Early this year Microsoft revealed Windows Mobile 6.5 and some of its plans for Windows Marketplace for Windows Mobile. Now at the MIX09 sessions, Microsoft has revealed more details on the various UI enhancements in the Windows Mobile 6.5 and details regarding Windows Marketplace for Windows Mobile.
The new customizable user interface is more touch-friendly with:
- The most notable change being the honey-comb interface dropped in the start screen, but retains the same basic structure of honeycomb and the icons are made bigger to make it touch-friendly
- A fresh lock screen showing alerts and notifications on the device
- Revamped text messages UI
- Improved scrolling
Below is a comparison of the old and new honeycomb interface. Watch the video at the end of this article for more UI changes demo
Text Messages
Outlook Email
Every Windows Mobile 6.5 device will have a Marketplace (installed out of the box) and will offer
- Automatic updates for purchased applications
- Payment with credit card
- Besides native code C/C++ and .NET apps, widgets will also be included in the store
Windows Mobile market place will be available in the countries as shown in the slide below and is free for student developers who enroll via Microsoft DreamSpark program
The developer tools offered on Windows Mobile platform will include emulator and other SDK tools, and Web enhancements in IE Mobile including support for the W3C Mobile Widget Packaging and Configuration standard.
Watch the video presentation below to see further interesting UI changes and about Windows Marketplace in Windows Mobile 6.5. You can also download the slides and video here