For the few of those with the hard-to-find LG eXpo (more on that later), there are three interesting applications hidden within \Windows that may be of interest:

• GPSViewer
• wifiEngMenu
• TascalRegEdit

GPSViewer/GPS Utility is a simple app that shows you the number of satellites found and their strength, all in a nice graph form. (Of note is excellent GPS reception and accuracy on the eXpo).  It also gives your current speed, albeit in km/h.  Still, not a bad diagnostic tool.

"WifiEngMenu" is an advanced WiFi diagnostic tool that gives a ton of information related to your current network, including transmission rate test, WWM PS test, signal strength, etc.

Finally there is Tascal Registry Editor, a common (and ancient) freeware registry application. While nothing special, it's nice to have it readily available.

To access these apps, the first two (GPS Viewer, WifiEngMenu) require you to find them under \Windows and create a shortcut to the Start Menu. To make that easier for folks, we'll include the shortcuts for you to download directly: just unzip to \Windows\Start Menu and you should be all set.  For the Registry editor, find "TascalRegEdit.cab" under \Windows and simply run and install. A shortcut will be created for you to use directly.

Download to your device here.

Every once in awhile we here at WMExperts come across a truly remarkable piece of software: simple, elegant, useful and preferably free.

WiFi Remote Access by Julian Manici meets all of these criteria.

In short, you install the software on your Windows phone (with WiFi, ahem), pick a password and when ready, hit "Enable".

You'll now be shown your device's IP address which you simply type in your Web browser on your Desktop PC.  You are then prompted to enter a password, a pop-up notification on your phone appears and you're connected. 

Once that is done you can browse your pictures, documents, files, storage card, view and compose SMS messages, edit your registry, even listen to music. Best of all it's very fast and has a beautiful UI.

Heck, it now even features a "remote control" function whereby you can view and operate your phone via the web browser. Huzzah.

Of course, your connection is not encrypted (though password protected), so be aware of the security risks. But for home use, it should be of little concern.

What can we say? We're in love.

Give it a shot and let us know in comments your experience!

We promise we'll go all out on the HTC HD2 once it's more widely available in the United States. Really. We will. (And because you'll ask: Yes, it's coming to the U.S. early next year. No, we don't know exactly when or on which carrier.) In the meantime, here's what's going on:

• Our pal Matt Miller from Nokia Experts has the HD2 in hand and is giving it a thorough run-through in his ZDNet blog.
• The HD2 is now available on T-Mobile in the UK. [via Tracy and Matt]
• The HD2 has 802.11n WiFi available, though it's turned off by default. Here's how to turn it on. [XDA via MoDaCo and Engadget]
• HTC acknowledges there's a problem causing the HD2's camera to occasionally go pink. A software fix is on the way. [via wmpoweruser]
• HD2's now on sale with O2 in the UK. [via Coolsmartphone]

We've been peppering carriers with questions regarding the launch of Windows Mobile 6.5 on Oct. 6, and most are pretty mum at this point. But AT&T did drop one little nugget in regards to WiFi, which we've been waiting to hear about for some time now. And it goes a long way toward answering a question we tackled in this week's podcast.

So, here's the deal. We're leaving it in AT&T-speak. Starting Sept. 14:

• AT&T will provide most users access to nearly 20,000 AT&T Hot Spots across the US, including Starbucks.
• Beginning this month, customers with Wi-Fi-enabled Windows Mobile smartphones and unlimited and other qualifying data plans will receive unlimited access to thousands of U.S. AT&T Wi-Fi Hot Spots nationwide.
• Eligible Windows Mobile customers can access AT&T Wi-Fi Hot Spots at over 20,000 nationwide locations – the majority of customers will be eligible as most have a qualifying data plan.
• At no additional cost, AT&T customers with unlimited personal and enterprise rate plans on Wi-Fi enabled Windows Mobile smartphones can enjoy automatic, fast and secure access to the Internet at AT&T Wi-Fi Hot Spots.
• AT&T Wi-Fi will be easy to use on Windows Phones because of auto-authentication – if you have Wi-Fi on, you’ll automatically connect
• The service will launch on 9/14 with Samsung smartphones with other devices to follow in the coming weeks, and all 6.5 devices will be supported.

