Windows Mobile vs. iPhone or Android?

Fri, 07/31/2009 - 06:11 by Greg Sterling

The past 12 months have been a "tough year" for Windows Mobile, according to Microsoft's Robbie Bach, president of Entertainment & Devices. Bach addressed financial analysts yesterday during an all-day meeting. We weren't there but Bach reportedly promised better execution in the future and a better mobile Internet experience than on the iPhone coming in Windows Mobile 6.5:

“To date, we haven’t done as good a job as I would like building relationships and getting the right integration with our hardware partners,” Bach said. “You’re going to see dramatic improvement in integration.”

"You will have a very rich browsing experience on 6.5 devices that will give you access to more Web sites than you will be able to get to on an iPhone that will work actively and work well. It really is a much better experience"

I have yet to see Windows Mobile 6.5 in action, despite several efforts. But I pulled out my old Windows Mobile 6.1 HTC phone last night and it seems almost prehistoric by comparison to the iPhone, Android or Pre (which I don't love but generally like). It's thus hard to imagine that the leap from 6.1 to 6.5 is going to be that radical to justify the statement above. 

In addition, it appears that Motorola has all but abandoned Windows Mobile in favor of Android, according to Om Malik's interview with Sanjay Jha, co-CEO of Motorola:

As part of our conversation, Dr. Jha stressed that handset makers need to pick a single smart phone OS and devote resources to it in order to win. He pointed to Nokia and Symbian, Apple and its iPhone OS and RIM’s Blackberry OS. He used that as a logic to justify why his company was betting the farm on Google’s Android. Why? Because it’s the best option for the company right now.

“I didn’t have any other compelling option,” he said. “The other OS got pushed.”

And long-time Windows Mobile partner HTC seems to be shifting toward Android (or at least diversification), although sales thus far have been less than expected. Palm's WebOS may mean that it doesn't produce future WinMo devices. Although, on the other side, Korean OEM LG has made Windows Mobile its primary smartphone OS. And Samsung works with WinMo. 

All the attention at Microsoft appears to be on the iPhone but Windows Mobile is really up against RIM and Android. RIM dominates the enterprise, Microsoft's traditional stronghold and Android is the open-source equivalent to WinMo: a software OS separated from hardware that can be customized by developers and OEMs. In that sense Android is a direct substitute for Windows Mobile and it's free. It's not like Google Apps vs. Office, where Apps aren't at parity in terms of features and functions. Android is a much better mobile OS and offers a much better user experience than WinMo 6.1.

Here are IDC's US smartphone market share numbers:

But mobile Internet usage and browsing is not aligned with the handset market share numbers. Per AdMob:

Notwithstanding Bach's prediction, Windows Mobile 6.5 is unlikely to dramatically alter Microsoft's new underdog position in the smartphone market. Windows Mobile 7 might be able to really deliver on Bach's promise of improved browsing and usability and make the OS much more competitive than it is now. Beyond this, Microsoft's forthcoming retail stores might also help showcase Windows devices.

But the stores and 7 are still a year or more away.