Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Windows Mobile

Windows Mobile is a mobile operating system developed by Microsoft that was used in smartphones and mobile devices, but is being currently phased out to specialized markets. It is superseded by Windows Phone 7 (Dell XPS M1210 Battery) http://www.hdd-shop.co.uk.

The current and last version is "Windows Mobile 6.5". It is based on the Windows CE 5.2 kernel, and features a suite of basic applications developed with the Microsoft Windows API. It is designed to be somewhat similar to desktop versions of Windows, feature-wise and aesthetically Dell Studio XPS 1640 Battery .

Additionally, third-party software development is available for Windows Mobile, and software applications can be purchased via the Windows Marketplace for Mobile.

Originally appearing as the Pocket PC 2000 operating system, most Windows Mobile devices come with a stylus pen, which is used to enter commands by tapping it on the screen Dell Vostro 1710 Battery .

Microsoft announced a completely new phone platform, Windows Phone 7, at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona on February 15, 2010. Phones running Windows Mobile 6.x will not be upgradeable to version 7.

Windows Mobile's share of the smartphone market has fallen year-on-year, decreasing 20% in Q3 2009 Dell KM958 battery .

It is the 5th most popular smartphone operating system, with a 5% share of the worldwide smartphone market (after Symbian, BlackBerry OS, Android and iPhone).In the United States, it is the 3rd most popular smartphone operating system for business use (after BlackBerry OS and iPhone), with a 24% share among enterprise users Dell Studio 1555 battery.

Microsoft is phasing out Windows Mobile to specialized markets, such as rugged devices, and focusing on its new mobile platform, Windows Phone 7.

Windows Mobile for Pocket PC carries these standard features in most of its versions Sony VGP-BPS13 battery :

  • Today Screen shows the current date, owner information, upcoming appointments, e-mail messages, and tasks. (Is now Home screen in later WM6.5 builds)
  • The taskbar shows the current time and the volume Sony VGP-BPS13/B battery .
  • Office Mobile a suite of Mobile versions of Microsoft Office applications
  • Outlook Mobile comes with Windows Mobile.
  • Internet Explorer Mobile is an Internet browser developed by Microsoft for Pocket PC and Handheld PC that comes loaded by default with Windows Mobile and Windows CE for Handheld PC Sony VGP-BPS13/S battery .
  • Windows Media Player for Windows Mobile.
  • Client for PPTP VPNs.
  • Internet Connection Sharing (ICS) which in mobile phones allows attached computers to share internet connections via USB and Bluetooth Sony VGP-BPS13A/B battery .
  • Coherent file system similar to that of Windows 9x/Windows NT and support for many of the same file types.
  • Ability to multitask.

There are three versions of Windows Mobile for various hardware devices Sony VGP-BPS13B/B battery :

  • Windows Mobile Professional runs on (smartphones) with touchscreens
  • Windows Mobile Standard runs on phones with regular screens
  • Windows Mobile Classic which runs on 'Windows Mobile Classic devices' (Pocket PCs) Sony VGP-BPL9 battery .

Windows Mobile Classic devices (Pocket PC)

A 'Windows Mobile Classic device' is a Windows Mobile personal digital assistant (PDA) that does not have telephone functionality. It was formerly known as the Pocket PC. It was the original intended platform for the Windows Mobile operating system Sony VGP-BPS13B/B battery .

These devices consisted of both standalone Pocket PC devices without mobile phone capabilities, and those that included mobile phone capabilities. The most current name of Windows Mobile intended for use on Pocket PCs is officially "Windows Mobile 6 Professional" Sony VGP-BPL15 battery

for devices with mobile phone capabilities and "Windows Mobile 6 Classic" for devices without mobile phone capabilities.

Windows Mobile Smartphones

The 'Windows Mobile' (Microsoft's term for its range of smartphones) became the next hardware platform after the Pocket PC to run Windows Mobile, and debuted with the release of Pocket PC 2002 Dell Inspiron E1505 battery .

Although in the broad sense of the term "Smartphone", both Pocket PC phones and Microsoft branded Smartphones each fit into this category, it should be noted that Microsoft's use of the term "Smartphone" includes only more specific hardware devices that differ from Pocket PC phones Dell Latitude E6400 battery .

Such Smartphones were originally designed without touchscreens, intended to be operated more efficiently with only one hand, and typically had lower display resolution than Pocket PCs. Microsoft's focus for the Smartphone platform was to create a device that functioned well as a phone and data device in a more integrated manner HP Pavilion dv6000 Battery .

Pocket PC 2000

Pocket PC 2000, originally codenamed "Rapier", was released on April 19, 2000, and was based on Windows CE 3.0. It was the debut of what was later dubbed the Windows Mobile operating system, and meant to be a successor to the operating system aboard Palm-Size PCs SONY VAIO VGN-FZ Battery .

Backwards compatibility was retained with such Palm-Size PC applications. Pocket PC 2000 was intended mainly for Pocket PC devices, however several Palm-Size PC devices had the ability to be updated also. Further, several Pocket PC 2000 phones were released, however Microsoft's "Smartphone" hardware platform was not yet created SONY VAIO VGN-FZ18 Battery .

The only resolution supported by this release was 240 x 320 (QVGA). Removable storage card formats that were supported were CompactFlash andMultiMediaCard. At this time Pocket PC devices had not been standardized with a specific CPU architecture. As a result, Pocket PC 2000 was released on multiple CPU architectures; SH-3, MIPS, and ARM SONY VAIO VGN-FZ21E Battery .

Aesthetically, the original Pocket PC operating system was similar to Windows 98, Windows Me, and Windows 2000 operating systems.

