While Microsoft is still closely guarding details of its forthcoming Windows Mobile 7 operating system, the software giant said it will offer OEMs more detailed reference designs, introducing a chassis-like concept similar to how it collaborates with its PC hardware partners. In an interview with IT Pro, Microsoft business marketing manager James McCarthy said "In the future, we are looking to deepen our development work with a handful of key OEMs at the hardware design phase, with much more carefully defined hardware specifications to match software requirements, which in turn will deliver even more powerful mobile experiences for our customers." The chassis approach should help reduce differentiation among WinMo device models, effectively accelerating OS updates and simplifying third-party software development.
McCarthy was nevertheless mum on when WinMo 7 handsets will hit retail. "Steve Ballmer has mentioned publicly that Windows Mobile 7 is slated for release in 2010 and we're always working with our key OEM and operator partners on future products, although we have nothing formal to announce for now."
For more on Microsoft's WinMo 7 plans:
- read this IT Pro article
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