Some nice-looking screenshots of Microsoft’s next version of Windows Mobile – codenamed ‘Crossbow’ – have popped up on the web to show the upcoming operating system’s swankier graphics. The images come courtesy of MSMobileNews, which has a selection of shots on offer. Meanwhile, the similarly names MSMobiles has a smaller pic showing Windows Mobile 6.0/Windows Mobile 2007’s Vista-like folder icons.
O RLY? Do they have Vista-like folder icons? I loooove them, they are so damn… boring.
So what’s the future of Pocket PCs (and PDAs in general)? Are these going away in favor of smartphones? I thought I read somewhere that Dell and HP were getting out of the PDA business.
Personally, I hope that’s not true. I liek PDAs.
Edited 2006-10-10 22:15
PDAs-only are history. But their whole functionality is part of the PocketPC smartphones, so it’s not like we are losing something.
PDAs-only are history.
While that may be true, I find that more depressing than encouraging. My Palm device is extremely useful to me. I don’t need a cell phone, and I certainly don’t need a smartphone.
There must be a market for organizers only. That would require more companies to come in and supply with hardware that’s affordable to the masses. The Z22 is a start, but it’s depressing that it took 10 years to get to a $100 PDA.
If that’s true, then that’s cool. Do smartphones have touchscreens so you can use a stylus with them and write on the screen?
Some do, but generally the touch screens are only on the PocketPC phones, while Smartphones use keypad navigation.
Perhaps the article could tell us what’s amazing about Windows Mobile, than dangle screenshots in front of us?
After doing windows mobile development for the past several months, I can only pray that 6 is leaps and bounds ahead.
Seriously.
Java mobile development (As fragmented as it is) is about as easy as windows mobile. You’d think since they’re all running the same OS, it wouldn’t be that bad.
Don’t even get me started on the sorry state of the microsoft bluetooth stack…
/end rant
What’s so hard about developing for Windows Mobile 5? I ported an advanced calculator from .NET 2.0 (desktop version) to .NET Compact Framework 2.0, in a few hours. Just had to do some minor adjustments to the core code, create a new UI, and that was it. Runs fine on my Qtek 9100.
I’ve not done anything advanced, but from what I see .NET on the PocketPC looks good
…given the advances which have been made in the last ten years. In both hardware and software as well. I know I’ve seen a Tablet PC that does the dual boot with Windows CE but nothing seems available for consumers at a consumer price that takes advantage of the NotepadLaptop form factor and the Windows CE operating system.
It’s a shame too. I’d always meant to go and grab one when I had the cash (I was under eighteen at the time the Jupiters were released although I certainly drooled over them in stores) but by the time I had the cash for such things the corporations had stopped making them for consumers…
–bornagainpenguin
What’s up with the “glossy” thing?
Look at this screenshot – http://www.msmobilenews.com/uploads2/2006/10/crossbow3.png
The word “missing” is almost unreadable. How can anyone realistically consider this a _good_ thing in the user interface? User interface should present information. If the text is unreadable, the interface has failed to present that information…
Yes, some “real world” things are glossy. Does not mean this property should be carried over to computer user interfaces. Same way, as limiting softphones to a 12 key keypad, or CD players to stop/play/forward/backward buttons is not exactly a good idea.
But maybe MS is trying to make a “bling-bling” style product
.
To me all those gradients makes it look extremely tacky, and well, last century. The general lack of contrast in the image you linked will make this really “fun” to read in bright light conditions. I fail to see how this is progress in any way.
I would like it a whole lot more if they ditched the gradients (maybe keeping them in a toned down form on the buttons), change the color scheme to up the contrast, and ditch that ugly cyan color
Am i the only one who think the buttons look like they simply have a grey bar at the top, and don’t really get the illusion that those are real buttons that stand out? I think my problem with them is that they are totally identically shaded and that there is no shading around them. They are just too “perfect”
WOW, its in development, not even beta. Who would have thought there would be small problems like text unreadable on the background?!
half-pseudo-aqua-bubble-gum gui again… total waste of screen space (and ugly IMO), inconsistent icons as always (some front-oriented, some left 45°, some 60°, some right…), “The SIM card is mis(unreadable white-on-white)”… That still looks like good old windows
When will they learn about GUIs ?
I can’t say I’ll be buying a Windows Mobile phone any time soon. I’m more than happy with my Symbian Nokia N70, the look and feel of it, how I can customise it and the software on offer for it.
It seems as though Microsoft has gone for the whole bling, ‘Vista’s interface is absolutely fantastic’, universal look. However, I’m very, very sceptical of gradients and other graphical effects being used on a mobile device. It will cause havoc when people are viewing it in anything but perfect light conditions. That’s why I like Symbian devices. They have good well defined colours, I can use them in any conditions, they look good and the menu system is just much better. Microsoft seem to have a fair way to go to get there, and they seem to want to turn a mobile device into a PC.
Oh, and ditching ActiveSync for Wi-fi only sync was a ludicrous idea. It adds unecessary complexity, it will be impossible or very difficult to sync in mobile network situations where you can’t connect to a network – it will just go wrong basically.
As the article points out, Microsoft have been critised for UI design, which for some apps i can understand, some apps like word are pretty barren and don’t make maximum use of the screen. Applications such as Pocket Informant shows that lots of information can be displayed without any problems.
The biggest problem i have with PocketPC’s is the poor memory management. Apps leak, memory dries up, things have gotten better in 5 but not that far.
The other problem is the amount of processes that PocketPC can handle, i think the max is about 32, which can easily be reached on a pocketpc, and becomes the norm in Smartphones which have lots of small utility apps running on start up.
Finally application wise, i wish microsoft would come up with some pocketpc version of access (i know there are alternatives but they are always so clumsy) something which can store data and move it between pc and pda quickly.
Overall im not really interested in the next version which really is WinCE 5 R2, im more interested in the version after (2008) as this will contain the biggest improvments to the platform.
> The other problem is the amount of processes that
> PocketPC can handle, i think the max is about 32
32 ? wow, I think even my ORIC Atmos can do that now with LUnix =)
seriously, this is a big improvement over the 16 max it was at some point
Besides, IIRC it was a fixed partition, which meant apps could use 1/16 of the RAM max or so. But maybe it was only for a particular platform ?
Did anyone notice the scrollbars stayed the same? Oh, ugliness…