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  • I Really Want an Apple iPhone, but…

    I’ve been a user and fan of Microsoft Windows Mobile (aka Windows CE) Handheld PCs, Pocket PCs, and Smartphones since 1996. I’ve used either a Windows Mobile Pocket PC Phone Edition or a Smartphone as my phone for nearly five years now. However, I really really want an Apple iPhone. Take a look at Apple’s Phil Schiller demonstrating it for CBS News if you wonder why.
    CBS News: Apple’s Phil Schiller demonstrates the iPhone

    That said, there is a “But…” in this train of thought. There are a couple of big issues for me and, I suspect, for others too.

    First, the Apple iPhone will be available exclusively through Cingular in the US (soon to be merged into the AT&T Wireless brand). They are the largest mobile phone carrier in the US. But, they aren’t my carrier. And, neither Cingular nor AT&T Wireless have had great acclaim from their customers in the recent past. Take a look at RCRWireless’ discussion of Consumer Reports’ survey of 18,000 mobile phone customers. The title of the article is: Consumer Reports’ subscribers give Cingular, Sprint Nextel coal for the holidays.

    Second, there is an issue about the dreaded MRC (Monthly Recurring Cost). The way it looks to me is that I would want their lowest cost voice plan with their unlimted data plan. I’m guessing this will be $40 + $40 = $80. My current plan is $30 for voice and $30 for unlimited data (also EDGE) plus unlimited WiFi at Starbucks, Borders Books, and Kinko/FedEx locations. That’s $60/month. That means that annual service cost would jump from $720/year to $960/year. Over the course of a two-year contract, this comes out to $1,440 vs. $1,920.

    Third, Apple has verified that they will not allow 3rd party applications to be installed. Since they use the Safari browser, I guess you could argue that you can use web apps (maybe even AJAX-ified web apps). But, there are still plenty of times I know I will be out of EDGE or WiFi signal range and be app-less. Of course, the built-in apps look nice. I don’t install many apps on my Pocket PC or Smartphone. But, the ones I do have installed have become invaluable to me. I would need them or something like them on my iPhone.

    My guess at the moment is that I’m going to have to pass on the Apple iPhone for 2007. I hope one of the other carriers picks up the iPhone in 2008/2009 and has a reasonable voice+data plan for me to consider.

  • Virtual Earth Mobile 1.69

    I mentioned Virtual Earth Mobile for the Pocket PC a while back. An update to 1.69 became available last week. You can find it at:

    Virtual Earth Mobile 1.69

    Changes include: Ability to drag the map with a stylus, get directions in text form, bug fix for Add to Contacts option.

    Virtual Earth Mobile is a Pocket PC application that uses data from Microsoft’s Virtual Earth to display maps on a Windows Mobile Pocket PC. You can read Jason Fuller’s complete description of his app in the original blog entry describing it at:

    Virtual Earth Mobile (2005.10.23)

  • Apple iPhone – Wow!

    Apple announced the…

    Apple iPhone

    …today. I usually don’t buy into market-speak hyperbole. But, wow, the iPhone sure looks like a winner. The Microsoft Windows Mobile product group has a lot of head scratching and catching up to do now.

    Couple of items…

    • The iPhone won’t actually be available until June
    • It will only be available from Cingular (which will become AT&T Wireless). This leaves out a large double digit percentage of US mobile phone users who are on Sprint PCS, T-Mobile, or Verizon Wireless
    • Assuming it only has a single battery, I’m concerned about battery life if I use it as both my phone and audio/video player
    • We don’t know what applications will be available. Me? I need Ilium Software’s eWallet on whatever mobile device I use.

  • Yahoo! Go 2.0 Beta

    Yahoo! announced a beta release of their application for phones.

    Yahoo! Go 2.0 Beta

    The problem is that it supports a relatively small set of phones from Nokia, RIM, and Samsung. So, if you use a Palm OS, Windows Mobile, or even some other Nokia or Samsung phone, you are out of luck. This is one of the reasons I don’t like client-side applications for accessing web portals.

  • ActiveSync: Pocket PC vs. Smartphone

    ActiveSyncSmartphone
    Figure 1. ActiveSync Options for Smartphone
    ActiveSyncPocketPC
    Figure 2. ActiveSync Options for Pocket PC

    A lot of the confusion I see in email and comments (to blogs and articles) are caused by Mobile Phone carriers and Microsoft failing to properly distinquish between their Windows Mobile 5 Pocket PC Phone Edition and Smartphone platforms. The main problem is that several Smartphone devices such as the Motorola Q and the T-Mobile Dash look like the Treo 700w Pocket PC Phone Edition. They have similar looking form factors, LCD display, and QWERTY thumb keyboards. But, they are quite different.

