Find great computer deals at StaplesOne of the cool (and painful) things about GSMA Mobile World Congress is that you get to see some of the best mobile devices available around the world. I say painful because often these products aren't available in the United States and probably never will be, unless you find them online and buy them unlocked for a hefty price.
If you're a glutton for punishment or just plain curious, then take a look at these international Windows Mobile smartphones that I saw while touring the Microsoft booth.
We've just had a super-sneaky peak at the future of Windows Mobile--version 6.5--and got to demo the new operating system in all its glory ourselves, on a brand-new HTC Touch Diamond2.
Microsoft has completely overhauled the user interface and the mobile OS, and aims to capture more of the consumer handset market with its launch later this year. Check out some of its features in the gallery below.
(Via Crave UK)
The Acer event at Casa Batllo.
(Credit: Bonnie Cha/CNET Networks)Weeks prior to the GSMA Mobile World Congress 2009 here in Barcelona, there were plenty of rumors as to what Acer would reveal at its scheduled Monday press conference. We knew they'd be smartphones but there were varying opinions as to how many and what type. Well, all the speculation can stop now as the company finally took the wraps off the devices on Monday night.
Speaking at Antoni Gaudi's Casa Batllo, several Acer executives, including CEO and President Gianfranco Lanci, announced that the company would bring more than 10 smartphones to market in 2009 and showed off 8 devices at the event.
Acer, which is more known for its Netbooks and notebooks, said it felt the move to smartphones was a logical one. "The smartphone market is the natural direction of our long-term mobile strategy as our ambition is to offer compelling solutions to all the needs of mobile users," Lanci said.
Collectively known as the Acer Tempo smartphone series, the handsets all run Windows Mobile--the company did say there are plans for other operating systems but did not specify which ones. The Tempo series offers a broad range of devices, from the high end to the low end, and aims to reach a diverse customer base. To give you a sampling of the line, here is a breakdown of the first four devices that will come to market in March and April.
Acer M900
(Credit: Acer)Acer M900: The M900 is designed for business users and comes with a slide-out full QWERTY keyboard for your messaging needs. It will run Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional Edition and has a 3.8-inch WVGA touch screen and an embedded fingerprint scanner for security. The smartphone also includes GPS, HSDPA support, and a 5-megapixel camera.
Acer F900: Like the M900, the Acer F900 boasts a 3.8-inch WVGA touch screen but lacks a physical keyboard. The device is optimized for Web browsing and comes with Internet Explorer Mobile 6 with support for JavaScript and Adobe Flash Lite. Other highlights include a widget-based home screen, GPS, Wi-Fi, HSDPA, and a 3.2-megapixel camera.
Acer X960: The X960 is a little more consumer-centric, combining the typical Windows Mobile smartphone features into a more cell phone-like form factor. The touch-screen phone also has a widget-based Today screen so users can have quick access to all their important information. Acer also touts the X960 as a convenient little navigation device with its built-in GPS capabilities.
Acer DX900: The DX900 is the world's first dual SIM smartphone so you can have two numbers associated with the device. Acer offered it as a solution for those who wanted to keep separate different numbers for their work and personal lives--or for globetrotters.
Other models Acer plans to release in the second half of 2009 include the Acer L1 and the Acer C1, which are entry-level devices for those making the jump from a regular cell phone to their first smartphone. These two will also be affordably priced, with the company expecting them to go for 49 euros (around $62) or less after carrier subsidies.
Acer said it is talking with service providers and will make carrier announcements in the coming months. However, the company spoke very generally about market releases and did not specifically mention the United States. Acer did say that it plans on announcing more smartphones in Q4, so this isn't the last we've heard from them.
First up: the LG-GM730.
(Credit: LG)LG Electronics made a number of announcements at GSMA Mobile World Congress 2009, one of which was its alliance with Microsoft to make Windows Mobile the primary operating system for the company's smartphones. As part of the agreement, LG said it would create a tenfold increase of Windows Mobile devices in 2009, and it got things started with the introduction of the LG-GM730.
LG expects to ship the GM730 during the first half of 2009, so unfortunately, it will run Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional Edition. But the company said it would release a Windows Mobile 6.5 version in the second half of the year.
