Gizmodo: wm6.1

HTC Touch Pro Gets Fondled, But That Doesn't Turn It On

Sean Fallon — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 14:32:00 EDT

The guys over at Phone Mag managed to get their hands on the HTC Touch Pro "Raphael" and its sweet slide-out QWERTY keyboard. Unfortunately, there was no battery and the device could not be turned on—but no significant changes are expected on that front over the previous Touch handset. All in all, Phone Mag felt that the device would satisfy HTC owners and keyboard lovers alike.

Hit the following link for a full gallery. [Phone Mag]

Treo 800W Heading to Sprint on July 13th for $600

Sean Fallon — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 17:59:00 EDT

We already know plenty about the upcoming WM 6.1 powered Treo 800W, but if a leak obtained by Phone Arena is correct, the device will be available to corporate customers starting on July 9th, with the general public following four days later. It will also be priced at $599 without commitments. [Phone Arena via Electronista]

Video of the Samsung Omnia i900 UI in Action

Sean Fallon — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 13:40:00 EDT

If you were thinking about picking up the new Samsung Omnia SGI-1900 with Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional, a little video demonstration of the touchscreen UI could go a long way in helping you arrive at a decision. All-in-all things look great, just don't be surprised if you fall asleep watching the following video. Not because the UI is boring mind you, but the music has that single mom reunited with her child Oxygen movie of the week vibe to it.

[PPCSG via Slashphone]

HTC Touch Diamond Impressions (Verdict: It's Kinda Slow)

Jason Chen — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 17:01:00 EDT

Addy fiddled with the HTC Touch at the official unveiling about a month ago, but we've just got our own units delivered to us for extensive in-home testing. The exterior looks as nice as we've already seen in unboxing shots, and the TouchFlo is much more refined than the previous incarnations in HTC's ever-expanding Touch line. The problem? TouchFlo is slow as balls. And that's kind of an insult to balls, which are actually pretty fast from our past experience.

Even the "Tap here to launch TouchFLO 3D" intro screen that launches the TouchFLO interface is not very responsive. Here are the two biggest problems here with the interface that we can see. (Spoiler: it's pretty much the same problems as the original HTC Touch.)

One, the screen is the same hard screen that was introduced back when the first HTC Touch a year ago. It's harder than normal HTC screens like the AT&T Tilt (HTC TyTN II) because there's no raised ridge around it to protect the screen, and is a compromise made between using the stylus to touch the screen and using your finger. This makes it feel not ideal for your fingerpad (the way the iPhone works) and better for your fingernail (like the crazy Singaporean gal likes). Don't even try it with sweaty hands.

The other problem is that the processing power is not fast enough to keep up with natural gestures. Sweeping through the list of available applications on the bottom of the screen in the app strip often gets locked up halfway through, when some app decides it wants to slow everyone down and load up its icons. It's unclear whether it's because the Touch Diamond doesn't have the graphical capacity and processing power to keep up with the fancy 3D TouchFLO they rigged up, or if it's a problem with the touch sensor not registering inputs well enough when you use your finger. We think it's the latter, since it works fine with a stylus or a fingernail. Cycling through the same apps one by one using the hardware D-Pad is also excruciatingly slow as well, taking two seconds each to bring up the next menu item.

The good news is that the virtual BlackBerry-esque SureType split-key keyboard is much better than the built-in one Windows Mobile sticks you with, and can actually be used with your finger tip. The bad news is that it takes up 60% of the screen, so when you're sending an SMS, you've got only one line of text visible at a time. Ouch.

Other things we like are the improved dialer screen and call screen (it's very, very iPhone-like), the fancy weather app, the very bright screen, the size, the glowing circle inside the D-Pad, the magnet on the right side that grips the stylus, and the general prettiness of the UI. Look for a full review in the near future.

Update: The new UI fix is a lot faster.

Qik's Cellphone Video Broadcasting App Coming to Windows Mobile

Jason Chen — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 14:10:00 EDT

Qik's been doing live video streaming (think live YouTube) from Nokia S60 cellphones for a few months now, but Mobilecrunch has the scoop that they're expanding to Windows Mobile phones shortly. The support and partnership will be officially announced next week at Tech-Ed, which will give WM users the ability to stream stuff like concerts and their wives giving birth (it's happened) direct from their handhelds. Qik's also thinking about the new iPhone, of course, but that's pending whatever features get announced next week. [Mobile Crunch via Crunchgear]

Zumobi Browser for WM5, WM6 Updated: Users Can Add Their Own Content

Sean Fallon — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 19:40:00 EDT

Earlier this year I put the Zumobi browser for Windows Mobile 5 and 6 devices through its paces and determined that it had some novelty value, but it was clear that there were shortcomings that needed to be overcome before it had any chance of attracting a serious audience. The folks behind the project have taken a step towards that end by updating their software to allow users to customize and create their own tiles from RSS feeds. They have also made it possible to select and upload Tiles directly from your phone.

