TamsWMS – the Windows Mobile Smartphone Blog

Apparently, somebody at Microsoft’s feels that ActiveSync doesn’t need any more improvements – the company has just debuted a product called Mobile Phone Data manager:

Even though the logo shows a WMS, the product is not interesting for anybody who has a phone that can be synchronized via ActiveSync. MPDM is a Bluetooth-based dumbphone synchronizer…and probably won’t work with most WM devices.

Further information can be found here:

http://specials.msn.co.in/sp08/msphonedatamanager/

P.S. The title is an unlicensed parody of a cool El Guapo song…

Silicon Alley Insider’s Dan Frommer doesn’t seem to be too “deep in-side” the mobile computing market – as he bemoans that Microsoft’s Scott Rockfeld stated that the company does not plan to build a smartphone of its own:

So it seems what Microsoft could use most in the short term is a better marketing plan — to cut through some of the Apple and Google noise and remind consumers that they exist. Right now, few people are probably saying, “Gotta get me one of those Microsoft phones.” But as Apple, RIM, and Google (GOOG) expand their efforts, Microsoft will have to solve that somehow.

Dear Dan: the strength of the Windows Mobile platform is its “diversity”. Hundreds of licensees produce Windows Mobile/Windows CE boxen – while RIM or Apple fans have to choose from the limited offerings of their manufacturer of choice, Windows Mobile fans have the “pains of the large choice”.

This allows customers to remain loyal to the OS (and their applications) without having to stick to the brand: if someone no longer wants to enjoy the pains of using Asus crap, he can always switch to quality manufacturers like Aceeca, HP or HTC without loosing his application suite.

Manufacturers invest a lot of money into their devices: for them, fighting against the OS manufacturer will always leave behind a sour taste as the OS team will always be tempted to assist its hardware team.

Companies like Palm and Nokia have invested huge amounts of money to spin off their OS’s to some extent: this was done in order to motivate licensees to be interested in the platform (and to allow an arrogant PalmSource executive to tell them to pay x00000$ up-front or f### off).

If Microsoft would enter the hardware market (even with a web-browser-armed Zune spin-off), many licensees would be miffed and would start to think about alternatives. As alternatives are abundant nowadays, these thoughts would hurt the “diversity” of the platform…

What do you think?

P.S. We interviewed Microsoft’s Thomas Kritsch last year – the interview could be very interesting…

Just in case anyone of you still uses Microsoft’s proxy-based web browser called Deepfish – the program now faces a fate similar to the one faced by older versions of Blazer for Palm OS.

Microsoft will shut down the proxies on the 31st: as Deepfish relies on its proxies in a fashion similar to Opera Mini, this marks the end of the useful life of the program. The reasons are said to be the advances in mobile web browsing technology on smartphones:

When Live Labs began working on Deepfish, we set out to prove our theory that there was an unmet demand for a better mobile browsing experience than what was available at the time we started the project in 2006. It wasn’t our intent to create a full browser for the preview, but rather simply demonstrate that a novel and simple new user experience was the best way to achieve that. The positive reception and incredible demand for the Deepfish technical preview went a long way towards proving that. And now, thanks in part to Deepfish, many better alternatives are emerging.

Mobile browsing is now advancing to the point where mobile devices rival the desktop—which is what we wanted to see. User experience advances such as usable touch and intuitive zooming interfaces weren’t widely available at the time. Deepfish helped drive that innovation. And now that the marketplace has caught up to where we thought it needed to go and continues to advance.

For our dedicated users still using the technical preview to this day, we are sorry to announce we will be retiring the proxy service on September 31, 2008. The Deepfish client will no longer function after that date as a result.

Users currently using Deepfish have multiple options. If your device supports Java applications, getting Opera Mini is a good option as this also is a low-bandwidth, proxy-based browsers that delivered excellent results at our sister site TamsPalm (review here)

Another possible approach would be a native version of Opera – while this delivers excellent rendering performance, it needs loads of bandwidth/transfer volume and isn’t free…

As I heard of Motorola’s last-stand phone for the first time, I expected it to be either an UIQ box or a classic PocketPC. The announcement that the device would indeed be a WMS surprised me a bit – the first pictures of the box have now surfaced:

The box is said to be similar to the Q9, but adds WiFi and CDMA/GSM(EDGE only) radios. Rumors had previously indicated NVidea-powered graphics – the current rumor no longer mentions these. Verizon is said to get the Q11 this fall.

