windows mobile

My Phone for Windows Mobile shutting down 6th October

June 8, 2011 | By Surur

In its day My Phone for Windows Mobile was a pretty good service, and offered features which we still have not seen in Windows Phone 7.

However all good things must come to an end, and as Microsoft phases out support for Windows Mobile it is also withdrawing services which support it.

On their website Microsoft has announced that back-ups will stop on the 7th August and the website will shut down on the 6th October 2011. Photos, calendar, contacts and text messages will be migrated as files to Sky Drive, while users will need to remove or lose their videos, music, documents, favourites and tasks.

Unfortunately it seems Microsoft will not be making it easy to save your content en masse, with items needing to be saved one at a time. Users will however have until 5th October 2012 to request their content on CD.

The Marketplace for Windows Mobile website will also be shutting down, but will remain available from the phones themselves.

We hope Microsoft take some of the good ideas of My Phone, which includes a near complete back-up of the most important data of your phone in the cloud, and incorporate it into a similar service for Windows Phone 7 also.

Read more about the termination of service at Microsoft here.

Will any of our readers be affected by this shut down? Let us know below.

Thanks Tommy for the tip.

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Windows Mobile 6.x Marketplace winding down–no more app submissions from July 15th

May 17, 2011 | By Surur

The Windows Mobile 6.5 Marketplace launched in November 2009 and never really caught on, peaking at around 7000 apps and may now only have around 1500 apps in the store.

No wonder then that Microsoft appears intent on winding down the effort and deploying their resources elsewhere.

According to a MSDN forum post by Edgeway software Microsoft has sent an email to developers telling them they will not be accepting any further submissions to the Windows Mobile 6.x marketplace from the 15th July. Apps will still be available to purchase and download by end users, but no new apps will be added.

Of course Windows Mobile is not Windows Phone 7, and the millions of handset owners who still have an older device are of course free to side load to their hearts content, but it is still somewhat sad to see the platform which kept me connected while mobile for so many years slowly slip away.

Do many of our readers still run Windows Mobile handsets? How do you feel about this latest development? Let us know below.

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Chinese HTC HD7 features 4.8 inch screen, microSD support

April 25, 2011 | By Surur

Click for larger pictures.

When Windows Phone 7 finally officially enters China it seems many residents will already be familiar with the look, if not feel of the OS.

In Shanzhai you can now find a Chinese HTC HD7 clone with a massive 4.8 inch capacitive WVGA screen, dual standby SIM, and a claimed 1 Ghz processor, 256 MB RAM, 512 MB Flash and 32GB microSD support.

Of course Shanzai.com reports not all is as it may seem, as the “1Ghz processor” will likely just be a Mediatek chip, and what at first glance looks like Windows Phone 7 is in fact just dressed up Windows Mobile 6.5.

We do have to comment that Shanzhai knock-off craftsmanship, and will certainly look toward them of we want out next Windows Phone 7 phone to be supersized.

Via Ubergizmo.com

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Who’s Near Me – Now Open To Other Smartphone Platform Users!

April 19, 2011 | By Brian Hamachek

Who's Near Me for WP7 Who’s Near Me, the popular Windows Mobile and Windows Phone 7 social networking application that everyone has been talking about, has opened up to users of any smartphone platform or web browser! Just today SynergeTech Solutions, the company behind Who’s Near Me, launched the new website WhosNearMe.net. Using the website, you can login to your mobile account or create a new account and connect with people that are near you right now! Your identity is completely hidden from the other users and you can safely exchange text and picture messages with nearby people – all without the need to ever reveal your true name, email, or phone number – unless of course you want to!

People from around the world are logging into the Who’s Near Me network from their Windows Mobile and Windows Phone 7 phones to find new friendships, romance, or just to kill some time by chatting with a stranger in your city – or across the globe. Hundreds of thousands of users have already joined this rapidly growing social network and you are bound to meet people living and working in your city, maybe even someone living right nextdoor!

You can try out the new website at www.whosnearme.net. And if you haven’t already done so, be sure to also check out the mobile applications in the social category of the Windows Mobile and Windows Phone 7 Marketplaces.

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Fring also bids au voir to Windows Mobile

March 24, 2011 | By Surur

In a short but succinct blog post, Fring hang up on the call on the Windows Mobile operating system.

They wrote:

As of today, fring for WM, UIQ & J2ME is no longer available for new users. We will continue supporting existing users on these platforms for the foreseeable future.
A big thank you for our users and hope to see you soon on our fully supported platforms including iPhone, Android and Nokia/Symbian.

