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Windows Mobile 7: Already at Beta 1?
With PDC 2009 right around the corner, you can probably bet the farm that Windows Mobile 7 will be unveiled there. Every PDC has consisted of major announcements and this one shouldn’t be any different. With Windows 7 out of the door, Office 14 all-but-complete, and Zune HD hitting the shelves soon, Windows Mobile 7 stands as the last really hot item to not be even so much as acknowledged by Microsoft. Well, I’m going to take it one step further and guess that Microsoft is not just going to reveal Windows Mobile 7, but they may even make a pre-release build of Windows Mobile 7 available at PDC. The reason I’m stepping out on that limb is comprised of 3 reasons:
1. Microsoft has a history of putting the bits of the technologies revealed during their keynotes into the hands of attendees at its conferences. If Windows Mobile 7 is revealed there and history is any kind of indicator, some form of the mobile OS will find its way into the hands of attendees.
2. The following Windows Mobile 7 roadmap I posted back in May which verified similar info Mary Jo Foley posted about back in February of Microsoft planning for a release to testers in November (the same month as PDC, no less):
3. The latest work experience status from the following LinkedIn profile of a Motorola employee has a rather interesting mention in it: “Runtime Environment: Windows Mobile 7.0 (Beta)“ Hmm… Does that mean Windows Mobile 7 has already hit an internal stage of Beta 1?
The aforementioned gives me good reason to speculate that Windows Mobile 7 will not only be revealed, but it will also be put into the hands of attendees in *some* capacity. I say, “some” capacity because I wouldn’t put it past Microsoft to strip it of certain features (or disable them) – just as they’ve typically done with the Windows pre-release builds they’ve distributed at past conferences. The only problem I see with that hypothesis of mine is the number of people who could actually do something with those bits. We don’t all exactly have a spare Windows Mobile device hanging around for us to install a build of Windows Mobile 7 on. Actually, that gives me an idea that maybe, “the goods” could include something that would serve the purpose of using a Windows Mobile 7 build… probably not, but it would be cool if so!
With that in mind, I’m also going to guess that Windows Mobile 7 will meet a similar fate as Windows 7 where conference-attendee interaction is concerned: Once it’s announced during a keynote on either day 1 or day 2, there will be a number of Windows Mobile 7-ready devices on-hand for all to see up-close and fiddle with.
How different do you personally think the UI is going to be from Windows Mobile 6.5? Do you think it’s going to resemble the old WM7 prototype images that have been floating around out there for quite a while, or do you think it will be completely revolutionary? I’ve heard rumors from a couple of people that its interface will be the same as the Zune HD’s interface. I guess we will all find out soon enough!
-Stephen
http://msftkitchen.com
This one's going to be a complete surprise. I really have no idea where they'll go with it. I mean, I've been trying to think about it, and I have some ideas of what I'd like to see, but they've really kept a lid on this one.
@kettch: Man, no kidding! They always do make, "the goods" something great, but as for what all they provide attendees with this year with not a whole heck of a lot on the public anticipation list… well, I guess we'll see what happens.
Zune HD's would be a great start, no? hahaha. =)
-Stephen
This inspires new confidence in me. After the rumor that WM7 will release in Q4 2010, I was giving up hope.
http://www.boygeniusreport.com.....-co-exist/
"With Windows 7 out of the door, Office 14 all-but-complete, and Zune HD hitting the shelves soon, Windows Mobile 7 stands as the last really hot item to not be even so much as acknowledged by Microsoft."
Professional 'Developers' Conference, and .NET 4 / Visual Studio 2010 don't even rate a mention? Huh?
Microsoft needs to use this PDC to gain some momentum to getting developers excited about wirting apps for Windows Mobile so I think that .NET 4/VS 2010 will be a major player.
My expectation for Windows Mobile 7 is the ability to manipulate the device without touching it. Much like project natal. And much like this post/document shows: http://blogs.zdnet.com/microsoft/?p=2787
I for one would never want to see a PMP's UI on a smartphone.
Just look at the versatility of Android, where you can have your shortcuts, widgets, and notifications all available on the homescreen. Whereas with the ZuneHD, you get a Menu through which you scroll.
I not-bad UI would be that of NVIDIA'S Tegra UI, although that too is a bit limited in the options it provides. I really don't want the limitation of the ZuneHD homescreen in WM. I want to see customizable shortcuts and widgets, and a way to access notifications from anywhere on the device.