Smartphony.net

Push email on Windows Mobile is fantastic. Any email arriving to your Windows Exchange Server will be instantly sent to your phone. Contacts, meetings and more will be instantly synchronised - nobody will ever know that you're actually replying to an email in the pub and not from the office. Setting it up, however, can be a bit tricky unless you've an IT wizard knocking about to configure your Exchange Server correctly.

Emoze is now available to make the whole thing a lot easier. For a start it's free, which is always good. It works by using a client on your PC which will synchronise everything on your desktop Outlook with your Mobile Device via a connector on your phone and the Emoze global network. The setup is quick and easy - just choose your device and sign up. The system appears to work well from what I've seen. We'd love to hear your feedback on this system though, so post your thoughts and experiences !

Link - Emoze.com

If you've read our Vodadone Treo 750v review then you'll no doubt be aware how highly we think of it. The text messaging application stood out as a pioneering and ideal solution to tracking conversations with people. Due to the popularity of it there were ripped versions knocking around the web which rapidly got zapped by Palm lawyers.

So, what to do? Luckily TxtMan is here and, after downloading .NET Compact Framework 2.0 and installing the TxtMan CAB file to your phone it'll give you a whole new SMS texting application to play with. It comes with various options, including the ability to let text messages go to both TxtMan and your previous SMS software plus you get the new threaded SMS texting solution we loved on the Treo 750v. Oh, and it's free too - so grab it quick and feel free to donate !

Link - TxtMan

Now, I may have had a bit too much wine but I'm sure I've just spotted the Samsung i320 on Vodafone UK. I've certainly not seen it there before, but here it is and it costs from anywhere between nothing and £119.15.

I'm actually using one of these as my primary phone right now and, apart from the almost insanely short battery life it's a pretty decent QWERTY Smartphone which is ideal for texting and emailing. It comes with 120 MB memory, a microSD slot, 1.3 megapixel camera, bluetooth and a bright widescreen LCD.

Link - VodafoneBusinessShop.co.uk

We get LOTS of emails daily which recommend websites. Usually we bin them, especially those wanting to extend bits of your anatomy, however PPCVidz.com looks pretty cool. It contains both streaming and downloadable videos which have been specifically tuned for your Pocket PC or Smartphone.

There's over 1300 streaming videos including adverts, films and trailers, live TV, music videos, news clips, weather forecasts and webcams all ready for your Windows Media Player. Go on, give it a bash. What have you got to lose?

Also we'd like to plug TinyTube.net again - they now feature a direct conversion of Google Video content ready for your Mobile Device.

Links - PPCVidz.com - TinyTube.net
Credit - Jamie Swift

With nothing but bilge on TV over Christmas it's good to see plenty of news in the Windows Mobile world. HPC.ru have managed to get their hands on more of the HTC roadmap for 2007. The HTC Kaiser, shown top left, is first up and comes in a familiar Hermes/TyTN design but with GPS. There's also two other models not pictured here - the HTC Omni, which is expected to replace the HTC Universal (SPV M5000 / o2 XDA Exec etc), and the HTC Panda which will have a large QVGA screen and WiFi.

The HTC Elf, shown top right, will be targetted towards entry users with a 200Mhz CPU and an easy interface. The next new phone is called the HTC Wings (lower left) and appears to be a progression of the rather excellent HTC Vox with both QWERTY and numeric keyboard plus 3G and GPS chucked in for good measure. We love the look of this one and have high hopes for it.

Lower right is an unknown Smartphone that HTC are working on HPC.ru don't have details on a name, however it will have GPS and dual displays.

There's info on other devices that we've already heard of - the HTC S650 (Cavalier), HTC P3340 (Love), HTC S710 (Vox) and the HTC X7500 (Athena). This is a fantastic view into the future of Windows Mobile. Dual keyboards, WiFi, GPS and new designs. This is what we like to see, even if only one is a Smartphone. Get more details and rumours on specs on the link below.

Link - HPC.ru

I hope everyone had a happy holiday and that everything is smooth sailing in 2007. Speaking of the new year, a reader e-mailed me saying that it's time for everyone to begin preparing now for the Daylight Savings Time start and end date that takes place in 2007. Plus, this week we'll note Pierre Khawand's choice of best Smartphone and some recent freeware....

If you're on the go and in the mood for some gaming fun then check out the new service from Astraware.com. Simply browse to www.astraware.com mobile device and you'll be transported to a magical mobile flavour of the site where you can easily browse and buy your favourite games.

Simply connect your device to the internet on WiFi, 3G or whatever connection you have and the Astraware Mobile site will automatically appear, formatted especially for your device. This will make buying or downloading trial versions easier, plus Club Astraware member can access all the usual Club Astraware discounts.

Link - Astraware.com

Check this out. You're looking at K-Rally. This amazing 3D top-down racing game has astounded all those who've played it. PocketGamer says of this game...

"There is just no comparison: K-Rally simply blasts them both away in almost every respect. K-Rally is by far the best Pocket PC game released in 2006."

Although there's no demo version of this game we'd definitely recommend spending £7.64 (around $14.95). Your car comes packed with mines, rockets and there's upgrades available on the way. Force your opponents to spin and crash whilst you fire on them with your weapons, then take the prize money and progress to the next level of competition for more fire action. There's 10 upgradable cars, 14 characters, mines, rockets, shop, garage, armory, random track generator and there's downloadable content (such as new graphics, tracks, cars etc).

Link - K-Rally

I don't know about you but I'd be completely lost without Notepad on my PC - I use it for making notes, writing articles and stories. It's simple and easy to use (just like me, some would say). If you're looking for something similar on your Windows Mobile then look no further than Orneta Notepad Mobile. It's an award winning text editor which has all the features you'd expect to see on your desktop version. There's font size and type alteration, copy and paste, find, undo and more.

At the moment - if you're really quick - you can grab Orneta Notepad Mobile for absolutely nothing following their rebate offer. Well, what are you waiting for ? Be quick! This offer expires on New Years Eve so be quick. It's available for all flavours of Windows Mobile and it's FREE! Go! Go! Go!

Link - Orneta Notepad Mobile

FPSEce.net have released the newest version of their Playstation X/1 Emulator for Windows Mobile. This free software, once installed and fed the appropriate BIOS and ISO, will let you play Playstation games on your Pocket PC. There's a list of compatible games here which you can rip from your original Playstation games plus free demos can be downloaded too.

Download the RAR file, unpack and then copy the contents to a directory on your device. You'll then need to run the EXE using File Explorer or by creating a shortcut to it and pasting it into your \Windows\Start Menu folder.

Link - FPSEce.net