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Windows Mobile 6 Upgrades for your phone

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I get this question a couple times a day - How or when will I be able to get a ROM image to upgrade my phone to WIndows Mobile 6? I'll try to answer as clarly as I can:

  • Carriers will provide the Upgrades- after all, they own the customer interaction int he US and every phone must go through a certification process to get on their network. Elsewhere int he world it is easier to buy an unlocked phone at retail, from Expansys or from iMate and pop in your SIM card. In this case the device manufactuers could provide upgrades. If you use a beta or unsupported upgrade you could experience quality issues like the ones Mike is having.
  • Not all phones will have upgrades - Creating a ROM image requires a significant investment from the device manufacturer (OEM) and the Carrier (or Mobile Operator as they are called everywhere else). Carrier's certification process, known as Technical Acceptance (TA) takes at least six weeks, and requires an investment that easily gets to a million dollrs. There is also an opportunity cost, both on the certification resources that must be prioritized over other phones, and in engineering resources: do we invest in upgrades for existing phones or do we accelerate launch of new phones. It is not easy to justify this investment when there is not a clear indication of how many more phones they could sell with an upgrade. We do what we can to show them the opportunity and get as many phones in the upgrade path.
  • The only phone for which an uypgrade has been announced in the US is T-Mobile Dash - When we announced Windows Mobile 6 at 3GSM T-Mobile announced they will make available a free software upgrade for T-Mobile Dash users. This is coming really soon. I will post the link to the upgrade as soon as it is available.
  • CTIA is next week. It's the biggest industry event for the cellular industry in the US, and a great opportunity for other operators to  announce upgrades ;-)  I promise to post them on my blog as soon as they are announced....er, if anyone were to annoucne anything :-)

Comments

  • Anonymous
    March 23, 2007
    That's a MFAQ, the "Most Frequently Asked Question" that we get these days. Gerardo Dada from our team

  • Anonymous
    March 26, 2007
    I got this question e-mailed to me as a response my posts reviewing WM6 and using it as a GPS device.

  • Anonymous
    March 26, 2007
    I've been looking at getting the Cingular 8525. I think an WM6 upgrade would make it a no-brainer for me. Keeping my fingers crossed.

  • Anonymous
    March 26, 2007
    *Palm today announced that an update to the Windows Mobile 6 Professional operating system will be available for Treo 750 smartphone customers around the world.

  • Anonymous
    April 12, 2007
    Is it out yet for the tmobile dash =)

  • Anonymous
    February 14, 2008
    "That's a MFAQ, the "Most Frequently Asked Question" that..." does not anwser the question.  This blog is useless since you dont reply with useful comments.

  • Anonymous
    April 04, 2008
    At CTIA Last week, Robbie Back announced Windows Mobile 6.1 I haven't seen as much excitement as I expected.

  • Anonymous
    January 31, 2009
    i have pantech matrix it it the same phone as the pantech duo (which has windows mobile 6)....but my phone only has the basic at&t user interface (apparently at&t downgraded from WM6)....can i get some kind of software to install windows mobile 6 on it since it is obvious compatible with the phone? P:S.- my phone is unlocked

  • Anonymous
    May 07, 2010
    Can my SPV M700 or HTC trinity run Windows mobile 6 It's locked to orange nl