Freebie Updates: Dashwire, Yahoo Go

A couple of the better freebies just got even better, with recent updates to Yahoo Go and Dashwire. In addition to noting these, I want to highlight Microsoft’s Windows Mobile web site and mention two new offerings on our site: the 2008 Best Software nominees and a new wristwatch phone.

Dashwire Releases New Version

Dashwire is a free online service that creates a mirror image of the data and files on your device and lets you interact with it on the web via your desktop compuer, making it a lot easier to manage your content. Any changes that you make are then copied back to your Windows Mobile phone.

You don’t even need to connect your phone to your computer, since Dashwire uses your phone’s wireless data plan. It's a convenient way of always having everything backed up without having to manually sync.

Our blogger Dan Hanttula wrote a nice review of Dashwire last March titled Get More from Windows Mobile Dashwire, which will give you a good sense for what this service can do for you.

According to Dashwire, the new version gives you mobile access to photos and videos that you can store on your Dashwire web account without those photos being on your phone. It also lets you upload photos directly to Dashwire from your computer and then have Dashwire transfer them to your phone.

To download the Dashwire software, point your mobile browser at m.dashwire.com.

Yahoo Go for Windows Mobile Professional

I’ve really liked using Yahoo Go 2.0 on my Treo 750, with its snappy GPRS connection. This free application offers so much information at a glance — local news and weather, maps, national news and sports, and more, plus access to various Yahoo services such as calendar and e-mail. The interface is simple and intuitive, and lets you quickly move among the various widgets.

We previously noted the release of Yahoo Go 3.0 Beta for Windows Mobile Standard (aka Smartphone), and now it’s available for Windows Mobile Professional devices (those with a touch screen).

Perhaps the major difference is that this version is much more customizable, letting you add more widgets and customize your carousel, as well as adding “snippets.” Unfortunately, I kept getting a message saying there was a connection problem, so I haven’t yet had a chance to play with the customization to get a handle on it.

To download Yahoo Go, see go.yahoo.com. Or point your mobile browser at get.go.yahoo.com.

Windows Mobile Total Access

The Windows Mobile portal on Microsoft’s site previously called Windows Mobile Owners Circle has been redesigned and renamed to Windows Mobile Total Access. The sites offers free ringtones and add-ons, help and tips and how to’s, and games, software, free services, and more.

Wristwatch Phone

I don't think it's Windows Mobile, but our Used Handhelds site is offering a wristwatch phone that, according to our gadget enthusiast Diane Dumas, can play music and surf the web. It works well with Bluetooth headsets and Bluetooth stereo headphones, and even has a touch screen and handwriting recognition. We have a special coupon for $25 off using the code "WatchPhone" in the shopping cart.