These updates help to overcome the lack of content and control that plagued the earlier release. They have also streamlined the application to make downloads faster—another major sticking point. The download is free, so it is worth a shot regardless—but if you tried it before and were put off, it may be worth revisiting. [Zumobi]

Windows Mobile 7 May Power Mini Laptops, Says Qualcomm

Jason Chen — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 13:21:22 EDT

Qualcomm displayed a 3G, $299 mini-laptop today made by Inventec that is supposedly designed to run Windows Mobile 7 in the future (it runs Linux now). Windows Mobile 7, which supports Qualcomm's Snapdragon chipset, will in turn make the company more competitive in the mini-laptop space processor that's currently being dominated by Intel, AMD and Via. This meshes with what NVidia says about its Tegra processors being in Windows Mobile devices, meaning that WM7 could be Microsoft's way of covering both phones and mini-laptops with the same OS. [Yahoo]

Pantech Duo 2 Dual-Sliding Windows Mobile Phone Leaked on FCC

Jason Chen — Sat, 31 May 2008 12:00:00 EDT

Seeing as the original AT&T Pantech Duo 1 is the C810, this C820 has a really high possibility of being the Pantech Duo 2. There aren't many details, but it's got WCDMA 850/1900, which is AT&T's 3G, and probably will run Windows Mobile like the previous ones. It's interesting to check out the differences between this and the Ocean 2, which also popped up on the FCC a few weeks back if you're into looking at FCC drawings. [FCC]

Opera Mobile 9.5 Reviewed (Verdict: Even Better Than Safari Mobile)

Jason Chen — Mon, 19 May 2008 17:00:00 EDT

Matthew Miller from ZDNet loaded up Opera Mobile 9.5 on his HTC Advantage, a Windows Mobile device, and thinks it's even better than the iPhone's Safari browser. Why? Because he can select text, copy and paste, save passwords and even email individual images from a page. He says it's the best mobile browser he's ever used (even though Google Docs doesn't work correctly). It's definitely even more like a desktop browser than Apple's offering. You don't need to take his word for it—you can see for yourself in his video. [ZDnet via Into Mobile]

Semi-Official Sprint Mogul Windows Mobile 6.1 ROM Leaked

Jason Chen — Thu, 15 May 2008 21:40:00 EDT

This isn't the final official version of the Sprint Mogul Windows Mobile 6.1 firmware update—which probably means that it shouldn't be called "official"—but it has been leaked on WinMo dev sites. New features are Sprint TV, a larger Start Menu, speedier response and of course, Windows Mobile 6.1. If you're really dying for new features on your phone you can download and install it now, otherwise we'd wait until the final version is available within the next month or so. [PPC Geeks via WMExperts via Boy Genius]

HTC Touch Diamond Gets Classy Desktop Dock, Headphones

Jason Chen — Tue, 13 May 2008 14:00:00 EDT

The HTC Touch Diamond is pretty classy already, but this desktop cradle/desktop dock gives it a nice house on your desk for it to sleep and dock. From the looks of it, it's even got earbuds and a 3.5mm jack for you to connect to a set of speakers as well. The footprint looks slightly large compared to say, an iPhone dock, but we can throw some crap on the floor to make room. [Clove via Tracy and Matt via Tech Digest]

Rumor: MWg to Launch Windows Mobile 7 Device This Year

Wilson Rothman — Sun, 11 May 2008 20:29:47 EDT

One fun rumor bopping around the phone sites is that MWg, the smartphone maker previously known as O2 Asia, will be rolling out a Windows Mobile 7 phone in the fourth quarter of 2008, specifically the Flame II shown above. That's about a year earlier than we last heard. Everyone sounds skeptical, but you never know, the timeline could have been Boy Genius, or to see the whole MWg presentation, have a accelerated because WM6 isn't exactly a crowd pleaser. If you want a more complete roadmap, check out Boy Genius; for the original video presentation from MWg, look at MoDaCo. Either way, take it with a grain or two of salt. [MoDaCo via BGR]

