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Microsoft reminds users of Windows Mobile Marketplace's imminent demise
It truly is the end of an era. In just under two weeks, Microsoft will follow through with its plan to shutter the Windows Mobile 6.x Marketplace for good. In a cautionary email, Redmond asked that those still using a WM device "install any available updates in advance of the [...] shut-down," scheduled for May 17th. Not all hope is lost for the antiquated mobile operating system, though, as the announcement reminds technology holdouts that application updates can be acquired directly from developers (good luck with that). If you're out on the town this evening having a few drinks with friends, remember to pour one out for Windows Mobile, a true OG smartphone operating system.
TechFaith rolls out first touchscreen WinMo CDMA phone for Mexico
Mexican carrier Iusacell has scored itself a nice little exclusive, rolling out the very first Windows Mobile Professional-based phone running CDMA in all of Mexico. Problem is, it appears to be WinMo 6.0 -- a strange choice, considering 6.1 is already getting long in the tooth -- but it's a pretty smart-looking device, and hey, at least it's got EV-DO. The TechFaith-sourced "Moffett" has a 2-megapixel cam, 128MB of ROM and 64MB of RAM, Bluetooth, WiFi, and a 2.8-inch QVGA display, which compares favorably to... well, now that we think about it, nothing that we can think of off the tops of our heads. Sorry, Iusacell, we swear we were trying to be stoked.[Via wmpoweruser.com]
AT&T certifies Opticon smartphone for compatibility, not beauty
Avert your eyes, average consumers, because Opticon's two new Windows Mobile smartphones are aimed squarely at the business fleet market and they've got spec sheets to match. The H16 is a Windows Mobile 5 -- yes, you read that right, Windows Mobile frickin' 5 Pocket PC phone with EDGE data, WiFi, Bluetooth, and an integrated barcode scanner for the princely sum of $1,195. The H19 meanwhile gets a little bit closer to modern era technology with Windows Mobile 6, WiFi, Bluetooth, integrated GPS, and a barcode scanner, though it shares the H16's lame EDGE radio and stratospheric price tag. The big deal here is that AT&T has officially certified the H16 for use on its network and certification for the H19 is expected (hoped) by September; in other words, corporate brass will be able to rest a little easier knowing that their wireless requisitions aren't considered unsupportable rogues by the carrier -- and with most of those types already at their daily Tums limit, any stress reduction is a good thing.[Via the::unwired]Read - Opticon H19Read - Opticon H16
Samsung launches BlackJack III -- in South Korea
Sorry if we got your hopes up for a second there, AT&Ters; we're still not sure if this one's ever coming to the US, and today is most definitely not the day. Instead, the SCH-M480, which appears to be alternately known as the BlackJack III and Ultra Messaging 2, has been launched on Korea's own SK Telecom for something in the range of 600,000 won (about $592). The Windows Mobile 6 Professional handset is a dead ringer for the i780 that's been launched for a few months now, featuring a lovely 320 x 320 touchscreen, HSDPA, WiFi, and a 2 megapixel camera; not really a direct successor to the BlackJack II since the latter runs Standard, but we could still see a whole host of folks going for the upgrade -- if it ever comes to AT&T, that is.Separately, Boy Genius Report is claiming that AT&T will be getting its very own BlackJack III come October of this year, albeit with a 3 megapixel camera, up from the 2 megapixel sensor seen here. With these fancy new pink and blue versions of the BlackJack II, though, who the heck needs it? We kid, we kid.[Via Pocket PC Thoughts]Read - Ultra Messaging IIRead - US BlackJack III in October?
Samsung BlackJack II now available in pink and blue
Saying that Samsung's new BlackJack IIs are pink and blue is really only telling part of the story. Unlike the originals, the stylish new models feature contrasting white fronts with color-coordinated keys and fancy designs on the back -- perfect for that fashion-conscious Windows Mobile nerd in your life (if that's not an oxymoron, we don't know what is). Collect the whole set now for $99.99 a pop on contract.
