A Microsoft anunciou que a próxima actualização do seu sistema operativo para telemóveis, o Windows Mobile, chegará em Fevereiro do próximo ano. Com a passagem À versão 6.1, os utilizadores terão acesso a um novo sistema de troca de janelas que permite fazer desfilar as janelas das suas aplicações da direita para a esquerda, criando um efeito de carrocel (quem disse Apple iPhone? ).

Se contava com grandes inovações nesta nova versão tudo indica que terá que esperar pela versão 7.0 que tem lançamento previsto para Agosto de 2008. A apresentação oficial do Windows Mobile 6.1 deverá ocorrer durante a 3GSM 2007.

One of the most award applications available today for Windows Mobile has been Spb Software House's Pocket Plus.  This Today plug-in application allows you to launch applications directly from the Today screen, close applications with the X (not just minimize them) and a battery indicator on the Today screen.  Now after nearly a year of completely overhauling the application - both inside and out - Spb has released version 4.0 of Pocket Plus.  Their Press Release was entitled "Reincarnating The Legend" and it is every bit worthy of that title.  The new version brings a complete overhaul of the application, making it in smaller and lighter for storage space and memory use over previous versions as well as a brand new and faster interface.  In addition to the Today plug-in, Pocket Plus 4.0 brings a whole new level of functionality to Pocket Internet Explorer with tab browsing and Google searching built into it.  Ultimately this new version reaffirms why Pocket Plus is on the Clinton Fitch (Dot) Com! Top 50 Application list and a must have application for any Windows Mobile owner.

Pocket Plus is installed either directly by CAB file on your device or by Windows Mobile Device Center (Vista users) or ActiveSync (XP users) an requires approximately 2.91MB of storage space on your Windows Mobile Professional (PocketPC) device.  This install size is substantially less than the 4.20MB required on the device for version 3.2 and is the first indicator of how much work Spb Software House put into this new version.  Additionally, this new version only requires 1.38MB of physical memory to run versus the 2.2MB required for version 3.2.  In order to use Pocket Plus 4.0 your device must be running Windows Mobile PocketPC 2003, 2003SE, 5.0 or 6.  Pocket Plus 4.0 will work on QVGA and VGA devices alike.  While you can install Pocket Plus onto a Memory Card, both Spb and Clinton Fitch (Dot) Com! recommend installing it into your devices main memory as performance and loading after a reset can be impacted.  During the installation process you will be prompted on which components of Pocket Plus you wish to install and it will give you an indication of the space required for each feature.

Figure 1:  Installation Options Screen of Pocket Plus 4.0

Once the installation is completed and you soft-reset your device the new look of Pocket Plus is easy to see.  While it is still a tabular layout like that of previous versions, you will note that the icons for the tabs are larger and up-to-date.  Spb has done a good job improving the tab functionality understanding that the Today screen is one of the most customized and "personal" areas of a Windows Mobile device.  The new work around the tabs included the ability to make large or small tab icons, auto hiding of tab content, plug-ins for other applications into the tabs as well as vertical or horizontal alignment of the tabs.  Additionally, if you use your device in landscape mode regularly, Pocket Plus will now realign the tabs automatically to work in that mode making it much more user friendly.

Figure 2:  Large icon tabs and Horizontal Alignment	Figure 3:  Small Icon Tabs
Figure 4:  Vertical Tab Alignment	Figure 5:  Landscape View

A new feature of Pocket Plus is the ability to label icons on each of the tabs.  The ability to label icons is helpful for users who have many of the same or similar icons that represent various items on your device.  For example, if you have multiple shortcuts to documents they will have the same icon.  Now you can label those icons so you know which document is represented by each icon, saving you time and taps of the screen.

Figure 6:  Icon Labels

In previous versions of Pocket Plus you could embed the Today plug-ins from other Spb Software House applications into Tabs on your device.  This was particularly helpful but clearly the limitation of not being able to embed other 3rd party plug-ins was an issue.  With version 4.0 virtually every Today plug-in from any 3rd party developer can be embedded on a tab in Pocket Plus.  Add to this that you can use multiple Today plug-ins on one tab in Pocket Plus which makes the application, essentially, the only Today plug-in you would need to use.  This is a big step forward for the application and for the user experience.  To add a plug-in to a tab, tap-and-hold the icon for that tab then choose Plug-in form the menu.  You will see a list of available plug-ins (based on what is installed on your device) which you can tap to add to the tab. 

Figure 7:  Plug-ins on Pocket Plus Tabs

Since version 2.0 of Pocket Plus, Spb has offered Extended Themes to allow users to more customize their experience.  In addition to offering the themes themselves, Spb also made an Extended Theme creator which you could use in conjunction with the Microsoft Theme Maker.  At best this tool was difficult to use and more often was frustrating for users.  It seems that very few made Extended Themes and the tools available could well have been part of the problem.  With version 4.0, Spb has essentially eliminated Extended Themes and instead offer users the ability to download new themes directly to their device.  Additionally, to lighten the install footprint of the device, only two icon sets are installed when you install Pocket Plus.  The rest are available by going into the Pocket Plus options then the Feature Options of the Today Plug-in.  From here, tap the Skin tab and choose <Download More> from the pull-down menu.  There are about two dozen skins available currently from Spb with more on the way.  The good news:  Each of these themes are roughly 32KB in size making them storage area friendly!  To do the direct downloads your device must be able to connect to the Internet and you have incur charges based on your data plan from your carrier or operator.

Figure 8:  Optional Skins to Download	Figure 9:  Default Skin of Pocket Plus
Figure 10:  Spb Yellow Skin

If you took the Today enhancements alone, Pocket Plus version 4 would be well worth the purchase price.  Spb however did not just stop here:  They also made major enhancements to how Pocket Internet Explorer (PIE) functions as well making this version almost irresistible.  With this version you now have tab browsing in PIE, a feature that has essentially remind on the desktop PC until now.  Just like Internet Explorer 7, you can have multiple tabs from multiple sites open at the same time allowing easy navigation between sites.  To open a new tab tap the Pocket Plus icon in PIE (next to the address bar) and tap New Tab.

Figure 11:  Tab Browsing in PIE with Pocket Plus

Version 4 of Pocket Plus also brings a new File Open/Save Dialog to your Windows Mobile device which allows you to open and safe a file from any location on your device instead of the default My Documents.  This is helpful for those who want to save documents or pictures on a storage card instead of My Documents.  While they will not be synchronized with your PC by WMDC or ActiveSync, they will save you precious memory on your device itself.

Figure 12:  New File Open/Save Dialog

The last key new feature of Pocket Plus v4 is Smart Scrolling.  This feature allows a simple finger or stylus drag across the screen to allow rapid scrolling of information such as documents, contacts or even PIE.  It is speed sensitive so the faster you drag the faster content will fly by - which is great if you have a lot of contacts.  The best way to describe this function is that it is very similar to the scrolling function of the Apple iPhone.  It is smooth and quick and definitely improves the user experience.

Along with these new features are the features that have been a part of Pocket Plus in previous versions.  Some of these features include the ability to change hardware button functionality (assign different applications to them), a real "close" button and ZIP functionality built into File Explorer.  Of these three only the buttons function was modified which will now allow for double functions to be assigned to a button.  For example, on my O2 Xda Zinc I have a Messages button.  If I press it quickly it opens up Messages on my device so I can read my email.  Now I can assign an additional function with a long press of the button.  Now if I press and hold my Messages button on my Zinc it will open up Internet Explorer.  Essentially it allows every button to do double duty, saving taps on the screen.

Figure 13:  Button Assignments

Spb Software House spent nearly a year developing Pocket Plus 4.0 and the work is evident from the moment you start the application.  This new version brings a whole new level of customization of the Today screen to your Windows Mobile device as well as a more intuitive user experience.  Add the enhancements they have made to PIE and you have an application that should be the first application installed on any new device.  I have been using this new version for several weeks before the public launch on October 15, 2007 and have yet to find any issues with the application.  Everything functions as advertised and I have seen no impact to my device's performance by having it installed.  In fact I would say performance has increased with version 4.0 over 3.2.

