04-24-2007, 10:00 AM
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Contributing Editor
Join Date: Feb 2007
Posts: 3,111
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Menlow, MIDIA, and the future of Windows Mobile
If any of you have been following the news about the HTC Shift, you'll know that it's one of a number of devices that are going to be based on Intel's new Ultra Mobile platform 2007 (aka McCaslin), comprising a low-powered processor and assorted bits. HTC is just one of the companies that signed on for what Intel calls the Mobile Internet Device Innovation Alliance (MIDIA), the others being Aigo, Asus, Fujitsu, Haier and Samsung. What's more interesting is that this is just the beginning of Intel's penetration into the ultra-mobile space.
Due in 2008 is Menlow, which promises even greater space and power efficiency through the 45nm Silverthorne processor and Poulsbo chipset (somebody at Intel's a fantasy/science-fiction fan  ). Menlow processors will be just a quarter of the size of current x86 designs, with about 1/10th the power requirements (try here for some interesting speculation over the potential enhancement in battery life), and even further chip miniaturization is in the works for future platforms. Sony's UX series is at the lower limit of the size that's possible with current off-the-shelf components (the OQO2 uses custom designed components) - now imagine something with the same processing and graphics capability but in less than half that volume (and hopefully half the price). Intel's gameplan appears to be to use Menlow in a series of Mobile Internet Devices (MIDs) that will be priced in the region of $500, run Linux or Vista, and support Adobe's Apollo multimedia platform.
How does this impact on Windows Mobile? First, Intel's doing this on its own - the Origami concept (Intel processor and chipset, Microsoft Windows) looks like its dead in the water. Intel's looking at Linux primarily, although Vista is still in the picture. Secondly, the increased power efficiency and smaller space requirements in Menlow mean that even with current battery tehnology, you can have a viable x86 device in the same form factor as PDA designs. And that means future UMPCs/MIDs have the potential to be truly pocketable - no more compromises in terms of processing capability and software compatibility, yet portable in the true sense of the word. Intel's working Menlow prototype - pictured above - shows the kind of possibilities that we can expect from 2008 onwards. If you had a choice (price notwithstanding), which would you prefer? Is this why Microsoft appears to be 'dumbing' down Windows Mobile and positioning it more as a smartphone OS?
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04-24-2007, 03:37 PM
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Pontificator
Join Date: Dec 2005
Posts: 1,183
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I've long wanted a 'pda' sized device that runs full Windows. At times I travel a lot on business. Whilst I love my 17 inch widescreen laptop, I'd be happy to be able to leave it behind and just carry a pocketable device.
No hand luggage at the airport for a start :-) Then all I'd need is a monitor, keyboard, mouse when I arrive at my destination. The DualCor looked like it was going to give us that, **plus** phone, wi-fi, bluetooth, PocketPC and 40 (or so) Gb HDD.
I'm excited!
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04-24-2007, 03:45 PM
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Pupil
Join Date: Dec 2004
Posts: 15
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TOLD YA SO!!!
Windows Mobile as we know it as a powerful computing device is dead -- Microsoft whipped it to death. I suspect the devices we start seeing next year will indeed feature Linux because:
1. It's cheaper. The manufacturers won't have to purchase a Microsoft license for each device.
2. It's easier to upgrade. No waiting for Microsoft upgrades that they must then have their own devlelopers customize and release.
3. It's more scalable and customizable from machine to machine.
4. It has worldwide, open support. No longer will thousands of users stare in Washington's direction shouting, "Can you hear me?????", with no reply.
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04-24-2007, 03:51 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Nov 2007
Posts: 444
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I would MUCH rather have linux, provided that OEMs and third party vendors supply necessary drivers with easy-to-use installation. If I have to fart around with assembling packages, fixing dependencies and command-line junk, forget it.
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04-24-2007, 04:10 PM
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Philosopher
Join Date: Oct 2006
Posts: 554
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Re: TOLD YA SO!!!
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Originally Posted by mobilemail
Windows Mobile as we know it as a powerful computing device is dead -- Microsoft whipped it to death. I suspect the devices we start seeing next year will indeed feature Linux because:
1. It's cheaper. The manufacturers won't have to purchase a Microsoft license for each device.
2. It's easier to upgrade. No waiting for Microsoft upgrades that they must then have their own devlelopers customize and release.