Hands-on with i-mate's Ultimates
Even as we marvel at the HTC Touch Diamond's gorgeous VGA display, let's not forget that 640 x 480 resolution (buried within the larger context of a monster spec sheet, no less) is old hat for some Windows Mobile devices. i-mate's Ultimate line has been reppin' the high res displays for a while now, starting with the 6150 and 8150 models that were announced well over a year ago; more recently, the 9502 was added, offering shoppers a grand total of three distinct form factors from which to choose plus a more traditional QVGA setup with the 8502. Hate on Windows Mobile all you want, but you have to admit, it's hard to find this kind of hardware diversity with any other platform out there.We just had an opportunity to play with all four models side by side -- an especially rare opportunity, considering that neither the 8502 nor 9502 are officially being sold in the US (despite their support for HSDPA 850 / 1900). Follow the break for some quick impressions with each of the fearsome foursome.%Gallery-25531%
Glofiish M810 gets unboxed, X1 laughs
As QWERTY slider WinMo sets go, HTC and Sony Ericsson have collectively thrown down a big-ass gauntlet that competitors are likely going to be struggling to match for some time. So it goes with the glofiish M810, an HSDPA powerhouse that would've stolen the show 12 or 18 months ago -- but now it's got the Touch Pro and X1 to contend with, leaving the QVGA display and tired styling a bit tough to swallow. We suppose that a deep discount could still lure a throng, especially if Acer / E-TEN comes through with a Windows Mobile 6.1 upgrade -- but until we all make that fateful decision, check out Pocket PC Thoughts' quick unboxing, live vicariously, and see if it feels right.
Mythical SMT5700 finally near launch on AT&T?
We like to rag on the SMT5700 every so often -- not because it's low-end, not because it lacks 3G, not because it's not the prettiest smartphone we've ever seen. No, we give the SMT5700 a well-earned dose of crap because it earned FCC approval over a year ago. That's pretty insane even by US carrier standards, and new intel over at Boy Genius Reports indicates that AT&T may finally be ramping up to sell this thing. As we mentioned, it'll be pretty low-end on account of its EDGE data and 2 megapixel cam, but hey -- in the year 2008, there's no good reason folks shouldn't be able to get a capable smartphone for next to nothing on any major carrier, in our humblest of opinions. The site doesn't seem to know when exactly it'll launch, but they've posted a few puzzle piece-like press shots of the phone to whet our appetite (or get us to gag, depending on your disposition toward these kinds of phones).
ASUS P320 drops by the FCC, you know, just to say "hi"
It's not going to satisfy your unending hankering for 3G, but ASUS' P320 does have at least one thing going for it: it's mighty small. The so-called "Galaxi Mini" first broke cover back at CeBIT, offering GPS, WiFi, and a 2 megapixel camera in one of the smallest Windows Mobile 6 Professional packages to hit the market. Add that to the fact that it's looking a heck of a lot better in black than the sickly mauve the ASUS gals and dudes were showing off a couple months back, and we might just be sold. No word on a release date or whether it'll be officially offered stateside, but with that FCC certification under its belt, at least owners will be able to rest easy knowing that they're emitting only the finest, government-approved electromagnetic radiation available.
