Windows Mobile 6 Set for 3GSM Debut

Microsoft plans to release Windows Mobile 6 on Monday at the 3GSM Conference in Barcelona. The upgrade features integration with Windows Live services, better search, and tighter security.

Code-named "Crossbow," the new version is said to be more of an incremental upgrade to Microsoft's mobile operating system. Since the last release of Windows Mobile 5 in May 2005, the company has embarked on a massive net services initative, called "Live," and security threats to mobile devices have increased markedly.

Windows Live Messenger and Mail will be integrated into the operating system, and new security functionality will keep data secure. Enhanced search allows for quicker navigation to desired results by allowing the user to see possible hits by typing in the first few letters of the search query.

Three versions of Windows Mobile will be made available: Classic, intended for PDAs without phone capabilities; Standard (formerly Smartphone Edition) for non-touch screen phones; and Professional (formerly Pocket PC Edition) for touch screen models.

Microsoft has made efforts to unify the PDA and Smartphone codebases and functionality. For example, Windows Mobile Standard now includes Mobile Office applications, a feature that has been part of Windows Mobile for PDA systems for several years.

However, coding will still be different between the two versions, requiring developers to build two separate versions of applications. Microsoft plans to unify the code base in the next version of Windows Mobile, code-named "Photon."

That version is due in 2008, and will feature a more modular design and be based on Windows CE 6.0.

An exact date for release has not been given, although Microsoft is hoping to have it available by the spring. The first devices with the OS pre-installed would likely follow soon after.