What you do get right away is LG's new S-Class 3D user interface. S-Class features a cube layout with four customizable home screens that you can rotate through with the flick of your finger. It slightly reminded us of HTC's TouchFlo interface on the original HTC Touch, but much, much cooler.
Unfortunately, we don't know much else about the smartphone. We do know that the smartphone will have Internet Explorer Mobile 6.0 and is 0.46-inch thick. LG plans to announce more specs soon and hopefully some news about a North American release. Wishful thinking?
Expect to see more Windows Mobile devices from LG, like the LG Incite.
(Credit: James Martin/CNET Networks)Alongside the introduction of Windows Mobile 6.5, LG announced on opening day of the GSMA Mobile World Congress 2009 that it will make Windows Mobile the primary operating system for its smartphones and promised to significantly increase the production and distribution of such devices in the years to come.
In addition, Microsoft and LG have committed to creating joint research and development teams to work on these phones and ensure a tight integration between hardware and software.
To show its seriousness, LG said it will increase the number of Windows phones available in 2009 tenfold and will bring up to 26 new devices in 2012 alone. This means we could see more than 50 new Windows Mobile devices from LG, thanks to this agreement.
LG only released its first Windows Mobile smartphone in the United States last year (the LG Incite), so we'd be happy just to see anything beyond that, let alone a tenfold increase. In fact, the company has already announced its second device at GSMA 2009: the LG GM730. This will be a Windows Mobile 6.1 smartphone that will be released in the first half of 2009, but LG added that it plans to ship Windows Mobile 6.5 devices in the second half of the year. We're still gathering more details about the LG GM730 so check back soon for a dedicated post.
By the way, do you think this is a good move for LG? Let me know your thoughts.
Prithvi Raj, a product manager for Microsoft, demonstrates the new Windows Mobile 6.5 running in an HTC touch-screen handset at the GSMA Mobile World Congress 2009 in Barcelona.
(Credit: Marguerite Reardon/CNET Networks)Microsoft is trying to sell the world on the notion of a "Windows phone."
The first part of that effort is simple. It's a rebranding exercise. Although Microsoft will continue to sell its Windows Mobile operating system, it is going to put its marketing muscle behind the term "Windows phone" to describe the devices that run its software.
The second part is trickier: convincing consumers that they want a Windows phone as opposed to all of the other smartphones on the market, such as the iPhone, BlackBerry, or Palm's Pre, to name just a few.
On Monday at the Mobile World Congress event in Barcelona, Spain, the company is showing off Windows Mobile 6.5, an update to its operating system aimed at making the software more "finger friendly" and just more appealing to consumers in general. The update, which won't show up on phones until the fourth quarter of this year, also features an update to the mobile Internet Explorer browser and a new "marketplace" for buying software that can run on the phone.
Microsoft will also formally announce its My Phone backup and restore service, some details of which leaked out earlier this month. The service is designed to not only make sure things like calendar and contact data are synced to the Web, but also other phone data such as photos and text messages.
These are the kinds of improvements that Windows Mobile boss Andy Lees said he was alluding to in an interview with CNET last month, where he laid out Microsoft's vision for the phone.
"We talked about importance of the device being easier to use and being a window in on your life," Lees said in an interview on Friday, shortly before he headed to Barcelona.
In the earlier interview, Lees acknowledged that Microsoft had fallen somewhat behind by trying to offer software that could run on "the least common denominator" of hardware, but said that the next 12 to 18 months would bring a series of announcements that would help Microsoft thrive in a world in which phones will soon have dual-core processors and graphics abilities to rival the original Xbox.
With the new software update, Microsoft is adding a rival to the iPhone's App Store as well as making its software easier to use without having to reach for a stylus or flip down a keyboard.
But it remains a question whether Microsoft's changes will be enough, particularly as rivals improve their products over the coming year.
On the browsing front, for example, Microsoft is focusing on the fact that, while other browsers may look nice, Mobile IE can do more than the others because it is compatible with the desktop Internet Explorer 6 and with Adobe's Flash. Microsoft commissioned a study that found its browser can execute "up to 48 percent more assigned tasks than the other browsers and phones studied."
However, it is unclear that such metrics--as opposed to just plain ease of use--are what consumers use to select a phone.
Lees notes that supporting multitouch, a la the iPhone, has its downsides as well. Such phones require capacitive screens which are less precise, making things like handwriting recognition less feasible. Microsoft sells many Windows phones, for example, in Asian countries where handwriting recognition can prove far quicker than a keyboard for entering text.