Spb Software House's Pocket Plus version 4.0 is available for $29.95 directly from Spb themselves and a variety of online retailers including the Clinton Fitch (Dot) Com! Software store.  Pocket Plus is on the Top 50 Applications list and thus qualifies for a 20% discount when you use the coupon code found on the Coupon page of the site.  If you have purchased Pocket Plus 3.2 within the last 90 days the upgrade to version 4.0 is free.  If you are beyond the 90 days but want to upgrade, the upgrade cost is $14.99.  In either case contact Spb directly on their site for information.

What I like:  Great User Experience, Larger Icons, Plug-in functionality, Improved Speed, Smaller Memory Requirements

What I Don't Like:  Nothing!

Rating (1-10):  10+

Clinton Fitch, MVP-Mobile Devices
Clinton Fitch (Dot) Com!

On the front face you'll find the usual d-pad surrounded by call send and end buttons, the two usual Windows Mobile soft keys, OK, Windows start menu, Internet Explorer Mobile and email keys. These ease one-handed operation and are backlit. Windows Mobile still isn't the paragon of one-handed operation, but the Kaiser does better than expected for a large device and an operating system originally designed around two-handed operation.

The power button and camera launcher key are on the PDA phone's right side and the jog wheel, OK button and PTT (Push to Talk) button are on the left (yes, PTT works). The microSD card slot is on the bottom edge of the display section and the HTC ExtUSB connector (combined sync/charge/headset) is on the bottom. The camera lens and LED flash are on the back along with an external GPS connector. The entire back cover slides off to reveal the battery compartment. The SIM card lives on a door on the back side of the display section, similar to the HTC S710.

The front face is gloss black with matte black surrounding the display and d-pad area while the back has HTC's matte black soft-touch finish for improved grip. The sides are made of ridged matte black plastic. The device feels weighty and solid and we'd expect it to last. The display slider seems well-made, and there's a spring-loaded feel when opening the slider (there is no lock closed sensation, the slider is ready to open when you overcome the spring's resistance).

Phone Features, Data and Reception

The Tilt is a quad band GSM/EDGE world phone that works on the 850/900/1800/1900MHz bands. It has triband UMTS HSDPA for 3G and 3.5G data anywhere this service is available in the world. The phone is sold locked to AT&T, which means you must use an AT&T SIM in the phone or request an unlock code from AT&T if you plan to travel outside the US and wish to use an overseas carrier's SIM. We found call quality to be very good and volume a bit louder than average for a GSM phone. Signal strength is weaker than the Samsung BlackJack and Nokia N95-3 (the US model with our HSDPA bands), but those two phones are the RF kings. The Tilt wasn't quite as good as the AT&T 8525 for HSPDA signal strength, but it was very strong for GSM and EDGE.

The Tilt comes with Cyberon's Voice Speed Dial application which requires recording of voice tags to dial numbers via voice command. As a consolation, it works over Bluetooth headsets. And like all Windows Mobile phones it supports speed dialing, smart dialing, call waiting, conference calling and more. The rear-firing speakerphone has OK volume but distorts (buzzes) when the volume is past the half way mark.

Data speeds over AT&T's HSDPA network in the Dallas area were very good and averaged 760 kbit/sec on DSL Reports' mobile speed test. AT&T has most metro regions covered with HSDPA (3.5G), making the Tilt attractive to urban users. Standard for Windows Mobile 6 are Internet Explorer Mobile and the mobile version of Outlook, whose email/SMS/MMS component is called Messaging. IE does a reasonable job of rendering HTML web sites, though we recommend the full version of Opera for even better fidelity and Opera Mini for speed. Messaging handles POP3 and IMAP email along with MS Exchange and push email if your company runs Exchange 2003 SP1 or newer. The Tilt also works with AT&T's Xpress Mail service and BlackBerry Connect 4.0. As of this writing, Good is working on a compatible version of their product.

The Tilt can be used as a high speed wireless modem for a notebook over Bluetooth using the PAN profile (AT&T charges extra for tethering).

Horsepower and Performance

While CPU speed remains the same as the Cingular 8525, the processor has changed from the Samsung SC32442A to the Qualcomm MSM 7200 (the recently released Sprint Mogul by HTC uses a Qualcomm MSM 7500). The MSM 7200 is a dual core CPU with a 400MHz ARM11 application processing core and a 274MHz ARM9 that handles communications processing. In addition it has a DSP and 3D acceleration and video encoder/decoders. So this is a very capable processor package that offers improved speed over the Samsung. By Windows Mobile standards, the Tilt is a responsive device that opens applications and windows quickly and handles video playback well. Using File Manager to view the Windows directory is usually a tedious process; it takes up to 30 seconds for Windows Mobile 5 and 6 devices to list all the files in that directory. On the Tilt, it listed them in 5 seconds.

Memory is abundant as well, with 128 megs of RAM (used like RAM in your computer) and 256 megs of flash memory (NAND flash ROM) for program and data storage. After booting, the Tilt has 74 megs of free RAM, which is quite a bit by WinMo (or any other smartphone platform) standards. This compares favorably to the T-Mobile Wing and HTC Touch which barely have 20 megs free to run programs at boot. This means you can run more programs without slowdowns or having backgrounded programs shut down by the OS. Of the 256 megs of flash memory, 124 megs are available for your use to store programs and data. Should you need more space, the phone accepts microSD cards, including SDHC microSD cards in 4 gigs and larger capacity. We tested the Tilt with a 4 gig SanDisk microSD card and it had no trouble playing a large library of music from the card using Windows Media Player Mobile, playing video and managing files.

Display, Multimedia and Gaming

The Tilt has the standard Windows Mobile QVGA 240 x 320 display that's capable of displaying 65,000 colors. It works in both portrait and landscape modes and switches automatically when opening and closing the keyboard slider. You can manually rotate the display using HTC's shortcut on the Today screen. The display is average among Pocket PC phones, it's sharp and bright but didn't wow us. Touch screens never look quite as good as their non touch screen equivalents on MS Smartphone Edition (now called Windows Mobile Standard).

The rear firing mono speaker does an OK job for music playback, but you'll definitely want to use a wired stereo or Bluetooth stereo headset for serious music enjoyment. Unfortunately, the usual HTC stereo headset isn't included in the box. Windows Media Player Mobile 10 can handle MP3, AAC and WMA files, but as always, we find its interface unfriendly. Fortunately there are several 3rd party media players on the market for those who want something more feature rich and intuitive. Windows Media Player Mobile can handle PlaysForSure DRM files, which is a plus. Since the Tilt can handle high capacity microSD cards, the phone is a viable iPod nano replacement.

Video playback performance using Media Player Mobile is solid, and the Qualcomm processor and chipset impressed us. AT&T includes Cellular Video (formerly Cingular Video) for streaming media from news and entertainment sources (HBO Mobile is available for an extra $4.99/month). The Samsung BlackJack was AT&T's first Windows Mobile phone to support this service and we weren't impressed with the clunky hand-off between the portal and Media Player Mobile. For the Tilt, HTC had written their own player (licensing technology from Real since CV uses Real Player format). The handoff is smooth and streaming is good: sharp with little frame drop or loss of sync. We wish HTC had offered a full screen stretched mode so we didn't have to watch postage stamp sized video. AT&T also bundles MobiTV 2 which offers broadcast TV programming for a monthly fee. MobiTV currently serves up 99 channels, including ESPN, NBC, USA, Bravo, IGNTV, Anime channel and the Weather Channel. Quality is fairly good other than poor voice sync (and plays in a larger window than CV).

AT&T bundles a boat load of games, all of which are Java based and are demos. The try-out period is generally shorter than a level-- too short in some cases to tell if the game is worth buying. Titles include Midnight Pool, Ms. Pacman and Brain Challenge, Jewel Quest 2 and EA's Tiger Woods PGA Tour 07. The usual WinMo staples are there: Solitaire and Bubble Breaker and you can of course install your favorite 3rd party games.

