purposes, we're going to be getting a Microsoft Zune Phone.

The following technical details aren't official, so they could just be a mix of guesswork and rumor -- take them with a pinch of salt!

So, here we go: at the unveiling on the 15th, in Barcelona, it's likely that we'll only see the user interface, with actual functionality/developer stuff left until a later date. The UI will apparently be very similar to the Zune HD interface, but with a revamp to the 'start' screen. There will also be full Zune integration (including desktop sync).

Software-wise, there'll be a marketplace with 'try before you buy' (hooray!), full Xbox integration (why?), support for social networking (via apps, I presume) and... wait for it... no multitasking!

It's the last one that makes me wonder if these specifications are real, or just the work of a jealous and vicious Apple fanboy. After the whole 'OMG NO MULTITASKING ON MY IPHONE???' furore, would Microsoft really not include it in Windows Mobile 7?

We'll see next week!

The Foursquare phenomenon just keeps growing! Amidst rumors that Facebook might enter the location-based check-in arena, Foursquare continues to pick up users and expand to new platforms. Thanks to the service's APIs, an intrepid developer has put together a client for Windows Mobile: WinMoSquare. It joins the roster of other mobile clients for Foursquare, which was already available in some form for iPhone, Android, Palm, Maemo and Blackberry.

To run WinMoSquare, you'll need a touchscreen Windows Mobile phone running version 6.1 or 6.5 of the OS. WinMoSquare allows you to check in, add locations, and see where your friends are. Because not every feature is exposed via Foursquare's APIs, the client does have some weaknesses: you can't see the leaderboard or find and add new friends with it, for example. This will change if and when the features become available to developers. WinMoSquare may also pop up in the Windows Mobile Marketplace soon.

ACCESS has launched a new version of the NetFront web browser for Windows Mobile 5.0 and newer devices. The key improvement over NetFront 3.5 is that ACCESS says NetFront v4.0 Concept Version is 20x faster when it comes to JavaScript execution, which should make a huge difference when it comes to rendering web pages and web apps that rely heavily on JavaScript.

Like most other mobile web browsers on the market today, NetFront v4.0 presents you with full web page views as well as the ability to quickly zoom in on just the area you want to read. You can also switch between landscape and portrait modes, with a "smart-fit" display for portrait mode that condenses web elements to fit on a narrow screen.

NetFront v4.0 also has a visual bookmark feature that lets you flip through your bookmarks by looking at web page thumbnails.

The NetFront Browser v4.0 for Windows Mobile Concept Version is available as a free trial version which expires on June 30, 2010. The Concept version doesn't support plug-ins, and there's no technical support.

My PDA is running Windows Mobile 2003SE, so the browser won't run on my hardware. Have you had a chance to test out NetFront v4.0 yet? Let us know about it in the comments. Does it feel faster than previous versions? How does it compare with other mobile browsers you've used?

[via Mobility Site]

Rumors have been flying about an update to Windows Mobile next month, but it was an open question whether it would be Windows Mobile 6.6 or 7. Well, the gadget blogosphere is leaning toward 7. Our sister site, Engadget, saw some confirmation from mobile phone manufacturer LG that WinMo 7 would be out this year, and followed that up with a report from an analyst briefing at Microsoft. Gizmodo got a hot tip that it will be out in February.

At the risk of getting overexcited about a rumor, I'll tell you what else Gizmodo's tipster said: Windows Mobile 7 will apparently support the motion-sensing gestures that have been kicking around the rumor mill for a few years. That means you'll be able to use the phone without actually touching it. Slick! The only problem is that Windows Mobile 7 might not be a simple upgrade for current WinMo users. It will reportedly need newer hardware with better specs and gesture support - like those LG phones Engadget was talking about, perhaps?

As much fun as it is to roil up a nice, fresh potful of delicious rumors, nothing here has been officially confirmed by Microsoft, so don't be completely shocked if February rolls around and we get to meet Windows Mobile 6.6 instead of 7.

An announcement from Microsoft regarding Windows Mobile 7 has been a long time coming. There was even talk of simply abandoning the ailing Windows Mobile platform. News today would suggest that it is coming though, but not until 2011. It's not clear yet, without a comment from Microsoft, if this new information supersedes TechRadar's report that we'll be seeing Windows Mobile 7 next month.

