Windows Mobile To Out-Browse The iPhoneWindows Mobile To Out-Browse The iPhone

According to Microsoft, Windows Mobile will be able to out browse the iPhone. WinMo 6.5, due "real soon now" has a new browser largely based on Internet Explorer 6 from the desktop and is designed to make the browsing experience on WinMo phones not only tolerable, but downright fantastic.I say "largely" because it isn't just IE6. Microsoft has cleaned it up, made it more secure and added some features. For example, it has the JavaScript engine from IE8 and renders PNG alpha channel graphics. This will be very welcome compared to the rather anemic browser that is currently on most WinMo phones. Some of you with a WinMo 6.1 device may already have the new Mobile Internet Explorer. The Acer F900 has it for example even though it is still a WinMo 6.1 device. Microsoft has made the browser available to OEMs for a month or two now, so it is up to them to include it.

According to Mobile Entertainment Microsoft executives have made the claim that this browser will be better than Safari is on the iPhone.

No doubt one of the biggest features of the new browser is the ability to play Flash content. It is the iPhone's lack of Flash support that got it in trouble for claiming it could run the full web.

We'll have to see how the browser performs in the real world. Apple controls everything on the iPhone and they ensure it works smoothly and is fast. Microsoft doesn't exert as much control over its carrier partners and sometimes, the carriers skimp on things like processor speed and RAM for the sake of money, and that can leave powerful apps like Internet Explorer feeling lethargic. Hopefully, they won't be so short sighted.