Mobile software round up

There have been some pretty major developments in the world of mobile software this week. The publicity drive for Apple’s iPhone continues in earnest, though many developers seem to be pretty unhappy with the closed nature of the device’s operating system. While it was admittedly never likely that Steve Jobs would announce a completely open OS for the iPhone, limiting people to creating widget-style software (even if it does include access to all the phone’s features) means there’s a lot less that can be done. Check out this interesting debate at Robert Scoble’s place which runs the whole gamut of the differences between Apple and other firms.

Meanwhile, Apple computer users who also own a Nokia phone will be pleased to hear that the latest version of Nokia Media Transfer has been released and now includes support for more phones (including my very own N70!).

Google look likely to launch an entirely new mobile platform, based on Gears, their online/offline software platform. As with other of the web giant’s plans, this move into the mobile arena appears to target Microsoft primarily, though it will undoubtedly affect other of the major mobile OS owners (like Nokia and Sun). Paul at Seaton Online has a nice, in-depth analysis of just how Google is expected to drive pursue its mobile dreams.

Rumours continue to abound about Microsoft Zune software for Windows Mobile devices. It’s certainly more likely that Microsoft would attempt to bring Zune technology to existing WM devices than that they would develop a new generation of the relatively unsuccessful Zune hardware. Whether they can get the software out in time for the iPhone’s launch, or for free, is a lot more debatable.

Finally, has Palm finally struck out with its Foleo device? When we covered its release a couple of weeks ago, we found that the PDA firm had really stuck its neck out with its latest offering. Now analysts at Gartner have given the Foleo a big thumbs down. This looks like seriously bad news for Palm.