Frequently asked questions about Windows phones

What are the primary features and benefits of Windows phones?
When will phones running Windows Mobile 6.5 be available?
What’s new in Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 for Windows phones?
What is Microsoft System Center Mobile Device Manager 2008?
Is there a service pack for System Center Mobile Device Manager?

What are the primary features and benefits of Windows phones?

Windows phones are designed to support the activities people do every day with their phones: e-mail, instant messaging, SMS, voice mail, calendar, and contacts.

The update includes these enhancements:

A new Today screen highlights e-mail, SMS/MMS, missed calls, voice mail, Windows Live services, and even music and photos.
Improved touch is fast, and gestures now work in most e-mail, contacts, and calendar levels.
Handy new widgets provide updated views of the latest news, stocks, weather, and favorite web services.
Improved Internet Explorer Mobile is now more touch-friendly with desktop-quality display.
Built-in support for new services, including Windows Marketplace for Mobile for browsing and buying apps, Windows Live services with push e-mail for Windows Live Hotmail accounts, and Microsoft My Phone for backing up and syncing phone information on the web.
Windows Mobile 6.5 operating system.

When will phones running Windows Mobile 6.5 be available?

Partners from around the globe have already updated or expanded their portfolios to Windows Mobile 6.5, demonstrating the strong industry demand for software that delivers one phone for all aspects of a person’s life. These partners include HTC, AT&T, Motorola, Orange, O2, Samsung, and Sony Ericsson, and others.
Learn more about Windows Mobile 6.5

What’s new in Microsoft Exchange Server 2010 for Windows phones?

When you sync your employees’ Windows phones with Exchange Server 2010, you get great new business productivity features. Yet you still get Exchange ActiveSync for synchronizing the contacts, calendar, files, and e-mail on a Windows phone with Windows-based computers.

New features in Exchange Server 2010 include:

Over-the-air updates of Microsoft Office Outlook Mobile phones speed your mobile deployments.
A unified and visual inbox in Office Outlook Mobile now supports voice mail and e-mail preview in text format. You can retrieve voice mail without using a media player, so you never miss a message.
Quick access to nicknames helps you compose new e-mail messages faster in Outlook Mobile.
Richer collaboration is possible with new SMS Sync, which lets you read and reply to SMS messages in Outlook Mobile and Outlook Web Access. A conversation view groups e-mail threads for easy tracking.

What is Microsoft System Center Mobile Device Manager 2008?

Mobile Device Manager 2008 is a server that provides increased management, access, and security for Windows Mobile 6.5 and Windows Mobile 6.1 phones. It builds on the core set of security and management features in Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 1 (SP1) and complements the deployment, updating, and asset management capabilities of System Center Configuration Manager 2007. Mobile Device Manager helps businesses manage and add Windows phones to their company networks with the same ease of a PC or laptop, easily distribute applications over the air to targeted groups and users within the enterprise, and give users access to behind-the-firewall corporate data through a mobile VPN so that they can be more productive on the go.
Learn more about Mobile Device Manager