Smartphones and Cell Phones

Microsoft had several parts to its Mobile World Congress announcement, including the Windows Mobile 6.5 update, Windows Marketplace for Mobile, and My Phone service. I've been given beta access to My Phone, but since I am on a cruise vacation at the moment (I know I shouldn't be working, but this is the week of MWC) I won't be able to try it out and report on it until next week. In the meantime, check out what Chris Leckness is currently experiencing with the service. So far he likes what he sees with it, but I have also read other discussions asking how much different it really is than the Dashwire service.

February 16, 2009 by Matthew Miller

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It always seems to happen just after I buy a device that another successor is announced that has me rethinking my purchase. I recently purchased a North American Nokia N85, which I think is the best Nseries device I have ever used. Nokia announced the N86 with an 8 megapixel camera that has the same dual slider form factor as the N85, N95, and N96. The 8 megapixel camera includes Carl Zeiss optics, of course, and duel LED flash. 8GB of internal memory is provided for storing your photos and videos with an additional microSD card slot for even more memory capacity.

February 16, 2009 by Matthew Miller

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The mobile browser field is getting more and more crowded as companies look to users of the internet on the go. In looking at proxy-based browsers where all the heavy lifting is done on the server we currently have Opera Mini leading the pack with Skyfire in public beta. Today at Mobile World Congress, the BOLT browser moved into public beta. This browser was in private beta from January 15th until now and I tried it on a couple of my phones and found it to be acceptable, but not something I would choose over Opera Mini. The browser has gone through some updates though and is now available as version .86 that is significantly improved over the initial .73 build.

February 16, 2009 by Matthew Miller

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Microsoft announced Windows Mobile 6.5 today at Mobile World Congress in Spain and as a fan of the Windows Mobile OS, I have to say I am pretty disappointed with the update and the 9+ months we have to wait to actually see it on any device. I have seen a few demos of 6.5 in action and in my opinion it just adds the UI enhancements we saw on Standard (non-touch screen) devices with Windows Mobile 6.1 and makes it more finger friendly. There is also an improved web browser (Opera Mobile already gives us a superior browsing experience) and some services that will be supported on 6.5 devices. I am sure we will see some cool devices come out in late 2009, but honestly there is nothing I see here that compels me to start saving up to run out and buy a Windows Mobile device.

February 15, 2009 by Matthew Miller

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Third party applications have been available for Palm, Windows Mobile, S60, and BlackBerry devices for years, but it wasn't until Apple made the iPhone App Store such a huge success that companies finally woke up to the potential market that was out there. It really is a shame that one of these companies never took the initiative to create an application store and now they are all announcing one, again following Apple's lead. Some of the best news I have seen so far from Mobile World Congress is the announcement regarding the upcoming Ovi Store by Nokia.

February 15, 2009 by Matthew Miller

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The HTC Touch Diamond and HTC Touch Pro were very popular devices in 2008 and to continue with these lines, HTC announced the Touch Diamond2 and Touch Pro2 at Mobile World Congress. These two Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional devices come with more HTC customization that improves the Windows Mobile experience. HTC has added functionality that allows all voice, text, and email communications from a specific contact to be sorted and viewed at the touch of a finger. The information is available inside the contact card and during a call. The specifications of the HTC Touch Diamond2 and HTC Touch Pro2 are both improved over their first generation models, particularly in regards to screen resolution.

February 15, 2009 by Matthew Miller

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Nokia made a few device announcements today at Mobile World Congress, including the Nokia E75, E55, 6710 Navigator and 6720 Classic. The Nokia E75 and E55 build on the Eseries, enterprise-focused, with a new form factor in one and improved features in both. Nokia is well know for their GPS functionality with Nokia Maps and devices focused on navigation. At Mobile World Congress today, Nokia announced the Nokia 6710 Navigator and 6720 Classic.

February 15, 2009 by Matthew Miller

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As a 2+ hour daily commuter I have been enjoying the REDFLY Smartphone Terminal for quite some time now. One thing that always bothered me is that I had to install and use an older version of Opera Mobile (8.65) to be able to work in a decent browser on the REDFLY. I just read on Brighthand that the latest beta drivers, discussed here on WMExperts, include support for Opera Mobile 9.5. You can check out the beta page to see the full list of supported devices and detailed change log.

February 15, 2009 by Matthew Miller

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My original iPhone is finding its way into my hands more and more lately with the incredible assortment of 3rd party applications that I just cannot resist. I checked out an Astraware iPhone game last summer with GTS Racing Challenge and in the last couple of months we have seen several more Astraware titles released for the iPhone/iPod touch. These devices are becoming compelling mobile gaming platforms that are always with you for a quick 5-minute game or longer 30-minute game session. Five recent games I had a chance to play with include Platypus, Board Games, Glyph, My Little Tank, and Hellfire.

February 14, 2009 by Matthew Miller

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I mentioned we had a chance to see some things from Microsoft Labs at Mobius 2008 in December and one of those things was the new Microsoft Recite. We were just given early access to the application that will be coming soon as a free utility for Windows Mobile 6.0 and higher users.

February 14, 2009 by Matthew Miller

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