BTW: if anyone of you thinks that he saw such a box before: it is the touchscreened ipaq 910:

Further images of the Q11 can be found here:
http://mobilitytoday.com/news/008927/motorola_q11_photos

So far, very little is known about Windows Mobile 7. A bunch of UI mock-ups leaked out a few months ago, but the OS was never heard of since. CNET’s Ina Fried now resurrects the corpse, only to kill it off again – she claims that the operating system has been delayed by half a year.

Originally, rumors have stated that the OS would hit licensees desks by “early next year”. An insider source now told Ina that Microsoft had to inform its partners about a delay – the OS is now expected to hit their desk H2 2009!

As licensees usually need at least half a year (rather: one year) in order to produce devices, this means that it’s unlikely that we will see native WM7 devices before 2010. Microsoft itself has denied the rumors, and has instead stated:

… other improvements are expected to debut sooner, most notably an improved browser that brings the rendering engine of Internet Explorer 6 onto Windows Mobile. That update, still expected this year, should pave the way for Windows Mobile phones to display rich Web pages, including those that are home to Flash content and Ajax applications.

… In addition, a number of carriers and handset makers have been working with Microsoft to add new touch interfaces and other features, separate from Microsoft’s operating system updates. …

“Customers don’t have to sit back and wait,” Rockfeld said. “There’s tons of stuff coming from us and our partners.”

What do you think?

Let’s face it: the native UI of Windows Mobile 5/6.x can not compete with the UI found on other platforms like S60 and especially the iPhone. In case you don’t trust me – please look at the two screenshots below:

Yes, folks, I am aware that the iPhone’s colors are not ideal for reflective screens. But today’s market isn’t about us power users anymore…the reason why the iPhone grows so fast is that it recruits its owners from the plethora of non-smartphone users around the world.

Manuifacturers like HTC have reacted to the Cupertinian threat by sprucing up their Windows Mobile devices with proprietary UI systems like TouchFLO 3D. While this definitely helps them compete against the Apple boxen, the long-term effects of these UI systems are what makes me feel bad about them (and makes me understand why Apple prohibits programs that duplicate internal functions).

People expect phones based on one platform to behave similar. As most folks are lazy when it comes to adjusting to new technology, the availability of inferior device with a “similar UI” is enough to prevent many of them from upgrading to a device with a “different UI”. This concept is what builds brand or platform loyalty.

Tools like TouchFLO break this tradition. A user coming from a HP ipaq will be shocked to see the new “artsy-fartsy crap”, whereas people switching from a HTC Touch to an ipaq 914 will miss the “smooth transitions”. The end effect is the same – the customer feels unhappy as he has to relearn.

Custom user interface replacements are similar – believe it or not, but many users eventually forget which feature is OS native and which one not if only they are similar enough. Thus, users switching to an iPhone 3G without their favourite apps could very well end up disappointed: my new iPhone’s music app can no longer do xyz…

So far, so good – but who’s the one to blame for the situation? IMHO, the majority responsibility lays on OS manufacturers. If customers demand features which are not in their OS’s, OS vendors should IMHO try and step up to generate an unified experience (think Palm OS and media players – Palm eventually bundled PocketTunes with almost every handheld it shipped). Microsoft should have overhauled its UI constantly (and Apple should stop making features desktop-exclusive)…if that would happen, many problems would be solved…

What do you think?

Sending emails via SMTP is one of the most elementary tasks a smartphone does – the folks at tracy-and-matt’s had an unusually high amount of issues with their WM 6.1 devices refusing to send emails.