GPS

The tilting screen, Windows Mobile 6, 3MP camera and the internal GPS are the Tilt's major improvements over the 8525. As with most recent HTC devices like the TyTN II (the unlocked version of the Tilt sold under HTC's name) and the HTC Advantage, the Tilt has a strong GPS that's able to get a signal indoors when within 15 feet of a window. There is no GPS software package included other than TeleNav. We happen to really like TeleNav, which is extremely intuitive, features large icons that are easily to use when driving and has a large set of features including real time traffic information, an extensive POI database, clear voice navigation and some of the best US routing we've seen. TeleNav costs $9.95/month, and there's a link on the Today screen to download it and try it free for 30 days. The app requires a data connection to download maps and traffic info, so you'll want that $40/month AT&T PDA plan. TeleNav can save map data to a storage card and you can specify how much space it uses on the card.

Should you prefer the free route, we found the Windows Live Search and Google Maps work well with the Tilt (you'll have to tell Windows Live that the GPS is on COM4, but Google Maps figures this out for itself. Don't be confused by the standard WinMo External GPS applet in settings: this is there for those using an external GPS with Windows Mobile devices.

Camera Oye vey, is it so hard for HTC to put a decent camera into a phone? We're not expecting Nokia N95 level photography, but the 3 megapixel camera with autofocus lens takes much worse photos than you'd expect given those specs. We said the exact same thing about the HTC Advantage, which seems to share the same camera and optics with the Tilt. Yes, it's wildly better than 1.3MP fixed focus cameras from HTC a few years back, but it doesn't totally trash the HTC TyTN/8525 either. This is not a horrid camera, but the 2MP Sony Ericsson W580i on AT&T and the unlocked 3MP Nokia E90 win for sharpness, color saturation and overall good looks. The camera falters on 4 counts: poor white balance, excessive white haze and excessive noise mind-bogglingly combined with over-sharpening. Granted, colors are decent (not vivid but somewhat accurate) and you've got a lot of pixels to work with when correcting the Tilt's photos which helps. We love the camera interface, which uses the entire screen as a viewfinder and offers easy access to settings via a hide-able tab at the bottom. You can set the resolution, adjust EV, change white balance, turn on the self-timer and set storage destination using these controls. To access the full compliment of settings, tap on the labeled Menu icon and there you can set color effects, shutter sound, full vs. half press of the shutter button for shooting and more. The PDA phone has a dedicated camera launch button which acts as the shutter button. Compared to other autofocus camera phones on the market, the Tilt focuses quickly with a half-press of the shutter button (a green box at screen's center lets you know when it's locked focus) and saves images to a storage card extremely quickly (the N95 takes several seconds in comparison). The Tilt can shoot video at a maximum CIF (352 x 288) resolution, and it supports several lesser resolutions including those suitable for MMS. Color fidelity is decent as is low light handling, but there's a great deal of motion blur and lighting changes as the camera changes metering.

WiFi and Bluetooth

The Tilt has WiFi 802.11b/g for those times you'd rather use a WiFi access point to connect to the Net (WiFi requires no data plan). Reception is comparable to other Windows Mobile phones on the market today, but not as strong as a notebook. WiFi download speeds are faster than HSDPA, though we found AT&T's 3.5G connection pleasingly fast. You'll manage the WiFi connection using HTC's usual Comm Manager software which is accessible from a shortcut on the Today screen. The WiFi status control panel applet shows current SSID, mode (Infrastructure or ad hoc), Tx and Rx rates, BSSID, channel and signal strength. You can set the amount of power the WiFi radio consumes using a 3 position slider, set up LEAP and secure certificates.

The Tilt has Bluetooth v2.0 and supports most common profiles including headset, handsfree, serial port, FTP, HID (keyboards and mice), PAN ( for using the phone as a wireless modem for a notebook or desktop), and A2DP Bluetooth stereo. We tested the phone with several Bluetooth headsets including the Jawbone and the Plantronics Discovery 655 Bluetooth headsets, and the Plantronics Pulsar 590A and Motorola S9 Bluetooth stereo headphones. The Tilt paired easily with all and voice quality was good with all headsets. In the stereo department, both the Plantronics and Moto S9 had fairly rich audio with decent bass (especially the Plantronics thanks to its over-the-ear design and large drivers). The controls on the Plantronics Pulsar 590A work well when changing volume, skipping tracks and making phone calls. Windows Media Player Mobile pauses the music when a call is comes in and sounds a ringtone through the headset. The music will resume after you hang up the call. The Motorola S9's inherent background hiss was less noticeable in quiet passages compared to what we heard with other non-Moto phones.

Battery Life

The Tilt has a 1350 mAh Lithium Ion battery that's user replaceable. It's nearly impossible to talk about battery life under "average" use given the phones many uses, features and wireless radios. We found that the battery lasted about 1.5 days with Bluetooth on, brightness set to 50% and an hour of web surfing daily, playing music through a wired headset with the screen off for an hour, watching 20 minutes of CV and checking email once per hour.

Conclusion

It's hard to beat the Tilt when it comes to features. This Windows Mobile 6 Pocket PC phone has every feature currently available in a PDA phone including web browsing, good email support including push email, lots of multimedia goodness, a strong GPS, WiFi, Bluetooth with stereo support and a full compliment of profiles and a good QWERTY keyboard. The phone is responsive by Windows Mobile standards, and feels no slower than our 624MHz HTC Advantage. Lots of RAM and storage space along with SDHC support make this a powerful handheld and a stable one at that. The only drawback is the size and weight, but no other PDA or smartphone crams all these features and a QWERTY keyboard into a smaller package (the import Nokia E90 is the only phone that offers the same feature set, but it's no smaller).

Pro: Powerful, feature-laden device. Good integration of AT&T services such as CV and push to talk. Reasonable price with contract. Java VM, HTC task manager and Today screen plugins are welcome tools. AT&T's many (too many) bundled games are trialware with play periods too short to evaluate the games.

Con: Though not larger than the 8525, this is still a large phone that's a bit heavier than the 8525. Wired stereo headset, usually included with all HTC smartphones, isn't included.

Price: $299.99 with a 2 year contract and AT&T mail-in rebate

Web site: wireless.att.com, america.htc.com

Specs:

Display: 65K color transflective TFT color LCD. Screen size diagonally: 2.8". Resolution: 240 x 320, supports both portrait and landscape modes.

Battery: Lithium Ion rechargeable. Battery is user replaceable. 1350 mA.

Performance: Qualcomm MSM 7200 400 MHz processor. 128 MB built-in RAM (~73.6 megs available at boot). 256 MB Flash ROM with 124 megs available for your use.

Size: 4.40 x 2.32 x 0.74 inches. Weight: 6.7 ounces.

Phone: GSM quad band 850/900/1800/1900MHz with EDGE and triband UMTS/HSDPA (850/1900/2100MHz). Locked to AT&T.

Camera: 3 MP with autofocus lens. Can take photos and video with audio. 2048 x 1536 max still image resolution 2048 x 1536. Max video resolution: CIF 352 x 288.

Audio: Built in speaker, mic and HTC proprietary stereo headphone jack. Voice Recorder and Windows Pocket Media Player 10 included for your MP3 and video playback pleasure. Has speakerphone and vibrate mode.

Networking: Integrated WiFi 802.11b/g and Bluetooth 2.0.

Software: Windows Mobile 6 Professional (Pocket PC Phone Edition) operating system. Microsoft Mobile Office suite including Mobile versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint (view only), Internet Explorer, and Outlook. Also included: Cyberon Voice Speed Dial, Esmertec Java VM, Pictures and Videos, MSN Instant Messenger, Windows Media Player 10, Solitaire, Bubble Breaker (game), Voice Recorder as well as handwriting recognition. Additional applications: Camera, HTC Comm Manager, HTC Task Manager, HTC streaming media player for CV, MS Bluetooth software, Clear Storage (wipes out all data and resets unit to factory defaults). Cellular Video (formerly Cingular Video), XM Radio, TeleNav trial, My Space, My Cast, MobiTV 2 (requires subscription) and a collection of demo Java games included. ActiveSync 4.5 and Outlook 2007 trial edition for PCs included.

