By NICK WINGFIELD and KATHY SANDLER
Microsoft Corp. said a new version of its operating system for mobile phones will be available on handsets by the end of the year as part of a plan by the company to strengthen its offerings in the consumer market.
The new operating system from the Redmond, Wash., company, called Windows Mobile 6.5, is designed to incorporate enhancements that have started to become common on sophisticated "smartphones," like better Web browsing and the ability to operated phones with touch-sensitive screens using a single thumb. Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer announced the new products in a keynote speech at a mobile industry conference in Barcelona, Spain, on Monday.
The improvements are important for Microsoft to stay competitive in a category that has experienced a major influx of investment and innovation in the past two years from rivals like Apple Inc. and Google Inc. Microsoft executives concede the company has focused too much in recent years on the business market for mobile phones, while neglecting features that have started to catch on with users through products like Apple's iPhone.
For instance, Microsoft will create an online service, called Windows Marketplace for Mobile, that will let mobile users wirelessly download software from independent developers directly to their handsets. A similar service from Apple, the App Store, has become a popular method for iPhone users to download everything from games to social networking software onto their phones.
"It's a highly competitive market, because what happens in the next three years is going to define what the industry looks like in the next 10 years," Andrew Lees, senior vice president of Microsoft's mobile communications business, said in an interview.
The overhaul includes a redesign of the Windows Mobile home screen into a "honeycomb" layout with big icons instead of the more traditional look that borrows from its Windows desktop ancestry. The company has widened menus so that users on touch-sensing phone models can navigate them with their fingers, rather than requiring a stylus.
Handsets makers say they remain committed to using Windows Mobile on their devices. Korea's LG Electronics, the world's third largest handset maker, agreed to make Windows Mobile the primary operating system for its mobile phones, increasing by tenfold the number of Windows-based devices it expects to distribute this year.
Handset maker HTC Corp., introduced two new products on Monday, the HTC Touch Diamond 2 and Touch Pro 2, that will come with an older version of Microsoft's mobile operating system but will be upgradable to the new version when it comes out. John Wang, the chief marketing officer of HTC, said the company's commitment to use Microsoft's software on its phones is "absolute and unwavering," even though HTC has begun to make devices that use Google's Android mobile operating system.
-from The Wall Street Journal
I currently have a shitty palm phone. I've been trying to get a windows mobile phone to hold me over until I can get my hands on an android phone on verizon.
ReplyDeleteWant do you think about the mobile platform? Obviously with desktops/laptops the standard OS is Windows, and then there is Mac OS with its own niche and growing market.
ReplyDeleteDo you think that the Mobile OS will remain this saturated (Windows Mobile OS, Google Android, Whatever Apple uses), or do you think that their will be one dominant player and one niche player? Regardless of who you think will win, what do you think of the nature of the mobile platform.
I think mobile platforms are very interesting. I personally think Google Android, which is supposed to be on about 160 million phones within 5 years, is the most interesting and the one I want. It was because of Google Android that apple allowed anyone to create software leading to the app store. Android was open source from the start, and just because apple's app store was the first out, doesn't mean their the brains behind it. Also, this lead to windows mobile 6.5's app store.
ReplyDeleteThe thing that bothers me about Android, which I want real bad, is that people are talking about putting it on netbooks. While I'm not opposed to google creating an os for netbooks, I feel like they should keep their phone os on their phone, and could make a similar one for netbooks if they so choose.
I do not think the market will remain as saturated as it is, mainly because the likes of motorolla and samsung have started making android phones instead of their own OS, motorolla relying solely on android until windows mobile 7 comes out.
Currently the big players are windows mobile, iphone os, android, blackberry, nokia's, the new palm, and the new linux(like android) coming out for v-wireless called limo. I do not really see any of these smart phone os's going away(unless palm dies cause they suck) but, some of the other phone operating systems that all the phone makers have for their cheap phones will slowly diminish until all phones are running one of the above big ones.
Yeah, it is foolish to think that all these little hardware companies are developing all their own OS. I think that if the want to do it, fine, but make sure you are damned good at it.
ReplyDeleteWhy doesn't google ever make propreitary software? Google chrome is open source and know you tell me that android is open source?
I never said I thought that Apple invented the idea behind the app store, but I think it was a smart strategy. I know that Apple would not open there products up to external programmers otherwise.
Well, we all know what I want, and that is Microsoft Mobile OS to rule the streets.
Everyone making their own OS reminds me of the early onslaught of the PC, where hardware companies thought that they had to develop each part vertically within their own organization. Eventually people realized it was more economical for suppliers to make things like chips, memory...
ReplyDeleteI think it does not make sense for the android platform to run on a full size screen, just like this article said it did not make sense for Microsoft to put their PC OS onto a mobile device.
I wasn't claiming that you said apple invented the app store, but it seems the whole world believes that. It was android's sdk(software development kit)'s release that pushed apple into releasing the iphone's sdk months later(and at the original price of 99 dollars per developer). Many people got real excited and paid 99 dollars to see the code, which is now free, which is bullshit because they should give out their sdk to developers for free so they want to develop good apps for their products, making the iphone 'cool'.
ReplyDeleteIt's not apple that creates the cool apps like the fart machine or whatever it's called.
http://ifartmobile.com/
ReplyDeletehttp://www.informationweek.com/news/personal_tech/smartphones/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=214303715&subSection=News
ReplyDeletebasically to sum it up, LG choose windows mobile for it's smart phones and will release 50 of them, 26 by 2012
Steinberg the link king strikes again:
ReplyDeleteNON-WORKING URL!
The URL (Web address) that has been entered is directing to a non-existent page on the InformationWeek.com website. Please check that there are no typographical errors in the URL. If the URL is correct, then contact the InformationWeek online production team and send us the details of what the error is.
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the link works for me. try it again with the whole link
ReplyDelete