HTC Touch Diamond Lands on FCC, Puts Up Mission Accomplished Banner

Jason Chen — Fri, 09 May 2008 14:00:00 EDT

The Touch Diamond, HTC's 2008 flagship phone, just hit the FCC. This means that it's well on its way to one of the four carriers, most likely either AT&T or Sprint first, judging from the way the original HTC Touch played out. As Addy said in the hands-on, it's the most iPhoney of Windows Mobile phones yet, and feels much like a tiny iPhone for people who have small hands. [FCC]

Hands-on With Windows Mobile Skyfire Browser Beta 0.6

Jason Chen — Tue, 06 May 2008 15:30:00 EDT

Skyfire just got its 0.6 update, bring with it a few more features (listed after the jump) and a bit of compatibility increase that makes it feel more like a real browser than it was even when we saw it at CTIA. The overall idea is the same: Skyfire servers render pages into image form, which then makes it onto your Windows Mobile phone over an internet connection. On our Sprint HTC Mogul, Gizmodo loaded pretty damn fast over EV-DO, and features like Flash actually seemed to work well.

Because the page is like an image, you can pan and scroll around fast and easily, but zooming in and out is a bit clunkier. Typing in a text field requires you to type something on Skyfire's text input, then sending that to Skyfire, then sending the resulting image back to your phone.

Although it touts Flash video, support, watching YouTube videos is still more like a fast slideshow than an actual video—though most of the video quality depends on your connection type and speed. It's no iPhone Safari browser—and probably will never be because of the fact that rendering is done off-phone—but it's a reasonably close approximation for now.

* Multi-line text entry (2,000 character limit)
* Auto-complete text entry
* Paste into URL or search
* Ability to delete bookmarks
* Multiple zoom modes for touch screen phones
* Double tap to Zoom In and Zoom Out
* Support for custom virtual keyboards (SIP)
* Web search shortcut in softkey menu
* Access to the Windows Mobile Taskbar in softkey menu
* Persistent settings for SmartFit, Mute and Zoom size
* Support for 12-key and ½ QWERTY devices
* Password masking
* Backlight usage based on system settings
* OK button sends Skyfire to the background

[Skyfire]

Giga-Byte GSmart Windows Mobile Phones Have a Fancy Smart Touch UI

Jason Chen — Mon, 05 May 2008 13:20:00 EDT

It took a year for Giga-Byte to follow in HTC's footsteps, but the upcoming GSmart Windows Mobile smartphones will have a brand new UI on top of the standard WinMo affair. The interface is called "Smart Touch," and will be more finger-friendly—more oriented toward gestures and finger-navigation—lending itself to launching your commonly used programs directly from the home screen. The Chinese version of this has been available since April, but suffers from some incompatibility issues that most likely won't be in the European release version coming sometime after May. [The Unwired via Into Mobile]

HTC Launching Most Important Product of the Year Next Month

Jason Chen — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 12:40:52 EDT

The Taipei times quotes HTC's own financial executive Cheng Hui-ming at an investor's conference as saying they will launch "the most important product for HTC this year" at an event on May 6. Cheng wasn't too forthcoming with details, but it seems like it's going to be a "Touch" phone—as in one of the HTC Touch models—and be called the "Diamond". He says that it's going to be so good, he's "confident of landing orders from most major carriers," but warned about possible delays because they haven't gotten certification for the phone yet. Sounds very interesting. Could it be this phone? [Taipei Times via Engadget]

Archos Updates the 605 Wi-Fi With GPS, Mobile TV and Flash Video

Sean Fallon — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 16:45:56 EDT

The 605 WiFi PMP was cool and all, but it has been given new life thanks to an add-on that delivers driving directions and free or paid traffic notification in addition to its normal media functions. The system is even sophisticated enough to simulate position changes in the event that a signal is lost. There is also a new Web TV and Radio plugin that will give users access more than 9,600 Web radio stations, 600 Web TV stations and 110,000 podcasts streamed live over the Internet. It will also feature full support for Adobe Flash 9 and WMV9.Update: Some new info about streaming TV and a movie deal with Paramount.

Expect a 30GB version of the 605 Wi-Fi with the GPS receiver in May for $400. If you currently own a 605 WiFi, you can pick up the navigation add-on separately for $130. The Web TV and radio plugin will also be available next month for the 605, 705 and ARCHOS TV+models as a $19.99 download. Speaking of the TV+ device, it will get a separate TVportation upgrade that will let users watch their home TV anywhere—similar to the Slingbox. TVportation will be available for $49.99 (or free if the device is registered to the Archos website). Right now, it'll work with laptops and Archos 605 and 705s, with Windows Mobile support launching soon, and Symbian shortly thereafter. As for the Flash 9 and WMV9 capability, you can enjoy that free of charge when the firmware update is released.

