Windows Mobile 5.0 Officially Unveiled

[Ed Hardy]

Bill Gates has made a formal announcement of the latest version of Microsoft's operating system for handhelds and smartphones.

Read more at http://www.brighthand.com/article/Wi...unced?site=PPC

[Ed Hardy]

No mention of push email, which Microsoft had expected to emphasize in this OS upgrade.

I think of two reasons for this.[list=1][*]the back-end work isn't done yet[*]the rumors of possible patent-infringement lawsuits are correct[/list=1]
Or it could be both.

[pcboy]

what about a vga broswer? If ppc2005 have a vga broswer that would be awsome.

[Ed Hardy]

Originally posted by pcboy
what about a vga broswer?

Nope, sorry.

[pcboy]

Oh god, nevermind then, so all teh VGA devices would still be QVGA under windows.

btw, I 've just called Toshiba, and there will be no update for e830 pocket pc....

[sojourner753]

Any information on ActiveSync 4.0?

[gfunkmagic]

One of the most significant changes is the inclusion of persistent memory storage. The most requested feature from device makers and customers alike, persistent memory storage retains information even when the device's battery is depleted.



Microsoft added these to make one-handed use of these devices easier. They were already included in the smartphone version.

Interestingly, these two features (NVFS, 5-way nav) are already available on PalmOS devices!

Anyway, I can't wait to get WM05 update for my x50v!

[Ed Hardy]

Originally posted by sojourner753
Any information on ActiveSync 4.0?

Obviously this has to be available when the first upgrades are released, as Windows Mobile 5.0 absolutely requires it.

I'm beginning to think that what's holding up the OS upgrades is the new version of ActiveSync. No proof of this; just a feeling.

Anyway, ActiveSync 4.0 is expected a few months from now, and it will bring real-time push email to the Windows Mobile platform.

This will require an upgrade to Exchange Server as well.

[Ed Hardy]

Originally posted by Ed
One of the most significant changes is the inclusion of persistent memory storage. The most requested feature from device makers and customers alike, persistent memory storage retains information even when the device's battery is depleted.

I was disappointed by the lack of detail on this very, very important feature in today's presentation. At this point, I have no real idea on how it's going to work, just some guesses.

[JRB]

Originally posted by sojourner753
Any information on ActiveSync 4.0?

The following quote is from PocketPC Thoughts:

"One of the things that people are starting to discover as they read through some of the articles is that WiFi synchronization is no longer an option with ActiveSync 4.0. You can still WiFi sync against an Exchange server from the Pocket PC, but the ability to wirelessly synchronize with your local PC no longer exists. As a group, the Windows Mobile MVPs lobbied hard against the lack of this feature, but ultimately we made no progress. I won't presume to speak for Microsoft on exactly why this feature isn't there, but ActiveSync 4.0 no longer has the ability to accept any form of remote TCP/IP connections. So no WiFi, CAT5, VPN over LAN, GPRS, etc. It simply won't work. Myself, I see this as a serious problem and it will impact my use of the devices - but this may effect less people than I think it will, so it's survey time. Let me know what you think about this."

Personally, I have had it with Microsoft in every way shape or form. I will be going over to Palm as soon as the LifeDrive is avialable.

I switched over to Apple about 3 months ago and haven't looked back.