Mobilespeedia » Windows Mobile

Xperia X2 Could be the Last Sony Ericsson’s WinMo Device

James — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 17:14:27 +0000

Are you thinking about upgrading your Xperia X1 to the X2 or have a plan to buy a new Xperia X2 this October as your next phone? Hold on! I guess you should think about it once again unless you don’t want to keep it for a long period of time. A tweet from the head of Mobile-review recently said that the newly announced phone Xperia X2 could be the last Windows Mobile device from Sony Ericsson.

The tweet also said that there’s one more Windows Mobile device in development but could be canceled because of the bad sales forecast.

We’re not sure whether the info is true or not. We know that Sony Ericsson is rumored to work on Android device Xperia X3 Rachael. But last time at the same day with the announcement of the Xperia X2, Sony Ericsson also launched the Panel SDK for the Xperia X2 to let developers create contents for the Xperia X2. I don’t think it’s a joke. So it could be true, but we don’t know when the future is as mentioned on the tweet, you decide!

WM7 Update: Already in Beta, Software Release November 2009

James — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 14:45:44 +0000

A LinkedIn Profile of a Motorola employee recently unveiled a new update of Windows Mobile 7. The profile stated that he’s working on Caesar product development in Windows Mobile 7.0 (Beta) Runtime Environment. Another source said that Microsoft is planning to release the Windows Mobile 7.0 for testing in November (the same month as PDC09) while the device release is scheduled for April 2010.

Back to the Motorola employee’s LinkedIn Profile, the info gives a hint that Motorola is working on another Windows Mobile device although they have been so busy preparing their first Android devices. If this is true, it means that at least Motorola will release one new Windows Mobile device in 2010 codenamed Caesar.

[via: Mobiletechworld]

HTC Introduced first Windows Phone HTC Touch2

James — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 07:21:36 +0000

HTC yesterday introduced HTC Touch2, a compact and stylish smartphone as one of the first Windows phones. The HTC Touch2 features Windows Mobile 6.5 and new services like Microsoft My Phone and Windows Marketplace for Mobile. HTC Touch2 includes a variety of HTC enhancements including TouchFLO, an enhanced user interface that includes integrated weather updates and quick touch access to a variety of the most popular applications. Besides HTC also re-designed the Internet Explorer Mobile to accurately displays desktop style web pages including support for Adobe Flash.

The HTC Touch2 will be available on October 6th, the same day with the announcement of Windows Mobile 6.5 by Microsoft.

Model	HTC Touch2 (T3333)
Processor	Qualcomm® MSM7225™, 528 MHz
Operating System	Windows Mobile® 6.5 Professional
Memory	ROM: 512 MB RAM: 256 MB
Dimensions (LxWxT)	104 X 55 X 12.9 mm (4.1 X 2.16 X 0.51 inches)
Weight	110 grams (4 ounces) with battery
Display	2.8-inch TFT-LCD touch-sensitive screen with QVGA resolution
Network	HSPA/WCDMA: Europe/Asia: 900/2100 MHz Up to 384 kbps up-link and 7.2 Mbps down-link speeds Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE: Europe/Asia: 850/900/1800/1900 MHz (Band frequency and data speed are operator dependent.)
Device Control	Zoom bar
GPS	Internal GPS antenna
Connectivity	Bluetooth® 2.1 with Enhanced Data Rate and A2DP for wireless stereo headsets Wi-Fi®: IEEE 802.11 b/g 3.5 mm audio jack HTC ExtUSB™ (11-pin mini-USB 2.0)
Camera	3.2 megapixel color camera with fixed focus
Audio supported formats	AAC, AAC+, eAAC+, AMR-NB, QCP, MP3, WMA, WAV, MIDI, M4A
Video supported formats	WMV, ASF, MP4, 3GP, 3G2, M4V, AVI
Battery	Rechargeable Lithium-ion battery Capacity: 1100 mAh Talk time: Up to 370 minutes for WCDMA Up to 440 minutes for GSM Standby time: Up to 500 hours for WCDMA Up to 370 hours for GSM (The above are subject to network and phone usage.)
Expansion Slot	microSD™ memory card (SD 2.0 compatible)
AC Adapter	Voltage range/frequency: 100 ~ 240V AC, 50/60 Hz DC output: 5V and 1A

Note: Specifications are subject to change without prior notice

[via: HTC]

Sony Ericsson Xperia X2 Officially Announced Today

James — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 17:18:15 +0000

Finally the long awaited mysterious phone Sony Ericsson Xperia X2 comes to the reality today. Sony Ericsson decided to announce the next Windows Phone of Xperia series at the same day with the Nokia World event. Together with the announcement Sony Ericsson also launches the Panel SDK for Xperia X2 to let developers create applications for the the phone. The phone is expected to be available in selected markets from early Q4 2009.

