No big surprises here — HP‘s announced for Windows Mobile 6.5 for its future devices, confirming what we already knew: HP is awesome. The company cites WinMo 6.5’s “key enhancements to business productivity, personal messaging and mobile Internet capabilities” plus its “new visual appeal” as some of the reasons for its continued love of the OS. We don’t have any specific information about upcoming Windows-boasting devices, but we’ll let you know as soon as we catch sight of one or more — because we’re here for you. Full press release after the break.
The talk this week at Mobile World Congress has been largely positive about Microsoft’s latest iteration of its smartphone UI, Windows Mobile 6.5. Still, some of us at Engadget (well, one of us, at least), feel like the folks in Redmond missed the mark by a longshot. Instead of demonstrating its technical prowess and vast resources, Microsoft limped out a half-hearted rehash of an OS we’ve seen all too much of, and managed to blind most onlookers with a storm of big time partnerships and bloated PR. While their major competitors (and even some allies) in the mobile space seem bent on changing ideas about how we interact with our portable devices, the company proved once again that it’s content to rest on its laurels and learn little from its mistakes.
To give you another side of the story — a side which I think Microsoft has done an immaculate job of hiding this week — here’s ten reasons why Windows Mobile 6.5 disappoints.
We were really impressed with Texas Instruments’ OMAP 3-based mobile development platform when we saw it running Android earlier today, and the hardware seems to hold up well to all sorts of video-accelerated magic for a multitude of Linux-based interfaces. Not so much with Windows Mobile 6.5. Granted, this is a very early build of the OS according to Microsoft, and is lacking all sorts optimization mojo that will go into the final product due end-of-year-ish, but at the same time this is basically an interface skin to Windows Mobile 6 that Microsoft has had nearly a year to work on since 6.1, and it’s not exaggerating to say that performance is a complete joke at the moment. TI’s OMAP 3 was clearly struggling to handle basic scrolling of the home screen and app menu, though “smoothness” was slightly improved in scrolling through a gallery of photos. TI has been working with 6.5 for “a few months,” and claims to have added optimizations to interface performance — and interestingly is running this on a capacitive touchscreen device, something that isn’t officially supported as far as we’re aware. They’re also saying that they plan on achieving full smoothness by the time this launches, but there’s really a long way to go, and it’s difficult to understand why this seems to be a last priority for Microsoft at the moment. On the other hand, TI is doing great things with its own 3D-accelerated interface, something which Windows Mobile 6.5 brings support for, so perhaps these will all one day (soon) meet in the middle and give us the sort of interface smoothness and usability we’d expect on a phone built a decade into this century. Check out the painful videos after the break.
Technically, i-mate’s only official announcement at MWC this year is the mega-rugged 810-F that’ll withstand 140 degrees of heat, 14 degrees of cold, water resistance, and shock resistance courtesy of a nasty rubber casing, but it’s certainly not going to appeal to the average consumer — especially consumers who aren’t wearing clown pants with one-liter pockets. So to that end, the company is also showing off a Windows Mobile Standard device codenamed “Centurion” — and we’re pretty sure this is the most compelling device i-mate has ever made. The version we saw was literally the first working prototype they’ve assembled, which meant it was creaky, wobbly, and felt like it could break at a moment’s notice, but we’re not taking too much stock in that; the more important thing to note is that it’s freakin’ tiny. The keyboard was too mushy from its overwhelming prototype-ness to take stock of whether it’ll actually be usable in production, but our quick impression gives us hope that it might be wide enough to get the job done. The battery is absolutely tiny, so i-mate will be throwing in a battery wallet (remember the Upstage?) to help mitigate the problem — they didn’t have a wallet ready to show, but even with such an accessory tacked on, you’re still looking at a smartphone leaps and bounds smaller than pretty much anything else you’ve used. There’s no date on the Centurion’s launch, but they’re targeting mid-year — and yes, both the 810-F and Centurion will get free Windows Mobile 6.5 upgrades. Cheers to that.