After sending the device in to Microsoft’s; a bug was discovered:

…We are done with it and just checked in a bug fix last week to address what turned out to be a severe product bug that will affect all WM 6.1.x devices until they receive a fix or upgrade to WM 6.1.4. Your help both made us aware of the issue before it bubbled up through the forums and your device actually did help us debug the issue.

We are driving the issue with our response team and pushing to make a fix more broadly available independent of a device update.

More details on this bug:
Symptoms:
At some point sending e-mail stops working for a given e-mail account.
This will happen if the there is *any* failure to connect to the SMTP server – ever. After that point the user cannot send mail with that account again.

Recovery:
The user must delete their e-mail account and recreate it each time this happens.
There is no way to prevent this from reoccurring.
…

As of now, nobody knows when and how the fix will materialize. However, Sir Matt has stated that he will keep everybody updated via email who sends him an email – if you have a Windows Mobile 6.1 device, please take up his generous offer ASAP!

Sprint’s Motorola Q9c has received a Windows Mobile 6.1 upgrade about three months ago – the update for the Verizon version of the box now tugs along slowly.

People wanting to get the upgrade must hit Motorola’s web site, and enter the date of purchase before a free update will be dispatched.

I am shocked to see that this update was not dispatched as I entered a purchase date three years ago: apparently, the company really restricts its updates to devices still in warranty. IMHO, this is completely outrageous – however, the “Lock” can easily be circumvented by entering a purchase date of January 2008 (there’s no need to provide a serial number of proof of purchase).

Further info can be found here:
http://direct.motorola.com/

The folks at Asus once were a very good hardware manufacturer. Their motherboards enjoyed fame among overclockers, power users and OEM’s alike due to their excellent stability, durability and longevity. Unfortunately, this eventually changed with the delivery and success of the eeePC…one could say that the success went to the head of each and every Asus employee/contractor except for Lars Schweden (who recently left to LG).

The company no longer provides press samples in a manageable fashion, and silently reduced the battery capacity of its eeePC devices without informing customers about it. Now, however, neglicgence/hybris have reached a completely new level!

Purchasers of ASUS laptops have found various “goodies” on the recovery CD’s that shipped with their laptops. We aren’t talking about gimmicks here, but rather about:

* A directory called “Crack” that appears to contain serial numbers for other software packages

* A directory containing a large number of confidential Microsoft documents for PC manufacturers, including associated keys and program files

* Various internal Asus documents and source code for Asus software

….
One of the confidential Asus documents includes a PowerPoint presentation that details “major problems” identified by the company, including application compatibility issues.

It IMHO is very difficult to explain how something as stupid as this can happen. Not only does a huge company use cracks (I hope that somebody publishes a list of the affected applications so that their owners can sue), but they actually are too lazy to check the recovery CD’s before shipping them out to customers.

For me, all of this speaks a clear language: keep your fingers off whatever box the folks at ASUS’s may spit out. Even though their stuff may be dirt cheap, it is likely to bite you in the long run…

via PCpro

Traditionally, Handango’s yardstick report provided loads and loads of tables from which analysts could derive lovely figures for their readers (look at our coverage of 2007 for an example). Unfortunately, the recently-released document doesn’t bear any similarity with the yardsticks of former times: it is a slim, one-page PDF containing very little info. Nevertheless, read on for the most interesting things!

First of all – here’s the traditional table of best-selling devices (this time averaged over all platforms). Handango always supplies two lists – one looks at the devices which have generated the most revenue, while the other one looks at the devices from a pure number-of-sold-apps perspective:
By revenue
1. BlackBerry 8830 World Edition
2. Palm TX
3. BlackBerry Pearl
4. BlackBerry Curve
5. Motorola Q (5.0)
6. Nokia N95 (S60 3rd Edition)
7. BlackBerry 8800
8. AT&T/Cingular 8525 (5.0)
9. Nokia E90 Communicator
10. Palm Treo 700p

By # sold
1. BlackBerry 8830 World Edition
2. BlackBerry Pearl
3. Motorola Q (5.0)
4. BlackBerry Curve
5. Nokia N95 (S60 3rd Edition)
6. Palm TX
7. AT&T/Cingular 8525 (5.0)
8. BlackBerry 8800
9. Palm Treo 700wx
10. Palm Treo 700p

Handango furthermore provided the following information broken up per platform:

RIM (BlackBerry)
The top-ranked content categories for BlackBerry this year were Entertainment, Games and Business & Professional. However, the top 10 individual applications sold for BlackBerry represented numerous categories. BlackBerry had four devices in the top 10 list of smartphones adding content in the first half of this year.

