Mobile phones powered by the newly released Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.5 operating system are now available, in the company's latest effort to compete with the Apple iPhone and Research In Motion BlackBerry smartphones.
Along with the Windows Mobile OS launch, the company also opened up the Windows Marketplace store, where Windows Mobile users can download custom apps for their phones.
Most phone owners with devices running Windows 5.0 and 6.0 cannot upgrade to the new OS, though some phones powered by Windows Mobile 6.1 are able to upgrade to 6.5. The HTC Dash, Snap, Ozone, Touch Pro 2, Pharos Traveler, and Samsung Jack, Mirage, and Omnia Pro are eligible for upgrades -- but Microsoft didn't say if there would be an upgrade charge.
In the U.S. mobile industry, AT&T, Verizon Wireless and Sprint will offer Windows Mobile 6.5 phones, and the first reviews of the OS haven't been that appealing. If interested, PC World today published a roundup of various first impressions, though the OS "mostly disappoints."
I'd recommend waiting a week or two, then read some more in-depth reviews, but if you've been looking for a mobile OS to support, perhaps Windows Mobile 6.5 isn't the right one.
The OS and app store were first introduced last February, with the company attempting to modernize its struggling mobile OS. The 6.5 release only has minor improvements to hold over the company until the Windows Mobile 7 release, which is on track for release sometime in the first half of 2010.
Specifically, Microsoft has shifted away from using a stylus with its OS, working on new finger-friendly features, including touchscreen.