Expansion: 1 microSD slot supporting SDHC.

"I have to admit that, as a direct result of playing with this software, I have also found myself thinking of a number of small projects that I fancy trying when I get it opportunity.  If you are a developer - professional or hobbyist - dbExplorer is an invaluable piece of software to assist in understanding the what, where and why of many features of WM2003."
- Mike, MTekk IT Services

"… if you need a database manipulation program then this is the one to go for. There are others, but this is the best - it really is that simple."
- Alan Barlow, FoxPop

Overview

Pocket dbExplorer is a tool that allows you to browse, view, edit, and manage application and system databases on Microsoft Windows Mobile based Pocket PCs and Smartphones. The program is similar to File Explorer, only it works with databases stored in the device's object store folder or in external database volumes instead of files. Pocket dbExplorer implements the following database manipulation functions: View/Edit, Copy, Rename, Delete, ExportTransfer (via infrared port). The program also allows the Backup and Restore of one or more databases and registry settings into a file which can be stored on the flash memory card or copied onto the desktop PC. Any database can be exported as a comma or tab separated text file. The main new features in the new version are the advanced database editor, ability to open standard object store and external database volume files, support for CEDB and EDB (WM5 or later) database formats, and support for Windows Mobile Smartphones. (as CSV or text), and

Benefits and Features

• Manages databases - allows copying, deleting, and renaming databases on your mobile device.
• View/Edit databases - allows viewing and editing of any system or application database located in the Databases folder
• Transfer data via IR - allows transferring of any database including contacts, appointments, notes, etc. between two Windows Powered mobile devices using the Infrared port
• Portability - supports practically any retail Microsoft Windows Powered Pocket PC or Smartphone.
• Efficiency - allows the freeing of storage space on your mobile device by deleting unused databases.
• Backup and Restore databases - allows backup/restoring of one or more databases into a single file which you can store on your desktop PC or a flash memory card.
• Backup and Restore registry - allows backup/restoring of all or selected registry settings into a single file which you can store on your desktop PC or a flash memory card.
• Security - protect your archives with password.
• Simple user interface - has the familiar look and feel of Windows File Explorer.
• Pocket PC Logo Certified - certified with the Designed for Microsoft Windows for Microsoft Pocket PC logo.
• Compressed Backup Files - allows compressing of the backup file.

System Requirements

• Microsoft Windows Mobile based Pocket PC or Smartphone.
• Microsoft Windows Mobile 4.2 or later.
• 300KB of free storage space (depending on the mobile device model).

Installation Instructions

To install the demo you need to do the following:

1. Download and copy the Pocket dbExplorer installation program (dbExplorer.exe) into a temporary directory on your desktop computer.
2. Connect the mobile device to the desktop computer.
3. Run the dbExplorer.exe installation program on the desktop computer.
   Follow the on-screen instructions to install Pocket dbExplorer.

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INTRODUCTION
    I tend to hate the fact that Windows Mobile has evolved five times in the past seven years and they always forget to improve the little old File Explorer. WM6's glossy new looks did manage to make it more attractive and in harmony with Vista's explorer, but many of us would want these Vista desktop looks to also be matched with a Vista desktop experience in tools and functionality. Resco has not only improved these deficiencies years ago with their first version of Resco Explorer, but they have also managed to evolve the concept (now in version 2007) of an improved explorer with many other integrated solutions that allow users to do many things in the same interface. Will all these improvements manage to make Resco a solution for your file explorer needs? Read on to find out!

WHAT'S HOT
    To an enhanced File Explorer, these guys added a Recycle bin, Today Plugin, Strong File Encryption, ZIP Compression, Built-In Viewer, Network Browser, Registry Editor, and FTP access. Though these enhancements were all available in past versions, this latest one, version 2007 (6.15), manages to improve their functionality with more options like:

• Today Plugin with Task Manager
• Folder Properties
• File decryption in memory
• Advanced Network Settings
• File Types Highlighting
• Quick-search bar
• Status Bar

SETUP
    Setup is pretty much what we're all used to. Start by connecting your device because this setup won't leave everything ready for a later installation.

    There are three basic screens where you accept the license agreement, choose applications to install and a final "Finish" screen. I enjoy the fact that I get to save memory in not installing what I don't like from the explorer. Everything can be installed in your device's storage card, though I strongly recommend that if you wish to make the Resco Today Plugin a keeper, install it on the device's storage memory to avoid startup issues on future soft resets.

After the installation is complete, the Today Plugin is automatically inserted and our programs folder now includes the Resco File Explorer, Resco Registry, Resco Update and System Info.

    Two changes are to happen on your PC. The Resco Crypting and a "Send To" option are now shown in the dialog box that appears when you right click any file (Context Menu). The Resco Crypting option is available for Encrypting or Decrypting files. The new "Send To" option has a new command at the end named "My Device", which is always visible, but only works when your device is connected to your PC. It opens a mini File Explorer that gives you the option to send the file you are selecting to whichever folder you choose within your device.

PRODUCT FEATURES
    Resco Explorer 2007 goes way beyond what you'd expect from a simple file explorer and the integration of all these features could come in handy. We'll start with The Explorer and later all the add-ins and their specifics. My first impression always accounts for speed, and I can say it's relatively better than WM's explorer.

Visual Interface and Navigation
    One of the best advantages Resco Explorer 2007 offers is flexibility in looks and interface. For example, I honestly hate Resco's initial looks.

    I'm just not a fan of the striped separation, nor the light text seen here. But to my luck, these can be changed.

Options allow you to change the color of the stripes, make your text bold or the neat new ability to apply different colors to selected file types.

The View option even allows large folder icons or a Tree view with a vertical or horizontal separator.

    Another option would be the fact that the explorer was effectively designed to be used with a both a stylus or soft keys. You can either use both, or choose to keep only one of them. If you're a WM2003 fan and want to get rid of the soft keys, Resco thought of that too. Good one Resco :)!

Integration
    Flexible integration and functionality are other key strengths available. Yo can choose to work within all the add-ins you installed or work separately in cases like the Resco Registry add-in.

An integrated view of all applications versus the single view of the Registry Add-in working alone.

Tools
    What really makes it be a true file explorer solution are the tools involved. If you need a file specific solution, you'll find these on the context menu. If you need Explorer specific tools, you'll find them on the "Menu" soft key or the icon toolbar.

View
    Supports images, just about any text type file and some other surprises. It also allows you to view the file in ANSI, Unicode and Binary formats. It does sound like a good memory saving idea at first, but it would tend to hang with large pictures, so I guess it's back to the drawing board on this one:rolleyes:.

The viewer is pretty much as simple as they come, view the file without calling the default application.

Open
    This is a five star feature not available in the built-in explorer. It expands and gives you the option to first simply open the file, second choose which program opens the file, and third, it gives you an automatic option to choose a default application. Neat!:D. Just watch it when ever you choose to open system files like .Dll's since taping on them automatically calls the Open With menu.

"Open with" does a great job in reminding you how the desktop explorer works.

Send To
    Another great solution that is missed out in the built in explorer. It allows you to quickly send a selected file or folder to somebody else via Email / MMS or as an OBEX transfer from Bluetooth and Infrared. It also has the option of sending it to the Today Screen Plugin and the My Documents Folder or even build a short cut in the start menu.

"Send To" Can't get any better. It gives you all the options you'll need for an easy transfer to just about any destination.

Copy To, Move To
    Both options follow their names in functionality.

One copies the selected file from it's current location to another selected folder and the other moves it.