Features/built-in applications for Pocket PC 2000 included the following SONY VAIO VGN-FW21E Battery :

  • Pocket Office
  • Pocket Internet Explorer
  • Windows Media Player
  • Microsoft Reader
  • Microsoft Money
  • Notes, a written and sound note-taking application supported by most versions of Windows Mobile
  • Character recognition support SONY VAIO VGN-NR11M/S Battery
  • Infrared (IR) File beaming capability

Pocket PC 2002

Pocket PC 2002, originally codenamed "Merlin", was released in October 2001. Like Pocket PC 2000, it was powered by Windows CE 3.0 SONY VAIO VGN-NR11Z/S Battery .

Although targeted mainly for 240 × 320 (QVGA) Pocket PC devices, Pocket PC 2002 was also used for Pocket PC phones, and for the first time, Smartphones. These Pocket PC 2002 Smartphones were mainly GSM devices SONY VAIO VGN-NR11Z/T Battery .

With future releases, the Pocket PC and Smartphone lines would increasingly collide as the licensing terms were relaxed allowing OEMs to take advantage of more innovative, individual design ideas. Aesthetically, Pocket PC 2002 was meant to be similar in design to the then newly released Windows XP Sony VAIO VGN-FZ21E Battery .

New features/built-in applications included the following:

  • Enhanced UI with theme support
  • Spell checker and Word count tool in Pocket Word
  • Savable downloads and WAP in Pocket Internet Explorer
  • Virtual Private Networking support Sony VAIO VGN-FW21E Battery
  • Synchronization of folders
  • MSN Messenger
  • Terminal Services
  • Windows Media Player 8 with streaming capability Sony VAIO VGN-NR11S/S Battery
  • Microsoft Reader 2
  • Palm OS support for file beaming
  • Improved Pocket Outlook
  • Digital rights management (DRM) support in Microsoft Reader Sony VAIO VGN-NR11Z/S Battery

Windows Mobile 2003

Windows Mobile 2003 (aka wm2003 and WM2003), originally codenamed "Ozone", was released on June 23, 2003, and was the first release under the Windows Mobile banner Sony VAIO VGN-NR11M/S Battery .

It came in four editions: "Windows Mobile 2003 for Pocket PC Premium Edition", "Windows Mobile 2003 for Pocket PC Professional Edition", "Windows Mobile 2003 for Smartphone" and "Windows Mobile 2003 for Pocket PC Phone Edition". The last was designed especially for Pocket PCs which include phone functionalities. The Professional Edition was used in Pocket PC budget models Sony VAIO VGN-NR11Z/T Battery .

It lacked a number of features that were in the Premium Edition, such as a client forL2TP/IPsec VPNs. Windows Mobile 2003 was powered by Windows CE 4.20.

New features/built-in applications included the following SONY VAIO VGN-FZ180E Battery :

  • Support for add-on keyboards
  • Enhanced communications interface with Bluetooth device management
  • Bluetooth file beaming support
  • Bluetooth headset support SONY VAIO VGN-FZ220E Battery
  • Pictures application with viewing, cropping, e-mail, and beaming support
  • Jawbreaker game
  • Enhanced Pocket Outlook with vCard and vCal support
  • Improved Pocket Internet Explorer SONY VAIO VGN-FZ340E Battery
  • Windows Media Player 9.0 with streaming optimization
  • SMS reply options for Phone Edition
  • MIDI file support as ringtones in Phone Edition SONY VAIO VGN-FZ430E Battery

Windows Mobile 2003 SE

Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition, also known as "Windows Mobile 2003 SE", was released on March 24, 2004 and first offered on the Dell Axim x30. This was the last version which allowed users to backup and restore an entire device through ActiveSync SONY VAIO VGN-FZ460E Battery .

New features/built-in applications included the following:

  • Portrait and Landscape switching for Pocket PCs
  • Single-Column layout in Pocket Internet Explorer SONY VAIO VGN-FZ480E Battery
  • VGA (640×480), 176?220, 240x240, 480x480 Screen resolution
  • Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) support

Windows Mobile 5

Windows Mobile 5.0, originally codenamed "Magneto",was released at Microsoft's Mobile and Embedded Developers Conference 2005 in Las Vegas, May 9–May 12, 2005 SONY VAIO VGN-FZ4000 Battery .

Microsoft offered mainstream support for Windows Mobile 5 through October 12, 2010, and extended support through October 13, 2015. It was first offered on the Dell Axim x51. It used the .NET Compact Framework 1.0 SP3 — an environment for programs based on .NET SONY VAIO VGN-FZ31E Battery .

  • Windows Mobile 5.0 included Microsoft Exchange Server "push" functionality improvements that worked with Exchange 2003 SP2. The "push" functionality also required vendor/device support With AKU2 software upgrades all WM 5.0 devices supported DirectPush SONY VAIO VGN-FZ31B Battery .
  • WM 5.0 featured increased battery life due to Persistent storage capability. Previously up to 50% (enough for 72 hours of storage) of battery power was reserved just to maintain data in volatile RAM. This continued the trend of Windows-based devices moving from using RAM as their primary storage medium to the use of a combination of RAM and flash memory (in use, no distinction between the two is obvious to users) SONY VAIO VGN-FZ31J Battery .
  • Programs and frequently accessed data run in RAM, while most storage is in the flash memory. The OS seamlessly moves data between the two as needed. Everything is backed up in the flash memory, so unlike prior devices, WM5 devices lose no data if power is lost SONY VAIO VGN-FZ31M Battery .
  • With Windows Mobile 5.0, OS updates were released as Adaptation kit upgrades. AKU 3.5 is the most recent release for WM 5.0.

