Windows Mobile Standard devices -- you know, those pre-touchscreen relics -- are getting to be tougher sales by the day. Touch is perceived as a "premium" experience (we're not entirely sold on that) and with boatloads of price pressure in that category, these little guys are liable to get squeezed clean out of the market. The new Shadow, even moreso than the original Shadow before it, definitely belies its Windows Mobile underpinnings with a funky shell that's fit for average consumers who just want a decent looking slider -- never mind a smartphone. The red-to-black gradient rear was totally bangin', but as is all too often the case these days, the glossy top was a brutal canvas for grease, fingerprints, and other unsavory stains that you probably don't want to press against your face. It's a tradeoff, we suppose.

T-Mobile doesn't seem too concerned about the fact that there already is a Shadow -- it's the very phone they're trying to replace here, actually -- but whatever, it's Windows Mobile, it's HTC, and it's finally here. The new model thankfully features WiFi and full support for T-Mobile's UMA-based HotSpot calling service, but spec-wise, it's kinda the same as the outgoing piece (which possibly explains the carried-over name). On-board you'll find a 2 megapixel cam with video capture, microSD support up to 8GB, spin wheel navigation, Windows Mobile 6.1 Standard (read: no touch), a QVGA display, and all the myFaves you can handle. It'll be available in Black Burgundy and White Mint in "the coming weeks."

If you're crazy stoked about hooking up your X1 to a big ol' monitor and keyboard but you're not nearly as stoked about buying into one of Celio's dedicated REDFLY boxes, the company's announcing two new solutions that might fit the bill. First up, the aptly-named REDFLY PC Software brings all the spoils of your WinMo-based handset to any XP- or Vista-based system of your choice -- which, let's be honest, is probably a pretty limited-appeal solution unless you're dealing with some wild software package that's only available on your phone. Next up is the more interesting of the two -- the Smartphone Dock -- that basically takes a full-fledged REDFLY lappie and strips out all the human-interface stuff; in other words, bring your own keyboard and monitor. The dock's being billed as a proof of concept at this point, but the software hits shelves in March.

If you took a Touch Diamond and put it one of those tumblers you had when you were a kid that you use to polish cool-looking rocks you found in your backyard, you'd probably get something like this. The Iolite -- not "Lolite" as we'd previously thought -- appears to rip the Touch Diamond's basic form factor from this tiny lil' image that's been leaked on Expansys, but steps down to a WQVGA display from VGA. On the upside, Europeans still get their 7.2Mbps HSDPA fix, TouchFLO 3D and AGPS make it through unscathed, and the 3.2-megapixel cam carries over. No official announcement on this one, but seeing how the radio is Euro-focused, we'd expect it at MWC next month.

[Via Cellpassion]

3.5's the magic number with Pharos' new Windows Mobile-based offering: 3.5-inch display -- wide VGA, no less -- and 3.5G data. The Traveler 137 rolls deep with the best HTC has to offer (owing in no small part to their ODM partnership with Inventec, we figure) with 512MB of Flash, 256MB of RAM, AGPS, 7.2Mbps HSPA on T-Mobile USA (seriously!) and European bands, WiFi, 3-megapixel cam, and the kitchen sink thrown in for good measure. Kinda sounds like a keyboardless X1, doesn't it? Look for it to hit retailers this quarter for a nickel under $600.

We'd never pegged the S740 as the kind of phone HTC would be looking to bring to the New World; it's an oddball by modern Windows Mobile standards, shucking the touchy, feely trend for a traditional numeric keypad that reminds us of a simpler, more innocent time. Miracles can and do happen from time to time, though -- and on that note we give you the S743, a dead ringer for the S740 that's had its Euro-friendly 3G gutted and replaced with HSDPA 850 / 1900 for North American use. It's got WinMo 6.1 Standard, a 2.4-inch QVGA display, and faceted styling inspired by the Touch Diamond, but the S743's real claim to fame is its slide-out QWERTY keyboard for those moments when triple-tapping and predictive text just aren't going to cut it. Look for this sucker to invade US retailers some time this quarter.

If these fine specimens look familiar, well, they should -- one's already been announced (albeit on a different carrier) and the other two have been thoroughly scooped. Motorola's CES haul includes the eco-tastic Renew W233, a simple candybar destined for T-Mobile that features a neutral carbon footprint and components made of recycled water bottles; the Tundra VA76r, a rugged 3G flip with push-to-talk that previously launched on Rogers and has its sights set on AT&T this time around for a January 13 release; and the headliner of the bunch, the SURF A3100. The WinMo 6.1-based SURF -- alias A3000, alias Atila -- features a full 2.8-inches of touchscreen adorned with a custom skin designed by Moto, 7.2Mbps triband HSDPA, a 3-megapixel autofocus cam, AGPS, and support for microSD cards up to a purely theoretical 32GB in size. Though the radio is fully equipped for North American action, no stateside launch is in the cards just yet; for now, you'll find the SURF in Asian markets before the quarter's out.

[Via Phone Scoop]

Alright, you've got to really love Dashes and really love the color black to make this investment, because it's now confirmed: the black Dash for T-Mobile is the same thing as the original, just with a little less raw aluminum involved. No 3G, no awesome camera, and at this point, we can't even tell if they've bumped it to WinMo 6.1 as rumored (though we'd certainly hope they did). It's available now for a penny shy of a Benjamin on contract after rebates.

[Thanks, aussiedog]

Update: Commenter NocNocNoc tells us that it's still running 6.0, which makes this model just that much more anticlimactic. Bummer.