Basically there’s not much surprise except the announcement of the phone it self. All specs and photos has been already spread across the internet in the last couple of months. The interesting thing is Sony Ericsson managed to break the dateline of Windows Mobile 6.5 and get the Xperia X2 to be the first official phone running Windows Mobile 6.5 or called Windows Phone that supposed to be announced on October 6th according to Windows Mobile Team blog. But looking at the specs of the Xperia X2, this Windows Mobile 6.5 is probably the customized version for Xperia X2 since still according to the news reported before that Windows Mobile 6.5 is supposed to be intended for low end phones and i don’t think Xperia X2 is one of them.

Anyway, it’s great to hear the news and some of you may celebrating the phone now. For more details read the Xperia X2 Press Release.

The Sony Ericsson XPERIA™ X2 at a glance

XPERIA™ X2
Camera

8.1 megapixel camera
Up to 16x digital zoom
Auto focus
Geo tagging
Image stabilizer
Send to web
Touch focus
Video light
Video recording

Music

Album art
Bluetooth™ stereo (A2DP)
Equalizer
Sony Ericsson media player
Music tones (MP3/AAC)
Equalizer
Sony Ericsson media player
Music tones (MP3/AAC)
PlayNow™ arena*
Stereo speakers
Windows Media® Player

Web

Bookmarks
Google™ search
Internet Explorer®
Pan & Zoom
Web feeds

Communication

Call list
Conference calls
Polyphonic ringtones
Speakerphone
Vibrating alert

Messaging

Email
Microsoft® Exchange ActiveSync®
Handwriting recognition
Instant messaging
Picture messaging (MMS)
Predictive text input
Text messaging (SMS)

Design

Auto rotate
Media
Picture wallpaper
Touchscreen
Wallpaper animation
Windows Mobile® 6.5

Entertainment

3D games
Java™
Motion gaming
Tracker
Video streaming
Video viewing
YouTube™ application

Connectivity

A-GPS

Bluetooth™ technology

DNLA Certified™
Google Maps™
Modem
Synchronisation
TV out
USB mass storage
USB support
Wi-Fi™

Organizer

Adobe® PDF Reader
Alarm clock
Calculator
Calendar
Flight mode
Microsoft® Office Mobile
Notes
Phone book
Stopwatch
Tasks
Timer

Accessories
In-Box:

XPERIA™ X2
Battery
Battery Charger
Stereo Portable Handsfree MH500
USB cable
TV out cable
4GB SanDisk microSD™ memory card
User guide

Optional accessories:

Bluetooth™ Headset PV740
Car charger AN300
Video Viewing Stand IM920

Facts and Figures 1)2)

Size: 110 x 54 x 16 mm

Weight: 115 grams

Colours: Elegant Black, Modern Silver

Main screen: 65,536 colour TFT
Resolution: 480 x 800 pixels (WVGA)
Size: 3.2 inches

Phone memory: Up to110MB
Memory card support: SanDisk microSD™ and microSDHC™, up to 16GB

Talk time GSM: Up to 10 hrs
Standby time GSM: Up to 500 hrs

Talk time UMTS: Up to 6hrs
Standby time UMTS: Up to 640hrs

Music listening time: Up to 20hrs

Availability and versions
Networks:

XPERIA™ X2
GSM/GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900
UMTS/HSPA 850/1900/2100

GSM/GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900
UMTS/HSPA 900/1900/2100

Available in selected markets from early Q4 2009.

Microsoft to Announce Windows Phones on October 6th

James — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 14:14:36 +0000

Finally Microsoft makes it official. After reported to announce the Windows Mobile 6.5 on October 1st few weeks ago, now the exact date is confirmed and it’s October 6th. Together with the announcement of the Windows Mobile 6.5, Microsoft partnering with mobile operators and phone manufacturers will announce the devices that will run on this OS which are called Windows Phones.

Reportedly there are more than 10 operators and phone manufactures will take part on this announcement including HP, Acer and Sony Ericsson. It’s interesting since people are expecting something to announce from those manufactures especially Sony Ericsson and seems that it could be the announcement of the long awaited phone Sony Ericsson Xperia X2. Take a look at the list of operators and phone manufactures below:

In North America: Mobile operators AT&T, Bell Mobility, Sprint, TELUS and Verizon Wireless, and phone manufacturers HP, HTC Corp., LG Electronics, Samsung and Toshiba Corp.
In Europe: Mobile operators Orange, Deutsche Telekom AG and Vodafone Group Plc, and phone manufacturers Acer, HTC, LG Electronics, Samsung, Sony Ericsson and Toshiba
In Latin America: Mobile operator TIM Brazil, and phone manufacturers HTC, LG Electronics and Samsung
In Asia Pacific: Mobile operators NTT DOCOMO Inc., SOFTBANK Mobile Corp., SK Telecom, Telstra and WILLCOM Inc., and phone manufacturers Acer Inc., HTC, LG Electronics, Samsung, Sony Ericsson and Toshiba

[via: WindowsMobileBlog]

Windows Mobile 7 Aimed at iPhone while 6.5 at Android

James — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 16:39:12 +0000

Microsoft is expected to officially launch Windows Mobile 6.5 on October 1st, 2009 while the Windows Mobile 7 is scheduled in the fourth quarter of 2010. This is the dual-platform strategy of Microsoft to compete both with iPhone and Android. According to sources at Taiwan handset makers, Windows Mobile 7 is aimed at iPhone while the Windows Mobile 6.5 at Android.