Finally, Archos has struck up a deal with Paramount to pre-load movies on its TV+ devices. The box still be stocked with about 50 flicks, but you've still gotta purchase them—the idea is instant VOD, not giving you free shit. They've got a total catalog of about 250 in the pipe, and they're working on deals with other content providers. Oh, and it's still all in standard def.

From the press release:

ARCHOS Introduces GPS, Mobile TV, and Flash Video for Portable Players
ARCHOS announced today several new ways to move your media from the home, to the road, in the car and beyond, with services that are unseen in any other portable media player.

Announced today at media events in New York and Paris, new ARCHOS products let you watch live TV on smartphones, laptops and ARCHOS portable devices wherever you go; stream favorite TV and radio shows from the Web for free; and help you get to where you're going with GPS navigation, and then entertain you once you arrive.

Turn Your ARCHOS Portable Media Player Into a Mobile TV
The new TVportation feature lets consumers watch their home live TV wherever they go using the ARCHOS TV+ as a streaming media server. Consumers can now watch their favorite shows live on their ARCHOS 605 and 705 WiFi portable players, smartphones, and laptops, giving them the freedom to watch TV anywhere.

Need Some Direction? ARCHOS Introduces GPS
The new ARCHOS GPS In-Car Holder turns the award-winning ARCHOS 605 WiFi portable player into a full-fledged navigation system. With more than 50 times the hard drive size, twice the screen resolution, and similar pricing as stand-alone GPS navigation products, the ARCHOS 605 GPS is the ultimate navigation and entertainment device.

Want YouTube and Web TV Shows on the Go? No problem.
For the first time, TV fans can catch up on full-length TV episodes, music videos, sporting events, news, Web TV shows, and even favorite radio stations for free on their handheld ARCHOS players. ARCHOS portable media players are the first to support Adobe Flash 9, letting consumers enjoy the millions of online video and Flash games available on the Web — from YouTube, Google Video, TV network Web sites, and more.

Paramount Opens its Movie Vault
A global relationship with Paramount Pictures brings more than 300 Paramount movies to ARCHOS portable players. Covering North America and Europe, ARCHOS will provide select Paramount movies for its handheld devices and ARCHOS TV+ WiFi digital video recorder, with Paramount movies pre-loaded for immediate playback on the TV — no download required.

[Archos and Electronista]

Windows Mobile 7 Could Be Too Little Too Late, But Might Come On Microsoft Hardware

Jason Chen — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 18:00:00 EDT

You may not remember this because the news came out during CES, but back in January there was a gigantic leak of Windows Mobile 7 details, including an Alaskan Senator's dump truck full of images. Brandon from Pocket Now recently got to SEE Windows Mobile 7 at a Microsoft MVP event, and while he thinks it's a fantastic OS, he's got a huge problem with the release date.

Based on what he heard at Microsoft, the target release date seems to be mid to late 2009. He's got no problem with the technology in WM7—he says it basically addresses everything wrong with WM6 today—but the fact that it's not going to be released until a year and a half from now is troublesome. How can Microsoft compete when the iPhone will already been out for two and a half years, and iPhone clones have been out for more than one? It's tough.

And it's not like Microsoft can do anything about it. After they finish the OS, they have to send it out to OEMs and carriers and third-party companies in order to test and embed and develop on it. That's the problem with creating only an OS, instead of making an all-in-one OS and hardware product. But that's where Brandon thinks Microsoft has bomb to drop.

There's a possibility that Microsoft will take the recently acquired Danger (the makers of the T-Mobile Sidekick) and put them to work on hardware made expressly for Windows Mobile 7. Just think about how well Apple's done by integrating software onto hardware they built themselves. The same could be true with Microsoft. [PocketNow - Image Credit]

T-Mobile Shadow II Has MyFaves, HotSpot@Home, But Is It Still Made by HTC?