E-TEN gets even more official with M810 and M750 WinMo sets
Remember that M810 that E-TEN announced for its glofiish line of Windows Mobile-powered goodies at MWC? Yep, well, they've announced it again -- along with its underachieving little brother, the M750 -- along with full details and a promise of availability in just two to three weeks. The QWERTY-clad monsters both support WiFi, feature 2 megapixel cameras, GPS, Bluetooth, and 256MB of onboard storage; the lesser M750 makes do with EDGE for wide-area data while the M810 steps it up to HSDPA. If they were coming out of the gate with Windows Mobile 6.1 we'd be whooping and hollering, but they're merely 6 -- to start, anyway -- so nothing to get too excited about. Unless you're into 3.5G data, GPS, and keyboards that glow blue, that is.[Via Pocket PC Thoughts]
MWg starts expanding with UBiQUiO offerings
It certainly didn't take very long for the apple to fall a long, long way from the tree. Just a handful of months after completing its spinoff from parent O2, MWg has started taking to rebranding existing handsets -- in this case, a pair of UBiQUiOs. The QWERTY duo both run Windows Mobile 6 Professional, with the 501 model featuring a 200MHz OMAP750, 2 megapixel camera, and WiFi to get the bits flowing when the GPRS radio won't do. The higher-end 503g (pictured), meanwhile, upgrades to triband 3.6Mbps HSDPA and swaps out the TI core for a 520MHz XScale. Not bad, we guess, but we liked the old days when these guys commissioned their own handsets from the ODMs -- how are they supposed to stand out when they're just slapping a silkscreened logo on a device that's already in the marketplace?[Via Cellpassion]
Hands-on with the LG KS20
Putting Windows Mobile 6's user interface at ease with fat fingers is a monumental challenge -- but it's not a challenge manufacturers are shying away from. Perhaps they see devices like the iPhone as a threat they can't ignore any longer, or perhaps they're simply tired of waiting for Microsoft to roll something truly revolutionary, but at any rate, companies like HTC with its TouchFLO interface are doing pretty much everything they can to keep the stylus firmly locked away. That's where the LG KS20 comes into play, which steals as much of the Viewty's identity as it can while still keeping Windows Mobile 6 under the hood.LG's effort results in limited success. The home screen is about as attractive as any we've seen on a WinMo 6 Professional handset, but it's not particularly useful beyond the plain-vanilla functionality beyond what you'd see on any device in this class. No big, pretty clock, no weather widget -- just a nice color scheme and a four-pack of touchable buttons above the two regular soft keys. Hitting the right three buttons will take you to the normal dialer, messaging, and browser apps, respectively, while the leftmost button takes you to another Viewty-esque display for launching apps. It's nice, but we noticed that it's not difficult to confuse the phone into reverting back to the normal, stock launcher, which looks starkly out of place in this glossy beaut.As usual, the lack of North American HSDPA is a dismal downside, too. Bottom line? It's a great looking device -- but don't expect LG to have worked any miracles with the platform.Thanks to the good folks at Wireless Imports for the hookup!%Gallery-19019%
HP's not-for-US iPAQ 614 gets reviewed
There's nothing quite as profoundly unsettling as reading a review about a phone you can't have. For Americans, that's an all-too-common experience -- and thanks to the ongoing Qualcomm / Broadcom drama, even phones that had originally been destined for the colonies have been unceremoniously dropped, destined for regions well beyond the reaches of the legal system. Case in point: HP had originally wanted to bring the interesting iPAQ 610 series here, but backed off at the last second. If you really want one, though, you can still finagle one from an importer -- not to mention that countless Windows Mobile fanatics populate areas of the globe friendlier to HP's latest pocket candy -- so Tracy and Matt's Blog took a close look at the 614c, which is now shipping. Although the reviewer found its Windows Mobile 6 load to be plenty speedy, he also discovered that it was a tad on the chunky side -- not to mention that the 3G radio seemed to be way flaky, the screen is too inset to use entirely stylus-free, and the virtual nav wheel embedded in the keypad (arguably the ace up the 610's sleeve) wasn't much fun to use. Nice try, HP, but on second thought, maybe we're not so broken up that you're keeping it out of the States.
ASUS P750 secretly packing VGA resolution?
Here's one you may not have heard before: a manufacturer decides to stick a VGA touchscreen in some handset model not because it wants VGA resolution, but just because it got a killer deal on them. That's the rumor being floated on a handful of sites and forums about ASUS' monster P750 Windows Mobile 6 Professional device, with some sharp-eyed contributors noticing that each logical pixel on their devices' screens are actually comprised of -- count 'em -- four physical pixels. Indeed, a quick glance of the spec sheet for the alleged part number used reveals a "VGA/QVGA dual viewing mode," so the story seems to check out, and folks are apparently already hard at work enabling full 640 x 480 resolution on their beloved devices. Good luck, everyone!
