Windows Mobile 5.0 Points the Way to Device Convergence

A major makeover to Windows Mobile, Microsoft’s Windows CE—based platform for Pocket PCs (PPCs) and Smartphones, shipped to manufacturers in May 2005. Windows Mobile (WM) 5.0 (code-named Magneto) and its associated SDK provide new features that will appeal to consumers, corporate users, developers, and mobile operators. The most important changes enable manufacturers to create hybrid devices that will meld aspects of PPCs and Smartphones and may incorporate items such as music players, cameras, Wi-Fi radios, and global positioning system (GPS) receivers. In addition, application developers can now create single versions of many applications that will run on any type of WM 5.0 device.

As with earlier releases, WM 5.0 is an OEM-only product and the first devices won’t hit the market until late summer 2005. Furthermore, with very few exceptions, manufacturers of most existing Windows Mobile 2003 devices or the mobile operators that sell them will not offer or even support software upgrades to WM 5.0, so most current users will have to buy new devices to get the new features.