Pender's Blog by Lee Pender, RCPU Editor

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Windows Mobile Moving and Shaking

It's not often that we write much about Windows Mobile here, but the teetering OS -- which doesn't enjoy anywhere near the market share of its desktop counterpart and has been struggling recently -- topped the news early this week, so here we are.

There's much to say, actually, so here's a little wrap. First off, Microsoft is announcing a new service that lets users synchronize their devices with the Web. Called MyPhone, it sounds a lot like -- maybe even exactly like -- Google's Google Sync product, which the search giant created in part by licensing Microsoft's ActiveSync technology.

Yes, that's right. The two rivals announced very similar products this week, and both offerings have Microsoft technology in their DNA. Maybe this is Microsoft hedging its bets in the mobile market by introducing one offering and getting its technology into another. Or maybe it was just an opportunity for Redmond to pick up some revenue from a competitor. In any case, this type of cooperation between vendors is not unusual -- unless the vendors are Google and Microsoft. Then it's news.

For Windows Mobile partners and users, MyPhone, along with a forthcoming, Apple-esque mobile-applications store, are at least signs of life from an operating system that has looked a little less than healthy lately. (By the way, it's not lost on us that MyPhone sounds a lot like iPhone. We're just sayin'.)

As is always the case with the would-be vultures who can't wait for Microsoft's demise (and will likely be waiting for a while longer), some pundits had started whispering here and there about the death of Windows Mobile. But with a new version out this month and some potential momentum around MyPhone, it looks as though Redmond is very much moving and shaking with Windows Mobile. Just how many customers dance to the new tune is something partners and mobile pundits will be watching very closely.

Can Windows Mobile regain its momentum? What's your take on the mobile OS? Sound off at [email protected].

Posted by Lee Pender on February 10, 2009


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