    If you own a mobile device with little old WM5 and a slow processor, opening the Windows folder takes ages. This solution helps you save that time by allowing you to add a file to the folder without ever opening it. I just wish Resco would've considered adding a "ask for my confirmation" before the copying or moving takes place. Its fairly easy to make a big mess in your files if you map these commands to a hardware button and press it by accident in delicate folders like Windows.. And yes, it happened to me twice already:o.

Encrypt
    This option was designed to protect your most valuable content from unauthorized access.

Resco has many types of encryption formats that range from basic encryption to 256 bit encryption after you choose your password.

    Probably the only thing I didn't like at all is the decryption process. After taping on the file, you're asked for your password and then Resco eliminates the encrypted version and returns your file to normal state instead of allowing you to work within the encrypted file. The viewer does give you this option, but your are still just "viewing". Another is that there should be an option for these files to be protected from deletion. If I took the time to encrypt them it's because they're important, and I obviously don't want to loose them:confused:.

 Compress
    Stands for building a .zip archive.

Resco allows multiple compression options and the ability to set a password for access and even verify the archive once built.

    Here they did address the encryption flaws and you are able to open, use and save the file in a temporary folder while zipped without much fuzz. I tested it on a couple of cab files and got their size reduced in half. Pretty decent if you ask me.

Properties
    This may not be much of an important feature, but there are two things I personally find very handy:

One is the option to make files Read Only and Hidden, the other, it allows you to see what percentage of storage space is used by a folder.

Find
    Resco Explorer 2007 has two ways to search for content.

You can either use the Find tool available in the Menu Soft Key, or you can simply start typing the file name and Quick search jumps in.

    The difference here is that the Find tool will search thoroughly in the folder selected and sub folders until it finds a match or positive matches. Quick search sadly only searches an exact match in whichever folder you have open. As I type the word, the explorer opens a small bar at the bottom with your text and starts searching for matches. It'll stop you from typing whenever no more matches are found. This feature looks promising, but I hope future versions allow a sub folder search or even a simulated Windows Desktop Search for file content.

Favorites
    Resco has also included a simple way for you to have your favorite folders quickly accessible. I'm very fond of this feature, it saves you time.

It includes certain folders by default but you can choose to organize these in which ever way you like or add new ones.

Run
    Sadly, Resco's concept of Run is not what a power user would look for. You'd expect it to run the .exe files from the windows folder by default just like a desktop does with commands like MSCONFIG (Activesyn as a WM device example) but this one doesn't.

You first have to look for the file on the exact path, even in the windows folder, and then run it.

    If you don't change the path or know the correct one, it will simply look no further than in the folder you have active at the moment. I'm trying to understand the point in having a run tool if it's as complicated as looking for the file in a folder. Come to think of it, the "Find" tool does a much better job at searching for anything you want to run than this one does. Lets hope Resco deals with this in future versions.

Network
    I haven't found a simple "share this folder" option in any application yet and that includes the Resco Explorer. What Resco includes is the ability to search for a folder in the network and then map it for easy access from your device. Pretty much another Favorites solution.

You must type in the correct path of the folder you want to map or choose it from the "Computers Near Me" tree.

    Once done, a shortcut for the drive is available on the "My Network" plugin. The feature is nice but that's not real network browsing. It would be better if you didn't have to map everything you want to see in the network. Resco also needs to improve their support on it. The help feature is scarce in detail and the web site has no tutorials on it. It took me some time to figure out how it worked, and to be honest, I'm still not sure I got it right.

System Info
    Is an extended feature that has nothing to do with the File Explorer, but doesn't bother to have either.

It let's you see how your device's resources are currently doing. Resco needs to tweak the Backup Battery meter since my device lacks one.

Recycle Bin
    One great tool I enjoy using is the recycle bin. The fact that I can think twice before completely eliminating a file gives me piece of mind.

A dialog box not only asks you if you are sure you want to continue, but it also lets you choose to use the Recycle bin or not.

    It works just like your typical Desktop explorer with options for controlling the amount of space it'll take, a restore and an empty option. A good Resco Trick is the fact that I still haven't been able to figure out where the Recycle Bin folder lies on the root of the device. I don't think it lies in the storage card, but I sure wish it does;).

Button Mapping
    An option that came to my surprise is the button mapping.

It allows you to choose hardware buttons for Copy To, Move To, View, Move Forward or Back and many other features

    It's worth checking it out and probably becoming part of your way to interact with the explorer. I can't say I've used it a lot, specially after I accidentally moved the contents from a folder to another in such a flash that it took me time to find them:o.

Resco Today Screen Plugin With Task Manager
    I can't be sensitive about this one. My first impressions on the today screen plugin were catastrophic and after trying it for one day, I ended up uninstalling it. It's just ugly, the skins available are even worse, and the time it takes for the plugin to shift horizontally when using a slid able QWERTY keyboard is slow.

The plugin includes a task manager, detailed info regarding Battery Life, Storage Memory and Program Memory.

    You have the ability to choose what you want to see in each of these meters for cases when you prefer to see how much memory you're using instead of how much you have left. Shortcuts can also be added to de plugin for programs or files you prefer. Initially the plugin only includes one default skin. You must download the other three skin options when you tap on More Skins. Each skin takes from 60 to 70kb in storage space, and Yes! They all suck! I know it was harsh of me to keep the HTC Home plugin active for the review, but my point is simple: "If a hardware manufacturer can make elegant software, than software developers should do better". Deal with it Resco!

Resco Registry
    This add-in allows you to modify the device's registry just like the REGEDIT command does on your PC. If you're not familiar with how the registry works and what are do's and don't's, do yourself a favor and avoid using it. Any bad moves can leave you no choice but to Hard Reset.

You can choose to use it from the explorer and have access to the stylus icon bars and also by itself without this option.

    There is not much to say about the Add-In. It does practically everything a registry editor can do, and in some cases, others do the same for FREE (PHM Registry Editor). You can create new Keys, String Values, Multi Line String Values, Binary Values and DWords. You also have the ability to Import and Find the keys you need. The only two enhancements I could say are available in comparison to any other free Registry Editor are the availability of a "Favorites" menu, and the ability to interact with the application through soft keys. One Big Flaw that I did notice is that there are no options to backup and restore registry. PHM Registry Editor does, so Resco does have much room for improvement here if I'm going to have to pay for it.

My FTP Locations
    Now here is a feature I did enjoy learning how to use. FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol and it practically does the job of a web based hard drive. Resco was nice enough to include the option to have your favorite FTP locations available for easy access and all under a file explorer interface. It sure beats having to use your typical Internet Explorer for access. Great Job guys:)!

Once you create your FTP Session, a folder is left for you to Connect any time you need to.

The Session verifies your User information and later connects you to the server.

    Once in the Session, you can browse through all the folders available and download the content you need. I would've probably enjoyed it more if the connection would remain active after you send your mobile device to standby. Resco could probably consider that for future versions.

Registration
    Finally, when you buy it, your registered version accounts for one year of software updates. You are are asked for your name and are given a registration key based on that name. Be very careful in adding the same name you have active on the built-in "User Information" in Windows Mobile.

The Application will use this name to match the code.

    If you gave out a different name, you can simply go to User Information and change it temporarily to activate and then change it back. The problem here is that once you soft reset, you'll have to register again.

Continue On: Bugs and Wishes / Pros and Cons / Conclusion . . .

I have an MP3 that I truncated ages ago and made into a ringtone for my Windows Mobile phones; it’s the first 30 seconds of the Nine Inch Nails song “Only”. This was my first attempt at creating a ringtone - and while I am happy with the result and while it definitely sounds great - it was a bit of pain in the butt to do, and I haven’t attempted making one since. But I like using songs as ringtones, which is why I bought a “ready made” ringtone for my device not too long ago. Unfortunately, the portion of the song used was not the portion I would have chosen, as I generally prefer ringtones made from the instrumental portion of the song versus the singing; that experiment cost me $2.99.

