With the advent of Safari on the iPhone there’s been a bit of a shake-up in the mobile internet experience – or at least the expectations.

Out of the box Windows Mobile comes with cut down version of Internet Explorer called IEMobile (aka PocketIE) which, while reliable, is getting a little long in the tooth.

IEMobile is based on IE5 so there are many sites that can take advantage of the capabilities available on mobile devices today. With the advent of IE6 for Windows Mobile things should only get better.

Of course, that’s in the future – what can you do today for a better browsing experience?

Opera

Opera has been offering a couple of options for mobile browsers for a while now.

OperaMini works on any phone that has Java support and is ideal for lower powered devices or phones with smaller screens or slower connection as they offload a lot of the layout to their servers and only send an optimized view to the device. Obviously this limits functionality and causes some compromises with what you see.

Opera Mobile is a native Windows Mobile application so is a much richer application than Opera Mini. It offers a number of advantages over IEMobile – not least of which are tabs and much better Javascript support (I use this page as a quick test for javascript and ajax support).

Opera Mobile is a good enough app that some handsets are now shipping with it as the default, pre-installed browser. For the rest of us, it’s available (30 day trial and then US$24)

NetFront from Access

Access technologies have a long and fairly interesting history. They have been developing their mobile browser platform for some years – initially on PalmOS and now extending to other phone and embedded platforms, including Windows Mobile. As an interesting aside Access actually purchased the PalmOS assets and continue to develop that platform.

NetFront is usually only available pre-installed by OEMs but until August 31 you can play with their Windows Mobile Concept version on any device (they’re asking for feedback so I guess they’re serious about the platform).

Rendering is fast and very fluid. On the same page it does a marginally better job than Opera Mobile – delivering a page very quickly and making scrolling, zooming and navigating very natural. The browser shows a floating transparent pane that shows the whole page and where you are so you don’t get lost.

On the SGH-i780 this does a great job. On the slightly faster HTC Advantage (X7500) I was surprised at how fast it was rendering and scrolling and actually overshot a couple of times!

Despite it’s good points it is a little rougher around the edges than Opera Mobile – some problems selecting links and the javascript/ajax test failed (I’ve sent that feedback to them).

Which is the best?

Both of these browsers actually do an amazing job. When you take into account the connectivity and processing power of a typical Windows Mobile device anything close to the desktop experience is pretty awesome. Hopefully the IEMobile 6 team are having a very good look at these to see where the bar is for on-device rendering. Microsoft have announced that both Silverlight and Flash will be available so hopefully we’ll start to see full support for these become available over time.

But on-device isn’t the only solution as demonstrated by Opera Mini and the Microsoft DeepFish research project.

SkyFire

Currently in limited beta Skyfire promises “the PC web. Real Fast. On your phone."

Similar to DeepFish and Opera Mini they direct traffic through a proxy and optimize it for deliver. Going beyond those similar services they re-work the content to actively deliver the very interactive features desktop users take for granted – ajax, dynamic HTML, java and fully functional Flash – yes, even all those youTube videos can now be experienced just like on your desktop!

One of the features I really like about it is the ability to zoom in to any part of the page, or zoom back out to see the overall context. It reminds me of the Hard Rock memorabilia experience – as you zoom in the detail resolves as additional data is transmitted.

I was very impressed with SkyFire on touch devices like the TyTN II, it was when I used it on my Shadow – dare I say it’s an iPhone like experience on a smartphone!

It’s in limited beta while they finish the product and get to grips with the scaling (pushing all that traffic through their servers is going to take some management) but go to the site and sign up to get in the queue.

So, which is the best?

After having used all of these alternatives for some time now I don’t have one firm favorite. The ajax support in Opera Mobile is a big positive. The speed and ease of use in NetFront makes it hard to pass up. The “full” experience in Skyfire makes it perfect for some content (though I tend to avoid it for very "forms” intensive sites)

All of them promise great things for the future as competition on the platform, and with Safari on iPhone and browser on some of the UMPC and MID devices is going to make things better for the typical user.

