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If you've followed the site fairly closely you may know that my form-factor of choice is the front-facing QWERTY keyboard and that I slightly prefer Windows Mobile standard to WM Pro.  My most-used phone of 2008 was, believe it or not, the Q9h – and it was the phone I always went to when I needed to "give'r."  Lately, though, it's gotten tired.

I give you all this history because, well, the HTC Snap is something I've been hoping HTC would make ever since I first laid eyes on the T-Mobile Dash.  I've handled the Snap on three separate occassions and will go have another look today.  Since this is 'my' form factor, I care a lot about whether HTC got the details right on the Snap.

For the most part, they did.  Read on for a hands-on gallery, a brief video (hall noise removed), and my thoughts so far on the device. 

It's beta day here at WMExperts, and next up is PhoneFusion's Voicemail Plus 2.0. PhoneFusion is in the same vein as GrandCentral (now Google Voice) in that it gives you one number and box to access all of your phone calls, messages, etc. (Hit up PhoneFusion.com for the full, extensive list.) Voicemail Plus brings visual voicemail into the mix. From PF's presser:

Fusion Voicemail Plus 2.0 for Windows Mobile is a free, downloadable voicemail application that gives any Windows Mobile smartphone user with a wireless data and text messaging plan the ability to centralize all of their voicemail boxes and see -- right on the screen of their mobile device -- a list of their voicemail messages. The service also allows users to listen to their voicemails directly from their smartphone.

So that's about the size of it. The basic Phone Fusion service starts at $9.95 a month. Learn more about Voicemail Plus here.

In a bit of clarification from Phonescoop that we weren't exactly hoping for, Windows Marketplace for Mobile will only be available to phones running Windows Mobile 6.5, dashing the hopes and shopping dreams of anyone who has a device that won't be updated. Same goes for the themes. They'll be Windows Mobile 6.5 only — and even then only for touchscreen phones (Oh, Snap!). The Facebook app already is will be available to everyone.

Of course, we still don't officially know which or how many current phones will be updated from 6.1 to 6.5 (we do know that the HTC Touch Diamond 2 and Touch Pro 2 will get it, as will the Toshiba TG01). Microsoft recently opened the door for more upgrades than we expected, but things are still a little murky.

And further clouding the waters is the ROM cooking community. The folks at XDA Developers already have versions of Windows Mobile 6.5 running on a number of phones. So will they have access to the Marketplace? Or will there be some sort of gatekeeper to keep phones running unofficial ROMs from shopping?

Jabra, manufacturer of Bluetooth products, announced today at the CTIA meetings in Las Vegas two new Bluetooth products. The Jabra HALO is a wireless Bluetooth stereo headset that will allow you to enjoy your music and handles phone calls. Weighing only three ounces, this over-the-head designed headset shows a little versatility in that it can be switched between wireless and wired connectivity should your phone/MP3 player not be Bluetooth equipped.

The other new product that Jabra has announced is the SP200 Speakerphone. Building on the success of the Jabra SP700, the SP200 is a Bluetooth wireless speakerphone featuring one large and easily accessible control button, a volume wheel and a dedicated on/off switch. The SP200 is not only suitable for the car but can also be used in the home or office.

Jabra is indicating the HALO will be available sometime in May with a price tag in the neighborhood of $130 and the SP200 should be available sometime this month with a price tag of about $60. Once we get our hands on these two new accessories, we will take them out for a test drive to let you know how well the match up with Jabra's reputation for offering quality Bluetooth devices.

Not a whole heck of a lot to go on here other than the standard label and the RHOD100 identifier, but it appears the the HTC Rhodium -- that's the Touch Pro II to you non-codename folks -- has made its way to the FCC. [via Engadget Mobile]

It's still pretty likely that we'll see it on T-Mobile as the Wing II, but we're still pretty confident we'll see it on other carriers, too.

Get all your FCC engineering geekiness of the Rhodium here.

We've been fans of Sprite software for a while now, particularly its backup application, and now it's taking things into the cloud.

Virtual Mobile gives you a "vault" in which you can backup and store your contacts, SMS messages, photos, calendar and call history. You can access your vault from any PC, remotely lock your phone, or wipe data from it.

Virtual Mobile is in beta right now and is available for all Windows Mobile 5 and 6 phones. Learn more here, and register for the 30-day beta here.

A few people had been asking, "If Opera Mobile 9.7 is coming, why's 9.5 still in beta?" The Opera Mobile blog explains:

Our core department has released a new version of Opera Presto which contained support for Opera Turbo, more advanced web standards, Gears and several other improvements. We wanted to make this available to our users as soon as possible, and chose to upgrade the core version in Opera Mobile. Updating the browser core is a big step forward for us, and it felt natural to change the version number.

We have to upgrade to a new browser core as often as possible. Several products using a wide range of browser core versions introduces a lot of overhead (several version of core has to be maintained and worked on at the same time), so we try to use the most current stable core version at all times.

Makes sense to us. Now, can we get a copy of 9.7 already? :)

HTC debuted its newest QWERTY smartphone today at the CTIA conference in Las Vegas. What we have come to know as the HTC Maple is now the HTC Snap. HTC describes the Snap as being designed to make it easier than ever to stay in contact with life's most important people. The Windows Mobile 6.1 Standard device is fitted with a Qualcomm MSM 7225 528mhz processor, 256mb ROM, 192mb RAM and is expandable via SDHC capable microSD card slot. The Snap measures 4.59"x2.42"x.47" and weighs 4.23 ounces (comparable to the Samsung Blackjack II).

The 2.4", 320x240 QVGA screen is accompanied by the standard Bluetooth, WiFi (OK, not standard for a lot of us non-touchscreen folks) and GPS. Powered by a 1500 mAh battery, the Snap features a center jog ball (looks a little Blackberry-esque) and a new feature, "Inner Circle" e-mail. (Queue "Cops" theme song here.) According to HTC, the Inner Circle key brings e-mails from a preselected group of people to the top of the inbox, enabling important messages to be acted on immediately.

The Snap is expected to be available in selected markets during the second quarter of 2009 and available in additional markets around the world throughout the second half of the year. Additionally, an unlocked version supporting HSDPA at 850/1900mhz for U.S. markets will be made under the device name HTC S522 during the summer.

Follow the break for more products shots of the Snap.

Our man Dieter's made it to Las Vegas for CTIA and has wasted no time, forgoing the buffet line at the Sizzler for some face time with Samsung.

The Mondi Mobile Internet Device that got a brief mention last week has made a brief appearance, Dieter says, sporting a 4.3-inch touchscreen with Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional. There's also the Touchwiz interface that we've seen on the Omnia, along with Wimax (!) and WiFi, Opera 9.5 and 4 gigabytes of user memory and a microSD card.

There's no 3G radio on board here, but presumably if you're cool enough to be rocking a WiMax MID, you're cool enough for VOIP and can make do. Price is TBA, but Samsung says to expect the Mondi sometime in the second quarter.

Another word on Touchwiz: Samsung says it will beome prevalent and familiar across its family of devices, and that its not necessarily trying to put Windows Mobile out in the shed, nary to be seen.

Update: Get your official pics after the break.