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A lot of people found our video about Planning a Trip with Bing Maps and Windows Mobile to be very helpful. Organizing and saving all the locations you'd like to visit while traveling and then being able to access those saved locations from your phone is a fantastic feature. Well, here's a video about how you can do it with Google Maps and Windows Mobile.

We'll also show you how easy it is to transfer your saved collections between Bing Maps and Google Maps.

If you've wanted to roll Brandon style with custom ROMs, unlocking new features, and exploring a whole new world behind Windows Mobile 6.5 on a CDMA handset, you can now. Thanks to the good folks over at PPCGeeks, you can now unlock the potential for your CDMA Touch Pro2 on Sprint and Verizon Wireless to load custom ROM images.

Be warned, this is for intermediate users. We are not responsible if you brick your device. Please also check the laws and regulations in your region as modifying a ROM, loading a ROM, or altering your device may violate local laws and the terms of agreement with your carrier.

Since you've been warned and if you want to proceed, you can grab the Hard-SPL tool to load custom ROMs and the SIM unlocker if you need to.

Special thanks to Phil Nickinson from WMExperts for tipping us on this story.

Say you’re planning a trip somewhere. You’re probably going to want to look at a map and save some important locations like your hotel, the airport, places to visit, free WiFi access points, and interesting restaurants. Trying to find and organize all of that information on your phone can be a real chore, so here's how you can use a regular desktop computer to organize your points of interest and then transfer them to your Windows Phone.

Yes, this will work with any Windows Phone if you install Bing Mobile. A similar technique is possible with Google Maps. Stay tuned and we'll show you how.

The upcoming HTC HD2 will have a utility that will allow you to turn your Windows Mobile device into a wireless hotspot. Quite simply, it pulls down cellular data and outputs WiFi, just like the Sprint and Verizon MiFi. This functionality is extremely useful for times when you need WiFi for your laptop or netbook.

There's been a program floating around on XDA for quite some time that allows you to do this on any Windows Mobile device, and in this video we show it working on an HTC Pure.

The program works very well. I was able to connect two laptops simultaneously while getting down speeds of about 1.4mbps through the Pure. Also, the range was quite good. For instructions on how to get it, click on!

1. Download the WiFi Router CAB from XDA
2. Run the CAB, then reboot your device
3. The app will show up in Settings>Connections
4. Run the app, while taking note of the network ID and WEP key

Are there too many icons in your Start menu? Are you looking for a way to better organize these icons? In this tutorial, we show you how to remove icons and add folders so that you can de-clutter your device a bit and make it easier to find the programs that you use most.

For those who are rocking the T-Mobile Touch Pro2, there is some good news as the build of Opera Mobile that comes with the device also has Turbo Mode, which does some server-side rendering to pull up web pages faster.

The trick to enabling Turbo Mode, for those who aren't as paranoid with web security, is to do the following steps, as detailed by WMExperts:

1. Type opera:config in the URL box.
2. Scroll to User Prefs
3. Choose "Turbo Mode" and hit the checkbox to enable it.
4. Scroll down and hit save.

Canadian customers on Telus are also privy to the specialized Opera Mobile 9.5 build with Turbo Mode as well.

(via: WMExperts)

S2U2 is considered the king of screen locking apps for Windows Mobile. One of the perks of using S2U2 over similar apps is that you can customize its graphics. If you haven’t tried a theme other than the one provided by default, now is a good time.

The HTC Hero’s Sense UI has been extremely popular lately, so it’s not surprising to see a new S2U2 theme modeled after it. Although the theme doesn’t change S2U2’s mechanics to unlock in the same manner as the Hero’s screen lock function, it still looks great and definitely resembles Sense UI.

Here’s how to get the S2U2 Hero theme on your device:

- If you haven’t already, update to the latest version of S2U2.
- Download the appropriate PointSense S2U2 files (register for free).
- Backup your “gfx” folder located in “Device\Program Files\S2U2” directory.
- Connect your device via ActiveSync or WM Device Center.
- Unzip previously mentioned PointSense S2U2 files.
- Drag the 12 files located in that folder to “Device\Program Files\S2U2\gfx,” overwrite existing files.
- Soft reset.
- Enjoy!

Note: this is a theme for S2U2. Despite the name of the theme files, you don't need PointUI.

Update: new version of S2U2 Hero theme with more choices located in new thread (thanks, looby!).

Looking for more S2U2 themes? Check out the sleek TouchFLO 3D theme.

The Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1 was, and still is, one of our favorite devices. It packed a highly sensitive screen, a great form factor, and a unique panel interface. While we eagerly await the XPERIA X2, we see how X1 owners are getting creative in customizing their device.

Paul White, in his personal blog, shows us how to add some chrome bling to the back battery cover using some metal polish, sand paper, and elbow grease.

(via: Xperiancer)

Developers making apps for the Windows Marketplace for Mobile will have to be especially conscious to include a variety of icon sizes with their application submissions, so that their app icons look good on a variety of Windows Mobile devices. A new tutorial on the Windows Mobile Blog gives a step-by-step on how to achieve this.