Bluebird shows off Pidion BM-350 at CeBIT
Bluebird's one of those manufacturers we don't hear a heck of a lot from, but it warms our heart to hear that they're alive, well, and equipped with fresh wares that were demoed at CeBIT last week. The latest device in its Pidion series is the BM-350, looking a heck of a lot cleaner than the BM-500 we saw at last year's show and reasonably equipped with HSDPA, 1.3 megapixel primary and VGA secondary cams, Bluetooth, WiFi, microSD expansion, the all-too-typical QVGA touchscreen, integrated GPS and FM radio, and a healthy dose of Windows Mobile 6. Unfortunately, the rumored asking price of €500 (about $769) seems way too high for the spec sheet, so it looks Bluebird might just be doomed to anonymity for another year.[Via PHONE Magazine and NaviGadget]
WinMo 6 ROMs for HTC Star Trek bring it out of the graveyard
HTC's Star Trek can now be safely categorized in the "classic" file, but it'd be a big mistake to put this interesting footnote in HTC's history out to pasture just yet. The handset, after all, ranks among the smallest Windows Mobile phones ever made, among the only clamshells, and arguably, among the most attractive (alright, maybe that's a bit of a stretch). But with that stale Windows Mobile 5 build on there hastening its death, what's an owner to do? Turn to the wizards at xda-developers, of course, who've come out swinging with a number of different Windows Mobile 6-based ROMs for a variety of Star Trek flavors, including the Cingular 3125 likely owned by many American customers, and it's all available for download. Always fun to see new life breathed into perfectly decent hardware, ain't it?[Via pocketnow.com]
Hands-on with the HTC Touch Dual
As sexy as the idea of a keypadless, pebble-shaped device with a full-face touchscreen may be, for some, there's simply no replacement for the real thing. A real, physical keypad continues to be a necessity for some folks, and for as much popularity as devices like the Touch and iPhone have garnered, old-fashioned keys really aren't going anywhere any time soon. HTC recognized this pretty quickly and followed up the Touch with the Touch Dual, a phone that carries over most of the original device's high points while adding in 3G data and, perhaps even more notably, a keypad that tucks neatly away when it's not needed.Thanks to the good folks at Wireless Imports for the hookup!%Gallery-17444%
ASUS Lamborghini ZX1 propaganda spotted at CeBIT
So it now looks like that rumored high-end ZX1 Windows Mobile 6 Professional handset from ASUS is a lock for a CeBIT announcement, though we're going to be totally honest, we're not certain it's worthy of the Lamborghini name. Granted, we've got to withhold judgment until we get one in our hands, but outside of a Lamborghini badge-shaped nav pad and a speedometer-inspired clock on the home screen, we're not seeing anything special about the darned thing. On the plus side, it's a 3G world phone with HSDPA 850 / 1900 / 2100 and quadband GSM / EDGE, a 3 megapixel autofocus camera out back with a VGA sensor up front for video calling, 256MB of ROM, 128MB of RAM, microSD expansion, GPS, WiFi, and the typical QVGA display. We guess the 13.2mm thick shell is notable, but Lamborghini notable? More on this one as soon as we catch it in the wild.%Gallery-17326%
Samsung's i200 Windows Mobile candybar in the wild
It may not be generating a ton of buzz -- but a new Samsung smartphone is still a new Samsung smartphone, and so we're quite pleased that someone's managed to sneak a prototype i200 out for a little face time ahead of its planned debut later this quarter. At 11.8mm thick, the Windows Mobile 6 (6.1, perhaps?) Standard handset should disappear nicely into a breast or pant pocket, and that'll have to be a key selling point since it lacks both WiFi and GPS. On the upside, you still get a who's-who of GSM standards all the way up to HSDPA, there's a 2 megapixel cam around back, and we're kinda digging the blue trim. Price this one reasonably, Samsung, and you might have a winner in your midst.
General Mobile's DSTW1: two SIMs, WinMo style
Dual (and triple) SIM phones are a source of endless amusement for us, simply because they continue to be a rare, exotic breed of device that we rarely get to talk about -- much less handle. Add Windows Mobile 6 into the mix, then, and you pretty much have an instant superstar on your hands. That's where General Mobile's DSTW1 comes into play, featuring support for one quadband and one triband SIM, both of which clip along at EDGE speeds. The QVGA display comes in at 2.8 inches, while a 2 megapixel shooter holds down the back end. Memory wise, 64MB is all the RAM you get to play with, but ROM's a decent 256MB with the typical microSD slot available for expansion. Look for it to hit European shelves (and, presumably, the pockets of folks with two wireless accounts) next month.[Via MobileBurn]