It was expected, after an already-long delay, that Microsoft's CES keynote would include news of Windows Mobile 7 -- but alas, that was not the case (in fact, it might've been the most lackluster keynote ever, but that's another matter entirely).

If the latest news from BSN and reports from all the major phone manufacturers like HTC, Nokia and Lenova are to be believed, we may be seeing a lot of Android-powered phones this year. Apparently all of the devices that were meant to be Windows Mobile-powered and launched in 2010 have been renamed and rejigged to run Android! Without official word from Microsoft, I would suggest Windows Mobile fans stay calm... for now.

We'll know for sure in February!

Oh my... not content with finally being at the stage where they're ready to release a working version of their 'Fennec' mobile web browser (albeit only for the Maemo based Nokia N900 initially), Mozilla seem to be on something of a mad world-domination-power-trip at the same time.

Why? Well, Mozilla have declared that Firefox Mobile will render all existing device application stores redundant as developers shift to developing applications which simply run in your mobile web browser.

Although this is probably the millionth time I've read that web applications will make client applications completely redundant, I'll explore their asseration for the benefit of you, dear DLS reader.

Vice President of Mobile at Mozilla, Jay Sullivan, spoke to PC Pro about application development and raised some valid points. He talked about the relative simplicity of developing in JavaScript and HTML and the benefits of not having to learn the development platform required for a specific mobile or desktop OS. It is valid to say that, featuring the fastest Javascript engine of any mobile browser, some great experiences will be possible with Firefox Mobile.

But I see a problem -- two, in fact.

The SEVEN Beta setup is an interesting one.

As a company, Seven (enough capitalising already!) sell their excellent push e-mail products only via mobile operator channels, however their Beta program is an excellent way for users on unsupported carriers (that's likely you and I) to enjoy their software.

Available in a variety of editions on a variety of platforms, Seven's software allows you to receive push mail on your device from a variety of services - Exchange, Yahoo, GMail, AOL Mail, HoTMaiL and standard POP and IMAP services are all supported. A Beta release it might be (with the usual associated disclaimers), but the application is a supremely useful piece of software that i've been using for many years to push synchronise GMail with my Windows Mobile devices.

I happened to visit the Seven Beta site earlier today to download the latest Windows Mobile client and I was intrigued to notice that an Android download option had appeared. Obviously I had to download the application and take a look!

As expected, it's a Seven client for the Android OS that includes all of the goodness that i'm used to - push mail across a host of platforms, 'quiet times' when push can be automatically disabled, multiple accounts, server contact search, customisable notifications and more! Although the currently version of the software is missing a few features i'd like to see (primarily HTML mail), for Android users it can often be a trying task getting mail set up and working as desired if you are using something other than GMail, and Seven is making that story easier. I've been pushing an additional e-mail account and a HoTMaiL account all day without any issues!

If you'd like to try out Seven on Android (or indeed any of their other support platforms, which include WinMo Standard / Professional, Symbian S60, Palm OS and even J2ME!) then head on over to the Seven Community Forum to sign up for an account.

Microsoft has finally made downloads of Office 2010 beta available, for both Windows on your desktop and Windows Mobile 6.5. Project 2010, Visio 2010, and SharePoint Server 2010 are also available on the Office 2010 download page, and you can get the mobile version of Office via the Windows Mobile Marketplace. Microsoft says the portal for all things 2010 is http://www.microsoft.com/2010/, but the first live download links I've found are right here.

Because we apparently need social networking in every app these days, one of the things Microsoft is pushing about Office 2010 is the new Social Connector, which "brings communications history, business collaboration and social network feeds directly into Outlook, with support for Windows Live and SharePoint Server." LinkedIn has been announced as the first social network that will plug in to this new feature.

More on Office 2010 soon, as Microsoft is getting ready to demo it at their Professional Developers' Conference as I write this. Happy downloading!