(Thanks for the tip, Martin)

We've been loving WMWiFiRouter, which is a $30 piece of software that creates an ad-hoc wireless network and allows you to tether your computer using your Windows Phone's internet connection. However, word that a new HTC-developed WiFi sharing app will not only make WMWiFiRouter seem expensive, but also obsolete.

The CAB installer is available at XDA-Developers. One note: the app installs but doesn't create a shortcut. You'll have to locate the file using File Explorer or a third party file manager software and create your own shortcut. The app is accessed under: \windows\CMInternetsharing.exe

(via: WMPowerUser)

Unless you’re new to the Windows Mobile community, you already know about the popular screen locking app called S2U2. What some of you may not know is how customizable it has been from the start. If you’ve never had the time to create your own theme or just don’t know how to go about it, a member at XDA-developers has put together an easy to install package to help you transform S2U2 on your device. His custom theme was created with the TouchFLO 3D interface in mind and he’s been maintaining it for every recent S2U2 update.

Quick Tutorial:

- If you haven’t already, update to the latest version of S2U2
- Backup/save your current theme via S2U2 settings
- Unzip tPRO2 theme to device or storage card and load via S2U2 settings

Yes, it’s that simple to change your S2U2 theme, enjoy!

Ever find an interesting site/file that you wanted to view/install later on your mobile device, but felt too lazy to browse to that URL from your phone? Sure, you can fire up your Email client and send it that way, but why go through the hassle?

With Send To: Phone, you can easily send links to your phone from your computer. Just go to their site, fill in the required info and you’ll quickly receive a text message with the link. There’s also a Firefox add-on, which adds a toolbar and context menu item, to help make it even easier.

Try it out by sending this info to yourself or a friend.

Note: visit the developer’s XDA thread for any questions or concerns that you may have about the service

One of the easiest ways to spruce up your device is to change the background of your Home screen or Today screen. The trouble seems to be in finding a good enough selection of such wallpapers.

Well, we found a really good site (thanks to some help from Twitter) that has a massive library of wallpapers (both at desktop sizes and mobile device sizes). It's called InterfaceLIFT. Just choose the appropriate resolution from the drop down menu beneath the image you want. Unfortunately, the site only shows QVGA and WVGA resolutions, but if you have a VGA device (like the Diamond or Touch Pro) and you're good with Photoshop or any other photo manipulation program, you should have no problems cropping a larger image to VGA size.

Unsure exactly how to change your background image? Click on for a step by step!

First, save the wallpaper image to your computer desktop. Then, transfer the file onto your device (by plugging it in, and going to My Computer) and place it into a directory that you'll remember, such as My Documents. Or, if you're using the non-touch version of Windows Mobile, drop it into the \Application Data\Home directory.

For Touchscreen devices (standard Today screen)...
1. Go to Start>Settings>Today
2. Check the item "Use this picture as the background"
3. Browse for the desired image

If you are using TouchFLO 3D, browse to the Settings panel, and select Wallpaper. This will change just the wallpaper on the Home tab. If you want to change the wallpaper on all tabs, check out this article.

For Non-Touchscreen devices...
1. Go to Start>Settings>Display
2. Choose Home Screen
3. Change Background Image

If you are using the Windows Mobile 6.1 sliding panels, just go to the panel at the bottom and toggle over to Background Image.

Thanks for the tip (via Twitter): @omarbadr36, @furryface, @cwhitmore_mdg

The Diamond2 arrived with a new functionality called the zoom bar, which is a touch sensitive slider mechanism that will allow you to zoom in or out of certain applications and in your browser. Given that the buttons on the bottom of the Touch HD are aligned linearly in a horizontal fashion and are touch sensitive, WMPowerUser that the great modders at XDA-Developers have found a way to transform the Touch HD's buttons into a zoom bar to mimic the Diamond2.

According to the post, you can still access the buttons on the Touch HD with the hack. Slide to zoom or long press to activate those touch sensitive buttons. Moreover, WMPowerUser is reporting that the zooming function will work in "Opera Mobile, the photo application, camera application and Pocket Office."

An early beta should be released in the next few days. Keep your eyes out at XDA-Developers to see when the download becomes available if you own a Touch HD.

Recently, we posted How to Pimp Out Mobile Shell 3.0, which gave several ways to tweak and modify Spb's new hottest software release (review) to make it a bit more customized. Well here's another was to customize Shell 3.0 - a registry hack that will allow the useful Task Manager to show up in the spinning Carousel.

Using a registry editor, do this:

1. HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Spb Software Hause 2\Spb Mobile Shell\Now Screen\Layouts\

Add new key -> :TASKMANAGER

2. HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Spb Software Hause 2\Spb Mobile Shell\Now Screen\Layouts\:TASKMANAGER\

String name - (Default), String - TaskManager
String name - TaskManager, String - Normal

3. HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Spb Software Hause 2\Spb Mobile Shell\Now Screen\Panels\

Add new key -> 12

4. HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Spb Software Hause 2\Spb Mobile Shell\Now Screen\Panels\12\

String name - (Default), String - (value not set)
DWORD name - ManageFavs, DWORD Data - 0
String name - Name, String - :TASKMANAGER
String name - Text, String - TaskManager

If the registry hack doesn't work, download the CAB instead and run it. Thanks to XDA-Devs for the discovery!