Today at Embedded Technology 2007, Microsoft Corp. announced the release of its Windows Embedded CE 6.0 R2 offering, designed for developers and device-makers wanting to quickly build smart, connected, hard real-time commercial and consumer electronics devices. With new features, including the Web Services on Devices API, voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) telephony capabilities and thin-client technology enhancements, Windows Embedded CE 6.0 R2 enables devices to seamlessly connect to computers running Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 as well as other devices. In conjunction with this announcement, Microsoft also announced the launch of its community-focused initiative, code-named “SPARK,” a joint offering between Microsoft and select hardware vendors. The program is designed to bring the benefits of embedded development on Windows Embedded CE 6.0 and Visual Studio 2005 to hobbyist developers and the academic community.

Windows Embedded CE 6.0 R2 is an important building block for smart, connected, service-oriented devices, delivering new features, updates and enhancements that focus on five main areas:

• Web Services on Devices. Windows Embedded CE 6.0 R2 provides the full Web Services on Devices API that is available on Windows Vista. Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) can provide richer experiences and product differentiation when their devices connect virtually to a Windows Vista-based PC over the network and yet behave as if they were connected directly.
• New VoIP video telephony capabilities. These enable device-makers to quickly and easily add exciting device scenarios such as VoIP, video and three-way audio to existing CE 6.0 designs.
• Internet Explorer enhancements and Windows Media Player OCX 7 support. The release delivers significantly faster rendering of pages and Web sites, and enhanced on-device sound with new support for rich text editing and the new ActiveX Control.
• New pluggable font engine. With new support for pluggable font engine technology, Windows Embedded CE 6.0 R2 provides OEMs with a greater choice of third-party font engines to use as they develop devices with even smaller footprints.
• Latest thin-client technology components with auto-detection capabilities. These help thin clients seamlessly connect to the latest version and key features of Windows Server 2008.