For those fed up with the glacial movement of Pandora on the Windows phone platform, a new alternative has hit the streets: Slacker Radio.

Showing up on various forums, the .cab and service is actually very, very polished. It is the official version, but SlackerRadio themselves have not published it on their site yet.

No compromises here as you get album images, lyrics, band bio, reviews and a wide selection of music to choose from.  Audio quality is also extremely good, trouncing Pandora's 64kb stream. Plus they got that whole "let me power off the screen without disrupting the stream" thing. 

Two negative's we've noticed: landscape support is not there and we've had a few songs cut out towards the end for some reason (not uncommon with Pandora either). 

Of course, there is the free "basic" version which limits you to something like 6-skips per hour while the program steers you towards the "full" version with upgrade notices in parts.  Likewise, you don't get all those lyric bonuses in the free version.

If you want the subscription, it's $4.99 per month (on a month-to-month basis) or $3.99 a month on a 12-month plan (billed monthly). You can also try out the subscription for 7 days for free.  We suppose if streaming is your thing it's not a bad deal: the quality of the product is quite top notch. If you just like streaming your own music (as opposed to the jukebox, random streaming), give nanoGroove a shot.

Grab the file at XDA or scan the MS Tag below to automatically download it.

Edit: Whoops!  And just as fast Slacker Radio has remotely pulled the plug. The app currently doesn't work and we have to wait for the fine folks at Slacker Radio to drop this app "officially".  Sigh. [Here's their official reasoning]

Confession: we've never heard of Syncables, so being they are now on version 6.0  is a big surprise to us. 

Evidently it is software that allows seamless syncing of media (and additionally contacts, email, bookmarks) between your PC, laptop and Windows phone.  In doing so,  it will auto-adjust the media for your phone to save space/optimize playback.  It also has (buzz word!) social-networking support.

The software looks nice enough though it is a bit pricey to do what is technically already possible with Windows Mobile Device Center/Windows Media Player, albeit much more streamlined with the former:

• Syncables 360 - Standard Edition – single OS version for syncing media and files between Windows, Mac or Linux computers. License to syn c 2 computers. Price - $29.99
• Syncables 360 - Premium Edition – multi-OS syncing of media, files, email, contacts and browser bookmarks with, and between, Windows, Mac and Linux computers. Includes syncing of media to and from Windows PCs and Blackberry or Windows Mobile phones. License to sync 3 computers. Price - $49.99; upgrade price - $39.99
• Syncables 360 - Home Network Edition – Syncables 360 Premium functions w ith a license to sync up to 5 computers. Price - $69.99; upgrade price - $49.99

So anyone out there actually using this?  Should we give it a go and review here at WMExperts or are all of you too advanced for such a thing?  Hit us up in comments or Twitter.

[Syncables 6.0 Press Release]

Who'd have thunk it, huh? HTC, which for years worked patiently behind the scenes making some of the best Windows phones out there, is running its own commercial. OK, sure, that's the Sprint Hero it's pimping, too (has the whole world gone Sprint?!?!), but let's face it: The TouchFLO 3D/Sense UI is one of the more recognizable UIs out there that doesn't include a boring grid of icons (zing!). We'll gladly rule the world alongside Android. The geek shall inherit the Earth.

Full presser on the push after the break.

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Looks like Resco is finally turning its attention to the aging Photo Viewer app, which while very popular and powerful has become quite dated in terms of UI (see our earlier review).

In their forums (via ppcgeeks) they are showing off their "alpha" version, meaning this is very early in development. Having said that, we gave it a spin on our Treo Pro and, darn it all ... the thing runs very well.

What can you expect? How about it is very fast in terms of the UI and loading photos, the UI is gorgeous and very intuitive. We especially like the easy zoom feature and the much-needed "touch" interaction.

Also, there's:

• G-sensor support
• Touch friendlyness
• The folder shows the preview of the pictures inside it
• 100% zoom in and out using double clicking (zoom the double clicked area)
• Thumbnail and list view and multiselection operations
• Direct access to the camera
• Upload to Facebook, Flickr

Normally we steer you guys clear of betas, let alone alphas, but in this case we're going to have to give a thumbs up as it seems quite stable and harmless (it's about 2mb for the install.).  Take a peek after the break for a few screenshots.

Exe installation file | Cab installation file

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We’ve seen a number of the Windows Mobile apps that we know and love make their way to the dark side, but the flip side of that trend seems to be kicking in.

One of the iPhone app store’s finest, WunderRadio, is making its way to a Windows Mobile device near you. WunderRadio has gotten rave reviews from various locations in the Blogosphere as an Internet Radio application. Having partnered with RadioTime.com, WunderRadio offers mobile access to over 36,000 radio stations.

WunderRadio will reportedly be available for 30 day promotional prices of $9.99, after which it will set you back $14.99. Notable features include GPS functionality to find local radio stations and the ability to listen to popular programs after they have aired.

Via jkOnTheRun

If you haven’t been using Pocket Tunes 4.1, you’ve been missing out. In my opinion, PocketTunes is one of the few truly powerful media players for Windows Mobile. Offering synchronization with iTunes, Internet radio and support for different skins, Pocket Tunes has been on my must-have list ever since it was first released for Windows Mobile.

If you remember (or want to read) my review of Version 4.1, there were a couple of issues we wanted resolved. I’m guessing that the folks at Normsoft were listening; because they took care of the biggest issues that I had, as well as resolving some issues that I hadn’t even thought about.

Read on for all the updates in Version 5.0.

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This is kind of a tease since I know of no way to actually access this (it appears to be a closed 'beta'), but word is the Microsoft is testing out their new "Mobile Media" tool for your desktop and Windows Mobile device.

Fire up IE6 or higher (no Firefox) and go here to take a gander: http://mmportal.moonport.com/

Basically, it's like Orb. For those of you who don't know what that means, it means that this is a two client system: one has to run on the desktop (and ergo you have to have your computer on, wasting electricity) the other for your WM device (Standard or Pro).

You can then stream your media content (video, music, pictures) but you are not able to actually download the content. Hooray for copyright protection?

Anyways, if MS ever gets around to building all of this into WM7, that would be sort of sweet. Until then, this seems like an interesting yet hardly groundbreaking development. Still, we like to see MS work this sort of technology and services, so keep it up guys.

If anyone can figure out how to sign up for the beta, drop us a note in the comments.

via Solsie

Microsoft Mobile Communications Group Manager Scott Rockfeld was on Fox Business chatting up quite a lot of Windows Mobile devices. The context of the discussion is basically “competitors to the iPhone,” which is a little aggravating because, let's face it, the iPhone and Windows Mobile aren't always going for the same demographic. Some of the smartphones shown off: HTC Diamond, HTC Touch Pro, and the BlackJack II.

Kudos to Fox's host for calling the original Motorola Q “a bust,” although it did sell over a million. In any case, it's a good watch to learn about the message that's getting out to folks who don't, you know, read blogs like WMExperts.com. Turns out such people are out there; we find it strange as well.

via

Microsoft has opened up a fancy new training site for Windows Mobile. It's intended for folks who are selling or supporting Windows Mobile devices, but it looks to be a pretty good all-around resource too. It's a pity that it's stuck behind a Passport login, though, because it might otherwise be a nice place to direct folks who are generally interested in WM. Ah well, you're sending those folks here anyway, right?

This is your resource center for Windows Mobile® powered devices. You'll find interactive online courses, downloadable sales tools, and mobile device news.

Read: Windows Mobile® Training