Virtual BlackBerry coming for Windows Mobile

Stephen Withers
Tuesday, 24 April 2007 02:50

Your IT - Mobility

RIM has not committed to making the software work on all Windows Mobile 6 devices, and doesn't plan to announce which phones and carriers will support it until closer to the launch, which may happen in the spring (autumn or fall for northern hemisphere readers). According to reports, the initial version will only be for GSM devices.

Nor has it given any indication of whether it plans to sell the software or make it available free of charge to those signed up for BlackBerry service.

Performance could be an issue. RIM's vice president of software product management, Alan Panezic told PC Magazine that the software will "fully support all third party apps written for the BlackBerry... these all automatically work, out of the box."

This implies that the virtual BlackBerry uses software emulation of RIM's hardware, so the result might not be very snappy. But this could be offset to some extent if the standard applications are recompiled to run directly on the device's CPU, leaving only third-party applications under emulation.

"RIM's decision to expand its support for Windows Mobile will resonate well with customers, developers and carriers alike," said Carrie MacGillivray, senior analyst, mobile enterprise network services at IDC.

"Security, manageability, usability, international coverage, network efficiency, mobile application support, back-end integration and device selection are all important considerations for a wireless platform and RIM continues to invest in the BlackBerry platform on all fronts."