Windows Mobile 6.5
(Credit: Microsoft)On Monday, Microsoft officially unveiled the latest version of its mobile operating system at GSMA Mobile World Congress 2009. Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer previewed Windows Mobile 6.5 during his keynote address, and as expected, the updated OS brings a handful of enhancements, including an application store, a backup and restore service, and an improved mobile Web browser. Here's a full rundown of the new features:
My Phone service
My Phone is a free service that allows you to back up your phone's information to a password-protected Web service. It offers automatic synching and backup so you can store your contacts, appointments, text messages, and other information to the service and then easily restore the information to your device if you happen to lose it or upgrade to a new smartphone.
In addition, My Phone lets you automatically upload photos and videos straight from your phone to the service. Currently, My Phone is only available as an invitation-only beta.
Windows Marketplace for Mobile
Windows Marketplace for Mobile will operate as the central hub for searching, browsing, and purchasing mobile applications for your smartphone. It comes preloaded on all Windows Mobile 6.5 devices where you'll be able to download applications over the air or from your PC simply by entering your Windows Live ID. Developers who have already created programs for Windows Mobile will be able to offer their products through the marketplace after a security and compatibility check from Microsoft.
Internet Explorer Mobile
With Windows Mobile 6.5, you'll get more features from Internet Explorer Mobile. Built on the Internet Explorer 6 engine, the mobile browser will support Flash and JavaScript and includes new tools for better page navigation, such as zoom in/out sliding scale and a breadcrumb feature that shows you where you are on a Web page. In addition, Microsoft added that the browser allows for more transactions (e.g., checking flights, buying movie tickets) than any other mobile browser.
Garmin-Asus Nuvifone M20
(Credit: Garmin)Garmin-Asus is wasting no time on creating some pre-Mobile World Congress buzz. Last week, the companies announced their strategic alliance to collaborate on an entire line of Nuvifone GPS-enabled smartphones and revealed that it would debut a new Nuvifone model at GSMA 2009. We thought we'd hear about it on the opening day of the show, but on Thursday, Garmin-Asus took the wraps off the Nuvifone M20 and revealed full specs for the Nuvifone G60 (aka the original Garmin Nuvifone.
The Nuvifone M20 will run Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional Edition with full e-mail support, document viewing, and Opera's HTML Web browser. The triband GSM (850/1800/1900)/dual-band 3.5G (HSDPA 850/1900) handset will also have integrated Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
Of course, navigation is a top priority and the Nuvifone M20 will come preloaded with maps and points of interest and will offer turn-by-turn voice-guided directions and automatic recalculation. To enter a destination, you can manually enter an address, search for a POI, or use an address from your phone's contact list.
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MSN
(Credit: Microsoft)At GSMA 2008 Mobile World Congress, Microsoft announced that its MSN Direct services is now available on Windows Mobile devices. A technology preview allows you to get instant, at-a-glance updates on weather, top news stories, stock updates, sports scores, and more. The service will also automatically refresh the content so you have the latest information. You can download the free technology preview in one of two ways: by pointing your mobile Web browser to http://phone.msndirect.com or by downloading the MSN Direct client to your PC, then synchronizing it with your mobile device. Just be aware that using MSN Direct will require a data plan with your carrier, and you should also check for additional charges and coverage areas.
HTC Advantage (X7510)
(Credit: HTC)HTC just made its smartphone/mobile computer/Frankenstein device, the HTC Advantage, even more powerful with an update that brings more memory, new software, and an improved keyboard.
Introduced at GSMA, the HTC Advantage (X7510) now includes the TouchFlo software (a la HTC Touch) for easier scrolling of e-mails and Web pages. Plus, it will boast a new Today screen, based on a new version of the Windows Mobile operating system, with one-touch access to messages, calendar, and contacts.
While the interface enhancements sound great, we're more excited at the mention of the new operating system. The Advantage X7510 is scheduled to debut in select European markets sometime in March, so it seems we can look for Windows Mobile 7 around that time frame. w00t! Other improvements over the first HTC Athena include increased storage capacity to 16GB, a new keyboard that has haptic feedback, Opera Mobile 9, and Google Maps for Mobile preinstalled on the device.
