Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional

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The AT&T Fuze runs the very latest build of Windows Mobile, version 6.1.  For those of you who own a phone with Windows Mobile 6, you may be wondering what the differences are and if there are any advantages.  While the changes are not that significant, I will not only cover what's featured on the Fuze, but also attempt to briefly cover the differences between the two...

Start Menu

Nothing much to brag about the Start Menu.  It is just like all Windows Mobile phones, and just like the previous version, you can customize this menu to your liking.  However, the difference with the Fuze is the program folders and default font size.  The menu is much larger, providing better navigation via its touchscreen.

Programs Menu

As far as the interface goes, the Programs Menu is identical to what you would find on mostly all current Windows-powered phones.  However, the apps included out of the box really does depend on both the manufacturer and carrier.

Nothing much has changed with the typical apps you're used to using on Windows Mobile.  This includes the calendar, voice recorder, calculator, etc.  Other than some slight GUI changes to enhance their appearance and provide better control, not much has changed.

As far as web and multimedia goes, you have Pocket IE and WMP 10 Mobile found in most devices.  However, the build number of their media player is the most recent I have found on a WM 6.1 phone.  Pocket Internet Explorer has always been a horrible browser.  The build included with the Fuze is no exception and is the worst in terms of properly rendering pages, including our hybrid site.

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One of the major differences between WM 6.0 and WM 6.1 is the introduction of threaded SMS.  Personally, this is a huge feature and improvement that many actually prefer.  Unlike older Windows Mobile devices, simple text messages are threaded, meaning that they are handled more like a conversation rather than just sending and receiving individually.  For those that grab the Fuze and coming from a WM6 phone, you'll definitely love this feature.  In short, it is a much more pleasant and quicker way of sending SMS messages.

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Last but definitely not least is that the Fuze does indeed come with Remote Desktop, the popular thin-client application out there.  What many do not know is that despite the version of Windows Mobile your phone does use, not all phones include this application.  After owning so many of these phones over the years, I found that it ultimately comes down to both the manufacturer or carrier when it comes to bundling this tool.  I have been quite surprised to find that this common app was not present in a number of phones running the Pro version of the OS and as an IT professional who has to maintain a handful of servers, this is a must-have tool that has worked wonders in the past.  Fortunately, the Fuze not only brings it back, but manages to perform extremely well when it is in use.

Settings Menu

I will not go in great depth as I normally do with the Settings Menu but will take the time to show you options that are not only unique to this phone, but those that have changed significantly when compared to previous versions of the Mobile OS.

While it was much more user-friendly in Windows Mobile 6, version 6.1 offers greater flexibility and option in regards to how your phone should "behave".  Rather than a simple GUI driven menu, you have drop down menus that allow you to select an event and action for it.  Also, considering the Fuze does have a slide-out keyboard, you have sound options for keyboard sliding as well.

As some have humorously put it, the fonts on the Fuze are those they would expect to find on their "grandmother's cell phone".  While I do agree they are quite large, there are areas where the larger fonts do make sense and make finger navigation much more pleasant.  Anyways, this is one of the first things you'll notice when playing with the Fuze and while there are options for text size in the Settings Menu, they may not necessarily adjust the size of the font you are focused on.  For those, you're only option is to resort to some Reg Tweaks that work well.  Another issue I have with this phone in terms of usability is the power saving features.  In short, the options found in settings are limited and will not correct a number of very annoying issues I found when using this phone extensively.  Once again, if you want to remedy this, you'll need to resort to both registry tweaks and third-party utilities.  Finally, you'll also notice a menu in Settings you may not expect to find.  This is a TV Out setting menu and is there because the HTC Touch Pro does indeed support TV-out capabilities via a special or modified cable.  This is something I will cover later in this article.

There's a slew of other settings most are familiar with and I obviously can't go over each and every one.  However, there are a couple of menus you will not find in most phones.  The first is a USB to PC menu that basically allows you configure how your device is to perform and function when connected via ActiveSync.  One option is to run it in Disk Drive mode, which will basically function as any other mass storage device.  However, while this is faster, you will obviously lose some functionality, including access to phone storage.  Finally, you have the Domain Enrollment menu that will allow you to connect to your company's domain, provided their server is configured properly to allow this kind of access.  However, I found many that have trouble connecting and that is because there are a few requirements necessary to take full advantage of this feature.  The most important to remember is that you can connect to a domain only through Wi-FI, but it can be internal or external.  If you have configured your phone properly and your Administrator does allow this and has configured their server properly, I will tell you that it does work as it should.

For those of you who would like further information as to the differences between the OS versions, I recommend you visit this link for a clear, yet brief comparison between them all. 

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