treocentral.com >> Stories >> Special Reports >> Mobius 2002

treocentral.com >> Stories >> Special Reports
Mobius 2002


Last Updated Tue Oct 15, 2002 - 12:23 AM EDT - By James Hromadka

Phones that are smart

This past week, I and a group of other handheld journalists attended Mobius 2002, a symposium held at Microsoft's headquarters in Redmond that discussed handheld computers and the future of the Pocket PC. This time last year, Microsoft was just releasing its Pocket PC 2002 operating system and was talking about future smartphone products. This year, the focus was all about smartphones.

The conference opened with a discussion of Mobile2Market. It was demonstrated how one could search for applications over GPRS and download them directly to a Pocket PC. Payments are handled by the mobile carrier. This type of purchasing system can be very useful to mobile users who don't want to have to enter their credit card number every time they make a purchase, and makes it less of a hassle for developers who don't want to have to register their wares with multiple websites; it will only be necessary to register with a few catalogues to make software available to all mobile carriers.

As for the devices themselves, I was able to get my hands on a Pocket PC Phone Edition, and in the coming weeks I will at some point do a comparison article between it and the Treo 270. We also got to see the smartphone that will come out later this year. The Pocket PC Phone Edition (PPE) is designed for users that are more interested in sending and receiving data on their handhelds than phone calls.

Likewise, the smartphone is a phone first and then a data device second. At first glance, I like the smartphone more than the PPE; it's smaller and lighter and doesn't feel like someone just stuck an antenna on an iPAQ. The smartphone will take some getting used to, as there is no touchscreen -- all input is via the phone's hardware buttons. This could take some getting used to for someone that has previously owned a handheld device.

One thing that troubled me about these devices is their potential DRM (digital rights management) uses. By the use of certificates, operators and enterprise customers could cause their users' Pocket PCs to refuse to install applications that were not certified by Microsoft or have a security certificate. There are no DRM controls on the Pocket PC that I know of, but when I asked Microsoft about DRM during an official Q&A session, a spokesperson said that the hardware identifier was for DRM, and it will find its way into the Pocket PC at some point.

On a lighter note, we also got to see some of the gaming capabilities of the Pocket PC, and it is impressive. Hundreds of colorful objects were going all over the screen, and in one demo objects were moving at 110 frames per second (FPS).

Next Page: Smart Displays & Tablet PCs >>

References
Actions

>	Print this page
>

Cases	Chargers	Bluetooth
Headsets	Keyboards	Memory
Protectors	Cradles	Styli
More Treo Accessories

Palm Side Case
Side-loading leather belt clip case
Just $24.95 BUY
More Side Cases

Palm Stylus (2 Pack) for Treo Pro
Keep extras at home and at the office.
Just $14.95 BUY
More Styli

Screen Protectors for Treo
Protect your screen!
Just $12.95 BUY
More Screen Protectors

Palm Charger for Centro, Treo
Charger for your Palm handheld
Just $14.95 BUY
More Wall Chargers

SPE UltraSlim SkinCase for Treo 755p, Treo 750
Half the thickness, better keyboard access
Just $9.95 BUY
More Skin Cases

Palm Leather Zip Case for Pixi

Just $36.95 BUY
More Pocket Pouches

Palm Slip Case for Pixi

Just $27.95 BUY
More Pocket Pouches

Motorola H17 Bluetooth Headset

Just $89.95 BUY
More Wireless Headsets

Seidio Micro-USB Travel Charger,Touchstone Compatible for Palm Pixi, Pre

Just $19.95 BUY
More Wall Chargers

RedFly Media Cable for iPod for Treo Pro, Treo 800w, Treo 750, Treo 700wx, Treo 700w

Just $29.95 BUY
More Mobile Companion

Plantronics BackBeat 903 Stereo Bluetooth Headset

Just $89.95 BUY
More Wireless Headsets

Jabra Cruiser Bluetooth Car Kit Speakerphone

Just $89.95 BUY
More Speakerphones

BlackBerry HS-500 Bluetooth Headset

Just $69.95 BUY
More Wireless Headsets



Will The Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 Land on AT&T ? Gameloft Says Nobody Making Money on Android Google Optimizes Google News for Android Seesmic Twitter App for Android Announced, Looks Great What Is Google Chrome OS And How Does it Affect Android	BlackBerry Bold 9700 Now Available From AT&T! Contest Reminder: BlackBerry Unlock Codes, Stop Turning!, Meterberry and Leave It On EMEA BlackBerry Alliance Summit 2009 To Be Held In Rome, Italy, This Week Sentient- New Premium Theme From Elecite! SmartSig Gives Your More Control Over Email Signatures	Want some hands on time with the N900? Join me on Tuesday in Redmond Nokia N900 now shipping in the US! Maemo reported to power Nseries after 2012 Hands on with the Nokia E72 and Nokia Booklet 3G Another Nokia N900 deal alert: $50 Nokia rebate on Amazon and Newegg	Ninja Tip: How to Use an Apple Multi-touch Magic Mouse with Windows Wired?s ?We Really Hope Apple?s Making an iTablet!? Interface Concept Birdfeed Twitter Client for iPhone Goes 1.2 TiPb Presents: iPhone Live! #76 ? Game On! iPhone Apps for Less Addendum: Save Up to $30 on Navigon MobileNavigator

New in the App Catalog for 21 November 2009 Iusacell to also carry Pre in Mexico? The Shack Black Friday Deal: Palm Pre for $99.99 Disappearing Palm Profile backup "solution" Video: Pre and Pixi compared side-by-side	A Treo 650 Booting Android? Same article, Different headlines... That's Just Swell... GSM Upgrade Knocks Out Treo 680 Phone Calls Hanging onto the Treo 680... Again?! Palm Takeover Rumors Resurface...	10 minutes with the Bell Samsung Omnia II WMExperts Store 2009 Holiday Gift Guide Oh, hi, Verizon Omnia II Follow Friday: ROM chefs on Twitter T-Mobile Touch Pro 2 or Dash 3G: Get them for free; make $100