The top 10 best-selling applications for BlackBerry in First Half 2008 were:

1. Ringtone Megaplex (ringtones)
2. Colour Your Trackball (trackball customizer)
3. VoiceControl (voice command)
4. BBSmart Email Viewer (email enhancement)
5. SplashID for BlackBerry (information security)
6. Ringphonic Lite (ringtones)
7. Pimp My Pearl (customization)
8. IM+ (instant messenger consolidator)
9. eOffice (productivity suite)
10. IM+ for Skype (instant messenger consolidator)

Palm OS

Palm OS has not released any new devices in 2008 and therefore, Palm OS devices have fallen out of the top 10 list of smartphones adding content.

The top 10 best-selling applications for Palm OS in First Half 2008 were:
1. SplashID for Palm (information security)
2. VoiceControl (voice command)
3. PocketMirror Standard (personal information management)
4. Agendus Professional Edition (personal information management)
5. Agendus Desktop Edition (Outlook synchronization)
6. Traffic – One City (traffic)
7. SplashID for Desktop (information security)
8. Ringo Pro (ringtones)
9. eWallet for PCs (information security)
10. PocketMirror Standard Upgrade (personal information management)

Windows Mobile Standard (formerly Smartphone)
While the top 10 individual applications span several categories, Windows Mobile Standard users continue to focus on fun in 2008, as Entertainment and Games remain the top two categories for the platform. There are no Windows Mobile Standard devices in the top 10 list of smartphones adding content in the first half of 2008, whereas the Motorola Q and the ATT 8525 both made the top 10 list in the second half of 2007.

The top 10 best-selling applications for Windows Mobile Standard in First Half 2008 were:
1. MobiTV (streaming television)
2. Ringtone Megaplex (ringtones)
3. SBSH Facade (home screen plug in)
4. eWallet Professional Edition (personal information management)
5. Documents To Go Premium Edition (productivity suite)
6. PocketStreamer Deluxe (streaming media)
7. Agenda One (calendar manager)
8. SmartphoneNotes (note manager)
9. Jeyo Mobile Extender for Outlook (text messaging)
10. Photo Contacts Pro (phone features)

Window Mobile Professional (formerly Pocket PC)
Three Windows Mobile Professional devices made the top 10 list of smartphones adding content in the first half of this year – the ATT Tilt, the HTC TyTNI II and the HTC Touch. The Games category leaped to the number one position in the first half of 2008. The Business & Professional category remained in the number two spot, followed by Entertainment.

The top 10 best-selling applications for Windows Mobile Professional in First Half 2008 were:
1. Spb Mobile Shell (today screen plug in)
2. MobiTV (streaming television)
3. Spb Pocket Plus (today screen plug in)
4. Pocket Informant 8 (today screen plug in)
5. Spb Backup (file backup)
6. eWallet (personal information management)
7. Spb Phone Suite (phone features)
8. Ringo Mobile (ringtones)
9. Spb Time (clock)
10. SOTI Pocket Controller-Pro (desktop synchronization)

Symbian
Productivity and Utilities applications remained the top two categories, respectively, in unit sales in the first half of 2008 on the Symbian platform. The top device for Symbian OS continues to be the Nokia N95, which launched in 2007.

The top 10 best-selling Symbian OS applications in First Half 2008 include:
1. Quickoffice Premier (document manager)
2. ProfiMail (email viewer)
3. Handy Weather (weather)
4. Advanced Call Manager (call manager)
5. X-plore (file management)
6. WorldMate Professional (travel assistant)
7. IM+ for Skype (instant messenger consolidator)
8. LCG Jukebox (music player)
9. Advanced Device Locks (security)
10. Ultimate Voice Recorder (voice recorder)

Now that we have the raw data posted, it’s time for a small analysis. The first and most impressive thing is the position of the Palm TX – the device is extremely old and completely outdated hardware-wise; but still managed to get the second place on the revenue chart. Even though this may be claimed on the high prices for Palm OS programs, its high postion in the sales number figure corrects this to some extent.

