Hasta La Gadget!

Okay, so we understand Microsoft is trying hard to rebrand Windows Mobile as Windows Phone with the launch of WinMo 6.5, but this commercial — labeled with AT&T logos in the US but also running unlabeled worldwide — doesn’t seem to do a good job of pointing out that Windows Phone is a platform and not a device. In fact, if we didn’t know better, we’d think that the HTC Pure is, in fact, the “Windows Phone” — even though the dude in the spot is holding a totally different generic device. See how that could be weird for people? It’s almost confusing enough to distract from the jubilant anthropomorphic app icons in tights. Video after the break.

Continue reading Windows Phone commercial is confusing for a variety of reasons

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Windows Phone commercial is confusing for a variety of reasons originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 11 Oct 2009 22:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Got a cool grand to drop on a Windows Phone? Oh, yeah? Then have a gander at Samsung’s latest fashion piece, the Armani-branded M7500. The cool cats over at PhoneArena managed to get their paws around a unit, and as predicted, they didn’t hesitate to bust out the camera and give us all a good look. They also took the chance to give us a brief overview of how the handset handled, calling it “bulky even for a WinMo smartphone,” though praising the high-res display and well-spaced keyboard. Feel free to hit the read link if you’re interested in more, but don’t be shocked to hear more than a little criticism.

[Via MobileTechWorld, thanks Arnaud]

Filed under: Cellphones

Samsung’s WinMo 6.5-powered Armani smartphone gets previewed originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 10 Oct 2009 04:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Fashion fans, rejoice. Your two favorite labels have finally come together: Giorgio Armani… and Windows Mobile. Today in Milan, Armani’s empire unveiled a new, €700 (or about $1030) smartphone built by Samsung, running Microsoft’s latest 6.5 OS iteration. The device — featuring a full touchscreen and slide-out, landscape QWERTY keyboard — touts a 3.5-inch AMOLED display, a 5 megapixel camera, 8GB of internal storage, GPS chip, and microSD slot. Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, who spoke at the launch, says the device is “the most fashionable phone [he’s] ever had a chance to talk about.” We won’t lie, there is something weirdly appealing about the bronze and black smartphone, though we don’t see ourselves shelling out that kind of dough on this particular model. Oh, not because we don’t want to, but it doesn’t go with our shoes. Check out a couple of videos from the launch after the break, including a short clip with Ballmer.

Continue reading Giorgio Armani and Samsung unveil Windows Mobile smartphone… with a little help from Steve Ballmer

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Giorgio Armani and Samsung unveil Windows Mobile smartphone… with a little help from Steve Ballmer originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 09 Oct 2009 09:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Verizon’s matching AT&T tit-for-tat in the race to get the first Windows Mobile 6.5 devices out of the door with the launch of the HTC Imagio, a phone that essentially amounts to a more deluxe version of the Touch Diamond2 with a larger screen, 3.5mm headphone jack, combo CDMA and GSM radios (both with 3G) for global roaming, and a FLO TV tuner to support Verizon’s VCAST TV service. We’ve had just a few brief moments to play with the Imagio so far, but after coming from the Pure — the AT&T-branded model that we used to compile our initial impressions of WinMo 6.5 — it’s a real treat. It looks and feels like a higher-end device thanks to a proliferation of soft-touch plastic (as opposed to the Pure’s glossy cover) and the kickstand is a cute touch, perfect for when you’ve got a few minutes to kill and you want to fire up the FLO-powered tube.

Follow the break for video and more impressions!

Continue reading HTC Imagio for Verizon unboxing and hands-on

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HTC Imagio for Verizon unboxing and hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 06 Oct 2009 21:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A few columns ago, I wrote how folks shouldn’t dismiss Windows Mobile. This week, Microsoft released Windows Mobile 6.5 and it’s further proof that this OS is very much a serious contender in the mobile OS platform wars. What makes Windows Mobile 6.5 work isn’t so much the OS per se, but rather the Windows Phones that are the basis for the ecosystem.

Despite Steve Ballmer himself apologizing for the delay of Window Mobile 7 a few days ago, there’s a lot in WinMo 6.5 that Microsoft should be proud of. Overall the OS itself has been tweaked a lot for performance — I’ve tried devices that were running WM 6.1 and were upgraded to 6.5 and there’s a dramatic difference in speed. Microsoft has also worked hard to make the new OS much more finger friendly, with UI elements that really required a stylus in the past much more usable with a finger instead. There’s also some nice integration with new services such at the marketplace for mobile applications and MyPhone synchronization.

That’s all well and good, but it’s one device that I’ve had the chance to use for just a few minutes that’s really affirmed my view of Windows Mobile viability, and it has me very excited about the platform. It’s the new standard for Windows Phones and it’s pretty much the device that every other Windows-powered phone is going to need to live up to. It’s called the HTC HD2 (code named Leo) and it’s a game changer in my opinion.

Continue reading Entelligence: The HTC HD2 and the future of Windows Mobile

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Entelligence: The HTC HD2 and the future of Windows Mobile originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 06 Oct 2009 19:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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