When I was offered the chance to review wmRingToneMaker for Windows Mobile Devices, I wasn’t that eager to jump into ringtone making again…until I read all the promises on the GX5 site of how easy it was to do. I mean, as much as I love that Only ringtone, it has long grown tired, but I still like it better than my phone’s other available ringers. If wmRingToneMaker would honestly streamline the ringtone making process, then I couldn’t wait to try it.

After a quick download and after entering my serial number, I was ready to get started…

This is the screen that shows when you open the program. On the left column, there are options to access your music folder or to browse the computer if, like me, you keep your MP3s on an external drive.

Since I like the opening to Snow Patrol’s “Ways and Means”, I thought it would be a good song to ringtone. Using the Browse Computer button on the left, I found the MP3 on my external drive and clicked. The song immediately shows in its entirety on the editing block. This is the “simple” view…

…and this is “advanced.” Basically the only difference is that you can now adjust the fading in and out, and you can add some other sound effects including reverb, flanger, autowahwah, echo, and phaser. Other than the fade in and out options, if you are chopping a good song I see no need to clutter it with effects; I left mine on “none.”

I bet you have already guessed how the controls work, but just in case - here is the tutorial. In essence, you are sliding the green and red arrows to the points where you want the ringtone to start and stop. The longer the space in between the two points, the longer the ringtone and the more memory it will use. I think a good rule of thumb is to make the ringtone no more than 30 seconds long, but depending upon how good the quality of your rip, this might still be a pretty hefty file.

In this window you can keep the Mp3 name for the created ringtones and choose the location for your stored ringtones (I just left mine in the Music folder). The last option says “Allow right clicking on an MP3 to create a ringtone,” but I didn’t see an extra option added to the right click menu or any other indication that this was working. Otherwise, everything is all very straightforward.

Hitting the Preview button allows you to listen to your creation at any time, and fiddling with the right or left arrows allows you to get the exact segment of the song that you want.  I went ahead and did 45 seconds, which weighed in at 722KB - it’s a good thing my Mogul has a lot of storage available!

My first ringtone was so easy to make that I immediately did a second, this time the Ben’s Brother song “Stuttering”.

After you have made a few ringtones, you can click the “Manage my Ringtones” tab to see what you’ve got filed.

Getting the ringtones onto your device can be done one of two ways. The first is clicking the “Send Ringtone to Phone” which didn’t work for me. Whether it was the fault of Windows Mobile Device Center, Windows Vista, my Mogul, or the program, who knows. I blame WMDC.

The much more reliable way to transfer is to simply drag and drop the ringtone from the Ringtone folder on the computer to the Rings folder on the Windows Mobile device.

That’s all there is to it, and it honestly couldn’t be any simpler. If you are tired of the tinkly ringtones that come on our WM phones, and you want to hear ringtones made from your favorite music - without having to repurchase music you already own as a ringtone, then you will want to check out wmRingToneMaker. It supports .mp3, .ogg, and .wav files, and it will work on any PC

wmRingToneMaker for Windows Mobile Devices is available directly from the developer.
MSRP: $19.95
What I Like: Easy to use; allows you to choose which portion of the song will be in your ringtone; if you like personalized ringtones, it will save you money in the long run
What Needs Improvement: The “Send Ringtone to Phone” feature didn’t work for me, but it may all be WMDC’s fault

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.; BONN, Germany; TAOYUAN, Taiwan; SAN DIEGO, Calif.; SCHAUMBURG, Ill. (November 5, 2007) -- A broad alliance of leading technology and wireless companies today joined forces to announce the development of Android, the first truly open and comprehensive platform for mobile devices. Google Inc., T-Mobile, HTC, Qualcomm, Motorola and others have collaborated on the development of Android through the Open Handset Alliance, a multinational alliance of technology and mobile industry leaders.

This alliance shares a common goal of fostering innovation on mobile devices and giving consumers a far better user experience than much of what is available on today's mobile platforms. By providing developers a new level of openness that enables them to work more collaboratively, Android will accelerate the pace at which new and compelling mobile services are made available to consumers.

With nearly 3 billion users worldwide, the mobile phone has become the most personal and ubiquitous communications device. However, the lack of a collaborative effort has made it a challenge for developers, wireless operators and handset manufacturers to respond as quickly as possible to the ever-changing needs of savvy mobile consumers. Through Android, developers, wireless operators and handset manufacturers will be better positioned to bring to market innovative new products faster and at a much lower cost. The end result will be an unprecedented mobile platform that will enable wireless operators and manufacturers to give their customers better, more personal and more flexible mobile experiences.

Thirty-four companies have formed the Open Handset Alliance, which aims to develop technologies that will significantly lower the cost of developing and distributing mobile devices and services. The Android platform is the first step in this direction -- a fully integrated mobile "software stack" that consists of an operating system, middleware, user-friendly interface and applications. Consumers should expect the first phones based on Android to be available in the second half of 2008.

The Android platform will be made available under one of the most progressive, developer-friendly open-source licenses, which gives mobile operators and device manufacturers significant freedom and flexibility to design products. Next week the Alliance will release an early access software development kit to provide developers with the tools necessary to create innovative and compelling applications for the platform.

Android holds the promise of unprecedented benefits for consumers, developers and manufacturers of mobile services and devices. Handset manufacturers and wireless operators will be free to customize Android in order to bring to market innovative new products faster and at a much lower cost. Developers will have complete access to handset capabilities and tools that will enable them to build more compelling and user-friendly services, bringing the Internet developer model to the mobile space. And consumers worldwide will have access to less expensive mobile devices that feature more compelling services, rich Internet applications and easier-to-use interfaces -- ultimately creating a superior mobile experience.

Open Software, Open Device, Open Ecosystem

"This partnership will help unleash the potential of mobile technology for billions of users around the world. A fresh approach to fostering innovation in the mobile industry will help shape a new computing environment that will change the way people access and share information in the future," said Google Chairman and CEO Eric Schmidt. "Today's announcement is more ambitious than any single 'Google Phone' that the press has been speculating about over the past few weeks. Our vision is that the powerful platform we're unveiling will power thousands of different phone models."

"As a founding member of the Open Handset Alliance, T-Mobile is committed to innovation and fostering an open platform for wireless services to meet the rapidly evolving and emerging needs of wireless customers," said René Obermann, Chief Executive Officer, Deutsche Telekom, parent company of T-Mobile. "Google has been an established partner for T-Mobile’s groundbreaking approach to bring the mobile open Internet to the mass market. We see the Android platform as an exciting opportunity to launch robust wireless Internet and Web 2.0 services for T-Mobile customers in the US and Europe in 2008."

"HTC's trademark on the mobile industry has been its ability to drive cutting-edge innovation into a wide variety of mobile devices to create the perfect match for individuals," said Peter Chou, Chief Executive Officer, HTC Corp. "Our participation in the Open Handset Alliance and integration of the Android platform in the second half of 2008 enables us to expand our device portfolio into a new category of connected mobile phones that will change the complexion of the mobile industry and re-create user expectations of the mobile phone experience."

"The convergence of the wireless and Internet industries is creating new partnerships, evolving business models and driving innovation," said Dr. Paul E. Jacobs, Chief Executive Officer of Qualcomm. "We are extremely pleased to be participating in the Open Handset Alliance, whose mission is to help build the leading open-source application platform for 3G networks. The proliferation of open-standards-based handsets will provide an exciting new opportunity to create compelling services and devices. As a result, we are committing research and development resources to enable the Android platform and to create the best always-connected consumer experience on our chipsets."

"Motorola has long been an advocate of open software for mobile platforms. Today, we're excited to continue this support by joining Google and others in the announcement of the Open Handset Alliance and Android platform. Motorola plans to leverage the Android platform to enable seamless, connected services and rich consumer experiences in future Motorola products," said Ed Zander, Chairman and CEO of Motorola, Inc.