3. It's more scalable and customizable from machine to machine.
4. It has worldwide, open support. No longer will thousands of users stare in Washington's direction shouting, "Can you hear me?????", with no reply.
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Well maybe instead of WM we will have Windows Vista "Smart Phone/PDA" it is not so bad, I am all for it. As far as Linux concern, I am not that excited. At the end it will benefit mostly manufacturers, as they will "customize' it for one and only purpose to "chain" customer to their product. After all to sell their product is the point of their existance, and who is better for that then a loyal customer :wink: You could see example of that with, let's say Symbian OS, when it was "customized" for Nokia and for Sony Ericsson seprately. On the other hand Microsoft creates some kind of a standard, So if you buy either HTC or Sumsung device you know what to expect. And by the way, manufacturers don't "buy licensing" from Microsoft, you do, but they act as a resaler/broker and believe me not without profit.
So in the end, Linux may excite someone with interest in programming or customizing his/her device to the point that it is beyond recognition, I would stay with something that I know and trust, even if it is not so perfect 0X
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04-24-2007, 06:40 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 359
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Re: TOLD YA SO!!!
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Originally Posted by virain
Quote:
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Originally Posted by mobilemail
Windows Mobile as we know it as a powerful computing device is dead -- Microsoft whipped it to death. I suspect the devices we start seeing next year will indeed feature Linux because:
1. It's cheaper. The manufacturers won't have to purchase a Microsoft license for each device.
2. It's easier to upgrade. No waiting for Microsoft upgrades that they must then have their own devlelopers customize and release.
3. It's more scalable and customizable from machine to machine.
4. It has worldwide, open support. No longer will thousands of users stare in Washington's direction shouting, "Can you hear me?????", with no reply.
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Well maybe instead of WM we will have Windows Vista "Smart Phone/PDA" it is not so bad, I am all for it. As far as Linux concern, I am not that excited. At the end it will benefit mostly manufacturers, as they will "customize' it for one and only purpose to "chain" customer to their product. After all to sell their product is the point of their existance, and who is better for that then a loyal customer :wink: You could see example of that with, let's say Symbian OS, when it was "customized" for Nokia and for Sony Ericsson seprately. On the other hand Microsoft creates some kind of a standard, So if you buy either HTC or Sumsung device you know what to expect. And by the way, manufacturers don't "buy licensing" from Microsoft, you do, but they act as a resaler/broker and believe me not without profit.
So in the end, Linux may excite someone with interest in programming or customizing his/her device to the point that it is beyond recognition, I would stay with something that I know and trust, even if it is not so perfect 0X |
I agree with you 100% on all points virain. I'm not too excited about a linux device for the sake of the standard MS already set with Windows Mobile and even ultra mobile devices running full Windows.
Still I won't be sold until I see a device running Vista with 3.5" screen, lots of memory, bluetooh AND phone cababilities. To me, it just doesn't make sense having a powerful moble device without the ability to make phone calls or use text messaging.
--
Sent from T-Mobile MDA
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04-24-2007, 08:44 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Mar 2002
Posts: 481
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Re: Menlow, MIDIA, and the future of Windows Mobile
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Originally Posted by Nurhisham Hussein
Is this why Microsoft appears to be 'dumbing' down Windows Mobile and positioning it more as a smartphone OS?
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I'd advance that they never 'positioned' the PocketPC, as they could never figure out where to go with it or who to market it to. Sort of a side project they heard "someone" ask for, but they never seemed to have a vision for spreading it to the masses. And I think they always struggled with why sell a CE licencse for the reported ~$10-$25 price when they sell so many more Windows licenses for $150+.
But they now see cell phones as a much larger market so they are trying to stuff WM in there now.
I'm disappointed to see the "PocketPC" die off. I don't see a need to carry a Vista computer in my pocket, so if that's where Microsoft's next attempt is, I'd say the market goes to some incarnation of Linux.
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04-25-2007, 01:10 AM
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Pontificator
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 1,202
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Some random thoughts:
1. The only reason MS got into the whole CE arena is they saw Palm as a threat. They feared that Palms handheld/PDA dominance would lead to a Palm Desktop OS to compete with the cash cow known as Windows. They dumped billions of dollars into this space and only recently have seen a small profit.
2. Since Palm quit evolving - MS quit caring about growing the market for handhelds and jumped to the next big thing - mobile phones - where, gasp, another competitor, Symbian was making big in-roads. This is why we have seen little advancement on our beloved devices in several years. Windows CE is now 10 years old, yet it really hasn't changed that much in the last 7 years!