Over the past few years, Opera Mobile has become the browser of choice for the majority of Windows Mobile users. Shipped as the default browser on many devices and available as download for others, Opera Mobile addresses the many failings of the preinstalled IE browser with better performance, variable zoom and text reflowing as well as a polished and intuitive UI.

Pushing the mobile browser closer to a desktop grade experience is the promise of Opera's latest release, Opera 10 Beta for Windows Mobile.

The Opera Mobile 10 Beta overhauls the look and feel of it's predecessors and is similar in design to the Opera 10 desktop browser as well as the Java based Opera Mini 5 beta. The UI overhaul brings Opera's offering across all of it's platforms in line, as well as providing a great range of features from the desktop platform including Speed Dial, tabbed browsing, a password manager and Opera's server side compression technology, 'Opera Turbo'.

I've had a try of the new browser and it does indeed feel more consistent in style with Opera's Java based offering, no bad thing as Opera Mini has always made excellent use of the available screen real estate. Performance seems great and the UI seems intuitive. Some features found in previous releases don't seem to have made it into version 10 yet - we spotted a lack of device rotate support and no support for multitouch zoom on the HTC HD2, but Opera does look set to maintain it's class leading position on the Windows Mobile platform.

The Opera Mobile 10 Beta is available for free download now from the Opera website.

Have you been itching to download applications from the Windows Marketplace on your Windows Mobile smartphone, but been thwarted by the fact that your device runs Windows Mobile 6.0 or 6.1 instead of the shiny new WinMo 6.5? Well, fret no more. Microsoft is making its answer to the iPhone app store available for all phones running Windows Mobile 6.0 and up.

Sure, anyone stuck with an aging Windows Mobile 5.0 or earlier phone is stuck downloading and installing applications the old fashioned way -- by surfing the web to find programs and downloading either the CAB installer files or EXE files that can be installed from a PC using ActiveSync or Windows Mobile Device Center. And then you have to walk uphill 2 miles in the snow to school and back and you'll like it!

You can install the Marketplace application by visiting mp.windowsphone.com on your mobile browser to download the software. You can also enter your phone number on a web site using a desktop browser and Microsoft will send you a text message with a download link.

[via Windows Team Blog]

Want to know what kind of apps are available for Windows Mobile 6.5, but don't have a phone running the operating system yet? Or just want to look for apps on a screen with a resolution higher than 640 x 480? Microsoft has launched a web version of the Windows Marketplace.

Users can browse the web store without an account. If you sign in you can also purchase programs that will be installed on your mobile device wirelessly the next time you run the Windows Marketplace client on your mobile device.

One interesting feature is the ability to use the drop-down menu near the bottom of our page to change your locatino. SO if you want to see applications that are available in the Windows Marketplace for UK, Russian, Swiss, or Taiwanese users, you can do that.

[via Windows Team Blog]

When Microsoft launched Windows Mobile 6.5 earlier this month, the latest version of the company's operating system for cellphones and mobile devices was met with lukewarm (if not hostile) reviews. In a nutshell, the biggest complaint is that the operating system was essentially unchanged from the previous few versions and didn't offer much to convince users to stick with the platform instead of switching to an iPhone, Blackberry, Google Android, or Palm device.

But there may be hope. Windows Mobile 6.5 does have a new and improved web browser and home screen, even if the calendar and contacts applications haven't changed in half a decade. And now it looks like Microsoft is working on an incremental update that may or may not be called Windows Mobile 6.5.1 that will bring a number of minor but significant improvements.

Unofficial builds of Windows Mobile 6.5 have been leaking onto the web for the past few months, and blogger Long Zheng reports that among other things:

• There's a new contact application that's more finger-friendly
• The start menu and close buttons have been moved to the bottom toolbar, which allows the toolbar at the top to be thinner and hold status icons only
• UI elements including buttons and check boxes have received a visual refresh

Windows Mobile 7 is expected out next year, and it will reportedly represent a major shift by including more finger-friendly controls and a new version of Office Mobile. But until then, it sounds like Windows Mobile 6.5.1 might be the way to go if you're stuck with a Windows Mobile device. Long Zheng reports that early builds are already available for download for some mobile phones in the shadier areas of the internet.