The fring Team

Fring has always been the Skype alternative offered after Skype itself dropped support for Windows Mobile, so this move is particularly poignant.

Unlike the recent departure of Opera Mobile, fring made no mention of future support of Windows Phone 7, and of course the OS is also otherwise devoid of a proper VOIP solution. Like many other features, it likely awaits both Microsoft delivering OS updates and the actual client itself.

For those we want to save a copy for posterity it can be downloaded here.

Via Mobiputing.com

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No Opera 11 for Windows Mobile, possibly for Windows Phone “when and where there is a business case for doing so”

March 22, 2011 | By Surur

A sad farewell to a Windows Mobile stalwart

Opera has announced in a forum post that they will no longer be releasing new versions of their browser for Windows Mobile.

Noting that there have not been new devices released with the mobile OS for some time (not really true) and that its market share is rapidly shrinking (certainly true) , they claim “the platform can no longer provide the revenue potential that Opera Software would need to keep investing in it.”

They did not however close the door on all Microsoft mobile operating systems, saying about Windows Phone.

Regarding Microsoft’s new platform, Windows Phone 7, Opera is continuously evaluating that and other platforms and we will make products available when and where there is a business case for doing so.

Opera Mobile 10 and Opera Mini 5.1 for Windows Mobile will continue to be available for download.

The Opera Mobile browser was instrumental in keeping Windows Mobile competitive in its last 3 years, so it is sad to see a pillar of the operating system and user experience on these devices go away. However on Windows Phone 7, I believe rather unexpectedly, the IE browser has been more than adequate, and of course we are expecting even more from an updated IE9 browser some months time.

Via Favbrowser.com

Thanks Andy for the tip.

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How Windows Mobile Evolved Into Windows Phone 7

January 31, 2011 | By Pradeep

At this week’s BYTES by MSDN,Loke Uei Tan, Senior Technical Product Manager with the Developer Experience team and Tim Huckaby,the Founder of InterKnowlogy, experts in Microsoft .NET and Microsoft Platforms discuss how Windows Mobile evolved and how the user experience is carefully guarded. Loke shares how Microsoft encourages developers to build apps for WP7, while maintaining a consistent consumer user experience. Loke also revealed the organization of the Windows Phone team at Microsoft which are called CEX(Consumer Experience), BEX( Business Experience), Developer Experience.

Source: MSDN

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51% of smartphone and would be smartphone owners would consider Windows Phone 7, 1/8th think its Windows Mobile

January 24, 2011 | By Surur

Microsoft needs to continue its marketing push for Windows Phone 7

Strategic Analytics have published the results of a survey they conducted of 158 current and prospective smartphone users, in equal number from current Android, iPhone, and Blackberry devices, and consumers who intend purchasing a smartphone within 60 days.

Their results indicate that Windows Phone 7 has some in with buyers already, but that Microsoft has some work to do.

They report

85% of respondents said they would consider or strongly consider an iOS device
84% would consider or strongly consider an Android device
51% would consider a Windows Phone 7 device

For a brand new OS this is actually already a pretty good achievement, and one can expect the numbers to only go up from there.

Strategic Analytics examined the 49% who would not consider Windows phone 7, and found 7% were Apple fanboys, 26.5% were unfamiliar with the OS, and 12.5% complained of issues related more to Windows Mobile rather than Windows Phone, saying the OS, was difficult to use (5.6%), was unreliable (5.7%) and out-dated (1.3%). Only 2% complained that there were too few apps, indicating that this is not in fact a huge issue.

If the 158 respondents are reflective of the general market it indicated Microsoft need to continue its marketing drive even more aggressively, to raise awareness, and should also continue to distance itself from its Windows Mobile heritage, possibly with marketing specifically to address the perception e.g. The all new Windows Phone, smoother, faster, and with Xbox Live.

Read the full result at Strategic Analytics here.

Via Moconews.com

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Gune search repertoire expanded

December 14, 2010 | By l3v5y

The Gune mobile search and directory app, by Brazilian developer Handcase, has been updated with an additional 15 searches: Google News, Bing news, Picasa, Friendfeed, Wikipedia, Delicious, YouTube, Flickr, IMDB, Bing images, Scribd, Metajam, Amazon and eBay.

Gune (Basque for “site”), whose main claim to fame is running simultaneous Google and Bing searches and serving the best results from both, can be downloaded for Windows Mobile for free here. There is as yet no version for Windows Phone 7.

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Windows Mobile hits 3% market share, Windows Phone 7 expected to do better

November 1, 2010 | By Surur

r2010111 Canalys have released their Q3 2010 smartphone market share numbers, and the latest numbers see Windows Phone 7 market share hitting what is likely to be rock bottom for a Microsoft mobile OS, 3%.