Further new features and built-in applications included:

  • New version of Office called "Office Mobile"
  • Windows Media Player 10 Mobile
  • Photo Caller ID SONY VAIO VGN-FZ38M Battery
  • DirectShow support
  • Picture and Video package, which converged the management of videos and pictures
  • Enhanced Bluetooth support
  • Global Positioning System (GPS) management interface SONY VGP-BPS8 Battery
  • Default QWERTY keyboard-support
  • Error reporting facility similar to that present in desktop and server Windows systems
  • ActiveSync 4.2 with 15% increased synchronization speed SONY VGP-BPS13/S Battery

Windows Mobile 6

Windows Mobile 6, formerly codenamed "Crossbow", was released on February 12, 2007 at the 3GSM World Congress 2007. It comes in three different versions: "Windows Mobile 6 Standard" for Smartphones (phones without touchscreens), "Windows Mobile 6 Professional" for Pocket PCs with phone functionality, and "Windows Mobile 6 Classic" for Pocket PCs without cellular radios SONY VGP-BPS13A/B Battery .

Windows Mobile 6 is powered by Windows CE 5.0 (version 5.2) and is strongly linked to Windows Live and Exchange 2007 products. Windows Mobile 6 Standard was first offered on the Orange's SPV E650, while Windows Mobile 6 Professional was first offered on the O2's Xda Terra SONY VGP-BPS13B/B Battery .

Aesthetically, Windows Mobile 6 was meant to be similar in design to the then newly released Windows Vista. Functionally, it works much like Windows Mobile 5, but with much better stability.

New features/built-in applications include the following SONY VGP-BPS13A/S Battery :

  • 320x320 and 800x480 (WVGA) screen resolution support (The S01SH or "Em One" by Sharp was the first and only device to have a 800x480 screen on WM5)
  • Office Mobile support for Smartphones
  • Operating System Live Update SONY VGP-BPS13AS Battery
  • Improved Remote Desktop access (Available for only certain Pocket PCs)
  • VoIP (Internet calling) support with AEC (Acoustic Echo Cancelling) and MSRT Audio Codec
  • Windows Live for Windows Mobile
  • Customer Feedback option Dell Inspiron 1320n Battery
  • Enhanced Microsoft Bluetooth Stack
  • Storage Card Encryption (encryption keys are lost if device is cold-booted).
  • Smartfilter for searching within programs
  • Improved Internet Sharing
  • HTML email support in Outlook Mobile Dell Inspiron 1464 Battery
  • Search ability for contacts in an Exchange Server Address Book
  • AJAX, JavaScript, and XMLDOM support on Internet Explorer Mobile
  • Out of Office Replies with Microsoft Exchange 2007
  • Unlicensed Mobile Access (UMA) support for select operators
  • Server Search on Microsoft Exchange 2007 Dell Inspiron 1564 Battery
  • .NET Compact Framework v2 SP2 Preinstalled in ROM
  • Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Compact Edition Preinstalled in ROM
  • OneNote Mobile as a companion to Microsoft Office OneNote
  • Office Mobile 6.1 announced with support for Office 2007 document formats (pptx, docx, xlsx) Dell Inspiron 1764 Battery .

Windows Mobile 6.1

Windows Mobile 6.1 was announced April 1, 2008. It is a minor upgrade to the existing Windows Mobile 6 platform which brings with it various performance enhancements, a redesigned Home screen featuring horizontal tiles that expand on clicking to display more information, although this new home screen is featured only on Windows Mobile Standard edition Dell Studio 1450 Battery .

This feature was inexplicably left out of the Professional edition. Several other changes such as threaded SMS, full page zooming in Internet Explorer and 'Domain Enroll' have also been added, along with a "mobile" version of the Microsoft OneNote program and an interactive "Getting Started" wizard Dell Studio 1457 Battery .

Domain Enroll is functionality to connect the device to System Center Mobile Device Manager 2008, a product to manage mobile devices. There are other differences also. The most obvious for users is that the Standard version (like prior versions) still creates automatic links for telephone numbers in Tasks and Appointments Dell Latitude D610 Battery ,

which allows for the easier click and dial of stored telephone numbers within these Outlook items. For some reason, the Professional version has eliminated this important feature. Windows Mobile 6.1 also featured improved bandwidth efficiency in its push-email protocol "Activesync" of "up to 40%", this reduced data usage was the cause of considerably improved battery life in many devices Toshiba NB100 Battery .

Aside from the visual and feature distinctions, the underlying CE versions can be used to differentiate WM6.0 from WM 6.1. The version of Windows CE in WM 6.0 is 5.2.*, with the final number being a 4 digit build ID (e.g. 5.2.1622 on HTC Wing). In WM 6.1, the CE version is 5.2.* with a 5 digit build number (e.g. 5.2.19216 on Palm Treo 800w) Toshiba Satellite M65 battery .

Windows Mobile 6.5

Windows Mobile 6.5 was never part of Microsoft's mobile phone roadmap, and has been described by its chief executive, Steve Ballmer, as "not the full release [Microsoft] wanted" until the multi-touch enabled Windows Mobile 7 (now replaced by Windows Phone 7) arrived in 2010 Toshiba Satellite M60 battery .

Version 6.5 is an upgrade to Windows Mobile 6.1 that was released to manufacturers on May 11, 2009, and the first devices running the operating system debuted in late October '09. This incremental update includes some significant new added features, such as a revamped GUI, new today screen with vertically scrollable labels (called 'Titanium') Dell Latitude D830 Battery ;

though is generally regarded as a minor upgrade. It also includes the new Internet Explorer Mobile 6 browser, which has an improved interface over prior versions.

Microsoft unveiled this version at the 2009 Mobile World Congress in February, and several devices now run this Windows Mobile version,those devices running Windows Mobile 6.5 onwards are marketed as "Windows phones" Dell Latitude D620 Battery .

Along with Windows Mobile 6.5, Microsoft announced several Cloud computing services codenamed "SkyBox","SkyLine","SkyMarket". "SkyBox" has been confirmed as My Phone, while "SkyMarket" has been confirmed as Windows Marketplace for Mobile Dell Inspiron Mini 10 Battery .