Open Handset Alliance Founding Members

Aplix (www.aplixcorp.com), Ascender Corporation (www.ascendercorp.com), Audience (www.audience.com), Broadcom (www.broadcom.com), China Mobile (www.chinamobile.com), eBay (www.ebay.com), Esmertec (www.esmertec.com), Google (www.google.com), HTC (www.htc.com), Intel (www.intel.com), KDDI (www.kddi.com), LivingImage (www.livingimage.jp), LG (www.lge.com), Marvell (www.marvell.com), Motorola (www.motorola.com), NMS Communications (www.nmscommunications.com), Noser (www.noser.com), NTT DoCoMo, Inc. (www.nttdocomo.com), Nuance (www.nuance.com), Nvidia (www.nvidia.com), PacketVideo (www.packetvideo.com), Qualcomm (www.qualcomm.com), Samsung (www.samsung.com), SiRF (www.sirf.com), SkyPop (www.skypop.com), SONiVOX (www.sonivoxrocks.com), Sprint Nextel (www.sprint.com), Synaptics (www.synaptics.com), TAT - The Astonishing Tribe (www.tat.se), Telecom Italia (www.telecomitalia.com), Telefónica (www.telefonica.es), Texas Instruments (www.ti.com), T-Mobile (www.t-mobile.com), Wind River (www.windriver.com).

For more information about the Open Handset Alliance, visit the website at www.openhandsetalliance.com.

About Google
Google's innovative search technologies connect millions of people around the world with information every day. Founded in 1998 by Stanford Ph.D. students Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Google today is a top web property in all major global markets. Google's targeted advertising program provides businesses of all sizes with measurable results, while enhancing the overall web experience for users. Google is headquartered in Silicon Valley with offices throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia. For more information, visit www.google.com.

About T-Mobile
T-Mobile is one of the world's leading companies in mobile communications. As one of Deutsche Telekom's three strategic business units, T-Mobile concentrates on the most dynamic markets in Europe and the United States. Almost 112 million mobile customers were served by companies of the Deutsche Telekom group by June 30, 2007. The common technology platform is based on GSM, the world's most successful digital wireless standard. This also makes T-Mobile the only mobile communications provider with a seamless transatlantic service.

About HTC
Founded in 1997, HTC Corp. (HTC) designs, manufactures and markets innovative, feature rich smartphones. Since its establishment, HTC has developed strong R&D capabilities, pioneered many new designs and product innovations and launched a broad portfolio of smartphones for mobile operators and distributors in Europe, the US and Asia. These devices are available as HTC products and as products individually customized for operator and device partners. HTC is one of the fastest growing companies in the mobile device market. The company is listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange under ticker 2498. For more information about HTC, please visit http://www.htc.com.

About Qualcomm
Qualcomm Incorporated (www.qualcomm.com) is a leader in developing and delivering innovative digital wireless communications products and services based on CDMA and other advanced technologies. Headquartered in San Diego, Calif., Qualcomm is included in the S&P 500 Index and is a 2007 FORTUNE 500® company traded on The Nasdaq Stock Market® under the ticker symbol QCOM.

About Motorola
Motorola is known around the world for innovation and leadership in wireless and broadband communications. Inspired by our vision of seamless mobility, the people of Motorola are committed to helping you connect simply and seamlessly to the people, information and entertainment that you want and need. We do this by designing and delivering "must have" products, "must do" experiences and powerful networks -- along with a full complement of support services. A Fortune 100 company with global presence and impact, Motorola had sales of US $42.8 billion in 2006. For more information about our company, our people and our innovations, please visit http://www.motorola.com.

Media Contacts
Google: Erin Fors, efors@google.com, 415-939-0582
Deutsche Telekom: Michael Lange, Michael.Lange@t-mobile.net, +49(0)228 936 15500
T-Mobile USA: Peter Dobrow, mediarelations@t-mobile.com, 425-383-4002
HTC: Jason Gordon, jason_gordon@htc.com, 425-679-5337
Qualcomm: Kira Golin, qctpublicrelations@qualcomm.com, 858-204-8156
Motorola: Paul Alfieri, paul.alfieri@motorola.com, 847-660-9176

###

All company and product names may be trademarks of the companies with which they are associated.

Additional Supporting Quotes

"The launch of Open Handset Alliance marks the initiation of a very exciting period for the wireless industry in many different ways. Aplix is excited to be a member of the Open Handset Alliance and we are committed to contribute our extensive mobile & embedded experience in helping device manufacturers & carriers ship products based on the Android platform."
-- Ryu Koriyama, CEO Aplix Corporation

"Ascender is proud to be providing the font solution to the Android platform built by the Open Handset Alliance. We believe that handset manufacturers and application developers will be very happy with the fonts provided and we look forward to addressing the future font needs across the platform. We are also very excited that the platform supports our Ascender Compact Asian Font solution (ACAF), which will make it easy for manufacturers to implement additional high-quality Asian fonts in a small footprint."
-- Ira Mirochnick, President of Ascender Corporation

"We are pleased to be a part of the Open Handset Alliance as it embarks on revolutionizing the world of mobile communications. As open devices enter the market in 2008, Audience is defining the new standard for noise suppression, enabling more usability of rich voice and data applications on this platform. Callers will be able to be heard everywhere from their mobile handset, even in the noisiest places."
-- Peter Santos, CEO of Audience

"Broadcom is at the forefront of integrating advanced multimedia functionality, applications processing and communications technologies into highly integrated processors for next-generation mobile devices, sharing the Open Handset Alliance's vision of enabling platforms that provide maximum flexibility to developers of useful and exciting mobile applications. We are excited to participate in the Alliance, working with other industry leaders to further explore the possibilities that increasingly powerful mobile devices provide and reaffirming Broadcom's support of open operating systems for the mobile handset."
-- Dr. Edward Frank, Vice President of R&D at Broadcom

"China Mobile believes that an open and advanced mobile handset platform is the key to deliver the best mobile application and Internet experience and it will encourage faster adoption of smartphones in China. China Mobile is excited to participate in the Open Handset Alliance and to work with Google and other Alliance partners on a next-generation mobile handset platform."
-- Bill Huang, General Manager of China Mobile Research Institute

"eBay supports the Open Handset Alliance's efforts to deliver more compelling applications and content to mobile Internet users. As the future unfolds, more and more people will be accessing the Internet using their mobile devices. We see this initiative as an opportunity to get more people to experience the power of the eBay marketplace regardless of where they are or what device they are using."
-- Andre Haddad, SVP Products, eBay Inc.

"We are delighted to be a member of the Open Handset Alliance, which opens new horizons in the mobile space. Beyond our OMA applications contribution to this alliance, we strive to address the challenges and needs of all players in the current and future mobile value chain with a full range of integration and development services. Thanks to the availability of our Jbed™ Java™ VM on the Android platform, we offer immediate compatibility to the standard Java ME world to enable Java ME-based mobile services with the Android platform."
-- Jean-Claude Martinez, CEO of Esmertec

"Intel joined the Open Handset Alliance to create opportunities to innovate in the mobile market segment. The Android platform can enhance Intel's new low-power products that will enable an emerging class of mobile Internet devices that bring to life the full Internet experience on products that are small enough to fit in your pocket, and meet the uncompromising performance needs of users on the go."
-- Gary Willihnganz, Director of Marketing, Intel Ultra Mobile Group

"KDDI believes the alliance is exactly the first great step toward increased openness in the mobile industry and we hope the platform will bring completely new experiences to the mobile users around the world."
-- Tadashi Onodera, President and Chairman of KDDI Corporation

"We are very excited about participating in the Open Handset Alliance, since it will open up an ultimate horizon for future handset devices. LivingImage envisions a world where people will play Images by editless technology. Very simple to watch -- just click the Li logo to experience future visual literacy."
-- Yu Maruno, Chief Creative Director, LivingImage

"As a founding member of the Open Handset Alliance, we are furthering our commitment to deliver the best possible mobile experience to our customers. The Alliance's plan to deliver the most innovative and open platform ever created will be an enormous contribution to the mobile industry and to mobile phone users everywhere. At LG we are looking forward to building handsets based on this open platform, with new and exciting features that will benefit our customers."
-- Dr. Skott Ahn, President and CEO of LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company

"Marvell is thrilled to be a member of the Open Handset Alliance. This alliance will enable a revolutionary open mobile platform that will leverage the high-performance microprocessors, low-power wireless technologies and open architecture of the Marvell silicon product portfolio."
-- Dr. Sehat Sutardja, President and CEO of Marvell

"Noser Engineering Inc. is a Swiss software engineering company that specializes in both embedded and mobile solutions. Working in close collaboration with the Open Handset Alliance, Noser contributed core functionality to the Android platform. This platform will revolutionize the mobile industry, and it will be an ideal 'open' development platform for the delivery of solutions to various industries. Noser's experience with the Android platform allows us to better support operators, handset manufacturers and ISVs who plan to ship devices and services based on this platform."
-- Geri Moll, CEO Noser Engineering Inc.

