Windows Mobile 6 SDKs available for download

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Mar. 02, 2007

[Updated 3:00 pm] -- Microsoft has released a pair of SDKs (software development kits) for Windows Mobile 6. The downloadable SDKs, together with Visual Studio 2005, are said to provide everything needed to build and test applications for both Windows Mobile 5.0 and Windows Mobile 6.

Two versions are available: Windows Mobile Professional, for touchscreen devices; and Windows Mobile Standard, for non-touchscreen devices. The Professional edition corresponds to Windows Mobile 5's Pocket PC and Pocket PC phone editions, while the Standard edition corresponds to the smartphone edition of Windows Mobile 5.

New features

According to Microsoft MVP Jim Wilson, the Windows Mobile 6 SDK release focuses on a few "core goals," such as:

Simplifying line-of-business (LOB) application development and deployment
Making it easier to build a single application that runs successfully across multiple devices
Providing an "enhanced user experience"

Wilson expands on these goals, and explains various new Windows Mobile 6 features from a developer's perspective, in an MSDN technical article: "What's New for Developers in Windows Mobile 6."

New tools

The SDKs also include several new tools, according to SDK Program Manager Fernando Zandona. He describes them as:

Cellular Emulator v1 -- replaces a device's radio module in both development and test environments to exercise applications under different wireless network conditions in GSM/GPRS and/or UMTS networks. Think of it as a "mobile operator on the desktop."
Local Server Framework -- supports custom server applications running over localhost. This provides a controlled environment for testing components that must communicate with services running on external servers.
FakeGPS and GPS Settings -- provides a way to test GPS applications without having a real GPS receiver. NMEA strings are supplied from a text file.
Hopper -- simulates input stress on Windows Mobile devices by rapidly sending random keystrokes and screen taps.

Availability

The Windows Mobile 6 SDK downloads are available from Microsoft's download area, here. The Standard edition is 150 MB in size, while the Professional edition bulks up to 388 MB. Visual Studio 2005 Standard edition or better is required. The Express edition is not supported.

A Windows Mobile 6.0 SDK "Refresh" is due to be released in time for the Mobile and Embedded Developers Conference in May, according to a blog post by Mobile Communications Product Manager Derek Snyder.

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