Edward at msmobiles.com, generally a very reliable and informed source on all things Microsoft, has just recently posted that he doesn’t think the next version of Windows Mobile, version 7, will have any major gaming features. There had been plenty of rumors, and maybe a little wishful thinking, that Microsoft would be putting some serious gaming clout into the upcoming release of Windows Mobile, but a source of Edward’s thinks otherwise:
(Microsoft has moved many top executives and engineers over to a new team designed to compete more effectively with Apple’s iPhone). One problem: I’m hearing from employees who work inside these teams that the political will to really develop a good Xbox-playing smartphone isn’t there. If that’s true, look for Microsoft to remain shut out of the battlefield and to remain a loser in the mobile space.
This quote comes from a former ‘softie blogger who has friends on the Windows Mobile 7 team inside MS.
Like Edward, I find this pretty frustrating, especially since they have such a hot, networkable device in the x-box. It’s great that Microsoft is merging their Zune services into Windows Mobile (a couple years late) and the new UI is going to be slick, but with Apple about to drop their new iPhone and Android nipping at their heels (and about to pass), Microsoft needs to realize they may be out of the game already by the time Windows Mobile 7 actually hits the market.
