Microsoft's SkyBox in Feb, new Windows Mobile UI confirmed?

[xtop]

http://www.engadget.com/2009/01/19/m...-unveiling-ne/

According to the good people at Neowin, Microsoft has a few big announcements for Mobile World Congress, which takes place in Barcelona next month. Apparently, the company will be taking the wraps off a cloud-based syncing service called SkyBox, a MobileMe-like system which allows you to sync and backup your Windows Mobile phone OTA, though there's speculation the service might be extended to non-WM devices as well. The cats in Redmond will also apparently unveil something called SkyLine, an enterprise version of SkyBox, and will properly introduce SkyMarket -- its "mobile marketplace" (an App Store competitor). Most interestingly, however, Neowin is now claiming that those shots of a Windows Mobile interface we saw back in November that looked somewhat questionable are in fact actual pics from a forthcoming UI overhaul. The site goes as far to say it can "confirm" that the honeycomb interface seen in the photos are "genuine concept shots" of a new interface. As usual, don't place any bets on any of this -- but we'll be live and direct at MWC next month, so stay tuned.


i posted those pics mentioned in the article below..

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=70810


windows mobile needs updated badly, but with wm7 not coming till next year..i have a feeling we'll be disappointed come next month

[joeorc]

Originally Posted by xtop

http://www.engadget.com/2009/01/19/m...-unveiling-ne/

According to the good people at Neowin, Microsoft has a few big announcements for Mobile World Congress, which takes place in Barcelona next month. Apparently, the company will be taking the wraps off a cloud-based syncing service called SkyBox, a MobileMe-like system which allows you to sync and backup your Windows Mobile phone OTA, though there's speculation the service might be extended to non-WM devices as well. The cats in Redmond will also apparently unveil something called SkyLine, an enterprise version of SkyBox, and will properly introduce SkyMarket -- its "mobile marketplace" (an App Store competitor). Most interestingly, however, Neowin is now claiming that those shots of a Windows Mobile interface we saw back in November that looked somewhat questionable are in fact actual pics from a forthcoming UI overhaul. The site goes as far to say it can "confirm" that the honeycomb interface seen in the photos are "genuine concept shots" of a new interface. As usual, don't place any bets on any of this -- but we'll be live and direct at MWC next month, so stay tuned.


i posted those pics mentioned in the article below..

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=70810


windows mobile needs updated badly, but with wm7 not coming till next year..i have a feeling we'll be disappointed come next month

INMO i don't think i would be disappointed, because i expect the UI interface to change to ICON based , most of the smart phone's in the market are going in that direction anyway.lol

[xtop]

Originally Posted by joeorc

INMO i don't think i would be disappointed, because i expect the UI interface to change to ICON based , most of the smart phone's in the market are going in that direction anyway.lol

well they're not going to give us windows mobile 7 next month, they might tease it..but we aren't getting it. we're getting 6.5, which i would have a hard time believing would be SO different from 6.1...as the "leaked" concepts would have us believe

i'm am so totally ok with being surprised tho

[joeorc]

Originally Posted by xtop

well they're not going to give us windows mobile 7 next month, they might tease it..but we aren't getting it. we're getting 6.5, which i would have a hard time believing would be SO different from 6.1...as the "leaked" concepts would have us believe

i'm am so totally ok with being surprised tho

yea me too, i think being surprised is what I will hope Microsoft will do, i do love the Wndow's mobile OS "i have a HTC 8125"..yea i know i need to upgrade my phone ,
but the UI does need some fresh take for the Window's mobile that I think is needed, as for function's, that it offer's the Window's mobile platform does what i need it to do, "well sometime's there's a few hick-up's" , but still is a good platform for mobile phone's.

I do like the Android OS also, its looking to be a great new OS for mobile phone's and net book's.

[xtop]

http://www.engadget.com/2009/01/21/f...quarter-of-09/

Buzz is starting to get white-hot over Microsoft's plans for Mobile World Congress next month with a number of cloud services and a fresh UI -- presumably Windows Mobile 6.5 -- heading up the rumor pile, and if Digitimes is even close to right on this latest bit, an MWC unveiling is almost guaranteed. The publication is citing "sources" (oh, those wonderful "sources") at Taiwanese handset manufacturers saying that the first volley of WinMo 6.5-based devices will hit in the third quarter of the year with major volume following on in the fourth quarter, just in time for the holidays. These guys are well overdue for a serious overhaul and they have to be feeling the heat coming off the Palm camp right now -- among others -- so let's hope that window sticks.