Looking at S60: the extremely strong sales of Nokia N95 and E90 applications are unsurprising (for me). The N95 has sold like mad – and the people using Communicators have had to replace most of their existing software due to the OS change (which IMHO explains why the box is only in the revenue list…these apps tend to be extremely dear).

As for Windows Mobile – the SPB dominance remains unbroken. 7 of the top-ten PPC applications now come from this Russian house – a monopoly situation I have never ever seen anywhere before.

Gamers will be less than happy, as no games are in the top applications for S60, palm and WM. BlackBerry users seem to be the most playful – Sudoku and a Poker simulator both made it into the top-10 on this platform.

Unfortunately, the growth speed analysis made last year can no longer be done – Handango didn’t itemize the growth figures on a per-platform basis (no idea why)….

What do you think?

P.S. In case anyone wonders why no iPhone programs are listed: the sale of iPhone applications is handled by Apple exclusively (there is no third-party store)…

Google Maps contains a very useful feature called My Location. It accesses cell tower data, which can be used to generate a more-or-less accurate position in a fashion similar to a true GPS (the S60 version of Maps supports external GPS systems for quite some time).

The boys at Google’s claim to have improved the accuracy if this feature quite a bit in the last hours. Looking at the picture below, we can see that the “your position” circle is now a lot smaller, as the database is more accurate:

Rural areas now get better positioning and more accurate “circles”:

Zhengrong Ji, a software engineer employed at Google’s, concludes as following:

So how exactly have we made these improvements? Mobile operators typically need a lot more cell towers in populous areas to service all the users. This means each individual tower provides a much smaller coverage footprint. On the other hand, in a very sparsely populated area, towers provide much larger coverage footprints. We’ve developed algorithms to try and figure out what the right circle size should be and are pleased to make this available to you today.

There’s actually nothing you need to do to start enjoying the new improvements to My Location. Any application powered by Google’s geolocation service automatically benefits from today’s launch. Enjoy!

People waiting for HTC’s S740 WMS can now get another glance at the hardware – the boys at PhoneScoop’s had a few minutes with the device, and posted a small “hands-on” report.

Formfactor-wise, the HTC S740 goes to an area where no WMS has been before – the device is said to be extremely long and thin. The reporter states that he would call the box the first true “candy-bar” phone; which would be accurate if the box didn’t have a slide-out keyboard (and if you ignore the obscure Haier PenPhones).

Even though the keyboard is described to be “pleasant to use”, I am not too sure if I can agree to this. The gallery images show that the device has very flat keys, which makes typing unnecessarily difficult.

Finally, the boys at PhoneScoop deliver a rather pessimistic outlook on the device’s US-availability:

We wish a US carrier would pick it up, but so far we’re hearing there’s no interest from them. It seems everyone is so obsessed with competing with the iPhone that non-touchscreen Windows Mobile Standard devices are being ignored. That’s a shame. Not everyone is ready to abandon the familiar d-pad for a touch screen.

Hit the link above for a few images…

Expansys sometimes has great deals on older devices – the current special offer hits us via , the pope of Windows Mobile.

Unfortunately, this offer is limited to the UK version of the Expansys shop – people on other continents are out of luck. Anyways – get the device here:
http://www.expansys.com/d.aspx?i=171963

The hubbub about the HTC Touch Diamond and Touch Pro has made it easy to forget their WMS sibling called S740 – but don’t despair, as your TamsWMS editorial team never forgets anything the competition forgets (:-)).

The folks at Clove Technologies have already received their sample machine – and posted a lengthy video walkthrough to YouTube.

Should you feel like making the S740 your next WMS – hit the link below for further info!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4pWkDAlbVRY