Where Is Microsoft’s Smartphone? Everywhere, Says Redmond

By Dan Frommer

The smartphone wars are set for this holiday season: Apple’s (AAPL) iPhone 3G versus new BlackBerry gadgets from Research In Motion (RIMM), and now Google’s ‘G1′ Android GPhone. Oh — and dozens of gadgets running Microsoft’s Windows Mobile.

Unlike Apple or RIM, which design both their phones and operating system, Microsoft (MSFT) has been taking a different approach for several years — focusing on the OS and letting partners figure out what the gadget will do and where it’ll sell. This is sort

Despite having its own gadget design teams — which make the Zune and Xbox — Microsoft has “no plans to build our own phone,” says Scott Rockfeld, group product manager for Windows Mobile. “Right now we’re happy to share the limelight,” he adds.

Hard to argue with that: While Apple might sell 10-12 million phones this year, Microsoft’s partners shipped 18 million in fiscal 2008, up two thirds from the year before, when they sold 11 million. That includes some 56 gadget manufacturers and 100 operators in more than 100 countries.  More