Same story, different company: yet another Windows Mobile ODM has broken down, taken the plunge, and invested some cash engineering its own unique skin for the platform. This time around it’s Gigabyte’s GSmart division with its “Smart Zone” UI, and to kick it off on the right foot, they’re grafting it onto the all-new S1200. We spent some time fiddling with the S1200 at MWC today, and we’re actually pretty impressed; it’s sleek, a wacky thin 11.4mm, narrow enough to comfortably fit in the smallest hands, and feels pretty well-built — and with full HSPA and a 3.1-inch WVGA display, it’s spec’d with the best of ’em. Gone are Gigabyte’s days of chunky plastic, thank goodness.
We talked to Gigabyte about its announcements, and it turns out they’ve designed both Smart Zone and the S1200 with aspirational feature phone users in mind — these are people who might not otherwise consider a smartphone because they’re worried about sacrificing style and ease of use in the process. To that end, the skin definitely seems to get the job done. The transition animations got choppy in places, but we felt immediately at ease with the swipe gestures for getting to different screens, and the graphics look particularly superb at these resolutions.
The S1200 launches this quarter in a variety of colors (it’s fashion-friendly, after all) with WiFi, a 528MHz Qualcomm core, 3 megapixel autofocus cam, a microSD slot to bump up the storage to something more usable than the 256MB built-in, and — perhaps most importantly — upgradeability to Windows Mobile 6.5. Follow the break to see it in action!
We know, there was an absolute flood of news from Mobile World Congress today, but day one in Spain has finally come to a close, and it looks like Microsoft is flexing all its muscle to try and lock up partners and rejoin the fight for mobile dominance. Seriously, this is Redmond’s show: we haven’t seen a new, non-prototype Android handset powered up yet, and that’s frankly astonishing and somewhat disappointing. What else did we learn?
I like the new Windows Mobile 6.5 interface, specially the new home screen, which is brilliantly executed. Running on the new HTC Touch Diamond 2, everything looked smoother, cleaner, and matched the iPhone’s lick factor.
While everything seems to have been touched up, simplified, and polished to no end, what really makes this version of Windows Mobile 6.5 isn’t the new, revamped browser—which uses the engine deployed in 6.1 but feels a lot faster and has a good new interface—or the honeycomb start screen—which I don’t find particularly impressive—or the cleaner UI designed for one-finger operation or the speed or the touch gestures.
To me, what really makes this new operating system great is the new home screen, combined with the lock screen. The lock screen doesn’t look very good aesthetically—somehow, the elements don’t appear tight enough—but it allows you to see what’s cooking in your digital life with just one glance. Turn the screen on and you will see whatever pending alerts, mails, calls, short text messages, or any other element that requires your attention. No need to get deeper into the phone applications. From there, if you want to drill down, just slide-to-unlock the notification and you will be taken straight to the info.
Once you unlock your phone, you are taken to the home screen. This is the true jewel in the operating system: A simple list of categories which let you access information without having to get into the phone applications. It sounds like the lock screen, but from here you can get deeper into the information itself. Here’s how it works:
When you slide your finger over the list, it scrolls like it’s passing through a visor. The visor transforms the text line into the information itself, so if you go through “text”, it will show you the last received text message. Once you are looking at that, you will effectively have access to all your SMS messages right on that screen: Just swipe your finger like passing the pages of a book and it will change the text message. The same happens with all the other categories. There is even a custom “Favorites” category, that would allow you to navigate through whatever you want to put in there, from weather reports to Messenger’s messages.
Then you have the start menu, which is accessible through the now-obligatory Windows flag start button, which must be present in all Windows 6.5 cellphones. Microsoft calls this the “start experience.” I call it: “about time something makes sense in your damn phones.” The start page shows all your available applications displayed as icons in a honeycomb. You can scroll up and down the honeycomb to start apps. No more start menu. The honeycomb is supposed to make it easier to see the icons and click on them. It works well.