Jason Chen — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 17:50:00 EDT

The Original T-Mobile HTC Shadow was quite good for a Windows mobile phone because of its non-Windows-Mobile Windows Mobile UI. If this leaked picture really is the Shadow II, then T-Mobile is continuing on the same path of loading a proprietary UI on top of the standard WM facade. There's not much else we can tell from this, but we do see that it has MyFaves and HotSpot@Home compatibility. Is this still made by HTC? Probably, unless T-Mobile defected to i-Mate or something. If you're looking for a HotSpot@Home phone in the near future, you might want to wait to see how this one plays out. [Tmonews]

TouchBrowser Brings iPhone Finger-Flicking Browsing to Windows Mobile

Jason Chen — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 20:20:00 EDT

Desktop-like browsing is already headed to Windows Mobile in version 6.1, but can you use your finger with it? Like on the iPhone? Not exactly. For that, you'll have to install TouchBrowser. Along with being able to pan around a page to get your Britney Spears news with your finger, there's even a proprietary onscreen keyboard that takes up almost the entire display. Would you pay $14.95 for this? Only if you're building the world's lamest iPhone replica on your HTC Touch. [Makayama]

World's First Dual-SIM WIndows Mobile Phone Keeps Girlfriends and Wives Separate

Jason Chen — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 20:00:00 EDT

Dual-SIM phones that let you have your phone be simultaneously on two GSM networks are nothing new, but until now they've been on regular phones. This makes no sense. Who needs two phones? Businessmen. And businessmen need phones that scream "I AM A BUSINESSMAN!" Few do that better than Windows Mobile, and these W1000 and G1000 Windows Mobile phones from HKC accomplish the job quite nicely.

The two models differ mostly in the fact that the W1000 is CDMA and GSM while the G1000 is dual GSM. Other than this, they both have a 200MHz CPU, 256MB RAM, a 2.8-inch touchscreen and Windows Mobile 6. It's available right now in Asia, but it'll take a bit of finagling to get one for yourself here. [Unwired View via Slashphone]

Van Der Led WM2 Cellphone Watch Actually Looks Good Enough to Strap On

Jason Chen — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 13:50:00 EDT

We've seen our share of cellphone watches (here, here, here, and here), but this Van Der Led WM2 cellphone watch is probably the first and only one we'd actually wear ourselves. There's a 1.3-megapixel camera, a 1.3-inch screen, a dialpad on the strap, 1GB storage for MP3/MP4 files, and stereo Bluetooth support. The only downside is its $471 price tag, but anyone who's in the market for a cellphone watch probably has that kind of spare cash to throw around and obviously doesn't care about how other people perceive them. [VanDerLed via Slippery Brick]

Trapster Mobile Service Helps You Dodge Speed Traps

Sean Fallon — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 21:30:00 EDT

A new mobile service called Trapster aims to help motorists avoid speed traps using a networked approach that calls on users to warn each other using their cellphones. Using simple keystrokes like "pound-1," motorists can report speed traps and red light cameras into the system. The information is fed into a map which will be used to alert drivers with GPS enabled cellphones of potential threats before they encounter them.

At this point the service has not been met with opposition by law enforcement because it ultimately encourages drivers to slow down—and the best part is that motorists will be able to utilize it free of charge. Let's just hope that Trapster isn't reminiscent of user-backed programs from travel reservation sites like Orbitz. I would hate to blaze through a trap only to hear the audio alert as the officers are slamming my face down on the hood of my car. [CNN via jkOnTheRun]

HTC Touch Dual Set to Make Its Debut in the U.S.

Sean Fallon — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 17:50:00 EDT

The HTC Touch Dual has been available in Europe for some time now, but a recent announcement has revealed that it will be sliding its way to the states sometime during this quarter. No pricing has been announced, but if you want to get your hands on one, Best Buy or Best Buy Mobile is where its at. Full details available in the press release after the jump.

Debuting in the United States, the HTC Touch Dual Incorporates an Intuitive Touch Screen, Slide-Out Keypad and Windows Mobile 6.1 Software
HTC offers customers an enhanced mobile experience through the introduction of Windows Mobile 6.1 software updates for a variety of HTC devices.

LAS VEGAS — April 1, 2008 — HTC Corp. (TAIEX: 2498; "HTC"), a global leader in smartphone design and manufacturing, revealed that the popular HTC Touch Dual™ will debut in the United States this quarter. Announced today at the Cellular Telecommunication and Internet Association (CTIA) Wireless 2008 spring conference, the HTC Touch Dual™ combines an intuitive touch screen with integrated TouchFLO™ technology and slide-out keypad and Microsoft Corp.'s Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional software, making it easier for customers to communicate on the go.

"HTC has witnessed incredible support and demand for the Touch product portfolio, and we are pleased to provide our customers with the opportunity to experience additional iterations of the Touch product family," said Jason Mackenzie, vice president of HTC America. "The Touch Dual will be among the first devices in the United States to run Windows Mobile 6.1 and will be followed by a range of 6.1 updates for several other HTC products."

