AT&T Pure now on sale -- with Windows Mobile 6.5
By Nilay Patel 
posted Oct 4th 2009 3:25PM
posted Oct 4th 2009 3:25PM
[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Please note: If you're a current Engadget commenter, you do not need to re-register. Simply login and you will be prompted to select a username.
WinMO..
its like poop that has been burried in a time capsul, then someone 100 years later opening up the container and taking a big wiff...
Winmo
aHAHAH
WinMO..
its like poop that has been burried in a time capsul, then someone 100 years later opening up the container and taking a big wiff...
Winmo
aHAHAH
Yeah damn all those people with jobs that have to get work done and winmo keep them connected, they should be playing with fart and zippo apps.
....and it still smells good.
after 100 years.. it will still have functions which some other phones lack off...
...i like the zippo app :(
LOL way to represent yourself as a totally uninformed, biased douche bag. Every comments section needs a couple of you guys so we should be used to it by now.
I'm very positive that WinMo 6.5 will be good enough until 7 comes along and delivers the high expectations we have for it. I'm looking real hard to get off my iPhone 3G and although I like what I see in WebOS, more so than Android, I seem to prefer WinMo which is why I have high hopes for WinMo.
its a smart phone. and its windows. enough said.
because some people like Windows Mobile and not everyone wants the iPhone
If you're into multitasking, this or any WinMo phone would suit you well. If you like customization or different ROM's to better fit your experience, you will also like WinMo.
I hope that's an ok answer.
because it had and has all smartphone features from first day of release (copy and paste, yest it existed before)... .and you have good flexibility with Windows Phones. You can change the OS, side install anything.... it is endless...
N900 = GREAT answer i have an iphone and i can't stand the lack of multitasking that's why i got mine jailbroken (I have no idea wth apple were thinking)
but i don't mind switching my iphone if something else on par get released, anything else interesting ?
Multitasking.
To DR House:
Because the iPhone is so last summer.
I'll wait till the next iphone get announced if there was no multitasking = Goodbye apple, and will get windows 7 mobile unless i can update windows 6.5 phones to 7 and I'm not sure if we can do that.
No 3.5mm jack no dice.
Agreed. Why is this such a hard feature to have WITHOUT having to use a dongle, HTC?
Well if you're a DIE HARD Microsoft Office user, you'll like Office Mobile. Of course there are a lot of open source office applications, but I guess in that sense it's about familiarity that makes Office Mobile a huge sell. Plus it's included in WinMo phones.
I was just at the AT&T store and had taken pictures of this at 12:34! and yet someone else still beat me to it.
So, WinMo 6.5 is officially out now?
good question
of course att would make tf3d look like crap..they are the best at screwing up a beautiful gui
What's wrong with it?
I think it looks just fine. Besides, anyone who buys one of these and doesn't IMMEDIATELY flash a new ROM doesn't care about the TF3D theme.
To bad we can't have android on it =(
Thats the beauty of WinMo devices..give it a few weeks and this will be able to run Android
.................android fans......
@Christian Walters
Show me an htc phone that has been completely converted over to Android.
@barry99705
I believe the HTC Touch has.
I run Android on my Sprint Touch. It's not 100% perfect but comparing it to a G1 I have about 95% of the functionality.
With all due respect to this "multi-tasking" thing.
Having moved from Winmo to the iphone, my 3gs quits and loads between programs faster than my Diamond did "multi-tasking" between them.
Dont see the fuss tbh..
Windows Mobile = the best BUSINESS smartphone platform on the market. Why is EVERY article posted that includes Android, WebOS, Windows Mobile, S60 in the headline all end up being a battle between iPhone fanboys and everyone else? end rant...
anyway...
Nice to see some Windows Mobile 6.5 devices appearing. This next quarter and next year should be big for WM with the many devices that have been promised.
I have no idea. Every mobile platform has it's pros and cons, but some people think that a certain OS is THE BEST and get their panties in a wad every time someone tells them otherwise...
That was the diamond. 6.5 will be faster and make better use of the processor, not to mention application load times and switching.