Of course, Windows Mobile 6.5 is not perfect. I doesn’t seem to support multitouch, for example. However, it’s a huge leap over the previous fugly versions, which were completely unpalatable. If it fulfills its promise, this one will make Windows users think twice before getting an iPhone or an Android phone.
From this first touch on, it looks like Microsoft is back in the game. They don’t have the upper hand yet, but they are clearly waking up. We will see what happens and how deep these changes really are once it gets released.
We saw a Touch Diamond2 running old-skool Windows Mobile 6.1 this morning — and don’t get us wrong, the hardware’s pretty hot, but who really wants that noise when we’ve got the same thing running Windows Mobile 6.5 a few blocks away? Shortly after the fanfare of Microsoft’s press conference today, we were ushered downstairs for a walkthrough on a freshly-flashed Touch Diamond2 of virtually everything that makes 6.5 different from the versions before it, and while we’re not blown away by the sheer freshness or paradigm-shiftyness of what we’re seeing here, it’s a totally acceptable bump of 0.4 in the version number. Let’s put it this way: we still have a burning desire in our hearts and our loins for 7.0, whenever that happens. Follow the break for video and some key highlights!
With an endless chain of leaks dating back several months, the suspense factor might not be there that Microsoft had been hoping for — but for what it’s worth, Windows Mobile 6.5 is now official. The latest rendition of Microsoft’s mobile platform puts an emphasis on touch-friendliness with a honeycomb-style main menu that the company says is easier to finger than a traditional grid layout; a new lock screen that can be slid on different alerts to automatically call up texts, voicemails, and so on; a thoroughly-restyled cut of Internet Explorer Mobile that features a touchable zoom slider and frequently-used commands; redesigned menus that don’t need a stylus to actuate; fingerable home and contacts screens, and more. It’s not the thorough gutting of the platform many were hoping for, but for anyone thinking that Windows Mobile 6.1 can stand another facelift without ending up looking like Joan Rivers, 6.5’s clearly your baby. Sadly, Microsoft’s saying that no devices in the market today will receive official 6.5 updates, but don’t pull out your wallets just yet, though — the first devices with Windows Mobile 6.5 preinstalled should be available in the fourth quarter of the year.
Further reading:
Windows Mobile 6.5 feature tour sneaks onto YouTube Well, what have we got here? Someone has upped nine breathtaking minutes of Windows Mobile 6.5 (build 21159.5.0.0, if you must know) running live on an HTC Touch HD.
Microsoft confirms MyPhone, invite-only beta coming to MWC Remember that alleged Microsoft MyPhone beta page that popped up on getskybox.com yesterday? It’s back up now and being hosted under the company’s official domain, with everything apparently intact except that tantalizing “Sign In” button.
Microsoft Recite brings voice search to your voice notes Windows Mobile 6.5’s presumably going to be the big news out of Redmond here at MWC this week, but Microsoft’s also using the show as an opportunity to launch the “technology preview” of its Recite software, an ultra-simple voice note app for WinMo 6.0 and above.
Microsoft finally got around to giving official word on the stopgap disaster relief measure known as Windows Mobile 6.5, and here it is: Marketplace, My Phone and the new interface are, as expected, happening.
The most exciting part of WinMo 6.5, aside from the new, finger-safe interface, is the Windows Marketplace—a feature which was teased at, but not fully integrated into, the various leaked ROMs that are floating around places like XDA developers. As it turns out, it’s pretty much a straightforward app store, like Apple’s or Google’s, which will be accessible from your handset or your PC with nothing more than your Windows Live ID.
It doesn’t sound like store prohibitions will be too strict, either, though the required “simple security and compatibility check” could turn out to be as stringent or lenient as Microsoft desires. Some crucial details are missing though, like whether or not paid apps will be immediately available, if MS will host the store contents, and if there will be any cost associated. Anyway, the app store is happening, and should be open for business when WinMo 6.5 handsets start shipping.
