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Quite awhile ago I wrote up on Marshall Wait Cursor 2, which is a really cool donationware app that allows you to change that old, boring WM5/6 wait cursor aka WinPie.

Well, he's back now with version 3 and much improvements all around. The app now has a very modern, finger-friendly interface. In addition, there is a whole bunch of new icons that are available as separate "icon packs" (note: the large ones only seem to work with VGA devices). These new icons are gorgeous and even hilarious (Famous dancing PB &J bananna? Done.  Beavis and Butthead?  Ready.).

Other notable changes with v.3:

• Works on any resolution device, even non-touch ones
• Autostart option
• Cursor timeout option
• Confirmed working with WM6.5 (natch)

I'm currently using the "Processing" box one because I'm just a tech nerd.  Anyways, give it a shot.  It's free and really spices up your device in a simple, painfree way.  Of course, we recommend doing a backup JIK and note that this will consume some memory, so Mogul and Sprint Treo Pro users take heed. 

Take a peek after the jump to see more of the UI and cursor choices!

[Download here!]

The feature list for the Firefox mobile browser is steadily growing. In addition to the (soon-to-be) standard Firefox 3.5 engine, we're also expecting to see:

• Weave: The all-remembering password/bookmark/tab/add-on/everything sync feature.
• Geolocation: Your browser can tell where you are.
• Gesture browsing: Possibly. We've seen a cool demonstration.

And now, we see a prototype that could bring automatic Web site logins to the mobile and desktop browsers via Weave sync. It'll handle OpenID, as well as normal username/password logins.

Of course, all of this is still in the early stages, and work on the Firefox mobile browser continues. Check out the demo video of the auto log-in.

Mozilla Labs blog via Lifehacker

Holding out for a Sprint Touch Pro but just can't afford the new-customer price of $299? Well, Amazon is running one heck of a fire-sale as you can now pick one up for the quite low price of  $99! Of course, that is after a $100 mail-in-rebate. But still  ... with a point-of-purchase sale of $199, it is still lower than Sprint direct.

That's a heck of a deal if we say so ourselves.

We've been playing with a couple of early versions of the new Facebook application for Windows Mobile, and now the official release has arrived.

Here's what you'll get:

• The only Facebook app available that uploads video straight from your phone.
• You can get status updates, respond to friend requests and photo tags, create wall posts, send messages, update your profile pic – the usual stuff.
• The app also integrates with Windows Live, allowing you to share photos, updates, etc. with that service.
• The app also will also be available on Windows Mobile 6.5 "later this year." (Sorry, no dates leaked.)

You can download it directly here, or find out more at WindowsMobile.com/facebook. Windows Mobile 6 or 6.1 only, folks.

Acer has apparently run into to problems with U.S. network operators and will delay the launch of the Windows Mobile phones announced earlier this year. The Tempo Series was originally projected to land in the U.S. by the end of 2009. While Acer wouldn't offer a target date, the best they would offer is that the phones would be available for U.S. release some time in 2010.

The bad news is we'll have to wait a little while longer to see the likes of the F1, x960, and F900. The good news is that the delay may have the new phones come off the assembly line already loaded with Windows Mobile 6.5, avoiding the need to worry about upgrading.

Via Phonescoop

Update: Acer let us know that there's still a shot at an Acer smartphone launch in the US during Q4 of 2009. 

The HTC Touch Diamond 2 continues its march around the globe, this time getting announced by T-Mobile UK. [via Mobile Tech Addicts]

The phone will be known as the MDA Compact V, following that naming convention. You can tell by the picture at right that the shell is a little custom compared to the unlocked version that we're used to seeing, but that's par for the course. We've known shells to vary slightly among U.S. carriers as well.

Something we're definitely not used to in the U.S. is seeing the new hotness from HTC available free on contract, but that's exactly what T-Mo's doing here. The MDA Compact V will be available starting May 21 for free with a plan that costs at least £50 a month.

Full presser after the break, for those of you into that sort of thing.

Update: Eagle-eyed reader Jim (Hi, Jim!), ya know, actually read through the entire press release and saw that T-Mo mentions an upgrade to Windows Mobile 6.5 in September. As we've still heard nothing official from Microsoft, simply take that for what it is ...

They make movies about these things. Boy sees phone. Boy lusts after phone for months. Boy finally gets phone only to discover it's nice from afar but far from nice. OK, we've yet to see a movie quite like that. (But if they do, you bet Dieter and Mal will review it in the WMExperts Movie Review Podcast.)

No, we're talking about the Sony Xperia X1 here. It was announced with much pomp and circumstance but took months and months (and months and months) to come to market. And even then, it's gotten zero carrier support in the United States.

Turns out, the Xperia X1 was "a kind of experiment," said SE President Hideki "Dick" Komiyama. That's from a Financial Times piece [via Electronista] in which Komiyama speaks about SE's recent struggles and how it's failed to really compete in the smartphone industry.

But there's good news for you Windows Mobile fans: SE still plans to put out three smartphones by the end of the year – one Windows Mobile, one Android and one Symbian.

As anyone who's used one knows, it's not that the Xperia X1 (read our full review here) is a bad phone. It's just that it priced itself out of the game without bringing anything really groundbreaking. The panels interface is interesting, but it's just not enough to justify spending that much jing, especially today. Let's hope SE finds more of a middle ground (and U.S. carrier support) with its next try.

Our friends at IntoMobile.com are reporting that Best Buy is accepting pre-orders for Sony’s Xperia X1. Taking a look over at Best Buy’s website you can find the WM Devices going for a modest $799.99.

According to IntoMobile, Best Buy is projecting a preliminary ship date of November 23, 2008. The price is in line with what we’ve reported for the Xperia X1 but the ship date is a few days instead of that 28th date.