Some aspects of the user interface have been redesigned with the home screen resembling that of Microsoft's Zune player and the sliding panel interface of Windows Mobile 6.1 Standard. This version was designed mainly for easier finger usage. Whilst this version of Windows Mobile does not natively support capacitive screens Sony VGN-FW11S Battery ,

mobile manufacturers have been able to successfully implement it on their devices

Several phones currently running Windows Mobile 6.1 are updatable to Windows Mobile 6.5 Sony VGN-FW11M Battery .

Windows Mobile 6.5.1

Builds of Windows Mobile 6.5.1 have been unofficially ported to several Windows Mobile phones. Windows Mobile 6.5.1 brings a more finger-friendly user interface, including icon based soft buttons (rather than text based), an updated contacts app, Microsoft (rather than the mobile carrier) support for A-GPS, improved threaded text messaging, and performance improvements Sony VGN-FW139E/H battery .

Windows Mobile 6.5.

On February 2, 2010, the Sony Ericsson Aspen with Windows Mobile 6.5.3 was officially announced, making it the first Windows Phone 6.5.3 smartphone.Since November 2009, several 6.5.3 builds had leaked (28nnn) and had been unofficially ported to some Windows Phones Dell Latitude E5400 Battery .

Windows Mobile 6.5.3 brings a more finger-friendly user interface with several new ease of use features such as support for multitouch, complete touch control i.e. no need for a stylus, and drag and drop start menu icons. Touchable tiles now replace soft keys Dell Latitude E4200 Battery ."

Internet Explorer Mobile 6 has also received some major updates including decreased page load time, improved memory management and gesture smoothing.

Additional features of newer Windows Mobile 6.5.3 builds include threaded email and Office Mobile 2010 Dell Inspiron 300M Battery .

Windows Mobile 6.5.5

Several builds of Windows Mobile 6.5.x have leaked since January 2010 and have been unofficially ported to some Windows Mobile phones. The name Windows Mobile 6.5.5 has been applied to these newer builds. However, this naming scheme remains unconfirmed by Microsoft Dell Vostro A840 Battery .

Windows Phone 7

Windows Phone 7 was launched in Europe, Singapore and Australia on October 21, 2010, and in the US & Canada on November 8, 2010, with the rest of the world to follow in 2011 Dell Studio 1737 battery .

Microsoft had originally planned to continue the Windows Mobile line to Windows Mobile 7, based on an upgrade to the Windows Mobile platform, codenamed Photon. The original Photon and Windows Mobile 7 have since been scrapped; however, Microsoft decided to create a new mobile OS platform and officially announced Windows Phone 7 Series in its place Dell Inspiron E1505 battery .

Microsoft has since renamed the operating system from Windows Phone 7 Series to Windows Phone 7.

Windows Phone 7 was initially intended to be released during 2009, but several delays, likely due to the move away from Photon and to building an entirely different and new platform, prompted Microsoft to develop Windows Mobile 6.5 as an interim release Dell RM791 battery .

During the Mobile World Congress 2010 in Barcelona, Microsoft revealed details of Windows Phone 7, which features a new operating system and integration with Xbox Live and Zune services.

Most phones currently running Windows Mobile 6.x are not upgradeable to Windows Phone 7, although hacked firmwares with Phone 7 are becoming increasingly popular Dell XPS M1530 battery .

Microsoft Kin

Microsoft Kin was a family of mobile telephones which started with Microsoft's purchase of Danger Hiptop in 2008. Microsoft Kin was developed inside Microsoft's Premium Mobile Experiences (PMX) division. Microsoft brought in employees from Danger Inc., with the intention of infusing industry talent and mobile experience into the project Dell XPS M2010 battery .

The goal was said to be to create a mobile platform far superior to that of the Danger Sidekick. Reports say that Microsoft Kin was originally going to be based on Windows Phone 7. However, due to delays with the latter, it was built directly upon Windows CE. It featured the Zune marketplace, and used XNA as a game platform Acer Aspire One battery .

The platform was aimed at producing phones designed for users who are heavily into social networking and instant messaging. The technology acquired from Danger Hiptop has been described as a family of mobile devices running a bespoke operating system as part of a client–server system that is then licenced to mobile carriers Toshiba Satellite P10 Battery .

Microsoft introduced two new handsets based on Microsoft Kin, codenamed Turtle and Pure, possibly to debut at the Consumer Electronics Show. The Microsoft designed phones were manufactured by Sharp and co-branded.

The devices received very critical reviews and Microsoft announced the discontinuation of the KIN line on June 30, 2010, only six weeks after it was launched SONY VGN-FZ210CE Battery .

Naming conventions

Other: Windows Mobile for Automotive 1.0, Windows Mobile software for Portable Media Centers

History

A Ford Territory with Windows Mobile advertising seen in Auckland, New Zealand in 2008 Dell Precision M70 Battery .

Windows Mobile's share of the smartphone market has been in decline year-on-year. Gartner research data showed that while the total smartphone industry grew 27% between 2008 and 2009, Windows Mobile's share of the smartphone market fell 2.7% in that same period Toshiba Satellite L305 Battery .

In 2004, Windows Mobile accounted for 23% of worldwide smartphone sales.Windows Mobile was projected to overtake Symbian to become the leading mobile OS by 2010. But by 2008, its share had dropped to 14%. Microsoft licensed Windows Mobile to four out of the world's five largest mobile phone manufacturers, with Nokia being the exception Toshiba Satellite T4900 Battery .

Although Microsoft apparently has 50 handset partners, 80% of the 50 million Windows Mobile devices made have been built by one contract manufacturing group, HTC, which makes handsets for several major companies under their brands, and under its own brandToshiba PA3399U-2BRS battery .

