Windows Mobile: Better Than an iPod?

The phenomenal success of the iPod never ceases to amaze me. Why would people pay so much money for a barebones, single-function device when they could have a multi-functional Windows Mobile device for the same price? Now the big buzz is that the iPod can do video. Big deal! The Pocket PC has been able to display video from its inception in April of 2000, and more recent Windows Mobile devices can do a whole lot more! This article explores some of those possibilities.

Satellite radio

There are two satellite radio networks currently available: Sirius and XM. Both offer over 130 channels covering a broad spectrum of entertainment, news, and talk shows with commercial-free music in every conceivable genre. Fortunately, there are applications that will allow you to listen to the content on each network. Pocket XM Radio Pro from eBook Software (priced at $19.95; the Pocket PC version is available from http://PocketGear.com; the Smartphone version is available from http://Smartphone.net).

Listen to satellite radio on your Pocket PC or Smartphone with Pocket XM Radio Pro

I tested the program and found that streaming reception was somewhat better on my Pocket PC than on my Smartphone. On my Smartphone, it was better via Wi-Fi than over cell networks.

Get Sirius: SiriuCE is a freeware program available at http://www.emulamer.com/Siri.... Download the CAB file for installation on your Pocket PC for connection to the Sirius network. Unfortunately, there is no Smartphone version yet. The program works exceedingly well with no buffering delays. Donations will be appreciated by the developer.

In order to use these programs you must have an active account with XM and/or Sirius ($12.95 per month). In addition, your Pocket PC or Smartphone must be connected to the Internet via a wired or wireless connection-you don't use a satellite Radio receiver. With an active account, you can also listen to satellite radio on your PC. Both programs work on all versions of Windows Mobile. Unfortunately, unlike car receivers, neither program displays the name of the tune playing or the artist, which is probably a function of Windows Media Player limitations. It certainly is a pleasure to have the same content available on my pocket pals as on my car radio. Well, at least the music content with no commercials is the same, but very few of the talk channels are available.

Internet radio streaming

Pocket Player is one of the better music players for the Pocket PC.

For the past couple of years I have enjoyed using Pocket Player ($19.95; http://www.conduits.com) to listen to streamed, live radio broadcasts over the Internet from http://SHOUTcast.com and other sites. (By the way, if you've ever been a closet DJ or wanted to host your own radio show, you can do it free with Shoutcast.) Some of the robust features of Pocket Player include: MP3, WMA, FLAC, and WAV support; 10 band equalizer and preamp with presets; visualizations and album art support; skinnable screens; a Today screen plug-in; playlists and bookmarks; audiobook support; Bluetooth remote control and headphone support; sleep timer and auto screen shutoff to save battery. I use Pocket Player as a benchmark for other music player programs.

Resco Radio lets you record streaming radio. It supports a variety of audio formats.

Another good program for live radio streaming is Resco Pocket Radio ($19.95; http://www.resco.net). Resco also offers Resco Audio Recorder ($19.95), a complete audio recorder and player that supports WAV, MP3, OGG Vorbis, Speex, and RAF formats, as well as M3U playlists.

Replay Radio ($49.95; http://www.applian.com) offers another approach to audio by allowing you to pre-record radio programs and convert them to MP3 files, which you can transfer to your Windows Mobile device and play with Media Player Mobile. You can also use the program to burn CDs with the recorded content. It has great compression technology that saves an hour's worth of content in a 7 MB file.

If you enjoy listening to audio books, the best place to obtain them is from Audible.com, which offers free software for transferring audio files to your device and listening to them using Media Player Mobile.

Finally, Microsoft's Windows Media Player Mobile is built into all Pocket PCs and Smartphones. It's a good tool for listening to recorded audio or video, and some third party programs use it to play streaming content.

Multimedia programs

Several programs allow you to play live or recorded audio and video content.

PocketStreamer Pro ($14.95; available for Pocket PC and Smartphone; http://Handango.com) lets you access live, streaming content from around the world. It offers a wide variety of radio programs including sports, news, weather, talk, and music. Its live TV offerings are much more limited, so don't expect the variety of your cable service. It works and is well worth the small price.

PocketStreamer Pro offers free live radio and TV streaming for Pocket PCs and Smartphones.

For $12 you can purchase PDAtuner Pro at http://Handango.com, allowing you to access the PDAtuner.com Web site and treat yourself to live online music, radio, and TV from around the world. You're not really purchasing a separate application, just a registration key that gives you the ability to access the Web site from Internet Explorer Mobile on your Pocket PC or Smartphone. Media Player Mobile plays the content you access. (A single, one-time subscription fee lets you access the site with any device with a Web browser.) The choice of programming is limited, particularly the TV selection. In addition, the TV viewing experience is not ideal-somewhat akin to a jerky slide show.