It all comes down to whether you like multitasking or not. Multitasking isn't necessarily a deal-breaker, but some people prefer to use it.
"With all due respect to this "multi-tasking" thing.
Having moved from Winmo to the iphone, my 3gs quits and loads between programs faster than my Diamond did "multi-tasking" between them.
Dont see the fuss tbh.."
that and many of the apps save their state up to a point when you quit them, certainly the most useful/important ones, (eg google maps)..
@ drhouse
actually im not a big fan of win mo either. jut how many people have found the iphone useful in a business setting? If i were shopping for a good business phone the iphone would be pretty far down my list. even tho i find that the iphone does have its place...just not so much in the business arena. thanks for asking tho
Dale
This Blows iPhone away, even if it IS still Windows Mobile. iPhone is just L A M E, old and Tired technology and no REAL os to speak of really.
Have fun with your little child toy while we use real connected devices like this and Android.
...that does look like 6.1 to me.
The white windows flag in the upper left corner suggests it is 6.5; in 6.1 it is multicoloured.
However, that is an older version of TouchFlo 3D 2.1; the Touch Diamond 2 on Vodafone in Germany has just had a 6.5 update which comes with a more up to date version of TouchFlo 3D. http://wmpoweruser.com/?p=8578
Waving a white flag in the corner just about says it all about WinMo 6.5 given that 7 is a year away.
anyone know what winmo build its running? as its not the newest build with the windows button and ok button at the bottom of the screen
You can't be serious. It's difficult to still call an iPhone a smartphone or even innovative when it lacks SOOOO much
- User accessible file system?
- Bluetooth file sharing?
- True Exchange support?
- Flash-enabled browsing?
- Video conferencing?
- Multi-tasking?
- Tethering without jailbreaking?
- Ability to create and edit *any* Office document
- Voice-activated system commands?
- sub par camera without LED flash
- sub-VGA resolution
iPhone is still behind in terms of features that other smartphones and OS's (particularly WinMo) have had for years!
Oh, and another reason, you can't turn the iPhone into a:
Wi-Fi, USB, & Bluetooth router
Who is going to buy this crap when there are several superior and more reliable alternatives in the market?
You should walk around with a sign that reads:
" iTroll ....with the best of them"
...huh?
Why are you calling this crap? Stop trolling here, no one's causing any trouble with you..
If you're going to change your name FoxKenji to I_Love_Microsoft, at least set your profile to private so people can't search your post history...iDiot.
I guess it all goes down to marketing. Lots of Nokias, HTCs, Samsungs can do things that the iPhone can't, but they never get out to the people like the iPhone does. If you see a lot of iPod commercials on TV, and don't hear ANYTHING about Sansa (and you don't do ANY type of research into MP3 players), it's most likely that you're going to get the iPod. It's all about the marketing.
@ WindowsFTW
You should walk around with a sign that reads:
"iTake one from Ballmer" and in the back it should say "Developers, developers, developers, developers!"
The comment was original when I made it, now it just looks lame when you copy and pasted it...kind of like the way Apple implemented copy/pasting into the iPhone 3 years late.
burn?
N900,
Yes :)
Macindouches and their double standards...
So an MS fan can't defend MS in an MS post without sucking Ballmer's cock, but an iTool CAN go around spreading FUD or whatever without sucking Jobs's cock?
If you're going to change your name FoxKenji to I_Love_Microsoft, at least set your profile to private so people can't search your post history...iDiot !
@ WindowsFTW
No no no, you don't understand. I left my profile open to see who the profile stalkers are. Thanks for answering the query!
Looks like WM6.1 to me as well....
Checking the At&t site now and......there are no HTC phones at all. Not even an option for them as a brand. Anyone else seeing this?
I believe it's branded as the 'AT&T Pure', not as an HTC handset.
But I'm not 100% on that.
Saw one on display today in Austin and it was running 6.5. They were asking $179.99 after $50 rebate. Tried it out for a few minutes as a possible replacement for my Tilt but found the lack of a physical keyboard irritating. Because I don't use regular headphones, I wouldn't notice the 3.5mm jack (or lack of).