One of the problems with using most smartphones or UMPCs is that while the form factor is ideally suited to portability they are not exactly the best form factor for composing an essay on.

A while ago I ordered a USB roll up keyboard for the Q1U but it was too big and the keypad layout was weird (and the action was terrible). The backlight was the coolest thing about it (but it made a buzzing noise). Needless to say it wasn’t a hit (and as the Q1U only has 2 USB sockets it was a bit of a nuisance).

I’d asked around a bit and folks said great things about the iGo Stowaway keyboard but sadly while it is still available it’s been discontinued – mainly because developing new drivers wasn’t cost effective for iGo. While that meant I could get one today and it would probably work with any of my phones and my Vista / WinXP machines there was no guarantee it would stay current as new devices and operating systems appeared on the horizon.

So I went hunting again and found a great little bluetooth keyboard from Freedom (the same folks who make my current GPS dongle). It supports both HID and SPP profiles which means it can be paired with Windows PCs, Windows Mobile smartphones and professional (touch) devices as well as Blackberry, Nokia and Palm phones.

Installation on the PC was easy – like pairing with any other device (though typing in the pass key “blind” was funny!). Pairing on the phone was a little harder as it requires downloading a driver and then generating an unlock key (I understand that they do that to ensure people only use their drivers with keyboards from Freedom but the process wasn’t fool-proof for me… I’d like the driver to include the smarts to negotiate the connection and guide me through verification) – but it works perfectly.

The keyboard, although folding, has a great layout (apart from the /? key being to the right of the shift, and the spacebar being in two parts), great action on the keys but having 5 rows (including a full number row), Windows key, function key (Fn+number) and a physical on/off switch (toggles on, HID or SPP profiles) makes this a great option for both UMPC or smartphone users fed up with cramped (or missing) keyboards.

It’s not tiny. Folded it’s about the size of two SGH-i780s side by side (see here for comparisons) but it’s lightweight, and takes standard AA batteries. Unfolded and locked it’s stable and feels solid. It even includes an integrated stand for your phone – can double as a notes holder.

The only thing I’d like to see is a pointing-stick style mouse to avoid reaching for the stylus or having to tap the screen on the Q1U but even that omission doesn’t distract from using this (as any bluetooth mouse could also be paired to complement the setup)

And yes. I wrote this review on my UMPC using the Freedom keyboard. I would have used my i780 but I don’t have a blogging app on there that I really like.

One thing that makes a smartphone really smart is knowing where it is and being able to tell you about it. Most people are comfortable with using the mapping capabilities of the satellite navigation systems in their car, but there’s no reason not to take that functionality everywhere with you.

Most of the high-end Windows Mobile smartphone (non touch) and Professional (touch-screen) devices come with GPS capabilities (and some with Assisted GPS which allows cell tower triangulation to get an initial lock while the phone locks on to enough satellites to get an accurate location).

Useful as it is, some older devices (like my trusty old Wizard, or the T-Mobile Dash) and even newer handsets like the Shadow don’t include GPS – often it’s driven by battery capacity (as running GPS all day can take its toll).

That doesn’t mean you have to go without though. If your phone has bluetooth support then there are a number of options available. I’d tried a couple of reasonable solutions but not found one that was convenient enough for everyday use. When my last device died I almost didn’t bother replacing it as most of the phones I was using had GPS. But my trusty Shadow was feeling left out and I was still using it as my day-top-day phone.

So I had a look around and found what has turned out to be a great little GPS unit. The Freedom Keychain GPS 2000.

This receiver is tiny. It hangs on my keychain and it’s hardly noticeable. It charges via a standard miniUSB connector so it’s easy to keep powered and gives about 8 hours use before needing juice. Pairing with the Shadow was incredibly easy and I’ve not had a connection problem (first for a Bluetooth device!). It takes about 15-30 seconds to get a lock from turning on when outside (longer indoors) and it’s accurate – most mini GPS units are 20 channel, this is a 51 channel device. One final thing I love about this is the fact the status lights are very discrete.

So, what can you use GPS with on your smartphone?

