Telstra, Optus and Vodafone are all set to launch a range of new Windows Mobile 7 Smartphones in coming weeks as Microsoft attempts to break back into the mobile phone market up against the Blackberry, Google Android phones and the Apple iPhone.
Several of the major brands that are witnessing big increases in sales on the Android platform are set to launch WM7 phones among them is Samsung who are is currently working on several handsets for the upcoming Windows Phone 7 launch which will take place next week.
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Among the Samsung offering will be the Omina 7 and the Cetus i917. The Omina 7 is a continuation of the popular Windows Mobile Omnia line-up.
The Cetus is expected to include a 4-inch AMOLED touchscreen display, 5-megapixel camera, Wi-Fi 802.11n, Bluetooth 2.1, GPS, FM Radio, and microSD expansion slot.
Also jumping on the WM7 bandwagon is HTC who have had a lot of success with their Google Android range of phones. At one stage HTC was the largest manufacturer of Windows Mobile phones and earlier this year they had a lot of success with the HD2 Windows based model launched with Telstra.
Among their new Windows offering is the HTC Mondrian, which has already been leaked on to the Intertnet.
The HTC Mondrian looks likely to come with a WVGA screen, 3.5mm headphone jack, camera with flash and a 1.3GHz processor.
This isn’t the only HTC leak, also revealed is the HTC Spark. This phone looks a lot like the Mondrian but Engadget is claiming that it is a different handset entirely, and may well be the real name for the HTC Trophy.
LG Electronics will also launch a new Windows Phone 7 offering next week.
Microsoft has failed to perform well in the smartphone sector so far as its aging Windows Mobile OS was not liked by users who are more attracted to Apple and Google’s hugely popular OS- the Android. Apple’s OS the iOS and Android are popular because they come loaded with several advanced feature.
Research firm Gartner reported that Microsoft’s share of the smart phone operating system market has fallen from 9.3% in 2009 to 5% in the second quarter of this fiscal year at global level; prior to 2009 the Company has over 50% of the Smartphone market.
None of the involved companies have confirmed the dates, although Microsoft is known to be having an open house event in New York City on October 11 and has had publicly accessible details pointing to a November release in the US.
The launch is important enough for Microsoft that it’s devoting $500 million in marketing to just the fall launch, which also touches on Canada and Europe. Its launch is the company’s greatest gamble in mobile to date, as the developer was willing to engineer a complete reboot in a bid to stay relevant next to Android and the iPhone. Windows Mobile’s market share has been in free fall for over a year and in overall decline virtually since the iPhone launched in 2007.