So, while we still don't know what AT&T has up its sleeve in terms of Windows Mobile 6.5 and current or future devices, we now know it's opening up WiFi to the masses. Hit up this link for a map of AT&T's free WiFi locations.

Not a whole lot to say here that's not in the headline, but the "Mega 100 series" appears to have been outed by the Wi-Fi Alliance. We do know from the submission that it's a phone, and there's 802.11 b/g on board. And rumor has it that the Mega is a follow-up to the Touch 3G. But you know how those rumors go.

Wi-Fi Alliance pdf [via BGR and cellpassion]

Behold, Motorola's White Whale, otherwise known as a Q9h with WiFi. We know these things exist, albeit in very rare numbers, and a treat when we see one in the wild. This one comes to us from EverythingQ member racingxtsy, who says the phone was bought on Craigslist.

What we've got here is what for all intents and purposes on the outside appears to be a "stock" unlocked Q9h with AT&T branding running on Canada's Rogers network. GPS apparently wasn't sacrificed for the WiFi capability. One difference between it and the WiFi-less Q9h us mere mortals use (and one we hadn't seen before) is a cosmetic difference on the back, above the battery door. Pictures of that after the break, and more pics from racingxtsy here.

It appears that this is the real deal. How much would you pony up for WiFi on your Q?

Read the rest of this entry »

It has come to our attention (thanks Robert) that AT&T has announced free access to their Wi-Fi hot spots -- for iPhone customers. In a mass text message to several AT&T customers free AT&T Wi-fi will be available at thousands of AT&T hotspots nationwide which include various airports, hotels, universities, convention centers, sports centers, Starbucks, etc. Looking at the website, the announcement comes across as an iPhone only service. But reading the fine print gives us another impression.

According to AT&T’s directions to access wi-fi hot spots “You can use any Wi-Fi enabled laptop or other device to connect quickly and seamlessly.” So that would lead us to believe that any Wi-Fi enabled device (Treo Pro, Samsung Epix, etc) will be able to enjoy the free hot-spots as well. The Boy Genius has an inside line that it will work with a Bold, too, and expects it'll work for any 3G device.

Us, not so much. I went to a Starbucks last night and tried out the process of trying to get an access code -- you join the WiFi spot, enter your phone number on a special page, then cross your fingers waiting for a code. No dice with a Treo Pro, it looks like (at least as of last night) AT&T is limiting this to the iPhone.

Anybody else had any luck?

Are the days of WiFi chewing through our batteries like a beaver through soft wood over? ZDNet seems to think so, based on an interview with truphone's CEO James Tagg. Now Tagg obviously has an interest in convincing people that WiFi on their phone is a good thing, since he's running a VOIP company. Nevertheless, his claim that, with WM6:

"A lot of work [has been done] with the manufacturers of the Wi-Fi chips [together with] some proper thought around the software stack," Tagg told ZDNet UK on Monday.

...makes me wonder if we won't see other little surprises when WM6 becomes widely available.

Read: Mobile Wi-Fi battery issues 'solved' - ZDNet UK

I adore the Windows Mobile Team Blog. How great is it that the developers themselves not only post blog entries about the OS, but post open, honest, and funny blog postings about the os? While other divisions might just talk about the inability to use ActiveSync over WiFi with a curt “It’s not a bug, it’s a feature,” here we get Mike Calligaro actually explaining why, when, and how the decision went down.

Three Cheers to the Windows Mobile Division.

The official (and true) reason has always been stated as “We removed it for security reasons.” But, judging from the number of angry comments I see posted here, that explanation hasn’t really convinced anyone that it was a good idea. So, let me go into more detail. The first major issue is this: Exchange ActiveSync is encrypted and desktop ActiveSync isn’t.

Read: Windows Mobile Team Blog : WiFi Did You Do That?