Software Upgrades Available on HTC Devices

In partnership with Microsoft and key mobile operator partners, HTC will continue to extend the functionality of many current HTC devices both in the United States and abroad by providing Windows Mobile 6.1 updates. Windows Mobile 6.1, an update to Windows Mobile 6, provides new timesaving features, easier phone navigation and management, stronger security safeguards, and support for Microsoft System Center Mobile Device Manager 2008. Some of HTC's most popular smartphones including the Touch by HTC and Mogul by HTC from Sprint, AT&T Tilt, Alltel Wireless' HTC Touch and PPC6800, and the HTC TyTN II, will be among the first of many devices available for a Windows Mobile 6.1 upgrade.

Supporting existing customers and enhancing their experiences continues to be a focus for HTC; Sprint and HTC recently provided an update for the popular Mogul by HTC, making it the industry's first EV-DO Rev. A-capable handset while also enabling additional GPS functionality.

"Windows Mobile enhances people's lives by providing them with an experience that keeps them close to what's important to them — anywhere, anytime," said John O'Rourke, general manager of the Mobile Communications Business, Microsoft. "HTC has a history of providing a great selection of popular Windows Mobile phones, and we are pleased to bring the latest in software to a range of its products around the world."

HTC Touch Dual Availability and Features

Best Buy will be the first to offer the HTC Touch Dual, which will be available through select Best Buy and Best Buy Mobile retail outlets, online at BestBuy.com and htc.com.

"At Best Buy we are committed to providing customers with a wide selection of high quality handsets," said David Ryan, director of merchandising, Best Buy Mobile. "We look forward to adding the innovative HTC Touch Dual to our current lineup of unlocked phones."

Taking user control to a whole new level, the HTC Touch Dual combines an intuitive touch screen and keypad within a stunning design. The versatile device offers an interactive cube interface for quick and easy navigation to e-mails, text messages, calendar appointments and contacts. Features include the following:

• TouchFLO™, a touch-screen technology that allows finger-touch scrolling, panning and photo zooming

• Slide-out 20-key keyboard for quick dialing, text messages and e-mail

• Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional

• Microsoft Office Mobile for working on documents and getting your Outlook e-mail

• Live HTC Home™ featuring time and weather display, quick launcher, and one-touch ring-tone settings

• 2 megapixel camera for shooting photos/videos and a second camera for video calls

• Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE (850/900/1800/1900Mhz) and HSDPA (850/1900Mhz) connectivity

Velocity Mobile Enters Windows Mobile Smartphone Market With 103, 111

Jason Chen — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 15:20:00 EDT

Does the world need yet another company making Windows Mobile phones? Maybe, maybe not, but Velocity Mobile is doing it anyway with their Velocity 103 (left) and 111 (right) smartphones. Both are running Windows Mobile 6.1 and will launch in Q2 and Q3 respectively. What's this have to do with Mr. T? You can't spell Velocity without T, fool. Plus Mr. T likes smartphones.

The 103 has a 2.8-inch touchscreen with 640x480 resolution, Wi-Fi, AGPS, and no keyboard. The 111 has a front-facing keyboard, which cuts the resolution down to 320x240 on a 2.46-inch screen. This also has Wi-Fi and AGPS. Both phones have a 2-megapixel back camera and a 0.3-megapixel front video camera for conferencing. [Velocity Mobile]

Windows Mobile 6.1 Gets Official, No More Rumor Nonsense

Jason Chen — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 12:30:00 EDT

All you business fools who've been waiting for Windows Mobile 6.1 can all relax. It's here. And it's supporting all kinds of jibba jabba technologies like a new Internet Explorer Mobile with IE6 tech and h.264, Adobe Flash and Microsoft Silverlight support. There's also even more stuff for your I.T. crew (I put the T in I.T.) such as better System Center Mobile Device Manager 2008 (only the suckas at Microsoft would name a product like this) and Exchange Server 2007 SP1 support. And here's a big list of new and old phones that are getting the update:

• Mobile operators:
- Alltel Wireless: HTC PPC6800, HTC Touch
- AT&T: Samsung BlackJack II, MOTO Q 9h global, Pantech duo, AT&T Tilt by HTC
- Sprint: A new Palm Treo and updates for the Mogul by HTC, Touch by HTC, MOTO Q 9c, Samsung ACE
- T-Mobile International: T-Mobile MDA Ameo 16 GB, T-Mobile MDA compact IV

