Windows Mobile + Zune pass?

[Longbluesquid]

If you have a windows mobile phone can you sync to play music from the Zune pass cause im shopping for a pone and im wandering if it works?

[typoink]

At the moment, you can.  It's not SUPER elegant, but it's not too tricky, either.

Basically, you have to use Windows Media Player to sync the tracks to the WinMo device.  You download everything in Zune like normal, and then set WMP to monitor the Zune folders.

This isn't really officially supported, though, and it's possible that a future update to Zune or WMP will break this compatibility.  Hopefully not, but it's worth knowing that it may not work forever.

As for WinMo phones themselves, if you can stand to wait a little while longer, you might want to wait a few months and see what news comes out regarding WM 6.5.  It's heavily rumored that 6.5 will officially support Zune music and nobody's really sure if it'll work on current phones or only on newer ones. 

If you can't wait, both the AT&T Tilt and AT&T Fuse are excellent devices.  A month ago, you could find awesome deals on the Tilt (basically free with contract) but I don't know if it's still available as cheaply and easily.

[Longbluesquid]

Im going to look cause I want a phone but it has to functional with my Zune pass, so i can just sync away.. Ill research a bit more a may have to wait until wm 6.5  any idea when its supposed to be out?

[RL]

Rumors for 6.5 are for q1 2009.  That being said, I can't fully recommend Windows Mobile at this point.  There are a lot of problems in the ecosystem with cell carriers and device manufacturers being the main ones.  Even if it was relelased in q1 2009 would be next fall before you would get the phone with it on there, and if an upgrade just happened to be available for a current phone you owned would be another month after that before you could get an upgrade.  If you are with Cingular/AT&T or T-Mobile you can easily buy a used Windows Mobile Phone from E-Bay or Tiger Direct and try it out without getting locked into contract and spending an arm and a leg.  The Music Experience with WinMobile is nowhere near the experience you get from the Zune or Zune ecosystem.  Would be smarter to pick up a 4, 8, or 16 GB Zune Flash player for music, and keep your phone for talking until Zune Support is added or the Zune Phone shows. 

[Longbluesquid]

well already have a 120 soon will be getting a flash model but I need a phone and id hate to carry both devices into the mall an such...

[RL]

I understand wanting to have an all in one device, some mornings I think I need a utility belt when I walk into work in the morning between the zune, cell phone, and radiophone.

The flash Zune takes up very little room and is hardly noticeble in your pockets especially if you are wearing khakis.  The problem with the winmobile hack is when the tracks expire you will have to delete them off the phone and the re-copy them to the flash card.  You also run into the problem with the HTC models of having to use specialty headphones with a USB connector or get an adaptor....one more thing to carry around.

What provider are you looking at using for cell service?

[Longbluesquid]

I was looking into AT&T or Sprint... im really wanting an HTC

[RL]

Sprint probably has the better rate plans.  At&t is more of .......an overlord since their deal with Apple.  They have tried to switch my data plan and do upcharges on my phone ever since they acquired the Apple deal.  As of this month they have decided the Apple plan of gouge and the customers will love it is the best method to enslave their customers.  (I am firmly convinced the cell companies are run by former sadists.)

HTC, will sometimes update their firmware, but whether you get your firmware is at the mercy of the cell carrier.  I have had HP smartphones, and HTC as well and the reason I stopped using HP was their dedication to not allow firmware updates.  The last phone I got was a Pantech Duo, and even though the release of Windows Mobile 6.1 happened in the summer it was only two weeks ago I had the chance to update after At&t got their paws on it and added thier crapware.  I fully expect to be locked out of the 6.5 firmware update, and if it wasn't for my addiction to Outlook as a contact manager, I would probably ditch Windows Mobile alltogether and go back to a phone that was just a phone.  All of the benefits of Windows and Windows Mobile have slowly evaporated thanks to cell carriers.  You may want to do some research over on the XDA Developers forum to get an idea of which phone would serve you best. They are cracking and baking windows mobiel firmware all the time.

If you do go with at&t, you will have the option of buying any gsm compatible phone and using it on their network unlocked.  Which means, a year from now when a hot new phone comes out, you can buy it and use it whether at&t carries it or not.

[typoink]

I understand wanting to have an all in one device, some mornings I think I need a utility belt when I walk into work in the morning between the zune, cell phone, and radiophone.

