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Gadgets Windows Mobile 6.0 "Crossbow" Reviewed
Brandon Hill (Blog) - November 22, 2006 1:04 AM

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12 comment(s) - last by Souka.. on Dec 5 at 2:42 AM

Mobile-review.com gets their hands on a copy of WM6.0

With Microsoft's Windows Mobile 5.0 operating system being over a year old, an update is just around the corner. DailyTech first brought you word of the update back in early October when the first images of Windows Mobile 6.0 (aka "Crossbow") appeared on the web. At that time, it was rumored that the operating see would see RTM by the end of 2006 with public availability in the first half of 2007. Luckily for us, the folks over at Mobile-review.com were able to get their hands on a copy of the operating system to see what all the hoopla is about.

In what will be a disappointment to many Windows Mobile users out there, Mobile-review.com wasn't too terribly impressed with the new operating system and stated that its moniker should instead be "Windows Mobile 5.0 Second Edition." There is a dearth of truly all-new features and Windows Mobile 6.0 instead looks like a warmed over refresh destined to play nice with new Microsoft offerings like Windows Vista, Office 2007 and Exchange 2007.

Many of the changes are superficial including new 3D icons that mimic Windows Vista and new system sounds. To the dismay of many, however, there's still no true “close” button for applications as the operating continues to rely on "Smart Minimizing." On the other hand, Microsoft has seen fit to include native VoIP support, Smart Dial 2.0 (fast and efficient contact searching) and HTML support for emails (finally).

To put it bluntly, there isn't much to brag about with Windows Mobile 6.0. It appears that most of the major changes on Microsoft's mobile operating system won't take place until “Photon” which is due out sometime in 2008. In fact, Mobile-review.com has this to say in conclusion about Windows Mobile 6.0:

Regrettably, this world lacks miracles and this case is just another proof of that. The system still doesn’t offer support for several active windows in Internet Explorer, so that you are limited to a single window at a time, also profiles are missing in WM; the office applications haven’t been enhanced either. Nor were the multimedia tools. What the company has really got to do is keep on tuning Office Mobile, extending Windows Live, release Windows Media Mobile 11 and so on.

You can read the full review here.

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did they at least address the big issues?

By SLEEPER5555 on 11/22/2006 5:07:03 AM , Rating: 3

such as poor battery life and constant crashes? i was forced back to blackberry because i need the stability.

RE: did they at least address the big issues?

By Orpheus333 on 11/22/2006 12:43:09 PM , Rating: 2

quote:
i was forced back to blackberry

Reading this while using the term "crack berry" causes a chuckle.

"The first step to recovery is acknowledging the problem..."

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RE: did they at least address the big issues?

By TomZ on 11/22/2006 1:42:53 PM , Rating: 2

I've used a PDA-like device with Windows Mobile 5.0 quite a bit, and never experienced any battery life or stability issues. Everything ran perfectly.

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RE: did they at least address the big issues?

By MobileZone on 11/22/2006 8:02:40 PM , Rating: 2

So do I. As as WM user for a long time, never had major problems, specially latelly, with WM5.0. People who keep talking about WM issues probably are owners of weird configures devices with memory filled up with weird software. If you be nice to the device, you won't have any suprise.
And this is my advice.

Dice.

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RE: did they at least address the big issues?

By SLEEPER5555 on 11/23/2006 5:34:38 PM , Rating: 2

ppc6700 for example issues are all over

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RE: did they at least address the big issues?

By TomZ on 11/24/2006 4:52:25 PM , Rating: 2

Those issues are probably ppc6700 issues, not Windows Mobile issues. In other words, it seems possible to build WM devices that don't have these issues, since other vendors have. Also, it is like blaming Windows for causing your computer to malfunction because of a bad app or device driver.

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RE: did they at least address the big issues?

By Souka on 12/5/2006 2:42:09 AM , Rating: 2

agree.... WM is often blammed, but really its the hardware and poor Q&A by the phone manufacurer.

My current work smartphone is an "old" Motorola Q phone.....had it about 8 months I rekon...works like a charm.

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Snail's Pace

By jodhas on 11/22/2006 1:50:34 AM , Rating: 2

As with each passing Activesync releases and WM releases, my hopes shoot up ant then to be shot down immediately upon seeing that the changes are not revolutionary but evolutionary.

That is why as a owner of Ipaqs, Treo WX and Moto Q's, I rely on several forums and third party software to get the job done.

This this part of the market, third party softwares still thrive...

I just hope Palm and Motorola will comp' the OS update as HP did some time ago.

RE: Snail's Pace

By SunAngel on 11/22/2006 9:50:31 AM , Rating: 2

What your referring to is marketing politics. All companies do it. No company is going to release all their innovations at once, even if they have already perfected them. This is how I view this situation. I used to be naive and buy my equipment based on what I read on tech sites. But, my epiphany came when I noticed D-Link piecemealing their network technology. D-Link is notorious for holding back technology and releasing it over long periods. Thus, I've learned to live with a 2-3 year upgrade cycle for network products and 3-4 years for everything else.

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why is this a surprise?

By kenyee on 11/22/2006 9:40:04 AM , Rating: 2

When WinCE 6.0 was released, it won't be used until photon in 2008.
WM6 still uses WinCE 5.0 underneath so it won't have any major changes...

If you want stability and a smartphone, try Symbian ;-)
No touchscreen, but I'm surprised how well it works...

Hmm...

By IceT on 11/22/2006 10:21:01 AM , Rating: 2

I read somewhere that there's supposed to be AKU 3 for WM5...I just bought a HP iPAQ rw6828 and I wonder if HP will make any updates for the product...

WM 6 eh...this reminds me of buying WM 5 for my Dell Axim X50v and I had a terrible time with it...it turned out that the two weren't compatible...

.IceT

Snail's Pace

By jodhas on 11/22/2006 1:51:40 AM , Rating: 1

As with each passing Activesync releases and WM releases, my hopes shoot up and then to be shot down immediately upon seeing that the changes are not revolutionary but evolutionary.

That is why as a owner of Ipaqs, Treo WX and Moto Q's, I rely on several forums and third party software to get the job done.

In this part of the market, third party softwares still thrive...

I just hope Palm and Motorola will comp' the OS update as HP did some time ago.