Steve Ballmer talks out on Windows Mobile and "Turtle"

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer had his annual get together with Venture Capitalists yesterday in Silicon Valley. Thanks to the magic of Twitter, we are able to pass along some of the exec's thoughts. According to tweets from a VC named pjozefak, Ballmer admitted that Microsoft screwed up with Windows Mobile and that WM7 should already have been launched. Apparently the Redmond based firm sent out the hatchet men because the CEO said that the team was completely revamped. This was confirmed by another Twitter user named beninato who quoted the CEO as saying that, "We've pumped in some new talent," and added, "This will not happen again." Ballmer let it be known that Windows Mobile 7 is second in priority at Microsoft behind only Windows 7.

After the Summit, Ballmer sat down with TechCruch and the topic of a Microsoft cellphone was discussed. As we've previously reported, Sharp is reportedly manufacturing two handsets for Microsoft, code named "Turtle" and "Pure". Ballmer threw some cold water on the idea of a Microsoft branded phone. Saying that RIM and Apple do just fine, he went on to say, "when 1.3 billion phones a year are all smart, the software that's gonna be most popular in those phones is gonna be software that's sold by somebody who doesn't make their own phone." Is that a "No"?

source: TechCrunch via EngadgetMobile