At Mobius in Seattle there are on display all the Imates with the 6.1 version.

AkihabaraNews has the photos:
http://www.akihabaranews.com/en/news_gallery.php?id=16010&img_name=Mobius_Seattle_006.jpg

Now let's see when we'll get the new Roms.

The x150 Ultimates waiting for some improvements can get their first official Rom Upgrades from www.imate.com.

It's the February 22nd version.

CTIA Wireless 2008 keynote speaker Robbie Bach, boss of MS’s Entertainment and Devices Division, announced the newest version of Internet Explorer Mobile and Windows mobile 6.1 in Las Vegas yesterday.

Most of the improvements are incremental, but support for System Centre Mobile Device Manager 2008, available immediately, and Exchange Server 2007 SP1, promises security akin to a desktop firewall. The aim is to drive large scale mobile phone deployment by businesses.

‘People want a single phone that’s flexible enough to meet their needs throughout the day,’ said Bach. ‘The innovations we’ve added to our Windows Mobile software ultimately make it easier to manage your world.’

Meanwhile, Microsoft came up with a big list of everyone who’s really into Windows Mobile 6.1 and the products are already using it:


• Mobile operators:

• Alltel Wireless: HTC PPC6800, HTC Touch

• AT&T: Samsung BlackJack II, MOTO Q 9h global, Pantech duo, AT&T Tilt by HTC

• Sprint: A new Palm Treo and updates for the Mogul by HTC, Touch by HTC, MOTO Q 9c, Samsung ACE

• T-Mobile International: T-Mobile MDA Ameo 16 GB, T-Mobile MDA compact IV


• Device-makers:

• ASUS: New phones including the P320, ZX1, P560, M536 and updates for the P527, P750, M930

• HTC: A new Touch Dual for the U.S. and updates for the AT&T Tilt, Touch by HTC, Mogul by HTC from Sprint, TyTN II

• i-mate: 8502, 9502, 8150, 6150

• Intermec: CN3

• Motorola: MOTO Q 9c, MOTO Q 9h global, MC70, MC9000

• Pantech: Pantech duo

• Samsung: BlackJack II

• Toshiba: Portégé G810,Portégé G910


Windows Mobile 6.1 will be available to mobile phone partners from Q2. The Explorer update will be available in Q3, and the first Windows Mobile phones with the new version installed by the end of 2008.

Here is the MobileCityOnline.com's stock alert:

Today's Date:
3/21/2008
Inventory Notification:
Now In Stock
Item # :
i-mate Ultimate 6150 Smartphone (unlocked)
Price:
$729.99
Dear Subcriber,

We are pleased to inform you that the  i-mate Ultimate 6150 Smartphone (unlocked) is now in stock. You are being notified because you signed up for our "Stock Alert" service for this item. Click on the link above to view and/or order this item on MobileCityOnline.com.

Anyone want to see a beautiful 3d game on the WM6 ? Full HW acceleration ?

What game am I talking about ? It's about the Flame's original games: Siege and Call of Duty 2

The solution ... read and discuss here:
http://www.ultimates.biz/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?topic_id=109&post_id=710#forumpost710

After a long wait we do have the ultimates roms. In two flavors too: English and Arabic

This means that Imate is really improving the user experience.

Let's see the improvements:
- improved battery to 6.5 hours of talk and 4.5 videocall
- faster wake-up from stand by
- xt9 for 8150 disabled by default
- improved Wireless Manager
- better WiFi, Bluetooth
- better responsivness when answering calls
- improved performance in terms of speed and stability.

HOWTO:
- get your specific ROM from ftp://ftp.xda-developers.com//Uploads/Upload/Official i-mate x150 Phase II ROM
- create a txt file romlocklist.txt with the IMEI and the rom lock code in this format: IMEIcode,ROMlockCode
- copy FIRST the romlocklist.txt then the eum file to your formatted SD card
- ensure you have at least 80% of battery before proceeding
- reset your device by using the camera+softreset combination
- wait for the restart/completion

Enjoy

Anyone interested in the future of the Ultimate series from Imate should listen to this interview.

From my point of view the top infos are:
* Telstra giving x502 Ultimates for free with some of their plans
* Jim Morrison owns the most of the shares and has no intention to sell
* Imate has no liquidity problems "can run for two years without selling any device"
* The x502 is due in Europe now but in the US the Qualcomm patent dispute will delay the release until May this year
* The x150 series is available in the US because it uses a different platform (not Q) but has limited coverage because the US market likes the "full keypad" devices
* The x150 XGA OUT can drive a plasma while the x502 have only Video Out capabilities

Do go to see the full interview at Msmobiles:


http://msmobiles.com/news.php/7102.html

i-mate today unveiled the latest devices in its Ultimate range, the Ultimate 9502 and the Ultimate 8502 at Mobile Congress World.

The Ultimate 9502 and 8502 are the latest devices from i-mate's Ultimate range, a collection of four devices in various forms to suit individual preferences, from classic PDA to a notebook replacement and were designed to provide the latest and best in phone and PDA technology. With a wide variety of features ranging from to HSDPA and HUSDPA connectivity to the 262k colour TFT screen, every component of the device is specified at a very high level.

The Ultimate 9502 represents the flagship of the Ultimate range and delivers an all in one Windows Mobile device. Powered by 3.5G (HSDPA & HUSDPA), and WiFI and Bluetooth connectivity, the Ultimate 9502's VGA display is perfect for multimedia viewing, or checking through maps using the its integrated GPS functionality for navigation. There are dedicated shortcut keys all around the 9502, allowing easy and fast access to often used applications.. The 9502 includes integrated support for Direct Video Out capabilities, providing you with the option to connect it to monitors or projectors and watch videos off it or even use Windows Mobile on a larger screen. This feature was especially included in a business sense so users can perform video conferencing or project slideshows and presentations from the phone itself, making it a viable alternative to a notebook.

The Ultimate 8502 delivers a customized out of the box experience in a slim line QWERTY keyboard form factor. With a 2.6 inch touchscreen with 65k color TFT backlight, it is fully loaded with Microsoft Office Mobile giving users access to popular applications such as Word, Excel and PowerPoint on the go. This device also comes with built-in GPS navigation functionality offering users satellite navigation. The 8502 can play video clips directly and a variety of music file formats on the inbuilt Windows Media Player 10 Mobile media player.

"2008 sees i-mate continue to deliver on its iconic devices and sophisticated services," said Jim Morrison, CEO, i-mate. "The Ultimate range has already won plaudits on its design and strong specifications. The Ultimate 9502 and 8502 will continue to build on i-mate's, the best of breed combination of innovation, design and technology. Each of our devices is designed with different users in mind giving our customers real choice."

the Imate.com site has a new banner that shows all the Ultimates models (including the 9502) that points to the GSMA Mobile World Congress site !

I've solved a database problem that blocked the authentication part of the site.

Sorry for the delay !