    Compare the two ActiveSync options lists displayed above. The one at the top is for a Windows Mobile 5 Smartphone. The one below it is the options list for a Windows Mobile 5 Pocket PC Phone Edition. Note that The Smartphone does not provide the option to sync Notes (from Outlook) or Files. We can only guess that Microsoft assumed that the previously keyboard-less Smartphones would not be used as text entry devices for various kinds of note taking options. That is also why the Smartphone does not have Word Mobile or Excel Mobile.

    But, several Smartphones do have QWERTY thumb keyboards (though they still lack a touchscreen). And, many people assume that their device is a Pocket PC Phone Edition instead of a Smartphone. So, if you are thinking about buying a Windows Mobile based device, check if it is a Pocket PC Phone Edition or Smartphone and buy the one that fits your needs. If you are voice-centric, a Smartphone is probably the device for you. If you are data-centric, a Pocket PC Phone Edition is probably the one you want to look closely at. The main thing, though, is to be aware of the strengths, features, and limitations of whatever device you choose.

    The basic rule of thumb is that a Pocket PC Phone Edition will have many more features and applications than a Smartphone. However, the Smartphone can be easily used with one hand while the Pocket PC Phone Edition will almost always require two hands.

  • OT: Blog Tag Game

    Handspring VisorI rarely go off-topic on my blogs. But, I’ll an exception for this blog tagging game going on. I was blog tagged by Julie Van De Water from the Ilium Software Blog (Ilium produces outstanding products for Windows Mobile devices). I don’t know who originated this particular tree of the game, but here’s reference that explains what is going on: The Blog Tag Tree. There are two basic requirements after getting tagged: 1. Share five things about yourself. 2. Tag five other bloggers. So, here goes.

    1. Although this blog tends to focus on Windows Mobile Pocket PC/Phone Edition and Smartphone devices (and an iPod reference now and then), I actually bought and still own a Palm OS device: A Handspring Visor from around, hmm, 1999 or 2000. I dusted it off, put in two fresh AA batteries, and, yep, it fired up right away (unlike all of the iPaqs I have which have all died – HP! Bring back the Jornada engineers!). You can see the photo I took today of the still functioning Handspring Visor above.
    2. The reason I own one is that I briefly worked as a contractor for ZDNet from 2000 to 2001. Why? The whole group MSN ComputingCentral Online Managers had their contracts moved from the Microsoft Network to ZDNet when Microsoft tried to revamp MSN. Then, the whole group was disbanded in the Spring of 2001 as part of the great Dot-com Implosion period.
    3. I prefer to use a Pocket PC because it has a much richer application universe but I generally carry around a Smartphone because it is easier to carry.
    4. Although most people know me from the days I was a contractor for the Microsoft Network or as a proponent of Microsoft’s Windows Mobile Platform, the desktop or notebook in front of me is often a Mac. I pretty much use everything: Windows XP/Vista, Linux, and Mac OS X. And, I’ve really gotten to appreciate the Mac over the last two years.
    5. I watch a lot of TV shows on the… Disney Channel (!?!)… with my daughter and actually enjoy a bunch of them. It is a nice change of pace from the often dark and grim shows on other networks. I don’t think I have yet sufficiently explained to her how Kim Possible is a descendent of the James Bond movies.

    Now, here are the five bloggers I’m tagging…

    1. Ryan & Jen Ozawa - The Transmission. Ryan and Jen became famous for their unofficial Lost Podcast. Ryan even made the front page of Wired.com after Ryan and Jen dropped the Lost Podcast at its height of popularity.
    2. Burt Lum – Bytemarks. Burt’s one of the local uber-geeks in my hometown and gathers a group of other geeks for an extremely enjoyable in-person and informal monthly lunch gathering.
    3. Derrick Story – The Digital Story. Derrick is an great professional photographer and the author of numerous photography and Mac-related books for O’Reilly Media.
    4. Jaap van Ekris – Modern Nomads. Jaap, like me, has been recognized as a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP) in the Mobile Devices area. You may have read some of the articles I’ve referred to in a couple of blog items here.
    5. Frank McPherson – Pocket PC How2. Frank is the author of several editions (4th came out last year) of How to Do Everything with Your Pocket PC (renamed How to do Everything with Windows Mobile for the most recent edition). I had the privilege of helping a little by being a technical editor for the various editions.