Cool Windows Mobile apps to ease iPhone envy

After playing around with Tobias Buckell’s iPhone, rocking the 2.0 firmware update, over lunch I decided I needed to find some cool new applications for my Samsung i760 which I had just upgraded to Windows Mobile 6.1. I found 4 cool programs which help me feel like I can at least wait for the third generation iPhone.

• Tiny Twitter - A Twitter client for Windows mobile which provides some excellent features and a nice user interface. Unfortunately it doesn’t seem to let you check out a time line from an @Josh_Smith or click on links which have been tweeted.
• AIM for Windows Mobile - Currently out in beta the new incarnation of AIM for Windows mobile is leaps and bounds ahead of previous offerings and unlike its many competitors it is free. The design, interface and usability are all elegant.
• Skyfire - This internet browser is leaps ahead of the other mobile competitors despite being in private beta a the moment. You can sign up to get access in the next wave of the beta. I highly recommend you check this out. Though depending on Opera Mobile 9.5, I may have to change my browser, we’ll have to wait and see.
• Mobipocket - This is an excellent ebook reader with a really cool store integration and guess what! You can’t get MobiPocket on the iPhone yet so feel free to give your iPhone toting friends a ” nener nener nener”, the next time you see them.

There you have it, my favorite new WM apps which will at least provide some help to avoid the iPhone jealousy!

Firefox Mobile aka Fennec coming in September


Firefox Mobile Concept Video from Aza Raskin on Vimeo.

The Crave blog is reporting that Fennec the mobile version of Firefox is set to be debuted in September with a beta release in late 2008! I am extremely excited by this news since the desktop version of Firefox continues to be the best browser for my needs.

The Surprising news is that due to the licensing and restrictions on both the iPhone and Google’s Android phone, you won’t likely be seeing Firefox running on either! This leaves all of the love to Windows Mobile and Symbian devices which is fine by me!

The only problem I see ahead for the mobile version of Firefox is that it is coming into the game late. Opera should have it’s latest release of Opera Mobile browser out by then and the newcomer Skyfire whose latest update makes for a very robust browser will be even farther along. I’m not saying I won’t be downloading the beta on day 1, I just that I hope Mozilla brings its “A game”. While I was waiting around for Trillian to release Astra, I found Disgby, and unless Astra can somehow print money or bend the space time continuum its release won’t be a big deal.