The difference is, the iphone is nothing build in that makes it smart. You have to search, download and see if something out of half a million apps is what you are looking for. the iphone is a media centric, game phone with little smart about it, excepyt for the UI.. that is not to say that is a bad thing, it is what it is. (I hate that saying).
A windows phone is a business tool, that happens to have media capabilities. It is an OS that has been in the making for more than 10 years. It can create, edit, and present documents, check exchange natively, and of course, not make you look like a sell-out dork. Ah, and it multi-tasks. The only reason the iphone gets so much attention is because it can and was jailbroken, because it is not good enough to stand on its own. The best things come from Cydia and the iphone dev crew. THEY have made the iphone a success by unlocking and making is available to other countries by teh boatload. And now, apple has made it legally available to the world. Only because it was not good enough out of the door. The hardware and UI are the best things about it, other than that... any other capable phone can do what it does.... more than one app at a time as well ;)
Bite that.
The Pure is kind of on the at&t site.
http://www.wireless.att.com/support/setDevice.do?make=HTC&model=PURE%20(ST6356)
The link cut out my last parenthesis. Include it and it will take you there.
Honestly, why would anyone get this over an iPhone? iPhone is 99$ with the mandatory data plan now, which was the advantage of any other smartphone before of not having to get a data plan, but now it's mandatory. Honestly, if you wanted an easy smartphone for cheap iPhone is the way to go. If you want a cheap smartphone, e71x is the way to go (really would go for this myself) if you just want anything other than an iPhone then this would be good. It's all preference, but when it comes to bang for buck ratios, iPhone has got every phone beat now because AT&T decided to make all data plans mandatory now (luckily got mine before that :D). It's just all preference really, but anyone looking to get more for what they pay for iPhone is just so obvious.
It bears repeating I suppose:
It's difficult to still call an iPhone a smartphone or even innovative when it lacks SOOOO much
- User accessible file system?
- Bluetooth file sharing?
- True Exchange support?
- Flash-enabled browsing?
- Video conferencing?
- Multi-tasking?
- Tethering without jailbreaking?
- Ability to create and edit *any* Office document
- Voice-activated system commands?
- sub par camera without LED flash
- sub-VGA resolution
iPhone is still behind in terms of features that other smartphones and OS's (particularly WinMo) have had for years!
Oh, and try turning your iPhone into a Wi-Fi, USB, & Bluetooth router.
Dude. You are so narrow minded and brain washed sounding that it's pathetic! If you remove your head from Steve Job's lap for a second, you'll realize that there are people who want a phone that does multimedia and productivity functions - not just watch videos, play music and show off stupid apps. The iphone is a great interface and even better business model, but it's not the end all be all of phones. It doesn't do some key things that some people want a smart phone to do. And sometimes, people just want the phone to have the ability to do things natively without having to buy 50,000,000 apps for every friggen function!
HTC has really bumped up the WM phones with TouchFlo 3D and anyone looking for a small and powerful WM device should be happy with this. TouchFlo totally changes the WM experience and you have the option to jump out into the default WM interface when you want/need to - but you don't have to. Personally, I prefer the size of the Touch HD or TP2, but that's what's great about WM - you get variety!
I think you are right SD, this WinMo6.5 OS is not bringing anything innovative to the table. There is hardly anything compelling or substantial about it that warrants an upgrade from 6.1, never mind that it is a complete mess having to deal with WinMo apps. It's like the Wild West. Microsoft could've at least tried to improve IE, maybe a little, to make the browsing experience somewhat palatable but I guess that was hoping for too much. What a pile of garbage, I think I'm switching to Android.