In February 2009 Microsoft signed a deal with the third largest mobile phone maker, LG Electronics, to license Windows Mobile OS on 50 upcoming LG smartphone models. But in September, 2009, Palm, Inc. announced it would drop Windows Mobile from its smartphone line-up Toshiba Satellite A200 Battery .

An October 2009 report in DigiTimes said that Acer will shift its focus from Windows Mobile to Google Android.

At one time Windows Mobile was the most popular handset for business use, but by 2009 this was no longer the case Toshiba Satellite 1200 Battery .

An InformationWeek survey found that 24% of planned business deployments of mobile application were for Windows Mobile, putting it in 3rd place, behind Blackberry (61%) and iPhone (27%).

In October 2009 Gartner predicted that by 2012 Windows Mobile would remain the fourth most popular smartphone platform during the rise of Android only due to BlackBerry falling from second to fifth Toshiba Satellite M300 Battery .

The New York Times said that cellular telephone manufacturers were moving away from Windows Mobile, and instead shifting towards Android and Microsoft's new mobile platform, Windows Phone 7. Taiwan's Intelligence & Consulting Institute (MIC) predicted that Android's popularity might force Microsoft to reduce the Windows Mobile licensing fees it charges handset makers, in order to reduce further market share losses SONY VGP-BPS13A/Q Battery .

Windows Mobile's loss of market share accelerated in the third quarter of 2009; it suffered a 20% drop compared to the prior quarter, at a time when total smartphone sales rose by 13%. Gartner estimated that by this time Windows Mobile's share of worldwide smartphone sales was 7.9% SONY VGP-BPS13A/Q Battery .

Samsung announced in November 2009 that it would phase out the Windows Mobile platform, to concentrate on its own Bada operating system, Google's Android, and Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 SONY VGP-BPS13B/Q Battery .

Possible trends

In late 2009, many industry analysts and media reports began to express concerns about the future viability of the Windows Mobile platform, and whether Microsoft will keep supporting it into the future SONY VGP-BPS13B/Q Battery .

ZDnet said that "for all practical purposes, Windows Mobile is a dead platform", while CNET said "Windows Mobile has now been relegated resolutely to has-been status. "

ABI Research said: "Heading into 2010, the momentum (for Windows Mobile) has dissipated SONY VGP-BPS13/Q Battery ."

Gartner analysts questioned whether Windows Mobile had a future beyond version 7, due to its poor performance and falling market share. However, Gartner said that while Windows Mobile may be discontinued for consumer-focused smartphones, it still had a future in specialized industrial applications, such as for ruggedized devices used in warehousing and delivery trucks SONY VGP-BPS13/Q Battery .

Gartner said thatWindows Mobile 7 could be "the last throw of the dice."

Analysts J.Gold Associates said in BusinessWeek that Microsoft will likely exit the mobile operating system market sometime between 2010 and 2011, saying "There are better ways for Microsoft to make money from smartphones than to keep investing in a mobile operating system that's losing share and relevance SONY VGP-BPS21A/B Battery ."

The New York Times reported that Windows Mobile "is foundering", as cellphone makers desert it in favor of Google's Android phone platform. It cited the difficulties in Microsoft's business model, which involves charging handset manufacturers up to $25 for each copy of Windows Mobile, while rival Google gives away Android for free SONY VGP-BPS21/S Battery .

The Washington Post said Windows Mobile is "bleeding market share in the space, and the future looks grim." It said that Google is using Android to "kill" Windows Mobile.

In February 2010 Microsoft announced a new mobile operating system platform: Windows Phone 7 SONY VGP-BPS21B Battery .

It has been built from scratch and bears no resemblance to its predecessors. It was released on October 21, 2010 in Europe and on November 8, 2010 in the United States.

Software development

Third-party software development is available for the Windows Mobile operating system SONY VGP-BPS21A Battery .

Developers have several options for deploying mobile applications. These include writing native code with Visual C++, writing Managed code that works with the .NET Compact Framework, or server-side code that can be deployed using Internet Explorer Mobile or a mobile client on a user's device SONY VGP-BPS21 Battery .

The .NET Compact Framework is actually a subset of the .NET Framework and hence shares many components with software development on desktop clients, application servers, and web servers which have the .NET Framework installed, thus integrating networked computing space (a.k.a. "The Cloud") Sony VGP-BPS21A/B Battery .

Microsoft typically releases Windows Phone software development kits (SDKs) that work in conjunction with their Visual Studio development environment. These SDKs include emulator images for developers to test and debug their applications while writing them Sony VGP-BPS21/S Battery .

Microsoft also distributes Visual Studio 2008 / 2005 Professional Editions, and server / database counterparts to students as downloads free of charge via its DreamSpark program.

Developer communities have used the SDK to port later versions of Windows Mobile OS to older devices and making the OS images available for free, thus providing the devices with the current feature set Sony VGP-BPS21A Battery .

Microsoft has tolerated this procedure for some time but decided in February 2007 to ask developers to take their OS images off the net, which in turn raised discussions. At the same time Microsoft offered upgrades to Windows Mobile 6 versions to manufacturers for free Sony VGP-BPS21 Battery .

Lazarus, Lexico, NS Basic and Basic4ppc provide alternative development environments. They allow development on a separate computer, which is then downloaded to the target device. NS Basic and Basic4ppc allow development on the target device Sony Vaio PCG-5G2L Battery .

Some 3rd party development tools such as Basic4ppc use the .NET Compact Framework. This has been possible only for the last couple years. Prior to the release of Windows Mobile 2003, third-party software was developed using Microsoft's eMbedded Visual Tools, eMbedded Visual Basic (eVB) and eMbedded Visual C (eVC) Sony Vaio PCG-5G3L Battery .

eVB programs can usually be converted fairly easily to NS Basic/CE. or to Basic4ppc.

