Windows Mobile 6.5 to precede the most anticipated Windows Mobile 7

Microsoft’s next version of Windows Mobile isn’t Windows Mobile 7, but is actually Windows Mobile 6.5. Microsoft’s CEO while attending the Telstra Investor Briefing 2008, in Australia stated “With releases we’ll make this year - releases we’ll make with 6.5 next year, Windows Mobile 7 - I think we have a pretty interesting roadmap.” He made it very clear about its next release. Sure, Windows Mobile 7 is a year away, but while Steve Ballmer was busy talking smack about Android, he did manage to confirm that Windows Mobile 6.5, which Motorola leaked during the end of October, is real. And Windows Mobile 7 is unlikely to make it to market on new phones before 2010. But not any sooner, before 6.5! Windows Mobile 6.1 was designed to plug some short-term holes in 6, and it’s looking now like there could be a 6.5 waiting in the wings to plug a few more.

What we can really expect with 6.5 ?

Plenty of tweaks for sure, but the 110 per cent nailed on cert will be a completely overhauled User Interface. Microsoft always makes a big deal with its GUI. Both Windows Mobile 6 and 6.1 have rightly been pilloried for their PC-centric, unintuitive and stylus-needing ways (I mean just look at it below) so no doubt larger finger-friendly icons, intuitive scrolling and a new version of pocket Internet Explorer will be making their debuts.

And consequently, back with the most anticipated Windows Mobile 7……

Speculation about the potential content of WM7 began earlier this year, with rumors that the new smartphone environment would be more music-intensive. That could create a situation, some said, where WM7-based handsets competed directly with — and could conceivably outclass — Microsoft’s own Zune MP3 player.Besides that, flicks, swipes, pinches, slides et al will manipulate the interface of WM7, but more than that we’ll see the arrival of ‘motion gestures’ too. In multimedia, we can expect a meatier Media Player with wide format support, dynamic photo gallery, Live Search mapping and even an iPhone-a-licious virtual keyboard rip-off. With WM7’s specs, it is just an excerpt out of a leaked video.

So, as of now, we can look forward much with WM6.5 coz the next wave of mobility features will be realized in Windows Mobile 6.5 — not Windows Mobile 7 — due in H2 2009.