Good Products Gone Bad

Two things drive me nuts when reviewing smartphones: poor design decisions, and unnecessary, boneheaded restrictions. Sometimes you may hear frustration in my (written) voice any time the Windows Mobile operating system comes up—be it in a review, a column, or another article. Maybe it's my impatience waiting for a new version. Still, I see so much potential with Microsoft's smartphone OS, that whenever I find something that appears to be the result of a bungling design decision, it gives me fits. That's because WM6.1 is so close to being a great mobile OS. Unlike all the other players on the smartphone scene in the U.S., Microsoft offers extensive support for all carriers and all major handset vendors across many kinds of device designs. Microsoft also offers killer third-party development support and enterprise connectivity... [read full story]