There is also a GCC port called CeGCC. For scripting languages, there is a Python port named PythonCE, and a Tcl-Tk port called eTcl. It can be used to develop applications on Windows Mobile phone Sony Vaio PCG-5J1L Battery .

Satellite Forms is a rapid application development (RAD) tool that can produce Windows Phone compatible applications that use an RDK runtime engine. Extension libraries extend the functionality for various hardware.

On 5 July 2009, Microsoft opened a third-party application distribution service called Windows Marketplace for Mobile Sony Vaio PCG-5K2L Battery .

Criticism

  • Versions of Windows Mobile prior to 6.5.3 did not recognize multi-touch screens. Device maker HTC Corporation created some work-arounds to allow multi-touch to work on some applications it installed on its HD2 handset Sony Vaio PCG-5J2L Battery .
  • However, Microsoft applications on this handset, such as the Internet Explorer web browser, do not support multi-touch.
  • Windows Mobile does not allow users to view file properties from File Explorer and so a third-party file explorer is needed to remove the "read-only" or "Hidden File" attributes applied to files. Hidden files can be viewed Sony Vaio PCG-5K1L Battery .
  • Windows Mobile does not allow users to view file extensions of unknown file types, although third-party software is available to do this.
  • Windows Mobile devices can easily be used and reset by unauthorised users, such as thieves Sony Vaio PCG-6S2L Battery ,
  • as the "Clear Storage" command can be invoked without the need for a password so long as the keypad is not locked and the phone is not turned off, because the CLEAR STORAGE is applied by using embedded, unmodifiable key sequence of "1234" which is also visibly shown in the phone Sony Vaio PCG-6S3L Battery .
  • The interface of Windows Mobile 6.5 shows jarring inconsistencies, with some applications requiring users to hold a stylus to operate them.
  • Many Windows Mobile business applications were designed for a stylus-pen input, and are difficult or impossible to use on a capacitative multi-touch screen Sony Vaio PCG-6V1L Battery .
  • Unlike Windows for desktop computers, the Windows Mobile operating system cannot be upgraded by users. Upgrades can only be supplied by telephone service providers or hardware providers Sony Vaio PCG-6W1L Battery .
  • As this requires considerable resource to produce a custom upgrade for each device, generates no income (upgrades have not been chargeable), and extends the life of older equipment instead of encouraging purchase of new, Windows Mobile upgrades are rarely released Sony Vaio PCG-6W2L Battery .
  • However, expert users have developed unofficial, sometimes modified, firmware; this unofficial firmware, or newer Windows Mobile or Phone firmware intended for other devices with the risk of possible incompatibility, can be installed if available with flashing software Sony Vaio PCG-6W3L Battery .
  • Several analysts from both Gartner and J.Gold Associates have expressed concern about the long-term future of Windows Mobile. Motorola and Fedex said that Microsoft had given a commitment to continue supporting Windows Mobile, at least for use in rugged industrial devices Sony Vaio PCG-7111L Battery .
  • On 25 September 2009, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer indicated that the company "screwed up with Windows Mobile". He lamented that Windows Mobile version 7 was not yet available. He said he had recently changed the Windows Mobile team to try to recoup losses Sony Vaio PCG-7112L Battery .
  • Windows Mobile 6.5.x was based on the Windows CE 5.2 kernel, the same kernel that was running in Windows Mobile 5.0 in 2004. Windows Mobile 6.5.x has not been optimized for more modern processors, such as the Snapdragon processors. Its successor, Windows Phone 7, runs an updated kernel based on Windows CE 6 R3 and Windows CE 7 Sony Vaio PCG-7113L Battery .
  • A 2009 survey by CFI Group showed that Windows Mobile users had a low level of customer satisfaction when compared to users of other smartphones. Out of a possible 100 points, Windows Mobile rated only 66, compared with BlackBerry (73), Palm Pre (77), Google Android (77), and iPhone (83) Sony Vaio PCG-7133L Battery .

Windows Phone 7 is a mobile operating system developed by Microsoft, and is the successor to its Windows Mobile platform. It is aimed at the consumer market instead of the enterprise market like its predecessor Sony Vaio PCG-7Z2L Battery .

It launched in Europe, Singapore and Australia on October 21, 2010, and in the US and Canada on November 8, 2010, Mexico on November 24, 2010, with Asia to follow in 2011. With Windows Phone 7, Microsoft offers a new user interface with its design language named Metro Sony Vaio PCG-8Y1L Battery ,

integrates the operating system with 3rd party and other Microsoft services, and plans to strictly control which hardware it runs on.

Microsoft unveiled Windows Phone 7 on February 15, 2010, at Mobile World Congress 2010 in Barcelona and revealed additional details at MIX 2010on March 15, 2010. The final SDK was made available on September 16, 2010 Sony Vaio PCG-8Y2L Battery .

Operating system development

Work on a major Windows Mobile update may have begun as early as 2004 under the codename "Photon", but work moved slowly and the project was ultimately cancelled Sony Vaio PCG-8Z1L Battery .

In 2008, Microsoft reorganized the Windows Mobile group and started work on a new mobile operating system. The product was to be released in 2009 as Windows Phone, but several delays prompted Microsoft to develop Windows Mobile 6.5 as an interim release Sony Vaio PCG-8Z2L Battery .

Windows Phone 7 was developed quickly. One result was that Windows Mobile applications do not run on it. Larry Lieberman, senior product manager for Microsoft’s Mobile Developer Experience, told eWeek: "If we’d had more time and resources, we may have been able to do something in terms of backward compatibility Sony VAIO PCG-5G2L Battery ."

Lieberman said that Microsoft was attempting to look at the mobile phone market in a new way, with the end user in mind as well as the enterprise network. Terry Myerson, corporate VP of Windows Phone engineering, said, "With the move to capacitive touch screens, away from the stylus Sony VAIO PCG-5G3L Battery ,

and the moves to some of the hardware choices we made for the Windows Phone 7 experience, we had to break application compatibility with Windows Mobile 6.5."

