We knew that Sprint had delayed the release of the Treo Pro until the end of February, but we are now learning that the delay will last a little longer. The Boy Genius Report now says Sprint has now targeted March 15 for the release of the Treo Pro. There's still no indication what is causing these delays and this is a "target" date. Strong rumors have it that the Treo Pro isn't doing so well on Sprint's exit exam, in all likelihood because of that other new Palm device waiting in the wings.
So while you're waiting for March 15 to come (and possibly go), don't forget that in the meantime, we've got your one and only hands-on with the Sprint Treo Pro.
(And thanks, David, for the earlier tip + Anonymous tipster for the Spint Flyer we mashed up above)
In a move that would make the Dewey Decimal System proud, Google has digitized 1.5 million public domain titles in a small screen format. If you're in the mood to do some reading, just point Opera Mobile 9.5 or Skyfire to http://books.google.com/m and you'll have access to titles such as "Treasure Island," "At the Back of the North Wind," and "My Life at Work." Pocket IE warns that "Some content cannot be displayed due to Pocket PC security settings" then returns a blank page. Just what security setting needs changing in order to make it work are, sadly, still a mystery to us.
Admittedly, it may not be the most stunning literary lineup but with 1.5 million titles to choose from, everyone should find something of interest. In trying Google Books I learned that I had to increase my browser's cache to download the books and you can't read the books without a connection. Loose the data connection and you loose the book. If you've been curious about eBooks or just have some time to kill and you're tired of playing Bejeweled, Google Books is worth a look.
It has been easy to miss because the pieces of this puzzle are spread out across several years of news, but the headline you're reading on this piece has it exactly right: Microsoft is poised to take a serious chunk out of RIM's virtual stranglehold on Enterprise and Corporate mobile email.
The latest news is that Google has gone ahead an licensed Exchange Activesync (EAS) for their Contacts and Calendar services.. While they are not offering it for email (yet?), it does represent a pretty significant moment in the battle for standards in how data gets pushed and synced out to devices. For Google, it means that although they appear to be continuing to support open standards like SyncML and they have their own custom solution for Android, they have given up trying to get those open standards adopted across the industry. Apple made the same decision when they offered Exchange support for the iPhone.
When it comes to mobile devices, EAS is becoming the de facto standard for all smartphones not labeled "BlackBerry." To find out why this matters, read on!
For many of us, our justification for carrying a Windows Mobile device is to enable us to be better organized or to communicate more effectively. I personally am always looking for the next great tool that will help me to manage my increasingly busy life. Sometimes, though, I am a little hesitant to put certain data on my phone, as I tend to leave it lying around a little too often. With the increase in identity theft and related crimes in the last decade, I would rather not make myself an easy target if I can help it.
If you haven’t heard of SPB, you’ve probably been living under an iPhone shaped rock somewhere. SPB’s applications for Windows Mobile are some of the most widely used and well respected on the market. SPB Software has released the latest version of SPB Wallet, now in version 2.0, which is an application for storing your sensitive data such as bank account numbers, passwords and social security numbers in a manner that is safe and secure. Along with announcing the new software version, we felt a test run of the application was in order as well.
For all the juicy details about the latest offering from SPB, read on.
If you've been toiling at trying to find a way to sync up your Google Contacts and Calendars with your Windows Mobile phone -- switching between Nuevasync and Goosync and, well, whatever other kind of sync you've tried, take heart. Google just announced on their blog that WM finally gets some parity with BlackBerry on this front with the Beta release of Google Sync for Windows Mobile.
This is a good news / bad news sort of thing. If you're not already using Exchange to sync -- this is good news, because Google is basically mimicking an Exchange interface for you. If you *are* using Exchange to sync to your corporate email, well, see above for other options.
First they give us Latitude, now they give us Sync ...it's nice to see Google caring about platforms not named "Android." Now if they'd work with Microsoft on getting their email pushed out more easily, the Gmail users amongst us will finally feel complete.
Update: here's the direct link to instructions for setting up Google Calenar and Contacts via Activesync. Update 2: Be sure to check out the Known Limitations page (2 minor issues) and if you're on a Google Apps domain (i.e. you have Gmail but you have a custom domain), be sure to point your administrator to this link.
Ok, one last update. The real story here may be that Google licensed Exchange ActiveSync from Microsoft, which is to say that they may use it for email down the line. More importantly, it also helps to cement EAS as the industry standard in Microsoft's ongoing war for the hearts and minds of IT managers. RIM: this news isn't a body blow for your push email and PIM solution, but it's definitely a slap in its face.
Here's a little gem that mostly slipped past the first run-through of the Netflix Mobile application (though one of our our eagle-eyed commenters spotted it - thanks, joeg!): Some movies in Netflix's library offer a trailer preview directly through the app onto your phone.
It's a little hit and miss as to which movies have the preview, so you'll just have to hunt around. But it's a nice feature in what is a very well-put together Windows Mobile application. If you haven't already, go get it here.
Our man Malatesta has spied an update to Windows Live Search Mobile. We're all sitting here in the WME mothership in our anti-gravity chairs (what, your office doesn't have them?) working with the new build, but for the life of us we can't figure out what's been updated. Microsoft also has been mum so far on the new version, which now stands at 4.1.2029.1, up from 4.0.12158.1. Could just be bug fixes, but jumping from 4.0 to 4.1 could mean more.
So we put it to you, dear readers. First one to leave a significant finding in the comments will live on forever in WME immortality.
While there have been rumblings that HTC and Qualcomm aren't quite the BFFs they used to be, Digitimes is reporting [via] that HTC is going to stick with the chipmaker at least long enough to push out a device sporting the snappy Snapdragon processor. The Snapdragon, as you may recall, is probably the most exciting thing about that Toshiba TG01 -- because as we said yesterday during the podcast, the custom interface leaves much to be desired. Also, that TG01 may not even make it to the states anyway.
Back to HTC, the device is apparently set for the 2nd quarter of 2009, which means it's anybody's guess as to whether or not they'll deign to show it off at MWC09. Also anybody's guess, which device in the massive HTC 2009 line-up leak we're looking at here. We figure it could actually be more than one, but a proc like the Snapdragon would be a good fit for a media-centric device like the above-pictured Whitestone W
After the completion of the hectic Smartphone Round Robin, your faithful bloggers at Smartphone Experts decided to keep things moving along at a heady clip. In the past week we have published somewhere in the neighborhood of 175 stories, from accessory and software reviews to news to the latest rumors. That's a lot to keep track of, so we're bringing back our regular "Around SPE" feature to give you a quick summary of what you may have missed in a format that's more helpful than just a list of links.
In that vein, our biggest recent news is that our newest sister site, Nokia Experts is starting strong with a launch contest. If you would like to earn some chances at winning a Nokia E71 or Nokia N85, make sure to enter the contest each week. There are two weeks left to go, so check back as each week we're changing up how you can enter to win!
There's plenty more smartphone news you may have missed, so read on!
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