As we reported few weeks ago, the Windows Mobile 6.5 is intended for low cost devices while the Windows Mobile 7 is prepared for premium hardware experience. I’ve seen the final Windows Phone GUI demoed on Video and i was so impressed as many people too. And now we’re excited to see what Microsoft is going to deliver on the Windows Mobile 7 devices. Is the stategy will work? We don’t know and we’ll see.

[via: Digitimes]

Final Windows Phone GUI demoed on Video

James — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 16:45:18 +0000

It has been known now that Microsoft is going to change the smartphone platform branding from Windows Mobile to Windows Phone though the term Windows Mobile is not gone completely. And recently the latest Windows Phone GUI is demoed on a video using HTC Diamond 2 device. It’s a completely redesigned GUI from current Windows Mobile and will be available for Christmas this year.

Looking at the video i would say this is a very good milestone for Microsoft smartphone platform and looks like Microsoft has done their best to compete with iPhone and Android. In summary there are few highlights of this video:

Completely redesign of Windows smartphone. It’s a Windows Phone, not the Windows Mobile 6.5
Zune like interface, however the iconic GUI is also available
Access to Windows Marketplace for Mobile
MyPhone short demo both on the phone and the PC
Full desktop version of Microsoft Internet Explorer
Demo of the new feature called Microsoft Tag works like a barcode reader
Full flash support

So the Windows Phone will come with the Windows Mobile 6.5 and it will co-exist with Windows Mobile 7 when it comes out. The interesting thing is that the Windows Mobile 6.5 will be for low cost devices while the Windows Mobile 7 is for premium hardware experience. It’s something like what Microsoft does with the desktop products.

[via: theinquirer]

Convert Your iPhone Apps to Windows Mobile Version

James — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 14:51:54 +0000

Are you a Windows Mobile fan but love the iPhone App which you can’t find in Windows Mobile version? Don’t worry since soon you will see more iPhone Apps available in Windows Mobile version in the Windows Marketplace for Mobile. A technical article on MSDN recently reported the case study about converting process of an iPhone App named Amplitude to the Windows Mobile version. This is good news for developers so they can provide their iPhone apps in Windows Mobile version and generate more sales. And i bet you there will be more apps to be converted soon.

Amplitude picks up any sound in a user’s surroundings through the microphone and then amplifies the sound, rendering it into a rich graphical representation on the device. Amplitude can be used to amplify any sounds, such as human or animal heartbeats, that usually wouldn’t be picked up by the human ear. Amplitude provides a cool user interface featuring an oscilloscope that allows users to view and visually quantify, signal voltages, as you can see the volume of the sound that you are listening to.

Well, with the Windows Marketplace for Mobile is now open for developers to submit their applications it’s likely for those developers to try out this case study and convert famous iPhone apps especially most wanted ones and be the first to submit it to the Windows Marketplace for Mobile.

[via: Windows Mobile Blog]

Windows Mobile 7 in April 2010?

James — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 20:12:59 +0000

As many people are waiting for the release of the Windows Mobile 7 more rumors are coming including the GUI leaked few weeks ago. And the latest one is coming from WMPowerusers Page 2 which is more like a summary of what have been discussed overt the internet plus new leaks. According to the post, the WM7 code should be received by Device Manufactures late this year and the first devices should be released somewhere around 2010. However it’s not mentioned what’s going to be the first device to run WM7 but a page on pdadb shows that LG Monaco aka LG Pico to run Windows Mobile 7 as the embedded operating System though it’s not confirmed by the Windows Mobile team.

Please find below the rumors that’s been discussed recently about Windows Mobile 7 :

For now it is based on .NET CF 3.7 but in the end should run .NET CF 4

It will support Windows Presentation Foundation

The whole OS should be rendered by a compositing window manager fully supporting openGL ES, probably 2.0

OpenGL ES will be the main API used by OS

It will have integrated Zune Player similar to the one from Zune HD

It will have full support for multi touch

MyPhone will be improved and will tie all live services into one allowing remote management of device and many more

Windows Mobile to Get New Name as Windows Phone

James — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 16:50:15 +0000

TheInquirer reported that Microsoft will re-brand it’s famous mobile platform Windows Mobile to be Windows Phone. The unofficial announcement happened at an event where the company showcased upcoming products. The new name will be applied to the Windows Mobile 6.1, 6.5 and the upcoming Windows Mobile 7.

Also reported that the Windows Phone (starting from Windows Mobile 6.5) will include the features like back-up of all SMS and email content into Vole’s cloud, remote disabling of the handset and an Itunes-alike Windows Mobile repository called Market Place.

Well this is likely to be true. The video below shows Steve Ballmer talking about the Windows Phone in the Mobile World Congress 2009 in Barcelona, Spain few months ago.

Another video campaign from the Mobile World Congress 2009 below also use the term Windows Phone. So, goodbye Windows Mobile and welcome the Windows Phone.