"NMS Communications is pleased to add our industry-leading IMS framework to the Open Handset Alliance initiative. I believe this Alliance will unlock unprecedented innovation in mobile operating systems benefiting operators, consumers and suppliers alike."
-- Joel Hughes, General Manager, Mobile Applications, NMS Communications

"DoCoMo strongly believes that rich mobile internet services have been changing the users' daily lives dramatically. We believe Open Handset Alliance's vision of driving true openness will contribute significantly to this trend, supported by DoCoMo and other partners in the Alliance,"
-- Mr. Takeshi Natsuno, senior Vice President and Managing Director of the Multimedia Services Department of NTT DoCoMo

"Nuance joined the Open Handset Alliance with other industry leaders to grow the entire mobile ecosystem. We're committed to apply our strength and leadership in voice-based search and messaging to move the market forward. By packaging and optimizing embedded speech technology components for open-source distribution, we've given developers the opportunity to access speech solutions through open APIs using the Android platform and to easily upgrade to new, more advanced speech features as well. We believe deep collaboration with members of the Alliance will grow our core mobile business and fuel the proliferation of speech-enabled applications worldwide."
-- Steve Chambers, President, Mobile and Consumer Services Division of Nuance Communications

"As the mobile phone becomes our most personal computer, the user experience has never been more important. NVIDIA will be working within the Open Handset Alliance to enable rich media acceleration on a new generation of devices based on the Android platform."
-- Michael Rayfield, General Manager of NVIDIA's mobile business

"Driving innovation in mobile entertainment is what PV has been doing since we started in 1998. We chose to be the multimedia partner for the Open Handset Alliance because its mission of accelerating mobile entertainment aligns with ours. The creation of the Alliance is a major step in the global evolution of mobile entertainment."
-- James C. Brailean, Ph.D., CEO of PacketVideo (PV)

"Today's mobile industry is becoming more and more a customer-centric environment. Samsung's joining with the Open Handset Alliance is fundamentally in line with this trend. We expect to lead the mobile industry by introducing more customer-oriented mobile phones through this alliance."
-- Dale Sohn, President of Samsung Telecommunications America

"As a leading provider of GPS-enabled location technology for the mainstream mobile markets, SiRF is extremely pleased to be a founding member of the Open Handset Alliance. With the emergence of geo search and navigation as key enablers, an open platform like Android can significantly accelerate the development and deployment of location-aware applications, content and services. We believe our development efforts in conjunction with the innovative Android platform and our continued investment in leading-edge technology and location ecosystem will further our vision of bringing the benefits of location technology to billions of users worldwide."
-- Kanwar Chadha, Founder and Vice President of Marketing, SiRF Technology

"We are excited to be part of the Open Handset Alliance and the next generation of mobile devices that it will empower. Android is the first platform that enables SkyPop to fully deliver on our vision of consumer services for the future of mobile devices."
-- Bruce Leak, CEO and Co-Founder of SkyPop

"The Open Handset Alliance is music to mobile industry ears. Finally, developers like SONiVOX have a common stage upon which to not only create, but commercialize new, innovative ideas."
-- Jennifer Hruska, President of SONiVOX

"Sprint continues to be a catalyst for transforming the mobile environment into one that is more open and customer-driven. Our participation in the Open Handset Alliance is a clear indication of Sprint’s commitment to breaking down barriers and enabling developers to create and deliver applications that customers want. This new mobile ecosystem model will drive innovation, personalize the mobile experience and ultimately increase wireless data usage."
-- Keith Cowan, President of Strategic Planning and Corporate Initiatives, Sprint Nextel

"Synaptics is proud to be a founding member of the Open Handset Alliance. Our contribution to the Android platform will help bring dynamic touch UIs to everyone in the mobile market. By creating an open environment conducive to collaboration and partnering, the Alliance will allow key influencers to deliver innovative devices and services to meet the needs of the fast-changing mobile industry."
-- Francis Lee, President and CEO of Synaptics

"TAT is pleased to join the Open Handset Alliance as it pushes the boundaries on how mobile phones will be used. TAT will be contributing to this initiative with our extensive experience and proven track record in the mobile user interface arena -- enabling UI creation to be an integral part in the handset design process."
-- Charlotta Falvin, CEO of TAT - The Astonishing Tribe

"Telecom Italia is already focused on the mobile Internet framework and services and strongly believes that it will be the key successful approach for future revenues. In this scenario the Open Handset Alliance represents an important initiative for Telecom Italia and for all its members to work together and to speed up the development process of a new open OS for mobile Internet services."
-- Riccardo Jelmini, Executive Vice President, VAS Domestic Mobile Services of Telecom Italia

"Telefónica strives to bring the best of the web to our customers, wherever they are. We are pleased to be a part of the Open Handset Alliance, which we believe will enable new and innovative services to be launched on a robust and open platform. We look forward to delivering customized phones based on this platform for our customers."
-- Adrían García Nevado, Corporate Commercial Director of Telefónica S.A.

"The move toward open source offerings is an important trend in the mobile industry, adding flexibility and driving adoption of mobile software solutions. TI is pleased to work with Google and other Open Handset Alliance members to broaden the mobile ecosystem and help expand the open-source community. TI applications processors along with our wireless LAN and Bluetooth connectivity solutions are key enablers in the Android platform. With TI technology as the foundation, the Android platform will open the doors for innovation and accelerate the creation of exciting new wireless services and products."
-- Raj Talluri, General Manager, Wireless Terminals Business Unit, Texas Instruments

"Wind River is investing in the Open Handset Alliance to help deliver on its massive promise: faster time-to-market and dramatically lower bill-of-material costs for Linux-based phones. As a Linux commercialization partner for the Alliance, we've made significant contributions to ensure an optimized Linux distribution that delivers the highest level of silicon performance, and to provide the Linux services necessary for OEMs to quickly create Android-based handsets."
-- Ken Klein, CEO of Wind River

Product Description

Bible Maps for use with PocketBible 3. Featuring thirteen Bible maps covering the major time periods and places in the Bible:

• Old Testament Maps
  • Fertile Crescent
  • Nations of Canaan
  • Exodus
  • Tabernacle
  • Twelve Tribes
  • United Kingdom
  • Divided Kingdom
• New Testament Maps
  • Greek Empire
  • New Testament Palestine
  • New Testament Jerusalem
  • Paul's Journeys (1 through 3)
  • Paul's Final Journey
  • Seven Churches of Revelation

13 colorful Bible maps give you a visual of the major time periods and places in the Bible	Tap on any place name to view a brief article.	Highlight a place name in any Bible or book to get a list of the Bible maps that contain that place.

Features

The Bible maps included in this set are vector-based maps drawn using the latest survey and satellite imagery. The articles included about map cities, sites, and locations was researched and verified by more than 200 scholarly works. The maps and reference articles are licensed from Manna Bible Maps. System Requirements

Bible Maps require approximately 13MB RAM. Download size is approximately 1.5MB.

Requires the PocketBible 3 Program (sold separately).