New App Store for Freebies; WM 7 Rumors Rampant

 This week we’ll look at a great new app store that has over 500 free apps. And there are now tons of rumors about Windows Mobile 7 floating around that, even if just partly true, can start to give you a sense for what’s coming.

OpnMarket: Easy Downloading of Free Windows Miobile Apps

FreewarePocketPC.net has long been one of the best sources for Windows Mobile freeware. And now they’ve greatly increased the utility of their site by offering OpnMarket, a new app that you can use to browse their freeware via your device and then, if you find something you like, download it directly to your device. You can opt to have it download apps to a storage card, too.

There are over 500 apps — all free. Since developers have to pay to have their apps in Microsoft’s Marketplace for Mobile, this is an attractive option for those who offer freeware.

Features include My Apps, which shows you the apps that you already have installed, and there’s a built-in uninstaller to make it easy to remove apps you no longer want.

PocketNow has a helpful video demo that shows what a slick application — and service — this is.

Of course, a great advantage of OpnMarket is that it’s so much more convenient to download directly rather than the several steps required to first download software to your PC.

The developers say that they will be greatly expanding their offerings beyond the 500 apps currently available. I’d definitely keep an eye on this one.

Rumors about Windows Mobile 7

I hate to point you to rumors. But on the other hand, you’ll inevitably be faced with a decision whether to continue with Windows Mobile or opt for Android or iPhone, which are rapidly becoming dominant in the smartphone space. Having a sense for what’s coming might help you decide to stay with Microsoft’s offering. And those who’ve seen it say it’s definitely a contender.

To help you keep up with the latest tidbits regarding what’s coming in Windows Mobile 7, check out this roundup of rumors by WMExperts. It’s quite a detailed and well researched article.

In addition, PocketNow, which is my favorite source for mobile news, has a category in their blog for all of their WM 7-related news. So if you check on that page on occasion, you’ll get all the latest info. One of their recent WM 7 posts points to an article on MobileCrunch that says the new software will be based on Zune, Microsoft’s iPod-like device.

Last week I pointed you to info suggesting that Windows Mobile 6.5.3 may be a next major step, and this post on PocketNow says that this software has already been released to manufacturers and that there won’t be any major announcement. It’ll just quietly start appearing on devices.