Yes, I love Microsoft (a more unapt name for you I could not think of)
It's not as if this device doesn't already come with Opera Mobile 9.5
It's not as if you can't upgrade to Opera Mobile 9.7
It's not as if you can't install Opera Mini 5 (which destroys Safari in terms of speed)
It's not as if you can't install Skyfire with Flash support, something that iPhones can't even do if they wanted to
It's not as if there aren't half a dozen different webkit browsers either already out or coming down the pipeline for WinMo
Furthermore:
It's not as if they haven't made the entire OS more finger friendly
It's not as if there isn't a central marketplace just weeks away from launch (for the clueless, less technically inclined, masses) to download apps from
It's not as if you don't have the choice of using TF3D if you don't like the standard Titanium, thus making the use of a stylus entirely superfluous
It's not as if WM 6.5 didn't add kinetic scrolling throughout WinMo
Let's face it, most iDiots, iTrolls had one major complaint which they could hold over WM 6.1 users, the Interface
WM 6.5's native Titanium interface takes care of that, and TF3D 2.x handles that as well. Your choice
Kinetic scrolling is present throughout WM 6.5 now
Everything is bigger, more finger friendly, and you don't have to fool around with a stylus
You have your choice of more web-browsers than Apple could give you on the desktop + iPhone combined
You can install apps from anywhere and anyway that you want.
Want to share apps via bluetooth, wifi, vnc, usb, install them from cab files, exe files via active sync, download them straight OTA from marketplace, have at it.
The worst thing we could hope for is having a single repository of apps controlled by a single entity, as is the case with Apple and its AppStore, because if they dont like you, you dont get it. End of Story.
That's now how apps work on the PC, so why should they on the PPC.
Oh that's right, I'd wager that youre a Mac user, and that's exactly how it works for you guys.
@ WindowsFTW
I didn't bother reading your extremely long and boring post, but it looks like all crap you took 30 minutes to write is only helping to push people away from WinMo. I mean, who wants to buy a phone that comes so poorly built and requires the user to dig around forums for the pieces needed to make it barely usable? No wonder more and more manufacturers are dumping WinMo and consumers choosing non-WinMo phones.
Well agents can't get the iPhone so this is a big deal for us. Don't ruin it! :)
I can't work out why Engadget seems so dead-set against this handset, or why they seem to believe that the Imagio is better.
Both of them are running last-gen HTC hardware, they have the same 529MHz processors, the same resolution screens (albeit the Imagio's is larger but that doesn't really mean anything) and the Pure actually has marginally more RAM.
Both handsets ship with WinMo 6.5 as well.
So I just don't get it, in what way is the Imagio superior?
It's inferior. Verizon will probably slap on it's "Designed for rtards (tm)" user interface on the device, while at the same time removing it's microphone, so people will have to buy an additional $50 bluetooth.
DR House@
Here are the top 3 reasons why people would buy a WinMo phone:
#3 WinMo is the only Stylus mobile OS on the market
#2 Grandpa is more familiar with Stylus OS
#1 Grandpa is paying for the phone
i wonder if you can update from 6.1 to 6.5 now?
I already did....like 6 months ago, and then again several times after that to the newest builds.
If you head over to XDA-Devs or PPCG, you can find ~ 100+ WM 6.5 ROM's floating around...or you could just grab a 6.5 kitchen and cook one of your own.
I have a specific use case where I am synchronizing with two different calendar sources and I cannot allow calendar items to move through the phone to the other source. I have found synchronizing software that handles this for WinMo but not yet for iPhone.
Granted, this is a rather obscure case.
I played with this phone today and it was fast and the screen was extremely responsive and amazing. The ONLY deal breaker? This thing has THE most cramped on-screen keyboard I have EVER seen on a phone. EVER. It was still amazingly responsive, but my fingers hit like ten keys at a time in portrait. And the keyboard in landscape is only like a fourth of an inch wider and my fingers hit like seven keys at a time. Ridiculous.
That can easily be resolved by getting Touch Pal, arguably the best SIP on the market, and also better than the iPhone's SIP for sure.
http://www.cootek.com/intro.aspx
It's kind of sad and pathetic that WinMo isn't even capable of shipping with a usable keyboard.
No I love MS,
It's not sad and pathetic.
EZ Input 2 is usually shipped with WinMo phones these days, and its just as capable as any other SIP.
Also, many WM phones have physical keyboards, which negates the need for an even better software keyboard.
However, once again, keyboards such as FingerKeyboard 2.1 are free and are a simple download away, which are way more feature rich and capable than say the iPhone's keyboard.
