Windows Mobile Louisville

Microsoft has taken some hits lately given the recent announcements regarding the upcoming Windows Mobile 6.5 and the Marketplace. The word that developers who submit apps to the Marketplace would have to pay for all updates to those apps grabbed just about everyone the wrong way. Microsoft has been listening to the feedback and has backed off of that requirement and shared some new information with us about the direction of Windows Mobile.

The major news about the Marketplace and Windows Mobile can be broken down as follows:

• Developers can offer updates to their apps in the Marketplace at no charge for the life of the app.
• Customers can buy apps in the Marketplace with a credit card or have them charged to their phone bill.
• Apps can be refunded within 24 hours after purchase.
• More than 25 ISVs are active in the Marketplace, including Facebook, MySpace, AP Mobile and Spb.  The Facebook app will be available for free download in April. The partners are 3deep by LiteScape, Accuweather, AP Mobile, CNBC, Developer One, EA Mobile, Facebook, Gameloft, Glu Mobile, Handmark, Ilium Software, Jeyo Inc., Kinoma, Magmic, Melodis Corp., MySpace, Namco Networks, Pandora, PhatWare Corp., Resco, SBSH Mobile, ShoZu, Inc., Sling Media, Spb Software, Web Information Solutions, and Zagat Survey.
• Windows Live for Windows Mobile is available now in 25 countries. A beta version of a new Windows Live Hotmail is available and can be downloaded through a mobile browser at m.mail.live.com.
• Microsoft is partnering with major design studios to produce themes for Windows Mobile 6.5.
• A Windows Mobile Theme Generator will be available later this year.
• Phones that can run WM 6.1 are capable of running WM 6.5, but the option to upgrade will lie with handset OEMs and carriers. This is business as usual and nothing new.

Source: JKontheRun

Hey you Facebook users! The wonderful folks over at PPC Geeks have been hard at work extracting all sorts of goodies from a Windows Mobile 6.5 ROM, and a Facebook app is the latest booty.

You must install the CAB file to your device (not storage card) for it to work properly, and there are some minor buggy issues, but I just installed it and the app works great. It will work on WVGA, VGA and QVGA devices, including non-touchscreen devices.

Read more about it over at XDA Developers and get the CAB file there.

Source: PocketNow

Discuss it here.

Well, what do you know?!  MS was keeping a secret from us!  Steve Ballmer acknowledged during a webcast that Windows Mobile 6.5 really will be released!  Here is a statement Steve made during that webcast:

“With releases we’ll make this year - releases we’ll make with 6.5 next year, Windows Mobile 7, I think we have a pretty interesting roadmap. ”

Now the $10,000 question is, who will see this version on their devices?  That much is pure speculation at this point…

f you’ve read any tech headlines in the past few days, you have probably already caught word of this, but I’m posting it just in case readers haven’t heard the story:

Motorola’s chief executive of mobile devices, Sanjay Jha, gave an interview last week during Motorola’s Thursday earnings call.   He made mention of Windows Mobile 6.5, which could either be a slip of the tongue or a mis-statement. Here’s what he said:

“Windows Mobile 6 has not delivered the experience that I think Apple has been able to deliver, but as you look at the plan that is Windows Mobile 7 and even 6.5, I think there are significant new added features which will help the platform,” Jha said. “We have now targeted new teams which are focused – in California and Seattle – to deliver experiences. That is where we have to differentiate.”

There are no details at this time to support or disclaim what he stated - who knows?  We’ll keep you posted!