Smartphones with Windows Mobile 6.5 will be available across the world from October 6, Microsoft has announced.
The system has a new look conforming with competitors like Apple's iPhone and Research in Motion's Blackberry.
A redesigned Internet Explorer Mobile browser and a "wide variety" of applications are also to be included in the "Windows 6.5 Phones", Microsoft said in a statement.
A free service called My Phone has also been developed by the Washington-based firm, with which subscribers can synchronise text messages, contacts and photographs so they can be easily edited or transferred to a new phone.
Microsoft also said that carriers and mobile phone makers across the world are planning to offer smartphones with the new operating system.
The firm appears to be trying to attract more consumers with the latest Windows Mobile 6.5 while simultaneously maintaining its attractiveness to lovers of corporate technology who like the way it works with company email servers.
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