PDAtuner Pro: Access live radio and TV broadcasts.

GoConnect's m-Vision is another subscription services that offers video content for Windows Mobile devices. The m-Vision program itself is available as a free download from http://PocketGear.com. Basic service costs $10 a month (12 month contract), and "premium content" channels are available for an additional fee. Currently, the programming is rather limited.

PocketStocks ($14.95; http://Handango.com) lets you track stocks and mutual funds on your Pocket PC. It offers financial quotations, charts, and live radio/TV financial reports.

Track stocks and mutual funds wherever you are, with PocketStocks.

X-Play Studio ($26.96; http://www.xronox.com) is another mobile entertainment center that provides live TV and plays a variety of audio and video recoded files using Windows Media player.

X-Play Studio displays live TV, video and audio files, and more.

Orb (http://www.orb.com) is a freeware application that installs on your PC and allows you to access and stream audio or video content from your PC to your Windows Mobile device. Once installed, you can log on to the Orb Web site from anywhere in the world, connect to your PC, and stream any content from your PC to your Pocket PC or Smartphone. The content is played via Media Player mobile.

SmartRadio Live for Smartphones

SmartRadio ($9.99; http://Smartphone.net) is the only program I looked at that was designed exclusively for Smartphones. It allows you to access streaming TV and radio on WM 2003 Smartphones. It will not work on WM 5.0 devices. A relatively wide choice of stations is available, but it does not begin to compare to XM Radio. However, the application is inexpensive and the service free!

Podcasting

It is ironic that the term podcasting has become part of our lexicon when iPod and Apple had very little to do with it. In fact, podcasts were not part of the iPod iTunes fare until the middle of 2005. Podcasts are audio or video files on a variety of subjects. They can be downloaded from the Internet and played at will. In contrast, streaming involves playing live broadcasts at a particular time.

Podcast.com is arguably the premier podcast directory on the Web, but it also provides links to other podcast directories. You'll also find thousands of podcasts on the iTunes Music Store (http://www.apple.com/itunes/). Note that you will have to install iTunes on your PC to access it.

With an iPod, you must go through the cumbersome task of downloading episodes to a desktop computer and then transferring them to the player. However, you can download podcasts directly to your Windows Mobile device if you install a podcast "aggregator" on your Pocket PC or Smartphone. FeederReader (http://www.feederreader.com/...) is a full-featured RSS aggregator for the Pocket PC, which can be configured to automatically download your favorite podcasts.

Download RSS feeds, including podcasts, with FeederReader.

SmartFeed (http://www.smartfeed.org) and iPodder (http://www.ipodder.org/direc...) are podcast downloading programs available for both the Pocket PC and Smartphone.

FM radio plug-ins

Fans of terrestrial radio can add an FM turner to their Pocket PC. The iBIZ Corporation offers FM stereo tuners with CF or SD card interfaces. C-Guys, Inc. has a more diminutive SD tuner that also works on Palms and Pocket PCs (http://www.c-guys.com). The tuners come with a stereo headset and software you install on your Windows Mobile 2003 device. Neither unit works with Windows Mobile 5.0 yet. The card turns your Pocket PC into a portable radio, allowing you to listen to live FM broadcasts without being linked to the Internet. The iBIZ Website (http://www.ibizcorp.com/main...) has links to a number of online stores that carry their products. Note that a couple of sites carry a version of the SD card FM tuner that only works with Palm OS devices. However, http://GoMoGear.comoffers SD Pocket Radio version 2, which includes updated software that allows it to work with the Pocket PC. Please check compatibility lists on the sites before purchasing the product.

Pocket Radio turns your Pocket PC into an stereo FM radio.

Video on Smartphones?

Cell phone service providers seem to be moving into the business of becoming content providers and this may be a trend if Sprint's new MSpot movies online service is any indication. Sprint also pioneered a TV over cell phone service a couple of years ago, and Cingular is now offering a similar service. Verizon's VCast service offers news reports, music videos, and short clips, but no live TV.

I'd watch short news clips or stock market and weather reports on a 2.2 inch Smartphone screen, but not a TV show or movie. (And, I really wonder how many people will be willing to watch full-length feature films on the new iPod's 2.5 inch screen.) I have entertained myself on long flights armed with an expansion card full of movies and a Pocket PC. Smartphones are fine for obtaining information and playing audio content, but video almost demands a larger screen. If you want mobile video, why settle for an overpriced, functionally-challenged, small-screen unit when you can have a Pocket PC or Phone Edition device with a screen you can actually see?