HTC has officially released a Windows Mobile 6.1 upgrade for the HTC TyTN II, as listed in the Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.1 press release on 1st April 2008. [ref05]

But the upgrade doesn’t consist only of the Windows Mobile 6.1 upgrade, but should also address some video- and other performance problems. [ref08] It’s clever of HTC to combine these facts and bundle them in one upgrade, so end-users or large companies don’t have to roll out twice an upgrade.

Arne Hess of the::unwired provides us with a good overview of the new Windows Mobile 6.1 improvements.

Windows Mobile 6.1 comes with a host of new and enhanced features including threaded SMS, recipient auto-complete, Direct Push improvements, and enhanced Internet Explorer Mobile, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connection setup simplification, etc and more (incl. support for Microsoft’s System Center Mobile Device Manager). [ref02]

In addition Jason Langridge addresses the battery-life improvement due to the ROM upgrade.

One thing I have noticed is that the battery life on my TyTn 2 seems to be considerably improved. [ref03]

Increased power savings in Windows Mobile 6.1 have also been addressed at the launch of the HTC Diamond. At the event they told me that in case of the HTC Touch Diamond, Windows Mobile 6.1 should contribute between 8 and 21 % to increase of the battery life.

The performance issues are also improved as Modaco states:

Performance IS improved, however with no real video acceleration, don’t get your hopes up TOO much! Thanks to tweaks in 6.1 in general plus HTC’s optimisations, the device DOES feel a lot slicker in use … [ref06]

Overall some nice conclusions can be drawn. At first the TyTN II is a very popular device in both an end user as well as a business user setting. This might be one of the reasons for HTC to roll out the first Windows Mobile 6.1 upgrade. The upgrade provides many improvements, and improved performance. However the video accelleration issue is probably far more complex, and will embed different technical, legal and economic problems and reasons.

Summarizing HTC did a great job, and I think the upgrade really enhances the TyTN II. So, if you still haven’t downloaded the upgrade, head over to the HTC e-club and download this ROM upgrade.

Reference List:

1. Pocketinfo.nl: HTC TyTN II ROM update komt zeer binnenkort (in Dutch)
2. the::unwired: HTC releases Windows Mobile 6.1 Upgrade for the HTC TyTN II
3. HTC TyTN II – Windows Mobile 6.1
4. WM Experts: HTC releases WM 6.1 for TyTN II
5. Microsoft Unveils Smartphone Advancements to Improve Ability to Work and Play with One Phone
6. MoDaCo: The HTC Kaiser 6.1 / Performance update is here!
7. Register & Download @ HTC e-club
8. HTC Class Action: Description of the Video performance issues