Microsoft has pulled back the thin veil that was covering Windows Mobile 6.5 and launched its next generation operating system for mobile phones. And it's pretty much exactly what you would expect based on all the information that's been coming out over the past year or so. That's to say, it appears to be a minor, mostly cosmetic update to Windows Mobile 6.1.

A number of tech news sites have published detailed reviews of Windows Mobile 6.5. And here's what they generally have in common: Microsoft has tweaked the home screen to make it more attractive and more user friendly. The program launcher has also received a minor cosmetic update that makes it easier to navigate with a finger and no stylus. But there's no good way to sort programs or arrange them the way you like them. And when you actually launch the applications you're often greeted with programs that haven't changed much since Windows Mobile was called Pocket PC 2002. For instance, the calendar is as ugly and feature-free as it was 7 years ago.

The web browser is actually a pretty major improvement. It's based on Internet Explorer 6, which may be incredibly out of date when it comes to desktop browsers. But for a mobile web browser, it's pretty good at rendering most of the web content you'll encounter. It also has improved navigation buttons that don't take up as much on-screen real estate. Those buttons disappear when you're not using them. The browser supports Flash, and you can zoom in and out of web pages to see the full page or just the text area you want to read.

• Windows Mobile 6.5 review - Engadget says not much has really changed
  
• Windows Mobile 6.5 1st Look - Mobility Site has what is probably the most extensive walkthrough of the bunch
  
• Windows Mobile 6.5 Review: There's No Excuse for This - Gizmodo has lots of pictures, lots of complaints
  
• IE 6 for Windows phones: Interface improved - CNET suggests that Internet Explorer 6, at least, is a welcome update
  
• Windows Mobile 6.5 disappoints; no Start customizations and stylus still required - ZDNet decides Windows Mobile 6.5 fails to live up to even relatively low expectations

The long and short of it? If you're leaning toward getting a Windows Mobile phone anyway, Windows Mobile 6.5 has a few features that you might like. But it's hardly a home-run hit that will help Microsoft compete with Apple, Palm, Google, Symbian, and other mobile platforms. We'll have to wait for Windows Mobile 7 to see any major changes in the platform.

Long time Windows Mobile developer WebIS have announced on their blog the forthcoming release of Pocket Informant 9, their brilliant PIM replacement product, cementing their commitment to the platform despite recent BlackBerry and iPhone releases.

The update, which can be downloaded in CAB form from the WebIS site as part of a 'soft launch', is 100% complete, awaiting supporting documentation and translations before making it's full debut.

Originally released in 2001, Pocket Informant consistently scoops up Windows Mobile software awards and is one of the best selling applications on the platform.

Version 9 adds features specifically tailored for Windows Mobile 6.5, as well as being backward compatible with previous Windows Mobile releases. New gesture support built into WM 6.5 enables swiping left and right in Day, Agenda, Month View, Week, Task View, and Date Picker to navigate between time periods and swiping left and right in editors to navigate between the tabs.

As well as the new gesture functionality, the new update adds new events and journal views, GTD support in tasks (Inbox, Context Groups, Project Groups, Next Actions), starred tasks, 'bounce scrolling', contact links directly in task / appointment subjects, a one month date picker based on the full month view, a month view free time finder, touch friendly editors, much improved touch support, full PNG support for icons and a free add-on pack of over 1200 icons.

Pocket Informant 9 is expected to receive a full release around 28th September, $10 cheaper than version 8 at $19.95, but if you'd like to try it out in the meantime, head on over to the Pocket Informant download server to grab a CAB format release.

Twitter's phenomenal growth means that people are posting updates to the service faster than ever. Earlier in the year, the number of tweets posted to the service hit a wall: more specifically the number 2147483647 which was the maximum size of an integer in a fair few programming languages.

Tomorrow morning, however, Twitter will be forcing through Twitpocalypse II where the number of tweets pushes past the unsigned integer limit of 4294967296. And that may cause issues for unprepared Twitter applications.

In a mailing to the Twitter API developers list, the Twitter API team have reminded developers that their applications need to cope with numbers of this size - and if you're wondering why your favourite mashup isn't working after 11:30am Pacific Time tomorrow, this may well be the culprit.