Smartphone Developer Kits Are Sold Out!

[David McNamee]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmobile/information/devprograms/smartphonedevkit/default.mspx' target='_blank'>http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmobile/information/devprograms/smartphonedevkit/default.mspx</a><br /><br /></div>The Smartphone developer kits, sold by Everlink Wireless, are now sold out. The kit contained a Compal AR-11 Smartphone that developers could use to build and test software while phones were not still available in the North American market. Accessories and support are still available from Everlink. Since Smartphones are now available in this market, I don't expect to see a new developer kit like this released.<br /><br />I think it is great that they sold the kits, but I'm curious as to how many people who bought the kits are actually developing on them. When the kits were first made available, they were only available to Microsoft Certified Partners who joined a mobility developers program. Then they made them available to a bit wider audience at conferences. I'm sure more than a few were sold to people who wanted the newest gadget.

[Mike Temporale]

Sounds like they are not going to be making any more available. Too bad. Who cares if some of the phones where purchased for personal use and not development. As long as the majority of the phones are used for dev purposes, then it doesn't really matter.

Now, if they had people calling for support because the phone doesn't work on their providers network.... I could understand a little more.

[The PocketTV Team]

I think the only phone that is fully unlocked (including access to the privileged API's) is the AT&T MPx200.

Access to the privileged API's is necessary for debugging. Being app-unlocked is not sufficient.

For example, the Verizon i600 cannot be used for debugging.

Maybe you can hack other Smartphones so that they get fully unlocked and allow debugging, but I'm not sure which ones.