For the 80 million smartphones shipped, that would account for 2.4 million handsets sold, down 600,000 from Q2 2010, when the OS held 5% of the market.

Fortunately for Microsoft Microsoft has already started shipments of their new OS, with early reports indicating a great reception.

Canalys agrees, writing:

Devices running Microsoft’s OS accounted for just 3% of worldwide smart phone shipments in Q3 2010, though with the launch of Windows Phone 7 devices, the outlook for the fourth quarter and beyond is significantly improved.

"Windows Phone 7 is streets ahead of earlier iterations and provides a vastly improved user experience that will pleasantly surprise many people when they come to use it. The integration of Microsoft service assets, such as Xbox Live, Bing, Zune and Office, greatly strengthens the proposition and we are confident that the initial array of products will perform well," said Chris Jones. "But the big challenge will be for handset vendors to differentiate their devices sufficiently given the restrictions Microsoft has placed on customizing the user interface, and its relatively demanding minimum hardware requirements, which will confine devices to the higher end of the market. The market is also awaiting the platform’s availability in non-roman languages to support its expansion into important emerging markets. Failure to deliver this soon will restrict the volume opportunity."

Of particular interest in the numbers is how rapidly Android has moved to replace the iPhone, growing 1,309% YoY from 1.4 million units a year ago to 20 million units in Q3 2010 , now dwarfing the market share of Apple’s operating system in USA (43.6% vs 26.2%), despite the release of the iPhone 4 falling in the same period. While in some ways this may make Google look unassailable, it is actually much more an indication that the market remains volatile. Microsoft of course hopes some of that mojo, including multiple carriers, networks and manufacturers, rubs off on its Windows phone 7 handsets. Apple of course, with only one phone on the market, should be worried.

Read the full report of Canalys here.

Do our readers agree that, like Windows Mobile, the iPhone is heading towards becoming yesterday’s news? Let us know below.

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Illium eWallet coming to Windows phone 7

October 13, 2010 | By Surur

We have posted recently that Phatware has not decided to support Windows Phone 7 yet, which is of course very disappointing for users who have their data locked into their app.

eWallet users will therefore be ecstatic to hear that Illium is much more convinced of the worth of Microsoft’s new platform and the need to carry on supporting their users into the future.

They write on their blog:

With the official Windows Phone 7 announcement going out yesterday, I wanted to let you know that we’re working on a version of eWallet for Microsoft’s new mobile OS! eWallet for Windows Phone 7 is designed to perfectly fit the look and feel of the new OS. It takes the best features of eWallet and adapts them to Window Phone 7’s unique interface.

If you’ve gotten your hands on a Windows Phone 7 device, you know that Microsoft has created a really compelling OS. I know a lot of people had their doubts, but I have to say that Microsoft pulled out all the stops on this. The end results are devices that are really exciting to design software for.

Unfortunately, I can’t offer much more at this stage – you’ll have to wait for the official release for that – but I did include a screenshot below to give you a little hint of what we’re working on!

Keep an eye on their blog here for the latest developments, and of course on our site to see if your favourite Windows Mobile app is making the jump to Windows Phone 7.

Via MobilityDigest and JAMM

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Windows Mobile Fable players–time to rebel against Microsoft and boycott Fable III

October 6, 2010 | By Surur

nokingmakerforwm

Fable III:Kingmaker does work on Windows Mobile! Its not often we advocate boycotting a Microsoft product, but it is also not often that we are completely outraged at the behaviour of the company.

The recent history of their Fable III:Kingmaker mobile game however has my blood boiling somewhat. It was already known that Microsoft did not announce Windows Mobile support when they announced the game, despite supporting Android, Symbian and the iPhone. This by itself was disappointing.

A video then turned up showing the software in action, clearly working on a Windows phone. The software looks pretty complete, and does not look like a mock-up at all.

Now Rick Dodkins has been able to confirm via twitter with Microsoft’s European Social Media Editor that, despite appearing to have a fully working Windows Mobile version of the software, they will not be releasing it, keeping it for a Windows Phone 7 exclusive.

Now we have seen this behaviour numerous times in the phone world, with simple software features like graphics acceleration being kept for a next generation of devices. This does not however mean we have to like it, and the best way a consumer shows they do not like the behaviour of a company is not to buy their product.

We therefore suggest any current Windows Mobile users who were thinking of buying Fable III to think again, and let Microsoft know why via their Facebook page here and why not join the latest fashion – email Steve Ballmer directly at [email protected] .

Thanks Rick for the tip.

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