If you’ve got a built-in or bluetooth device then the most obvious application is Windows Live Search for Mobile (see review of latest version) but I also use Navizon to keep an eye on where my buddies are. For turn-by-turn navigation similar to your in-car navigation solution there are application from CoPilot, Garmin and Mobium. There is a list being maintained at Mapping4Mobiles that details a number of other options for various devices.

At the moment there are a huge number of opportunities that are missing out of the box for location aware services – geotagging photos probably being the most obvious, but one-touch sharing of location via BrightKite or FireEagle (though Navizon works just fine for that). In an ideal world services like Yelp or similar would be able to adjust their offering if they know where I am…

One added bonus of using a bluetooth device is you can pair it with more than one device. My Keychain works fine with my Shadow, but also pairs perfectly with my Samsung UMPC which opens up a whole new set of options for navigation – including Microsoft Streets and Trips or IntelliNav (and because the Keychain uses a standard USB charger cable I can power it from the UMPC even when it’s paired via Bluetooth to drive the software!)

As a Windows Mobile user I’ve sometimes felt left out of the whole “livecasting from the phone” revolution by those cool kids using Qik so I was really happy to discover PocketCaster from ComVu.

It’s a really simple app that you download and install to your Windows Mobile device, give it the username and password you set up on the website and then you’re good to go – livecasting or recording pieces to review later.

If you have a GPS equipped device (built-in or a bluetooth connected one like the Freedom GPS I use) then the livecast or clip can be automatically geotagged.

Just like Qik you can advertise to the world when you’re broadcasting via services like Twitter and automatically post videos to your blog.

PocketCaster works on both mobile phones and PDAs, but what’s cool is the same capabilities and functions are available in the PodcasterPro app for UMPCs, PCs and OSX.

Everything changes and the service now has a new name and a new logo – check them out at LiveCast. The new name defines what they do just as well as the old…

… but I’m still not very photogenic ;) Maybe it’s a good thing I don’t want a career as an internet livecasting superstar… but if you want a way to broadcast sights and sounds from your life then give it a go.

From a mobile device check out their Mobile optimized site – you can download the client and get started straight away.

One of the coolest things about my new job seems to be the number of toys that have gone rushing over my desk in the last few weeks.

Most folks assume that they just get “given” to us, and for some devices (such as the TyTN II and the Mirage) they are – but only for a very short time then they have to go back to the Mobile Demo team or their real owners because my excuse to play with them is over.

Most however have been paid for out of my very own pocket. Not expensed and not donated. I really must do something about that.

So… what is in the picture this month?

At the top is my UMPC. It’s a Samsung Q1U and I like it very much. It’s recently had some surgery to give it more RAM and it’s now very much more usable. I’m not a fan of the split keyboard though and to be a really useful machine it needs a better battery and a faster CPU (and a faster hard drive!)

Below that is the telephony suspects. My Shadow, then a BlackJack II, the TyTN II we used for the Silverlight demo at Advance08 and finally the Samsung Mirage (SGH-i780).

Because all of these phones apart from the Shadow have GPS I bought myself a tiny (keyring sized) Freedom GPS 200 bluetooth device (it’s going to have to share with the Q1U though!).

Last but not least is the answer to the keyboard woes of the Q1U. A Freedom Universal folding bluetooth keyboard. This device claims compatibility with both Windows/Vista devices and smartphones. Well, I had no problem what-so-ever pairing it with the Q1U and so I’m really happy with that.

The bad news is that at this point in time I am totally unable to get it working with any of the phones in the list above. First of all the driver install from the PC doesn’t work in Vista (you have to manually copy the files across and install it), the over-the-air installer doesn’t recognize any of the devices and for good measure even when I get the driver installed it wants to generate a unique unlock code for each device before it’ll let me pair… the website fell over when I tried to go it for the first device, and as you can see… I get through devices at a fair rate so locking me to one isn’t going to make me a fan.

I’ve logged a couple of support requests… when they get back to me I’ll have another look at the keyboard and report back.

Oh, and the neat little bag with “Windows Mobile” written on it… invaluable for lugging around chargers, USB cables, spare batteries, microSD cards and USB adapters and whatever else!

