Windows CE 6 slips to 2007, report

THE LATEST VERSION of Windows CE, originally scheduled for a Q3 2006 launch, has slipped to H1 2007, according to a report.

Already available to manufacturers in beta form, the new version boosts the capability of CE considerably, overcoming two big limits version 5. You can now run 32,000 processes simultaneously, instead of just 32, and the memory available to each process has increased from 64MB to 2GB.

Predictably, Vole has also focused on expanding functionality for communications and multimedia, with .NET CF version 2.0, and also the catchily-named NMD FP (Networked Media Device Feature Pack) which is basically a engine for driving digital video recorder devices.

One of the biggest changes for developers is that the Platform Builder software, a development suite that allows you to choose what bits of Windows CE your gadget will support, will now be a plug-in for Visual Studio, rather than a clunky separate program.

As happened with CE 5.0, Windows Mobile 6.0, codenamed Photon, will follow in late 2007, although you won't be able to buy any devices on the market using this until 3-6 months after the launch.

Expect Windows Mobile 5 SE, codenamed Crossbow, to be released before this, possibly Q4 this year, to bridge the gap. µ

L'Inq
Digitimes