According to some slides unearthed over at TreoCentral, it looks like the Verizon Treo 700wx could be an unlikely candidate due for the Windows Mobile 6.0 (not 6.1) treatment. Usually carriers like Verizon won't bother upgrading devices as old as these with newer versions of their mobile OS -- partly to induce future handset purchases -- so we'll have to remain a touch skeptical until such time as the upgrade really does launch.

Several months and a few in the wild pics later, Verizon Wireless has gotten around to launching its latest Windows Mobile Professional device, the Samsung i760. Weighing in just under 5.3 ounces and measuring in at 2.28 x 4.49 x 0.77 inches, it's one of the more compact PDAs available for the carrier. The i760 is packed with features like a 2.8 inch touchscreen LCD, 128MB of RAM and 64 MB of ROM, an EV-DO radio (sorry, no Rev. A here), Bluetooth 2.0 and WiFi connectivity, microSD expandable memory, a slide-out QWERTY keyboard, and a 1.3 megapixel camera. Enough with all this chit chat, though -- how's about some pics?

Oi, say 'ello to 12.8-mm thin LG KS20, the 3.2Mbps HSDPA cuz to their KU990 touchscreen hottie. Although the KS20 shares much of the looks of the KU990, they've actually trimmed back the display to 2.8-inches (compared to 3-inches on the KU990) while acing that 5.1 megapixel shooter for a skimpy, business-minded 2 megapixeler all riding atop a Windows Mobile 6.0 OS. Expected Q4 in Europe running on some of that Vodafone carrier action, at least. We'll be sure to get up close and personal with it at IFA later in the week if that's ok with you. Thought so.

The speculation is over kids, mobile-review got themselves a copy of the next major release of the Windows Mobile OS and slapped up a review for all to see. Codenamed "Crossbow," the mobile OS is expected to hit sometime in the first half of 2007 under what can be assumed to be a Windows Mobile 6.0 moniker. Although, as the review points out, a full numeric update is a bit generous as it could just as well be dubbed Windows Mobile 5.0 Second Edition given the lack of new features. For that, you'll have to wait another few years for Photon which will finally unify the Pocket PC and Smartphone divisions -- it's the former (a near-RTM development version) under review. So, now that your expectations are fully deflated, what are we looking at? To start with, most of the new functions in Crossbow are meant to play nice with the 2007 release of Office and Exchange. Just to run down the highlights, we're getting a fully revamped Outlook Mobile app with new Vista-inspired sounds and themes, Windows Live integration featuring Live Search Mobile, Live Mail Mobile, Live Messenger Mobile (which, ironically, was first available on Symbian S60 3rd edition deivces) all available direct from the Today screen, VoIP (SIP) support bundled into the phone-related part of the system, and Smart Dial 2.0 integration for fast search through contacts just like WinMo 5.0 SmartPhone edition. We're still looking at a typical 64MB ROM / 64MB RAM footprint and a minimum 200MHz CPU. Overall, the system performance is speedier throughout due to continued efforts at optimization started with AKU 3.0. There are few more changes of course but what we're looking at here is not an attempt to leapfrog the competition, rather, Crossbow is an effort just to keep the pace which ain't all bad. Oh, and good news for HP and E-Ten device owners, you'll likely have the option of updating to the new OS via a firmware update -- everyone else had best get to pestering their manufacture or trolling the torrents for the bump.

[Thanks, Eldar]