• Device-makers:
- ASUS: New phones including the P320, ZX1, P560, M536 and updates for the P527, P750, M930
- HTC: A new Touch Dual for the U.S. and updates for the AT&T Tilt, Touch by HTC, Mogul by HTC from Sprint, TyTN II
- i-mate: 8502, 9502, 8150, 6150
- Intermec: CN3
- Motorola: MOTO Q 9c, MOTO Q 9h global, MC70, MC9000
- Pantech: Pantech duo
- Samsung: BlackJack II
- Toshiba: Portégé G810,Portégé G910

Windows Mobile Face Contact Plugin Adds CoverFlow Contacts

Jason Chen — Sat, 29 Mar 2008 16:40:00 EDT

CoverFlow may be only semi-useful on your Mac, but imagine what it would look like on a Windows Mobile phone. Actually useful! The Face Contact plugin, which costs $14.95, displays all your contact photos in a CoverFlow-esque way in your home screen, letting you flip between people and even directly dial, text or send emails from their photo. Cool for sure, but is it worth $15? Probably not. Plus, are all your contacts actually good looking enough that you'd want to stare at them every time you pull out your phone? [Cnetx via Just Another Mobile Monday via PhoneMag]

HTC's Next-Gen TouchFLO Windows Mobile 6.1 Interface In Screenshots

Jason Chen — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 11:45:00 EDT

Boy Genius has details on "Manilla," the code name for HTC's TouchFLO replacement interface coming on some of their Windows Mobile 6.1 smartphones. There's the improved home screen (above), as well as the improved dialer screens, skinning of the browser and skinning of the comm manager. Our intern tells us that a bunch of these new skins were already seen in gradual updates in some of the newer devices that are out already, such as the Touch Cruise, but "Manilla" seems to be a TouchFLO 2.0 that brings all the updates together. Boy Genius has more. [Boy Genius Report]

More Windows Mobile 6.1 Features: New Camera UI, AT&T Video Share, Albums

Jason Chen — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 14:28:36 EDT

Boy Genius has a few more details to add to the tons we already know about Windows Mobile 6.1. There's going to be AT&T Video Share support, an "albums" feature, Windows Live integration (uploading, blogging perhaps, which was already supported before with a Windows Live web client), an updated camera UI and TV out. We've already seen TV out on various i-Mate devices, but the other stuff seems both new and welcome. Who's going to turn down an updated camera UI when the current one sucks so hard? [Boy Genius]

Hi Ho Silverlight? Microsoft Windows Mobile Gets PDF and Flash Friendly

Wilson Rothman — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 09:22:10 EDT

Microsoft just signed a deal to license Adobe's Flash Lite and Reader PDF formats for Windows Mobile. There's no word yet on when this will appear in the operating system itself, but it's a nice show of openness. It also means two things:
1) Microsoft's Flash competitor, Silverlight, may not be cutting the mustard, and this is no way to spur developers.
2) Steve Jobs' allegation that Flash Lite isn't good enough for the iPhone might hold less water, though few would disagree that iPhone quality standards are higher than Windows Mobile's. [InfoWorld]

MSN Direct Weather, News and Stocks Comes to Windows Mobile

Jason Chen — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 15:25:06 EST

MSN Direct's weather, news, stocks, and entertainment info have been available on MSN Spot devices for a while now, but have been surprisingly missing from Microsoft's own cellphone devices. Not anymore. You can get now up-to-date info right on your Windows Mobile home screen direct from whatever data connection you have (Wi-Fi, 3G, EDGE). Best of all, it's free, which means that MSN Direct might be moving more towards a software service on already-connected devices, which in turn means that it might even expand to non Windows Mobile phones in the future? [MSNDirect]

Toshiba G810 Windows Mobile Smartphone Looks Like the HTC Touch

Jason Chen — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 14:35:46 EST

Toshiba's no stranger to Windows Mobile devices, but their latest G810 touchscreen handset looks more similar to the HTC Touch than their previous HTC-like phones. It's got Windows Mobile 6 on board, 3g HSDPA, 3-megapixel camera with auto-focus, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, FM radio 2.8-inch touchscreen display, 256MB internal memory, GPS, and a late Spring European launch. It's got enough features to be a good phone, but it's nothing revolutionary. [Toshiba Europe via Tech Digest via The Unwired]

Windows Mobile 6.1 Homebrew ROM For Sprint Mogul

Jason Chen — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 20:30:04 EST

More Windows Mobile 6.1 news! This time a patched and spliced together "6.1" release for the Sprint Mogul by the people on PPCGeeks and XDA-Deelopers has been released, so if you want to get in on the 6.1 action before it's officially available, here it is. [PPCGeeks via Boy Genius]

More Windows Mobile 6.1 Details Leaked in Screenshots

Jason Chen — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 15:00:25 EST

The Portugeuse forum Pocketpt.net has a few more exclusive shots of Windows Mobile 6.1 that you haven't already seen before. The shots ~~focus once again on the "Standard" version, which is the non-touchscreen variety, but~~ show off the Deepfish-like browsing that lets you zoom and scroll around on a page. There's also the ability to check how much memory an app takes, or remove an app entirely from the "Managed Programs" section. Check out more shots at Pocketpt. [Pocketpt via Electronista]

HTC TouchFlo 2.0 Leaked, Covers Up Windows Mobile Even Better?