3. MS appears clueless when attempting to deliver a satisfying mobile PC experience. UMPC is simply a re-skinned XP or Vista with a couple of minor add-ons that do very little to make the OS acceptable for the intended purpose.
4. Intel is sick of waiting for MS to figure out how to do this right, so they are courting Linux developers to try and help figure out how to do a tiny computer that runs full x86 applications -- while still maintaining usability and decent battery life -- two areas MS has completely failed at.
5. These are very cool looking devices, but what we really need on these is a hybrid Windows Mobile / Windows XP/Vista OS. An OS that runs on very low resources, provides instant on, has a simple, fast way to input and retrieve data, but that can still run full-blown Windows apps when plugged in, or when needed by the user. DualCor was on the right path, but I still think WM hasn't quite evolved enough, however, with Opera installed, and with enough third party apps, it was probably close enough. I still was troubled with how data would stay in sync between the two OS's though.
6. If MS continues to try and play both sides of the fence, by crippling Windows Mobile, while not providing a decent mobile, handheld experience with their full OS's they are setting themselves up to fail in this market for the first time in a long time. Apple could easily use the iPhone as a jumping off point to delivering a small full function Mac in the Palm of your hand. 5 years from now, we will all be using a Handheld computer that runs a non-crippled OS that supports all of the applications we use on our desktop. The question is can MS overcome their current corporate culture and be that OS or will Apple or some other competitor step into the picture and become the new dominant player in this market. I see MS as having stumbled badly in the past couple of years, reminding me how Palm stumbled when they gained market dominance. The difference of course is that MS has a war chest of capital to fall back on.
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04-25-2007, 05:47 AM
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Thinker
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 359
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If the market does move torwards Linux primarily (I doubt it), it'll have to support Microsoft Exchange (and Blackberry) well to be a true powerplayer. I doubt we'll see any Linux devices with "full" support for Microsoft Outlook and Exchange, or blackberry at that matter (keeping in mind the blackberry software for Windows Mobile recently released). I believe server-based collaboration platforms such as Exchange and Blackberry will play a much bigger role in our mobile communications very soon, since hosted solutions are becoming cheaper (I'm only paying $10/month for hosted Exchange and can't imagine living without it now. It's only a matter of time before we see $4.95 hosted Exchange services soon).
Why so important? Because in the next 3-5 years, I believe many more consumers (not just businesses) are gonna desire to have access to the same information source for PIM data from multiple computers/mobile devices. It's inevitable. I'm not an MS "fanboy," but eventually everyone will desire to sync their multiple computers and mobile devices with a single data source, and Microsoft is the only company leading the way right now. If any mobile platform is going to take the lead, it's going to take a long time to develop a new standard outside of Exchange/Outlook/Microsoft Windows. So I think MS will remain the leader for some time to come.
I'm not opposed to an open platform like Linux, but the only thing I'm afraid of is the lack of standardization and *well thought-out* support for Microsoft Outlook and Exchange (and Blackberry). And let's be honest folks, Outlook and Exchange are the business standard for PIM/e-mail management in the office, by far. And compatibility with these standards is key to any platform success. Since there's no primary leader behind Linux, it'll never succeed as a standard IMO.
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04-26-2007, 01:04 AM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 189
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In my opinion, Microsoft is largely a "reactive" company as opposed to a proactive (or "visionary") one. The mere fact that Intel is thinking about coordinating something that might give you a full blown OS in the palm of your hand combined with the fact that Apple is now entering into the cellphone OS space is going to spur further development. I personally credit Apple's as yet non-existent Iphone for the quick update (aka un-crippling) of WM5 with WM6 and a "complete" pocket Word-office suite. If the Linux idea gains any steam it will result in either a better WM system or a whole new OS to occupy the new software space and compete directly with the Linux OS. If Apple does what people expect and turn the Iphone into a real OS you can keep in your pocket, Microsoft will make something just as good or better (it may take them longer but they'll eventually get there). Windows mobile hasn't changed much because it's been better than the Palm OS for a long time now. WM5 "regressed" from what we had before because Palm was all but obliterated. WM6 was created and released with relatively blazing speed because a new potential competitor, namely Apple, is now entering into the marketplace. And MS fears/respects Steve Jobs.
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