Posted 11/10/09 at 08:02:18 PM by Ryan Whitwam

Reports are surfacing that indicate a certain Redmond software company could be giving OEMs access to a certain mobile OS in just a few short months. After the lackluster reception of Windows Mobile 6.5, Microsoft is looking for a hit. Anything to keep Microsoft’s mobile head above water as the iPhone, Blackberry, and Android continue to move in for the kill.

The new software is reportedly code named “Maldives”, and should be in OEMs' hot little hands in the first quarter of 2010. The final release to consumers isn’t expected until later in the third quarter. This jives nicely with earlier rumors indicating a release to manufacturing in Spring 2010. It may be a while yet before you can get a WinMo 7 device, but you can certainly expect leaked ROMs to make the scene before too long.

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Posted 10/20/09 at 07:47:29 PM by Ryan Whitwam

Some screenshots have surface that purport to be from Windows Mobile 7. The interface looks cleaner overall, and has completely lost the trademark Windows start button from the corner of the screen. The pics cover a wide variety of the system’s basic functions. Confusingly, the shots are listed as WinMo 6.5.1. The interface is, however, significantly different from previous 6.5.1 leaks, leading most to speculate that these are the first moves into the WinMo 7 development tree.

The call screen has taken on a very iPhone-like aesthetic with a large contact photo. The calendar has been cleaned up dramatically, looking downright usable. The changes to the keyboard may be the most telling, though. Whereas the previous version was cramped and stylus friendly, the new version looks spacious, finger-friendly, and very similar to the Android keyboard. If authentic, these screenshots certainly indicate that Microsoft is moving in the right direction.

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Posted 09/28/09 at 07:07:40 PM by Pulkit Chandna

Microsoft had originally planned to release Windows Mobile 7 in 2009. But it then pushed the release to 2010. The cutthroat nature of the smartphone market offers very little leeway for such delays. Besides, WinMo 7 is supposed to be a product that will bring Windows phones up to speed with other contemporary smartphones.

The delay left Microsoft with no choice but to plug Windows 6.5, an interim release, in a manner only accorded to a major release. It is clearly a gambit to prevent WinMo loyalists from abandoning the terribly long road to WinMo 7.

Just days before the much hyped global launch of Windows Mobile 6.5, Steve Ballmer could be heard criticizing the company's mobile platform at the Microsoft Venture Capitalist Summit last week. No journalists had been invited to the event.
"Ballmer said they screwed up with Windows Mobile. Wishes they had already launched WM7. They completely revamped the team," tweeted Paul Jozefak, a venture capitalist, from the event floor.

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Posted 09/21/09 at 09:17:59 PM by Ryan Whitwam

More details about the mysterious Microsoft “Pink” project continue to leak out (including a possible drawing). The current consensus is that Pink will be a Microsoft branded mobile phone. However, Microsoft would most likely outsource the actual construction of the handset. It will probably have some sort of integration with Zune services, like the excellent Zune Pass subscription based music service.

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Posted 09/17/09 at 09:23:27 PM by Ryan Whitwam

The first Windows Mobile 6.5 devices haven’t even been released yet, but Microsoft is already thinking about Windows Mobile 7. A recent job posting indicates the software giant’s intention to build social networking into the mobile platform. Suspiciously, there’s a lot of marketing speak. This could be half job posting, and half clandestine press release.

The position is for a Project manager in the Windows Mobile 7 Communications group. The posting goes on to say, “Our vision is to bring social networks to life by integrating them into the core experience of the phone.” They also made clear that they have just “begun drawing the first lines of the Mobile Social Platform". This seems to put to bed the rumors that the new mobile OS would show up in the first quarter of next year.

Microsoft's initiative sounds similar to Palm Synergy, Motorola MotoBlur, and HTC Sense UI. Aggregating social media content on phones does seem to be all the rage these days. Is Microsoft late to the game here, or is the time right? More importantly, can they pull it off?

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Posted 08/19/09 at 06:46:47 PM by Pulkit Chandna

Microsoft’s share of the mobile OS market has plummeted sharply in the last few years. It needs to  quickly mount a counter-offensive against its more dapper rivals in the smartphone market, if it is to prevent itself from being marginalized even further. According to Taiwanese rumor mill Digitimes, Microsoft does have a strategy to counter its rivals in the smartphone market.

A Digitimes report, based on insider information from sources at Taiwan handset makers, suggests that Microsoft has readied a dual-platform strategy to take on the Android platform and Apple's iPhone. Under this strategy, Microsoft will not withdraw Windows Mobile 6.5 from the market even after Windows 7 Mobile is released during the fourth quarter of 2010.  Instead, it will keep Windows Mobile 6.5 – a minor upgrade – on the market, albeit at a lower price point.

According to the sources, Microsoft plans to pit Windows Mobile 6.5 against Android, while reserving Windows Mobile 7 for the Apple iPhone.

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Posted 02/26/09 at 12:50:40 PM by Pulkit Chandna

Microsoft showcased Windows Mobile 6.5 at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona barely a fortnight ago. But even the most ardent WM aficionado may seriously consider skipping WM 6.5 - a minor update - in light of Steve Ballmer’s announcement that Windows Mobile 7 will become available early next year.

Ballmer identified WM as one of Microsoft’s seven key businesses. He made these comments while addressing a conference call. He believes that WM will not be affected by the downturn as it is ideal for low-cost form factors.

"I do think the guys who are in the best position to benefit are the guys who actually have phones at low price points,” Ballmer said. No price for guessing who, according to Ballmer, is going to be at a disadvantage: Apple, of course, with its exorbitantly priced iPhone.

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Posted 09/25/08 at 05:28:35 PM by Pulkit Chandna

According to reports, Microsoft has delayed the release of its Windows Mobile 7 OS. The mobile OS will now be launched in the second half of 2009. It was previously slated for early 2009. The company is said to have notified its partners about the delay, though an official confirmation is still awaited. Windows Mobile 7 will face stiff competition, when it eventually debuts, from Symbian OS, Android and the iPhone . A new version of the most popular mobile OS in the world, Symbian OS, is also expected in 2009. Microsoft certainly has its task cut out.

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