Windows Phone Thoughts: Take Another Loox - The N560 Pocket PC Reviewed

Windows Mobile 2005
The biggest news about the latest generation of Pocket PCs is the introduction of Windows Mobile 2005, the newest iteration of the OS for Pocket PCs and Smartphones. For those of you who aren't aware of the key features of this new release, the most significant change is the use of persistent storage rather than RAM for application and data storage. I'll bring you up to speed with a brief description of this feature.

Previous generations of Pocket PCs use RAM both for primary data storage and program execution. Although memory cards and built-in file stores provide some options for more permanent storage, the My Documents folder as well as the system databases that contain calendar and contact information are in RAM. Since RAM is volatile storage, a loss of power (dead batteries, for example) results in the loss of the contents of the RAM, including the documents and databases described above. Also, the RAM needs to be refreshed at all times, even when the unit is "turned off", which further drains the battery. Many owners weren't aware of the consequences of this design, and would leave their Pocket PC in a briefcase while on vacation only to find a "dead" unit and lost data when they got back.

Windows Mobile 2005 units eliminate these potential problems by using flash ROM for permanent storage (documents, installed software and system databases), leaving RAM for program execution and open documents. If your batteries run dry, you'd lose at most any unsaved documents, since flash ROM is persistent storage that doesn't require constant power. The lower power requirements of this design also results in improved battery life while the unit is powered down.

It all works quite well, but since there's no such thing as a free lunch, there are some downsides that I'll describe a bit later.


Figure 7: The Today screen now has soft keys. Click on image for larger view.

Windows Mobile 2005 also provides some major interface changes. Taking a page from Windows Smartphones, WM 2005 Pocket PCs are designed for better "one-handed" operation through the introduction of soft keys, which are two keys on the bottom of the screen that are large enough to be easily pressed with your fingers. These keys are context sensitive. On the Today page, they provide access to Calendar and Contacts. While using applications, they pull up menus or provide an anticipated "next step"... for example, if you just copied text to the clipboard, a soft key may change to "Paste". This can be a handy change for applications that support it. However, some applications that offer explicit WM 2005 support don't use the soft keys.


Figure 8: Soft keys pulling up a menu in Word Mobile. Click on image for larger view.

Additional changes include updated versions of Pocket Word and Pocket Excel (now known as Word Mobile and Excel Mobile), whose main claim to fame is improved compatibility with the desktop counterparts. In other words, more formatting is preserved when a document goes between PDA and desktop. PowerPoint Mobile is a new application that allows viewing PowerPoint presentations on the road.