as long as the ui looks completely different like the "concept" pictures..i'm ok with it waiting until Q3. but sheesh..wm7 should have been this year..why is 6.5 taking this long

[xtop]

http://www.engadget.com/2009/01/21/w...tchety-old-ht/

Historically, major Windows Mobile releases have a track record of leaking out ahead of their official announcements. Actually, they don't just have a track record of getting leaked -- they have a track record of getting installed on legacy hardware, and it looks like WinMo 6.5 may be no different. An intrepid poster over at xda-developers has thrown up files and instructions for getting a build of 6.5 (seemingly, anyway) on an old-school HTC Blue Angel of all things, a device that dates all the way back to 2004 and the early days of this very site. We can't verify that this is actually 6.5 and not just some semi-slick skin heaped over 6.1, but the fact that we really can't tell should be just a little alarming to Microsoft if this is seriously what they plan to unveil next month. Follow the break for a blast from HTC's past running a glimpse of Redmond's future, and while you're at it, dig your Siemens SX66 out of the attic.

[joeorc]

Originally Posted by xtop

http://www.engadget.com/2009/01/21/w...tchety-old-ht/

Historically, major Windows Mobile releases have a track record of leaking out ahead of their official announcements. Actually, they don't just have a track record of getting leaked -- they have a track record of getting installed on legacy hardware, and it looks like WinMo 6.5 may be no different. An intrepid poster over at xda-developers has thrown up files and instructions for getting a build of 6.5 (seemingly, anyway) on an old-school HTC Blue Angel of all things, a device that dates all the way back to 2004 and the early days of this very site. We can't verify that this is actually 6.5 and not just some semi-slick skin heaped over 6.1, but the fact that we really can't tell should be just a little alarming to Microsoft if this is seriously what they plan to unveil next month. Follow the break for a blast from HTC's past running a glimpse of Redmond's future, and while you're at it, dig your Siemens SX66 out of the attic.

If so, I think that it will be a short lived update to 6.5 because with Windows 7 being released soon. I think microsoft know's it's crunch time, so they are working as fast as they can. It just seem's so many are wanting it here and now instead of letting the development team get it done as fast as they can without hounding them day and night.
it just seem's the "hurry up an wait" IDEA only works for the armed forces it seem's
, too many loose lip's.Since the internet has info too fast, it seem's thing's should slow down sometime's. but I know it will not but that's life.

[xtop]

Originally Posted by joeorc

If so, I think that it will be a short lived update to 6.5 because with Windows 7 being released soon. I think microsoft know's it's crunch time, so they are working as fast as they can. It just seem's so many are wanting it here and now instead of letting the development team get it done as fast as they can without hounding them day and night.
it just seem's the "hurry up an wait" IDEA only works for the armed forces it seem's
, too many loose lip's.Since the internet has info too fast, it seem's thing's should slow down sometime's. but I know it will not but that's life.

i took a look at the screens and video's. its an improvement over 6.1. but nothing revolutionary like we'd hope. looks like for the most part, some more touchscreen stuff for the today screen and better scrolling and sliding.

but the new today screen does look similar to that zune concept we saw. its pretty speedy on the older hardware too so thats exciting

then again..this is pre beta stuff that got leaked, so what they show us next month could still be a lot better.

[joeorc]

Originally Posted by xtop

i took a look at the screens and video's. its an improvement over 6.1. but nothing revolutionary like we'd hope. looks like for the most part, some more touchscreen stuff for the today screen and better scrolling and sliding.

but the new today screen does look similar to that zune concept we saw. its pretty speedy on the older hardware too so thats exciting

then again..this is pre beta stuff that got leaked, so what they show us next month could still be a lot better.

that's good too see, I will wait and see what the new interface will look like and see what get's added. With the mobile front the mobile OS is a very good OS as it is. but a new overhaul i think is just because of the new OS's for mobile phone's have become more and more of a challenge to outdo each of getting close to the desktop OS features on a phone, when after a bit with the screen size limitation does take it's toll, like reading PDF files on a 2 to 3 inch screen..

But its always good for the advancement ,at least it put's new function's and you always get some cool new function's on the Mobile Phone to try out.

[xtop]

http://www.engadget.com/2009/01/24/w...ompulab-exeda/

more 6.5 goodness. from the sounds of it..we're in for a bit of a surprise come feb. apparently the leaked versions are pre alpha. so i hope to be surprised

Of note immediately is that the honeycomb-based app launcher is in fact real. It seems it will make use of the new scrolling capabilities of the OS, and is romoured to automatically sort regularly used and relevant applications close to each other.

The second is in fact that its clear that X-button, the bane of finger-based usage, is now significantly larger.