The flash Zune takes up very little room and is hardly noticeble in your pockets especially if you are wearing khakis.  The problem with the winmobile hack is when the tracks expire you will have to delete them off the phone and the re-copy them to the flash card.  You also run into the problem with the HTC models of having to use specialty headphones with a USB connector or get an adaptor....one more thing to carry around.

What provider are you looking at using for cell service?

Do you have to delete and recopy?  I thought you could set WMP up to refresh the tracks.  That does jam a wedge in there.

Yeah, I DO have to say that WM isn't great for media at the moment.  The HTC Touch HD is the first competent one, but it's not available in the US.  I use my Tilt all the time, but not for media.  I keep a few songs and videos around for emergencies, but they never get used.

I don't think the wait for 6.5 is going to be as long as RL thinks, though.  MS has a fire under their butts and they know it.  And HTC's hinted at new devices for the US market early next year -- I have a feeling they'll be built to support 6.5 as soon as it launches.

[Longbluesquid]

I hope so...

[typoink]

I'm currently very happy with AT&T as my carrier, btw.  Their coverage is the best here (Chicagoland area) of any carrier I've used, their 3G service works pretty well, and my PDA plan is cheaper than it was with T-Mobile.  Cell phone providers are all awful, but AT&T at least tends to have the best tech.

[Longbluesquid]

True over here there's no 3g thats the bad part of getting a phone here....

[RL]

I don't think this is a problem with either HTC or Microsoft releasing 6.5, it will be with the cell carriers who will have to figure out how they want the device to work and what craplets to add.  You will see the devices at CES and CETIA, but as you can see from the past with XPeria from Sony it took it about 10 months to get here.  This is why I think we are going to have to get a Zune Phone, that way the firmware rolls out from Microsoft, and not HTC or AT&T or Verizon ETC.....though I am afraid the carriers will crap on the idea, and the first words out of their mouth will be "What's a Zune?"

I will say considering winmo supporters opinion about Windows Mobile and the cell industry in general (I have owned a total of 6 WinMo devices and now am looking at abondoning them), that should put a fire under MS to get off their a's and do something.

The reason why you can't refresh the songs are because Windows Media Player can no longer renew licenses for the music.  It's also the reason why you can't use digital copies to sync to zune devices and why you have problems with media center and zune pass tracks.

(Also why I keep demanding a license manager in Zune, so these things can be corrected)

[Longbluesquid]

I dont expect to see a Zune phone..Zune is all about music or media not all the gimmicks..they can work with Nokia to create a phone.

[typoink]

I don't think this is a problem with either HTC or Microsoft releasing 6.5, it will be with the cell carriers who will have to figure out how they want the device to work and what craplets to add.  You will see the devices at CES and CETIA, but as you can see from the past with XPeria from Sony it took it about 10 months to get here.  This is why I think we are going to have to get a Zune Phone, that way the firmware rolls out from Microsoft, and not HTC or AT&T or Verizon ETC.....though I am afraid the carriers will crap on the idea, and the first words out of their mouth will be "What's a Zune?"

MS is ahead of you on that one (at least a little).  It's been more-or-less confirmed that, with WM7, they'll be taking a stronger hand in what devices are going to be allowed to carry WM7 and how the firmware will roll out.  This could wind up being WinMo's saving grace against Android -- it's possible we'll see Android showing up on sub-par devices with WM7 devices running stronger.  I doubt we'll actually see a "Zune Phone," although I think it's possible MS will integrate the Zune branding with the Sidekick line.

As for the Xperia, that's obviously NOT a case of it being bogged down by the carriers, since it's being sold unlocked.  Sony just showed it off way before it was ready for primetime.

As for 6.5, you may well be right that the carriers will drag their feet getting the update out, but I have a feeling the hackers at XDA-developers will have 6.5 ported to every phone capable of handling pretty quickly.  The big question, in my book, is whether 6.5 will require a VGA device or whether it will be able to run on QVGA.  I wouldn't be surprised if it's VGA only, but plenty of us Tilt owners will be disappointed.

As for WinMo in general, believe me, I'm hardly its biggest fan.  The truth is simply that I use WinMo because there are a couple functions (mainly Excel spreadsheet handling and remote desktop access) that it does far better than any competitor on the market.  MS's approach to WM has been aggravating for years, but nobody's made any other device that's as capable.  I am, however, optimistic -- the only fundamental complaint I have with WM is that the interface is lousy and hasn't been updated.  Now that Apple and RIM have finally forced them to reevaluate and improve the interface, I have high hopes that WM7 will actually combine the power of WM with the usability and polish their competition has brought to market.