Ad agency T.A.G (a unit of McCann) has apparently been chosen to work with Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) on what they openly referred to as the Pink project. It does exist! The rumours of Pink have floated around like vapourware for a long time now, but this certainly helps to cement its reality. The last we heard about Microsoft’s Pink was a list of preliminary specifications of the device, but it was still unclear if that encompassed the whole scope of the project. How it incorporates the Zune brand, if at all, and Windows Mobile 6.5 (or even 7) remains something of a mystery, but it would be no surprise to see all of these things come together somehow with Pink.
Two minutes of blurtastic video have bubbled up which give a basic tour of Windows Mobile 6.5 Standard running on a Motorola (NYSE: MOT) Q9h. One would easily expect that the newer Windows Mobile handsets are built with 6.5 in mind, but it’s great to see even older hardware can handle the new OS, too. There’s not much that especially catches the eye - in fact, the whole thing looks pretty samey, but we all know 6.5 is more of a facelift than anything else. The SDK for the “new” Windows Mobile has already been released, so you can expect the software soon - maybe late summer/early fall if the hardware rumours pan out.
When it comes to super-slim and sexy smartphones with enough computing power to take over the world, the Toshiba TG01 takes the cake. Thanks to a power-packed Snapdragon chipset, the TG01 speeds along at 1Ghz clock speeds while playing with a hefty 256MB of RAM and a 4.1-inch WVGA (800 x 480) touchscreen display. The kicker - the TG01 stuffs WiFi, GPS, 3.2-megapixel camera and 3G data connectivity into a package barely 10mm thick! And, it’s coming to the UK next week.
We’ve been keeping an eye on the Toshiba (OTCPK: TOSBF) TG01 ever since we had a chance to put hands on the super-thin smartphone in Barcelona. Despite having pulled the plug on Japanese production, Toshiba looks to be going strong with their TG01 roll-out. Check out our in-depth Toshiba TG01 hands-on here.
While those of use in The States will have to wait for the Toshiba TG01 to get all official, it looks like the UK will be the next market to get the Windows Mobile 6.1 smartphone. Come July 9th, Toshiba will be showing off something really cool in London. Given Toshiba’s Summer launch window for the TG01, it’s highly likely we’ll see Toshiba unleashing the Toshiba TG01 on British soil next week.
SPB Software is out with another educational game called SPB Geo Game — it’s about time they remove the “SPB” part from their titles, don’t you think?
Anyway, the game is designed to educate players on world’s capitals and national flags. On that note, SPB’s press release says that today’s global diversity is represented by 235 countries (including small islands and independent territories), 235 flags, and 234 capitals. SPB Geo Game helps users memorize all this information and “widens one’s horizons in a fun way,” as a result.
The finger-friendly app also features 3G globe view, as well as educational animations. It is readily available for touchscreen smartphones running either Windows Mobile or Android, and you can grab it for $4.95.
Skype users rejoice! The Skype 3.0 application for Windows Mobile has officially matured past “beta” status, and is now available for download. If you haven’t yet tried Skype 3.0 for Windows Mobile, we’d suggest taking a quick look-see. The 3.0 version features an SMS messaging feature that is supposed to cut down on international texting fees as well as a file-sharing feature that basically does what it you’d expect.
The Skype 3.0 Windows Mobile app also rocks an updated UI and presumably does away with some of beta-bugs.
The iPhone helped popularize the smartphone. The iPhone’s user-focused UI and more natural capacitance-based touchscreen has changed the mass-market’s expectation of what a smartphone should be. It’s just too bad Windows Mobile has yet to catch on - it’s still fully backing resistive touchscreens (you might know them as “squishy” touchscreens). Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) has been making excuses for not overtly supporting capacitive touchscreens by spouting higher hardware costs and lesser hand-writing recognition accuracy. Given Windows Mobile’s ancient UI and fairly disappointing user experience, a squishy touchscreen is the least of Redmond’s problems.
That doesn’t mean a capacitance touchscreen wouldn’t go a long way to making Windows Mobile work and feel more like a modern day touchscreen smartphone. In fact, Microsoft seems to be aware of “some device manufacturers” that are “considering options to ship capacitive screens” on their Windows Mobile smartphone.
A recently-posted developer article first makes a case for using capacitive touchscreens:
Capacitive technology has several advantages: zero pressure is required to make an input because nothing needs to be deformed and this leads to a much more natural interface experience; although additional material is laid onto the screen, there is no air gap so optical clarity is much improved reducing the need for backlighting making power draw lower; multiple touch points can be supported; things like touch size and pressure can be extrapolated from the capacitive data.
Microsoft then makes excuses for Windows Mobile smarpthones using resistive touchscreens:
However they do suffer in other areas: in general the cost is currently higher than the equivalent resistive screen; supporting a stylus is hard because it must be made of conducting material and must make sufficient contact to change the capacitive property of the screen; in several areas the accuracy tends to be lower than resistive e.g. around the edges of the screen, combined with the lack of a stylus and lower sample rates makes things like handwriting input very hard.