Naming

Windows Phone 7 is a rebranding of Microsoft’s old mobile OS called Windows Mobile. Before the official announcement of Windows Phone 7, Microsoft began to refer to devices running Windows Mobile as “Windows Phones” Sony VAIO PCG-5J1L Battery .

Microsoft at first announced its new platform as "Windows Phone 7 Series" which initially came under criticism as being too wordy and difficult to say casually. Responding to this, on April 2, 2010 Microsoft announced that the "Series" would be dropped from the name, leaving the platform named Windows Phone 7 Sony VAIO PCG-5K2L Battery .

Microsoft's official statement on the matter was:

"Customers want a simpler way to say and use the name consistently. The important thing is keeping the focus on the Windows Phone brand, which we introduced in October and will continue investing in through Windows Phone 7 and beyond Sony VAIO PCG-5J2L Battery ."

Launch

In February 2010, a Microsoft press release listed the companies that would help make and operate Windows Phone 7. Many hardware makers were listed in the release Sony VAIO PCG-5K1L Battery .

HP later decided not to build devices for Windows Phone 7, citing that it wanted to focus on devices for its newly purchased WebOS.

Windows Phone 7 supports five languages: English, French, Italian, German and Spanish. Windows Phone Marketplace allows buying and selling applications in 17 countries and regions Sony VAIO PCG-5L1L Battery :

Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Italy, Mexico, New Zealand, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, Puerto Rico, United Kingdom, and United States.

Windows Phone 7 was released in Europe on October 21, in North America on November 8, and in Mexico on November 24, 2010. A release in Asian countries will follow in 2011 Sony VAIO PCG-6S2L Battery .

On October 11, 2010, Microsoft's CEO Steve Ballmer announced 10 devices operating Windows Phone 7, made by HTC, Dell, Samsung, and LG, with sales beginning on October 21, 2010 in Europe and Australia and November 8, 2010 in the United States. The devices were available on 60 carriers in 30 countries, with additional devices to be launched in 2011 Sony VAIO PCG-6S3L Battery .

Microsoft reported on December 21, 2010 that in the first 6 weeks phone manufacturers sold 1.5 million Windows Phone 7 devices to mobile operators and retailers. On January 26, 2011 Microsoft stated that in the 4th quarter of 2010 it had sold more than 2 million Windows Phone 7 licenses for phones, which manufacturers had delivered to mobile operators and retailers Sony VAIO PCG-6V1L Battery.

In January 2011, LG reported about its own handsets: "From an industry perspective we had a high expectation, but from a consumer point of view the visibility is less than we expected". At CEBIT Preview, Deutsche Telekom told Yahoo that its Windows Phone 7 handsets are selling better than expected Sony VAIO PCG-6W1L Battery .

According to NPD Group, a group specialized in films, movies, and video games , Windows Phone 7 achieved a market-share of 2% among smartphones sold to consumers in the United States, 2 months after release, in the 4th quarter of 2010. On February 2, 2011, T-Mobile USA said of Windows Phone 7 Sony VAIO PCG-6W2L Battery :

"The customers are very satisfied with the experience. We’ve done well with the devices that we sold.”

Partnership with Nokia

On 11 February 2011, at a press event in London, Microsoft CED Steve Ballmer and Nokia CEO Stephen Elop announced a partnership between their companies in which Windows Phone 7 would become the primary smartphone operating system for Nokia Sony VAIO PCG-6W3L Battery .

The event was largely focused on creating “a new global mobile ecosystem”, suggesting competition with Android and iOS by saying "It is now a three horse race". Integration of Microsoft services with Nokia’s own services were announced specifically that Bing would power search across Nokia devices Sony VAIO PCG-7111L Battery ,

and an integration of Nokia Maps with Bing Maps as well as Nokia’s application store being integrated with the Windows Phone Marketplace .

]User interface

Windows Phone features a new user interface, based upon Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 design system, codenamed Metro Sony VAIO PCG-7112L Battery .

The home screen, called the "Start screen", is made up of "Tiles". Tiles are links to applications, features, functions and individual items (such as contacts, web pages, applications or media items). Users can add, rearrange, or remove Tiles Sony VAIO PCG-7113L Battery .

Tiles are dynamic and update in real time - for example, the tile for an email account would display the number of unread messages or a Tile could display a live update of the weather.

Several features of Windows Phone 7 are organized into "hubs", which combine local and online content via Windows Phone 7's integration with popular social networks such as Facebook andWindows Live Sony VAIO PCG-7Z1L Battery .

For example, the Pictures hub shows photos captured with the device's camera and the user's Facebook photo albums, and the People hub shows contacts aggregated from multiple sources including Windows Live, Facebook, and Gmail. From the Hub, users can directly comment and 'like' on social network updates Sony VAIO PCG-7Z2L Battery .

The other built-in hubs are Music and Video (which integrates with Zune), Games (which integrates with Xbox Live), Windows Phone Marketplace, and Microsoft Office.

Windows Phone 7 uses multi-touch technology Sony VAIO PCG-8Y1L Battery .

The default Windows Phone 7 user interface has a dark theme that prolongs battery life on OLED screens as fully black pixels don't emit light. The user may choose a light theme instead, and can also choose from several accent colors. User interface elements such as tiles are shown in the user's chosen accent color WD passport essential (500GB/640GB) .

Third-party applications can be automatically themed with these colors.

Text input

Users input text by using an on-screen virtual keyboard, which has a dedicated key for inserting emoticons. Spell checking and word prediction , and users may change a word after it has been typed by tapping the word,which will invoke a list of similar words WD passport essential (250GB/320GB) .