The rest of the news doesn’t break so hard: My Phone, as we knew, is part of the release, as are the new interface tweaks. Microsoft’s screens show some minor UI differences between the leaked ROMs and the final product, but our impression remain good—the honeycomb app launcher looks usable, the finger-oriented navigation improvements are sensible, and the new menu and widgets have a significant modernizing effect on the whole OS. Microsoft says to expect 6.5-based phones by the “the second half of 2009”. Sadly, there’s no indication that 6.5 will be available as an upgrade, paid or otherwise, to 6.1 users. Boooo!, etc. Full presser below. [Giz at MWC]
BARCELONA, Spain – Feb. 16, 2009 – Today at Mobile World Congress 2009, Microsoft Corp. CEO Steve Ballmer along with key mobile partners unveiled new Windows® phones featuring new user-friendly software and services. The next generation of Windows® phones will be based on Windows Mobile 6.5 and feature a new user interface and a richer browsing experience. In addition, Windows® phones will feature two new services: My Phone, to sync text messages, photos, video and contacts to the Web; and Windows® Marketplace for Mobile, a new marketplace that will provide direct-to-phone mobile applications that can be controlled from both the phone and the Web. “Windows® phones bring together the best of the Web, the PC and the phone so you can connect instantly to the experiences you care about, no matter where you are,” Ballmer said. “We’re working with partners across the industry to deliver a new generation of Windows® phones that break down the barriers between people, information, and applications and provide great end-to-end experiences that span your entire life, at work and at home.”
Windows Mobile 6.5 Delivers New User Experience Windows Mobile 6.5 includes a new home screen with customizable widgets that display glanceable updates from users’ favorite Web services and let users tap into them quickly, along with faster, more efficient access to personal e-mail, work e-mail, phone messages and instant messaging. It also includes an improved touch-screen interface, making it easy to take action with a finger, and an updated version of the latest Internet Explorer Mobile browser, which in a third party research study by sponsored by Microsoft, supported execution of up to 48 percent more assigned tasks than the other browsers and phones studied. My Phone Service Connects the Phone to the Web The free My Phone service will enable people to access, manage and back up their personal information on their device to a password-protected Web-based service, making it easier to upgrade phones without the worry of losing important information. With automatic syncing and backup, users can count on their contacts, appointments, text messages and other information being kept up to date and easily restored should they lose or upgrade their phone. Consumers also will be able to wirelessly update photos and video from their Windows® phone directly to the My Phone service, making it simple to share content that, in the past, would have lived and died on the phone. The My Phone service is currently available in a limited invitation-only beta. Rich and Integrated Marketplace Service Will Offer Easy Access to Mobile Applications The new operating system features Windows® Marketplace for Mobile, a rich and integrated marketplace for searching, browsing and purchasing mobile applications from Windows® phones or from a PC by simply using a Windows Live ID. The new marketplace will ship inside all Windows phones based on Windows Mobile 6.5, which will allow consumers to easily find, install and experience those applications that fit their needs and make the phone truly personal. Developers, who have already built more than 20,000 applications for Windows® phones, will be able to offer applications to customers through the marketplace via a simple security and compatibility check from Microsoft. The new Windows® phones are expected to be available at the beginning of the second half of 2009. Additional information about Microsoft at Mobile World Congress 2009 is available on the Microsoft MWC Web page at http://www.windowsmobile.com/mobileworldcongress. Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.
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I like the new 
While everything seems to have been touched up, simplified, and polished to no end, what really makes this version of Windows Mobile 6.5 isn’t the new, revamped browser—which uses the engine deployed in 6.1 but feels a lot faster and has a good new interface—or the honeycomb start screen—which I don’t find particularly impressive—or the cleaner UI designed for one-finger operation or the speed or the touch gestures.
Microsoft finally got around to giving official word on the stopgap disaster relief measure known as 