But, there’s hope yet. The article clearly states that a Windows Mobile 6.5-powered handset featuring a capacitance-based touchscreen is at least an option that’s being considered by hardware manufacturers:
Windows Mobile 6.5 has primarily been designed for resistive screens because some input areas still rely on small controls and require a high level of input accuracy that can’t be easily achieved with a finger and require a stylus; however some device manufacturers are considering options to ship capacitive screens.
HTC showed the world that Windows Mobile smartphones don’t have to suffer from small-buttons-and-awkward-UI Syndrome. HTC’s TouchFLO 3D II UI not only replaces the traditional WinMo homescreen, it also replaces many of the awkward UI elements that makes resistive touchscreens necessary. With enough customization to the WM6.5 UI, it’s possible that HTC will roll out Windows Mobile 6.5 smartphones equipped with capacitive touchscreens running HTC TouchFLO 3D II!
The HTC Snap has already proven itself a top choice for cost-conscious smartphone fans looking for a Windows Mobile smartphone with a good QWERTY keyboard. But, with Windows Mobile 6.1 Standard running the show, the HTC Snap is going to feel a little dated when Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) launches Windows Mobile 6.5 later this year. Unless, that is, HTC decides to bless the Snap with a Windows Mobile 6.5 update - as hinted at by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG).
For those of you that don’t yet know, the Bluetooth SIG is a Bluetooth certification body that, well, certifies, uh, Bluetooth. Anyway, the Bluetooth SIG website can be a goldmine for leaked tid-bits on upcoming mobile phones. The latest leak makes reference to the HTC Cedar (HTC Snap’s codename) running “WM6.5.” It’s not clear if HTC intends to release a WM6.5 update for both HTC Snap/Cedar variants, or if the update will only be available for the recently spotted HTC Cedar100. Still, the mention of an OS upgrade for the Snap is intriguing.
With a little luck, HTC Snap owners might be treated to a Windows Mobile 6.5 upgrade in the near future.
The US Census Bureau is getting ready to conduct the most wireless, high-tech census in US history. And, they’ve tapped none other than No. 3 US wireless carrier Sprint (NYSE: S) as the exclusive wireless provider for all their “census-ing” needs. The wirelessly connected Decennial Census will kick off in 2010, and promises to be the most accurate account of the US population in the history of the US Census.
You might recall seeing the HTC Census passing through the FCC, on it’s way to some half million (500,000) Census enumerators. HTC created the HTC Census specifically for the US Census Bureau’s Field Data Collection Automation (FDCA) project, which aims to collect and transmit census data back to a central database.
Armed with this EVDO data-only Windows Mobile 5.0 Pocket PC, and integrated GPS, the enumerator’s job of collecting absentee census information will get nice and streamlined. As a high-tech plus, the built-in GPS unit also keeps the enumerator honest.
Makes me wish I had an HTC Census during my stint as a US Census enumerator back in 2000.
A little over a year ago, we heard about TerreStar working on a satellite-capable Windows Mobile handset, and have simply been awaiting on a satellite launch to for the phone to play with. Well, that puppy will be in orbit on July 1st., shortly after which the phone will be available on AT&T (NYSE: T). The pricetag will purportedly be in the $700 range unsubsidized, and will hopefully cost less than $1/minute, which is the current going rate for satellite calls. That’s not too crazy, considering it’s going to space, but you’ll also have quad-band GSM and dual-band WCDMA to rely on if you happen to be within the reach of terrestrial networks. The phone will be sold primarily to local and federal government officials who need coverage in remote areas, so don’t expect it to be available in retail any time soon.
Robin Zhu, who is now the Founder and the Creative Director of RIGO Design, used to be the Visual UX Lead for Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) between 2004 and 2008. He plans to launch a personal site on September 9, 2009 (09.09.09) to showcase his portfolio, but Chinese site hxxland managed to get a sneak peak.
Remember the supposed leak of Windows Mobile 7 screenshots? Robin’s “concept art” looks remarkably similar. I’m of the few who think Microsoft can stage a come back, especially after looking at what they’ve done with the Zune HD. We can only hope that some sort of talent can cross pollinate between the Zune and Windows Mobile teams. Having Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) and Palm (NSDQ: PALM) compete over the best new UI is one thing, having the big boys, Nokia (NYSE: NOK) and Microsoft, duke it out is another thing all together.
Ad agency T.A.G (a unit of McCann) has apparently been chosen to work with Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) on what they openly referred to as the Pink project. It does exist! The rumours of Pink have floated around like vapourware for a long time now, but this certainly helps to cement its reality. The last we heard about Microsoft’s Pink was a list of preliminary specifications of the device, but it was still unclear if that encompassed the whole scope of the project. How it incorporates the Zune brand, if at all, and Windows Mobile 6.5 (or even 7) remains something of a mystery, but it would be no surprise to see all of these things come together somehow with Pink.
When it comes to super-slim and sexy smartphones with enough computing power to take over the world, 
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