That new (well, "new" might be a stretch) Dash for T-Mobile has itself this unflattering official shot now, and we've got to say: the silver front worked just fine for us. If anything, the freshly-blackened handset just looks like it's had the aluminum highlights torn off, exposing a nightmarish landscape of raw, unfinished plastic bits never meant for the public eye. Okay, that's going a bit far, but do you see what we mean? In other news, the old Dash has disappeared from T-Mobile's retail site, suggesting that the launch of the new model is imminent, WinMo 6.1 and all. Honestly, guys, you could run it over a belt sander and change the keyboard layout to Dvorak -- just give us Android and 3G, and we're all in.

[Thanks, Ellis D.]

2008 was, to say the least, a banner year for Windows Mobile hardware. Windows Mobile software... well, that's another story; we're still patiently waiting for the same thorough overhaul we'd hoped for years ago, but in the meantime, manufacturers have done an absolutely stellar job of taking the platform to its limits and packaging it in ways that could make any smartphone envious. For this first time, VGA screens (and beyond) have come to market en masse, and -- unlike the 8525s, Tilts, Moguls, and XV6800s of yesteryear, the latest batch of QWERTY sliders look like they've actually got a lick of intelligent industrial design in their DNA.

So these puppies are similar, yes, but they're not the same -- so let's take a quick look at what separates the Sprint Touch Pro, from the Verizon Touch Pro, from the AT&T Fuze, from the Sony Ericsson X1 (whew!).

Mexican carrier Iusacell has scored itself a nice little exclusive, rolling out the very first Windows Mobile Professional-based phone running CDMA in all of Mexico. Problem is, it appears to be WinMo 6.0 -- a strange choice, considering 6.1 is already getting long in the tooth -- but it's a pretty smart-looking device, and hey, at least it's got EV-DO. The TechFaith-sourced "Moffett" has a 2-megapixel cam, 128MB of ROM and 64MB of RAM, Bluetooth, WiFi, and a 2.8-inch QVGA display, which compares favorably to... well, now that we think about it, nothing that we can think of off the tops of our heads. Sorry, Iusacell, we swear we were trying to be stoked.

[Via wmpoweruser.com]

We're not really sure where to begin with this one, because the awesomeness is so thorough and so intense that we're basically at a loss for words; we'll see what we can do here, though. In brief, a HoFo poster has thrown up what appear to be slides from a Rogers event detailing the carrier's release plans for the better part of 2009, and seriously, if you name a badass handset, odds are it's here. Samsung will apparently be bringing the 8.1-megapixel Pixon, for starters, and Sony Ericsson will be throwing its name into the huge-cam hat with the C905. Turning our attention to Windows Mobile, the X1 is scheduled for release "around August if not sooner," Motorola brings the lowly Q11, and HTC adds the Touch Pro, the Touch Viva (an unusual choice considering HTC's intention to send it to emerging markets), and possibly the Touch 3G. Nokia will be offering the 5800 XpressMusic in the middle part of the year, Moto will be bringing a pair of 5-megapixel phones in the VE66 and ZN5, and finally, it seems RIM is signed up to bring the all-GSM 9520 Storm with WiFi -- a feature sorely missing from the Verizon and Vodafone versions -- and a 3G remix of the 8200 Pearl series flip that'll have a front-facing cam for video calling (yeah, no joke, they offer it up there). So look, AT&T, you have two options here: either crib off this presentation and make it happen, or we hope you get bought by Rogers. Your choice.

[Via Engadget Spanish]

Desperately in need of a "new" (in terms of a never broken seal only) smartphone? Don't mind tinkering with the last version of Windows Mobile? No need for a QWERTY keyboard? If you were miraculously able to answer "yes" to the aforesaid questions, you're in luck! Verizon Wireless has finally accepted that no one in their right mind wants to pay a decent price for a Pantech PN-820 smartphone that's rockin' WinMo 5.0 and a design that's straight out of 2007 (literally), so instead of just lighting the remaining inventory on fire, it's doing the next best thing: offering it up for $9.99 on contract. The sad part is that this thing isn't even worth ten bucks with that hundred pound agreement tied to it, but we're sure a few suckers will bite. They're born everyday, you know.

[Via RCRWireless]

So remember how Mobinnova allegedly has some hot new contract with Sony Ericsson for busting out future XPERIA models? We're still a little bummed considering how good the X1 looks -- and how good HTC is at its trade in general -- but digging into Mobinnova's dealings a bit gives us hope. Turns out the Taiwanese company introduced the "ICE" last month, a reasonably decent-looking Windows Mobile 6.1 slate with a 3-inch WQVGA display, 3-megapixel cam, WiFi, and HSDPA. It doesn't stand out against the myriad offerings on the WinMo front these days, but if nothing else, it shows that Mobinnova might just have the chops to keep pace.

[Via pocketnow.com]

Goodness, we can already tell that China is going to be a frigging goldmine of weird and wild Android hardware for a long, long time to come. First we had the QiGi i6, which boasted compatibility both with Android and WinMo -- and it's looking like this might be a surprisingly common feature for some of these Chinese devices now that we have another doing the same thing. The HKC Pearl looks suspiciously like a first-gen HTC Touch -- and nothing like its namesake, may we add -- working with a 2.8-inch QVGA display, 256MB of ROM, 128MB of RAM, WiFi, and a 2-megapixel cam to back up its Google- and Microsoft-provided loads. As with the QiGi, the odds of seeing this one outside Asia are slim at best, but hey, at least our colleagues at Engadget Chinese have scored a hands-on to satisfy our collective curiosities.

Read - HKC Pearl announcement
Read - Android mode hands-on
Read - WinMo mode hands-on