The news that Microsoft had introduced the latest iteration of its operating system for smartphones and PDAs was met with a certain weary welcome in the mobile industry, and grudging acknowledgement that the company was stitching together a coherent strategy
Perhaps most telling in terms of reaction was the rush from push email software vendors such as Good Technology and Visto to announce their compatibility with the Windows Mobile 5.0 OS, because if there was a hole in the launch it was that there was no direct push email support in the software. Vendors and competitors have often said that when and if Microsoft really leverages the benefits of its massive installed base of Exchange servers then operators will have a direct path to the killer enterprise app, at all levels. Until now, however, third party integration is still needed to take users beyond a sync model of email access.
Speaking at Microsoft’s Mobile & Embedded DevCon 2005, Microsoft’s annual mobile and embedded developers conference, Bill Gates himself launched version 5.0 of his company’s mobile device operating system, Windows Mobile. As a response to market needs, the new platform is more flexible, includes productivity enhancements and has more multimedia support, Gates told his audience.
Windows Mobile competes with Symbian, Palm OS and other operating systems as a platform for high end smart phones and mobile devices.
“In the past five years, there’s been a profound shift in the kind of data and services people access on their mobile devices — from multimedia to business applications,” Gates said. “Windows Mobile 5.0 enables our industry partners to develop exciting new hardware designs and solutions that will revolutionise how customers use mobile devices.”
The changes
Microsoft is claiming Windows Mobile 5.0 is more flexible, by which it means device makers and operators will more easily be able to differentiate themselves from their competitors.
As an example Microsoft quoted the ability for its customers to “plug-in” applications and features such as Push-to-talk, video calling and conferencing. It also said that their is increased network support, citing higher bandwidth 3G, WiFi and Bluetooth enhancements. It has also incorporated some “Blackberry-like” features in operation, including support for a QWERTY keyboard and one-handed operation.
Under its “productivity” improvements, there is “faster one-key access to Hotmail and MSN inboxes within Outlook e-mail and an improved experience with MSN Messenger.” There is also ActiveSync 4.0 support which gives the ability to sync pictures in contacts and wirelessly sync over Bluetooth.
5.0 will also have “persistent” memory storage, “even when the battery is depleted”, which Microsoft said was the most requested feature from its partners. There is also increased support of MS Office software, including the ability to create and view a mobile version of Excel charts, and a Pocket PC version of PowerPoint. Finally, Microsoft said Windows Mobile has undergone extensive testing and met US government security requirements, although there seemed to be no new announcements on security.
The third aspect of the upgrade, more media support, sees the integration of Media Player 10 Mobile, an updated player that supports Windows Media Audio, Windows Media Video and MP3, and allows users to synchronise playlists with a PC, as well as plug in additional DRM versions. There is also support for hard drives and USB 2.0 connectivity, as well as enhanced support for video and picture features, such as burst mode and a timer function.
Tony Cripps, analyst from Ovum, offered the standard market view on the upgrade.
“There’s nothing truly novel here, but Microsoft has listened to user demands and acted on them. In some cases it’s now demonstrably ahead of the competition, most notably in the increasingly tight integration of the OS with Microsoft’s development tools offerings.
“Essentially, Microsoft says its strategy is to break down the distinction between smart phones, PDAs, PDA phones and portable media devices. Windows Mobile 5 goes some way towards achieving this goal, while also offering manufacturers greater potential to differentiate devices by form factor.
“Only Symbian’s in-house developed UIQ 3.0 interface can realistically be said to have an advantage over Microsoft here.
“Meanwhile, Nokia is working hard to minimise the differences between its own flavours of Symbian OS: Series 60, 80 and 90. With Windows Mobile 5, Windows-based devices reminiscent of Nokia’s Communicators become viable as do BlackBerry-style machines, neither of which use touch screens.”