Phones may also be made with a hardware keyboard for text input. Pressing and holding certain keys will reveal similar characters. The keys are somewhat larger and spaced farther apart when in landscape mode.

Web browser

Windows Phone 7 features a version of Internet Explorer Mobile with a rendering engine that is "halfway between IE7 and IE8 WD passport essential SE (750GB/1TB ".

Internet Explorer on Windows Phone 7 allows the user to maintain a list of favorite web pages and show a tile linking to a web page on the Start screen. The browser supports up to 6 tabs, which can all load in parallel WD passport elite(250GB/320GB) .

Other features include multi-touch gestures, a streamlined UI, smooth zoom in/out animations, the ability to save pictures that are on web pages, share web pages via email, and support for inline search which allows the user to search for a word or phrase in a web page by typing it WD passport elite(500GB/640GB) .

Furthermore, Adobe has announced that Flash Player 10.1 will be released for Windows Phone 7. Microsoft has announced plans to regularly update the Windows Phone 7 web browser and its layout engine independently from the Windows Phone Update system WD passport studio for Mac(320GB/500GB) .

In a demo, Microsoft said that users will be able to stream YouTube videos from the browser. Clicking on a video from the mobile YouTube website will launch the video in a standalone app and will also add the YouTube video to the Music + Video Hub WD passport studio for Mac(500GB/640GB) .

A version of the currently unreleased Internet Explorer 9 is also in development for the Windows Phone OS, which is to include better HTML, CSS and JavaScript standards support, as well as hardware acceleration.

Contacts

Contacts are organized via the "People hub". Contacts can be manually entered into contacts or import from Facebook WD Elements series(250GB/320GB) .

A "What's New" section show news feed fromFacebook and Windows Live updates made by your contacts. A "Me" section show the phone user's own Facebook status and wall. Contacts can be added to the home screen by pinning them to the start WD Elements SE(500GB/640GB) .

The contact's "Live Tile" displays their Facebook status and profile picture on the homescreen and the contact's hub displays their Facebook wall as well as all of the rest of their contact information.

Integration of Twitter into the People Hub has been announced to be coming in a software update in the first half of 2011 WD Elements SE(750GB/1TB) .

E-mail

Setup support Hotmail, Outlook, Yahoo! Mail, Gmail, and other email services and also features support for POP and IMAP accounts. Contacts and calendars are sync along with emails. Users can also search through email with keywords in email contents, subjects, senders, and receivers WD Elements desktop(500GB/640GB) .

Multimedia

Zune for Windows Phone 7 is an application providing entertainment and synchronization capabilities between PC and Phone.[46]Windows Phone 7 multimedia experience is divided in to two distinct hubs, Music + Videos hub and Pictures hub, both of which are similar in appearance and functionality to that of the Zune HD WD Elements desktop(750GB/1TB) .

The "Music + Videos hub" plays music, videos, and podcasts, and allows users to access the Zune Marketplace to buy music or rent it with the Zune Pass subscription service, and view artist biographies and photos WD Elements desktop(1.5 TB/2TB) .

The "Pictures hub" displays the user's Facebook and Windows Live photo albums alongside photos taken with the phone's camera. Users can also upload photos to social networks and comment on online photos directly from the Pictures hub. Multi-touch gestures permit zooming in and out of photos WD passport essential SE (750GB/1TB)--USB 3.0).

Games

Xbox Live on Windows Phone 7 brings Console-like gaming experience to phones by displaying the user's avatar in a 3D fashion. Via "Games Hub", the users are able to interact with the avatar, view gamerscore and leaderboards, message Xbox Live friends, and Spotlight WD passport essential (500GB/640GB) .

Multiplayer (turn-based) gaming with live multiplayer are also released. Microsoft has unveiled more than 50 premium Windows Phone 7 Games titles at Gamescom that makes use of Xbox Live on mobile. Furthermore, as of now, Xbox Live on Windows Phone 7 is not offering any real-time multiplayer games but the current development is signifying the chances in future WD passport for Mac(320GB/500GB).

Some key features of Xbox Live on Windows Phone 7 include ability to be signed in simultaneously on the console and phone, send and receive messages between Console and Phone, unique gamer points only available by purchasing the gaming title on the phone, etc WD passport for Mac(640GB/1TB) .

Search

Microsoft's hardware requirements stipulate that every Windows Phone must have a dedicated Search button on the front of the device that performs different actions. Pressing the search button while an application is open will allow users to search within applications that take advantage of this feature My book essential 4 generation (640GB/1TB) ;

for example, pressing Search in the People hub will let the users search their contact list for specific people.

In other cases, pressing the Search button will allow the user to perform a search of web sites, news, and map locations using the Bing application WD My book essential 4 generation( 1.5TB/2TB).

Windows Phone 7 also has a voice recognition function, powered by TellMe, which allows the user to perform a Bing search, call contacts or launch applications by speaking. This can be activated by pressing and holding the phone's Start button WD My book elite( 1TB/1.5TB) .

Bing is the default search engine on Windows Phone 7 handsets due to the deep integration of functions into the OS (which also include the utilization of its map servicefor location-based searches and queries). However, Microsoft has stated that other search engine applications can be used WD My book studio(1TB/2TB) .

Office suite

The "Office hub" organized all Microsoft Office programs and documents. Microsoft Office Mobile provide operability between Windows Phone 7 and the desktop version of Microsoft Office. Word Mobile, Excel Mobile, PowerPoint Mobile, OneNote Mobile, and SharePoint Workspace Mobile allow Microsoft Office file format to be viewed and edited WD My book essential 4 generation( 1.5TB/2TB).

At Mobile World Congress 2011, Microsoft announced that they would support Office documents in the cloud on Windows Phone 7 after an update in the second half of 2011 WD My book elite(640GB/2TB) .

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