Also, as I referenced, TouchPal *IS* the best software keyboard on the planet, and it sucks for iPhone users that they have to stick with their limited and comparatively slower keyboards without something like TouchPal or a physical keyboard for that matter.
How is having the best of both worlds a bad thing again?
@ WindowsFTW
Well, if, as you claim, that TouchPal is the "better" keyboard then MS should have bundled it with WinMo right? But then, MS is not the kind of company that cares about providing users with a good experience. They rely on suckers like you who will buy the WinTard product only because it bears the MS logo on it, then leave it up to the 4 basement nerds to do the "research" while the rest of WinMo users keep struggling with their keyboards.
Oh and funny that you didn't mention that any one who doesn't want to keep using that garbage of a keyboard MS is shipping in WinMo has to fork out another $10 to buy TouchPal just to make their devise usable. No thanks!
i havent had time to look at the comments so sorry if this is a repeat question, but is that not the 6.1 interface
Looks like an older build of 6.5. Are they lumping 6.5 and 6.5.1 separately now? This phone pretty much begs for the 6.5.1 larger buttons/smaller top bar kinda deal. I was sort of interested in this but then I saw no 3.5 jack. Keeping the original Touch Pro for now.
Only a few AT&T stores have the phone for sale, and surprisingly mine was one of them so I bought it.
I am a devotee of MS and WinMo.
I have bought and returned 2 iPhones.
I wanted to like this phone so much for it's size and WinMo flexibility.
But, it's a piece of crap compared to the iPhone. It really is. I truly hate all the Mac fanboys, but the iPhone is a much better device with a much better OS. And anyone that only talks about the iPhone few weaknesses are worse than the Apple zombies.
This WinMo 6.5 is a huge let down from what I'm seeing so far. I don't understand how Microsoft expects to compete with all the other smart phones out there. Palm dumped WinMo, Motorola dumped WinMo, HTC is shrinking WinMo production big time and other partners are abandoning the platform and switching to Android. This is only going to end when MS releases their own phone (Project Pink). Basically a repeat of how stabbed in the back all their Play For Sure music player partners when the Zune came out.
Um, no I love MS.
There are over 40 WM phones coming to the market over the next 3 months.
That's about 4 times more than Android.
Furthermore, there are over a dozen different manufacturers making phones for WinMo, that number is actually UP from last year.
MS has also dedicated over 1000 engineers to WM development, that's more than Office and Xbox divisions even.
Your blind ignorance and antipathy for MS should not be an excuse for your failure to be objective and better informed.
By the way, I love Microsoft,
You do realize that people can click on your name, see your post history, and then come to know that you're FoxKenji, iTard extraordinaire, right?
@ WindowsFTW
Yes I could have but chose not to, just so I could see who the profile stalkers are. So once again, thanks for answering the query.
..
@poop
If you can't spell buried, I hardly think you're in a position to judge an operating system. Thanks for playing. :D
I don't know what the fuss is about mobile keyboards. Unless you have a multi-fold keyboard that folds out magically to a netbook size like Palm used to offer, typing on a small keyboard, software or hardware, just sucks. You have to admit it. Buy a netbook or something. Or carry a computer around, like I do.
BTW, I think the people who say iPhone is a smartphone are idiots. It is not a computer.
@ WindowsFTW
If what you say is true, then it makes WinMo look even more pathetic. Specially when considering this fact:
iPhone is outselling all WinMo phones, WinMo sales continue to drop
http://www.roughlydrafted.com/2009/08/21/canalys-iphone-outsold-all-windows-mobile-phones-in-q2-2009/
So basically, the major players are dumping WinMo, the bottom feeder, no-brand name makers are moving in and yet, collectively, are still not selling enough. Sucks to be WinMo these days.
Ummm, gee,
That couldn't have anything to do with iPhone 3GS being released that quarter (consequently the ONLY quarter in the last 3 years that the iPhone has outsold WM).
That also couldn't have anything to do with the fact that in Q2 09, only a couple of WM phones were released worldwide, and brought NOTHING new to the table.
No....that couldn't have anything to do with it at all, could it?
Watch, Q3-Q4 of this year, it's a surefire bet that WM will outsell iPhone worldwide.
