We take a look at recent developments in the nascent life of the new mobile OS, including a look at manufacturer and carrier support.
Who's got it first?
Windows Mobile won't officially be released until this Monday at 3GSM in Barcelona, but the Web is abuzz with news about the upcoming OS for handheld devices. First, RCR Wireless News quoted John Starkweather, the project head for Windows Mobile 6, stating that the first U.S. carrier to ship devices with the OS update will be T-Mobile. The operator currently ships a few devices with Windows Mobile 5.0, most notably the T-Mobile Dash. Representatives from the carrier were tight-lipped about official details on their end, but it certainly makes sense that any device currently shipping with Windows Mobile 5.0 could see an update. As the fourth largest national carrier, T-Mobile recently made some bold acquisitions in the FCC auction of network spectrum, but was conspicuously absent from CES 2007, a venue where many manufacturers show off new and upcoming products.
Who's making devices?
Business Week yesterday posted a story concerning LG's entry into the Windows Mobile arena. In that story, Woo-young Kwak, LG's VP of mobile communications R&D, said that the company is working on "at least two new smartphones" that could employ touch-screen-only technology, forgoing buttons. Currently, the manufacturer has been showing its LG KE850 phone, co-developed with Prada, which features an entirely touch-screen, interface. That UI, which was revealed in videos online, looks to be Flash-based and mostly complete, which would seem to rule out Windows Mobile 6. Still, a WM6 variant of the KE850 might be forthcoming.
Our thoughts . . .
With LG's entry into the Windows Mobile space, that leaves only Nokia and Sony Ericsson as the only manufacturers out of the top five without a Windows Mobile phone. Nokia's smartphones generally run their own in-house versions of the Symbian OS, Series 60, though with the N800 Internet Tablet, Nokia is using Linux instead. Sony Ericsson recently acquired UIQ, which makes an interface that runs atop a Symbian-based kernel, and packages that system on its P990i communicator device.
Perhaps Apple's entry into the phone market will shake up the operating system scene. While we're not sure consumers would benefit from a two-OS (and Linux) market, as we currently see on personal computers, the user interface on recent phones has been in need of some re-thinking. With more competition, hopefully we'll see some more innovation.
Related phones: Related smartphones
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T-Mobile Dash
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Score: 58% When: October 2006 Worth: $150 Carrier: T-Mobile
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Slim, light and a pleasure to hold, the just-announced Dash makes a play for the Moto Q's territory with its sleek design and Windows Mobile OS, while upping the ante with built-in Wi-Fi. Does it belong in your suit pocket?
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Read » Features » Side-by-side »
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Sony Ericsson P990i
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Score: 67% When: August 2006 Worth: $650 - $750
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The P990i comes with a 2-megapixel camera, a wealth of productivity apps, built-in Wi-Fi and a teeny, tiny QWERTY keypad. Philip Berne gives this would-be Treo killer the once-over.
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Read »
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