HTC Touch

I just purchased an HTC Touch to replace my Blackjack and it is VERY cool. The TouchFLO UI is very easy to use and very responsive. The size of the unit is unbelieveable, very small (smaller than my Blackjack). More information to come....

Zune songs on a Windows Mobile Device?

I made a reference to this in a post a while back, you can play Zune DRM protected music on your Windows Mobile device. I have read people complaining on how Zune uses a different DRM than PlayforSure's DRM and they are not compatible. While I have not tried playing my Zune music on a PlayforSure device it works fine on my Windows Mobile phone.

Here is what I do:

• Plug my phone into my computer and make sure ActiveSync sees it.
• Open up Windows Media Player 11.
• Drag my Zune music to my Windows Mobile Device (Smartphone 5.0).
• Disconnect.

Give it a try! Also, people with PlayforSure devices let me know if it also works for you.

My next phone, the Motorola Q Q9

There has been talk about the next updates to the Motorola Q and details have been finally released this week. Looking at pictures and specs this will be my next phone (to replace my Blackjack). They say it will be out Q2 2007.

Simple, elegant and stylish, the ultra-slim MOTOQ q9, at only 11.8 millimeters thick packs in a host of advanced features

• QWERTY keyboard and large, crisp display
• Quad-Band (GPRS/EDGE) functionality
• Video capture and playback at 30fps
• HSDPA technology for fast data transfers, streaming media and web browsing
• Connectivity: EMU, USB 2.0 full speed transfers and data access
• Integrated Class 2 Bluetooth wireless technology (A2DP, AVRCP - stereo) for hands-free connectivity with compatible Bluetooth enabled stereo devices
• Messaging via MMS, SMS, Instant Messaging and Windows Pocket Outlook
• Supports a variety of audio formats including AMR NB, AMR WB, MWA, MP3, AAC, AAC+, eAAC+, WAV, MIDI
• Video formats supported includeH.263, MPEG4, WMV, H.264 decode
• Up to 2 GB of optional removable storage space with a microSD memory slot
• Integrated 2.0 megapixel camera with digital zoom and LED photo indicator light
• Special productivity features: Opera browser, Attachment Viewer or Editor, Voice Recognition, File Manager, Voice Notes, VPN capability and Anti-Virus protection

Why not run Zune on the Windows Mobile OS?

I read a rumor over at gizmodo.com that Microsoft may be releasing a VOIP/WiMAX/4G Zune player phone thingy. If I were a betting man (well, actually I am) I would say it will NOT be running Windows Mobile just as the current Zune does not. That leaves the question, why not? To me it seems much more expensive to create and manage so many different operating systems so why not just standardize on one? Apple is telling us that the iPhone is running a version of OS X. Ok, so I know XP/Vista will never fit on a phone (especially with the little amount of RAM included on the phones) but why not have all portable devices run Windows Mobile?

As I mentioned in a previous post, I would love to drop my iPod and use my Windows Mobile device to play music. The problem is WMP's IU is awkward. If they ran the Zune UI on Windows Mobile they could release the app as a "Zune Lite" for Windows Mobile phones and I would be a happy camper. Or someone could create a cool music player app, hint.. hint.. (BTW I have not found one with a great UI, if you find one point me in the right direction).

Windows Mobile 6 from around the 'Net.

Next week we should learn a lot more about Microsoft's update to Windows Mobile named Windows Mobile 6 (codenamed Crossbow). From the info I have read it looks like Windows Mobile 6.0 is a "refresh" to Windows Mobile 5.0 sporting a new look with some needed new features and bug fixes. It's not a complete code redesign, that should be out next year with "Photon".

For those of you who have been under a rock, Microsoft's Windows Mobile platform has changed names.

Windows Mobile 6 "Professional" - Windows Mobile Pocket PC
Windows Mobile 6 "Standard" - Windows Mobile Smartphone
Windows Mobile 6 "Classic" - Pocket PC w/o phone features

Rumors are flying around on when, what and who so I thought I would do a quick roundup one Windows Mobile 6.0 News.

• Windows Mobile 6.0 Announced - talks about the name change and major new features.
• Windows Mobile 6.0 Standard Screenshots - a collection of 40+ pics of "Standard" in action.
• Windows Mobile 6.0 Professional Screenshots - a collection of 100+ pics of "Professional" in action.
• Windows Mobile 6.0 What's New and Cool - Straight from the horses' mouth, Jason Langridge post some details on different aspects of the new features.
• Windows Mobile 6.0 Conference Call Notes - Jason Dunn shares some info gathered from a Microsoft conf call on Feb 8th.
• Windows Mobile 6.0 First Impressions - JoelGeek has been running WM 6.0 for a couple of weeks and gives us his first impressions (includes pictures of it running a HTC Dash).
• Video of Windows Mobile 6.0 Professional in action - Mostly on the ringtones and alerts but a good demonstration of WM 6.0's speed.
• Windows Mobile 6.0 Professional Video - An indebth video, with commentary, talking about different applications.
• T-Mobile, Windows Mobile 6.0, Q2 2007 - Rumor has it T-Mobile may be the first to offer phones with Windows Mobile 6.0.

(photo courtey of Engadget)

Web 2.0

I was reading gizmodo.com today and came across this great video. Because I work for an Internet company I am frequently asked what Web 2.0 really is. This video does an awesome job of answering that very question.

How does this relate to Windows Mobile? As more and more cell phones become connected to 3G the phone is going to play, and in some cases already has played, a big role in Web 2.0. Look at Blogger on the Go. You can take pictures with your camera phone and send them directly to your Blog. Another example is radar. radar allows you to share picture conversations with your closest friends. I think over the next year we will see more and more applications where Windows Mobile will be used as a tool with Web 2.0 and more Web 2.0 applications will be written for Windows Mobile.

No 3rd party apps on the Apple iPhone, could it be a blessing?

I know this is old news but I have been thinking about Apple's stance on not allowing 3rd party software to be installed on the iPhone. Most people are not big fans of this policy because it limits the phone's options and I tend to agree. One of the big reasons I left Blackberry for Windows Mobile is the amount of cool 3rd party apps available for Windows Mobile platform. After thinking about Apple's policy it got me thinking.

Windows Mobile is a great platform and the base software is fairly stable. In reading forums, and from personal experience, I find that 90% of the time 3rd party apps are to blame for Windows Mobile's instability. Because it's easy to create apps for Windows Mobile I think a few applications don't go through a proper "beta" and are released a little buggy. Also 3rd party apps compatibility issues with each other can cause instability. I think Windows Mobile gets a bad rap on stability when it's not actually caused by Windows Mobile itself.

So, will not allowing 3rd party apps on the iPhone help keep it stable?