After my somewhat dismissive comments on the BlackJack II I’ve discovered that Samsung’s next leap is pretty significant.

Although the phone in the picture (an SGH-i780 aka “Mirage”) bears a strong resemblance to it’s cousin there’s a couple of clues that not everything is quite the same.

First up is the front facing camera. Okay, it’s a tiny little thing but you might notice it. Then there’s the screen – it’s bigger than the BlackJack II (and unusually it’s a square 320x320 format). Just below the screen is a weird touchpad thing in place or the more traditional D-Pad.

Oh, and I left the last big thing until last… that stylus you see next to the phone… your eyes are not playing tricks… this is a touch device.

Amazingly they packed all this, and 802.11b and g WiFi into a device that is pretty much the same size and weight as the BlackJack II without sacrificing anything – it’s still a 3G and GPS equipped device and even has a noticeably faster processor.

This phone fixes pretty much every complaint that I had with the BlackJack II, and even the keyboard is good enough that I’d consider this to be a better phone for every day than my Shadow (there, I said it!) but… the one thing that I’m not sure I like is the trackpad. In mouse mode (yes, you get an on-screen cursor) it’s just too small a surface to work with, and in 4-way pointer mode I miss the physical “action” of a D-Pad. I’d probably even say I prefer the pearl like rollerball (if you like it on the Blackberry wait until you see it on the VelocityMobile 111 – a Windows Mobile device).

Worse than the trackpad is the fact it still doesn’t come with a standard miniUSB connector/charger.

I’ve only got this for a few days while I work on getting a demo tweaked to fit the layout better but I think I’ll miss it when it’s gone! I won’t miss the connector though.

The search engine wars are heating up with shopping a prime mover … why advertise or try to get your search results higher if you don’t want to promote something after all.

Apart from helping us find things search hasn’t traditionally been a very “giving” process. The search engine providers, advertisers and folks creating pages to serve us click-through's are the ones making all the money.

Now that’s set to change with the introduction of Live Search CashBack. The idea is simple… you look for something you’re interested in and… you have the option of buying it from someone who will put money back into your pocket (via PayPal, bank transfer or check) just for shopping with them. Everyone gets part of the reward, advertisers get more customers, users get value, Live gets more search and everyone is happy.

The service was announced at Advance08 and has already received some positive reactions.

I had a quick play for the first time today… sign-up is quick and simple, and the process fairly straight forward. Give it a try…

This week Microsoft is hosting the Advance08 Advertising Leadership Forum here in Redmond.

As well as speakers including James Cameron, Michael Eisner and Arianna Huffington, our own Robbie Bach presented end to end advertising scenarios on Xbox Live, Zune Social and Windows Mobile.

The Windows Mobile piece is very interesting because it’s been built using Silverlight running on a Windows Mobile device.

The Fight the Flavor game was built by the folks at Vertigo who did a great job at MIX08 with the large screen Hard Rock Memorabilia site and have shows they can work on a 2.8” screen just as well as a 32” monitor!

Personally one of the other highlights of the event was seeing the Microsoft Automotive equipped Alfa Romeo Spyder ;) While it’s not a technology I get to work on that often it was nice to see it sitting there in the sun when we were rehearsing for the event – and it does get to show just how far the Microsoft Embedded platform reaches – cars, phones, zune and beyond.

If you use a Blackberry Smartphone and wish you could be like the cool Windows Mobile folks who have access to Live services well… there’s some good news for you - Microsoft and RIM announced Windows Live Services for Blackberry.

This brings both Instant Messenger capabilities as well as access to Hotmail via Blackerry’s familiar push technology to keep you in touch with personal as well as business contacts on the go.

This adds to the existing Live Search capabilities already available for Blackberry.

Just because you use a Blackberry doesn’t mean you can’t take advantage of Live services

FrankArr pointed out it was Star Wars day, and Clone Wars are coming soon… but watching it projected from R2D2s head would be just perfect

I so want one! Shame it doesn’t work as a Media Center Extender ;)

Check out Nikko America for more info.