Why? Because 3 Dozen new WM handsets are launching, and no new iPhone will launch, the opposite of how Q2 launched looked, where you had 3GS launching worldwide with no really new WM handsets to speak of.
But I suppose, arguing with logic is an exercise in futility when it comes to iTards.
Also, no, contrary to your belief, you're NOT important enough to have profile stalkers.
The only flag that was raised was why would some troll choose to call himself "I_Love_Windows" and then go around being an iDouche...
You simply got caught with your iPants iDown.
@ WindowsWTF
Actually there is really nothing appealing that WinMo is bringing that will be attractive enough for new consumers to buy. Specially with superior and growing platforms like Android and the Pre. They are much more attractive handsets to consumers and fantastic alternatives to current WinMo users who find that there are better alternatives than the half-finished products Microsoft pushes down into the market.
Microsoft will eventually kill off all its handset partners and release its own phone (Code Pink), thus leaving them to adopt Android completely and seeing the WinMo use base shrink even more.
By the way, yeah you wish you caught me with my iPants iDown. You're the iStalker.
Pink has nothing to do with WM 6.5 or WM7.
Pink is basically MS's version of the Sidekick after buying Danger.
MS has committed itself to WM, hence the 1000+ developers they've hired who are now comprising the WM department.
In case you missed it:
http://wmpoweruser.com/?p=8202
In fact, you don't even have to watch the entire video, just this excerpt will do when asked if MS plans on ditching their partners and making both the phone and the OS:
"MA: It seems like a lot of people really like the Zune HD, it’s selling out. When you look at the Zune and the Xbox, you seem to be more than capable of creating, successful end consumer devices that are hardware tied to services. When do we get our Microsoft phone? I know you guys keep saying “We will not build a Microsoft branded phone…”
SB: Well let me ask you a question. I’m going to answer your question with a question. Which is to say, look, lets just break hardware devices into two broad categories. Really high volume, and more niche. And I’ll call anything that’s under about 50 million a year niche. And I’ll call anything that’s north of 300 million a year non-niche. PC’s are not niche devices. Part of the reason I think they’re non-niche devices is, multiple people can manufacture them, they all interoperate, they work together, etc. TVs are not niche. You know, there’s more than well over 300 million of those sold a year. They interoperate in that case mostly based on standards, but with some innovation. Phones are not niche. The categories where, I think, a single player can control a large percentage of the volume are the smaller categories. What does Apple sell every year of iPods: 30 million, order of magnitude, something like that. What is the whole video game market is maybe 30 or 40 million in units a year. But when you get these categories that are 300 million, 500 million, a billion, a billion-five a year, the truth of the matter is you’re gonna want multiple points of manufacture, with a lot of innovation around it whether its supply chain, for geographic diversity, and our basic play with our software is to try and be super high volume. So I think you can have an Apple in the phone business, or a RIM, and they can do very well, but when 1.3 billion phones a year are all smart, the software that’s gonna be most popular in those phones is gonna be software that’s sold by somebody who don’t make their own phone. And, we don’t wan’t to cross the chasm in the short run and lose the war in the long run and that’s why we think the software play is the right play for us for high volume, even though some of the guys in the market today with vertically oriented solutions may do just fine."
But then again, remember what I said about you being uninformed...well yeah.
I guess i'll keep my iphone then
I dont care about tuning my phone to a wireless hotspot (3G on the phone+wifi access is enough for me)
Camera LED? well that's what my pocket camera is for, if i wanna take cheesy pictures iphone camera is good enough for me
Video call cam? had it in my past phones and have never used it
Flash support? the only content with flash that i care about is youtube and it works on the iphone.
Yeah i guess windows phones still got a longway to go and hey the iphone got advantages too but if i list them i'll need to write a book.
@ WindowsFTW
LOL, and you still listen to your Great Leader, even after he went on record saying that the iPhone had no chance, no chance at all.
Now look at him conceding how well the iPhone is doing.
Hey you must've had a good workout transcribing that long and morbidly inane speech into text. Did you jump around afterward yelling:
Developers, developers, developers!
Developers, developers, developers!
Developers, developers, developers!