Jason Chen — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 14:28:18 EST

HTC's TouchFLO UI was great because it was one of the first "skin Windows Mobile to make it usable" applications—even if it isn't quite as good as PointUI. This supposed TouchFlo 2.0 upgrade looks much improved, even if it is still early in the development stage. If you're feeling brave you can actually try and install it on your own phone and give it a shot. We hope this new version covers up more of the Windows Mobile UI than the original, which was basically just a shortcut launcher system to get you into the ugly, bloody guts of the phone. [HTCInsider via The Unwired via PhoneMag]

HTC Loses Title as #1 Non-Touchscreen Windows Mobile Smartphone Maker, Now #3

Jason Chen — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 05:00:41 EST

DigiTimes, which cites internal Microsoft data, claims that HTC has declined from the previous #1 Windows Mobile non-touchscreen smartphone maker spot with over 50% of the market (from July '06 to June '07) to just under 30% of the market. Stepping up to take over HTC's spot are Motorola and Samsung, whose respective Q and BlackJack models are apparently more popular than previously thought. The same report says that HTC is still #1 in terms of the smartphones with touchscreens, with about a 50% share. Honestly, the touchscreen models are where HTC's focusing most of their efforts anyway, so this isn't that huge of a deal. [Digitimes]

Samsung's Flagship i900 Windows Mobile Phone Leaked in Color

Jason Chen — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 20:15:08 EST

The first leak of Samsung's supposed flagship Windows Mobile phone was leaked a few weeks ago in black and white, but this time we've got a picture in color of what the touchscreen device is going to look like.

Besides being shiny and slightly squished in the horizontal, the phone will have GPS, FM radio, TV-out, a 5-megapixel camera, 8GB microSDHC support, Wi-fi, Bluetooth 2.0+EDR, 3G HSDPA (up to 7.2Mbps?) run Windows Mobile 6.1 and have a 3.5-inch touchscreen. Until the i900 is officially announced this is all up in the air and completely rumor, but MobiFrance says the phone will be released Spetember 2008. [MobiFrance via The Unwired via Crunchgear]

Oh? Now it looks like Phonemag is saying the i900 won't be running Windows Mobile. [Phonemag ]

More Treo 800w Details Possibly Leaked

Jason Chen — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 13:20:56 EST

There's been a slow trickle of details on the upcoming Treo 800w, but this poster on WMExpert's forums seems to know a little more than everyone else about the phone. He says the 800w will look like a Palm Centro with rounded corners and thin body. It will ship with Windows Mobile 6, but be upgradeable to 6.1 when that hits.

In addition, there's a 2-megapixel camera, Wi-Fi hard switch, Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR, 802.11g Wi-Fi, microSD slot, 256MB memory, EV-DO Rev. A, aGPS (not a real GPS), a 320x320 resolution screen, and front-facing keyboard. The launch date is tentatively April, but this is all based on a guy's posting in a forum, which means it can all be a pack of lies at this point. [WMExperts via TreoNauts]

Samsung BlackJack Finally Getting Windows Mobile 6 Update!

Jason Chen — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 12:13:49 EST

You've been waiting almost a year for it, but Samsung's finally putting out the Windows Mobile 6 upgrade for your BlackJack. Just hit up the link below at 5 p.m. EST (2 p.m. PST) and you'll be able to load it on your own phone. Saves you a bit of cash from having to upgrade to the BlackJack 2. [Samsung]

HTC Touch Windows Mobile Smartphone Coming to Verizon

Jason Chen — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 12:32:28 EST

If you Verizon customers were peeking enviously over the fence at the HTC Touch on Sprint, you won't have to peek much longer. According to a Howard Forums user (who apparently took this shot at the UT Starcom booth at CES), the HTC Touch will be headed to Verizon as the XV6900 soon. It'll be white, and it'll be slightly thinner than the Sprint version of the phone. In the end, however, it's still the same Windows Mobile phone that's not all that great to use (unless you load PointUI on it.) [Hofo via Crunchgear]