Lastly, of note in the second picture is that the wall paper in the picture extends across both the softkeys and taskbar, similar to how it does on Windows Mobile Standard 6.1. This opens up great skinning possibilities and obviously can do wonders for the appearance of the OS.

[xtop]

http://wmpoweruser.com/?p=2611

In an interview with CNET , Microsoft’s Andy Lees, head of Windows Mobile, confessed to designing Windows Mobile for 200 Mhz processors and QVGA screens.

“We aimed to go for a lower common denominator,” Lees said.

He promised this was set to change however. In a comment that could only be hinting at support for new processors like Nvidia’s Tegra, he said “The power of the kinds of phones that come out next year will be incredible, well beyond even today’s devices. Phones next year will have dual-core processors, super-fast data connections, and graphics power rivaling that of the original Xbox.

“That’s a phenomenal thing on a phone. The phones of the future will also have location information beyond just GPS sensors. It will know where it is pointing, it will know which angle it is being held at.”

Lees promised that Microsoft would start working more closely with hardware makers. He pointed to deals late last year with LG and Samsung.

“You are going to see a bunch of announcements at Mobile World Congress but also it is going to be the beginning of a 12-, 18-month period where you are going to see a whole bunch of different stuff,” Lees said.

But Lees said that Microsoft embarked on a new strategy some time ago that will come to fruition over the next 18 months. The first steps in that strategy, he said, will be announced at the Mobile World Congress conference that takes place in Barcelona in the middle of next month.

Web browsing has also been a traditional weak spot, but Lees also promised their new offering would surpass those interfaces of other leading browsers like Safari by the end of the year.

Part of Microsoft’s new strategy, Lees said, is not relying on operating system upgrades to improve its products. The new approach, while still making money by selling a mobile operating system, places considerable focus on services that help connect the phone to the PC and Web as well as devices such as the Xbox.

Lees would not confirm details of a rumored rival to Apple’s App Store, reportedly known as SkyMarket.

“There is some question whether we can more directly connect the developer and the end user,” he said. “We’re looking at that.”

While the wait for these supposed revolutionary updates is still likely to be long, we should start seeing the seeds of these in less than 3 weeks at Mobile World Congress. Whether these stop gap measures will be enough to maintain Windows Mobile market share in the interim remains to be seen, but the recent Q4 success should point towards the game being far from over.

full article over at cnet here... http://news.cnet.com/8301-13860_3-10...ag=mncol;title

[xtop]

http://www.engadget.com/2009/02/04/f...0-in-april-10/

Chatter over Windows Mobile 6.5 has grown into a deafening din the past few weeks, strongly suggesting we'll all be treated to the next WinMo release at MWC in a couple weeks -- but how does that translate a device that we can hold in our own two hands, exactly? We'd previously heard Microsoft was targeting the third quarter of 2009, and "sources" of ZDNet's Mary-Jo Foley are right in line. In a nutshell, she's saying manufacturers will have access to the gold code in April and the first 6.5 devices will hit the market in September (okay, tail end of the third quarter, but that's how the cookie crumbles), but she doesn't stop there -- she goes on to say that beta Windows Mobile 7 code will be in the wild in November of this year, with the first handsets following on in April of 2010. That's a long-ass time from now, yes -- but on the flipside, that's a record for releasing two major WinMo versions in rapid succession. Can't blame us for trying to find the silver lining.

i'm ready to try out the beta for 7

[xtop]

http://www.engadget.com/2009/02/06/m...to-be-rebrand/

We're just ten days away from whatever Microsoft has to announce at Mobile World Congress, and it looks like the company is trying to put a halt to the endless rumors that it's developing a phone: WinMo director Scott Rockfield told CNET it's not happening, and another Microsoft spokesman just denied it to the Wall Street Journal. That should be enough to shut people up, right? Of course not -- no denials by anyone ever have been -- but unless Stiv Ballmers actually pulls a Zunephone out of his pocket next week, we're going to assume that Microsoft is on the level with us, persistent rumors of some crazy Tegra-powered superphone notwithstanding. We are willing to believe that the company is planning on rebranding Windows Mobile as "Windows Phone," however -- yeah, it's a Digitimes rumor, but it makes a lot of sense to us, and it's an easy way to capitalize on the launch of a new version. We'll see what happens, we suppose -- honestly, we just want a US launch of the Compulab Exeda.

P.S.- Mary Jo Foley at ZDNet says what's more likely is that Microsoft is working on several Windows Mobile reference hardware designs -- including one based on Tegra -- which we find much more believable and lines up nicely with some other whispers we've heard.