iPhone OS 4 versus Windows Phone 7: the tale of the tape

So now that Apple's finally addressed (well, sort of addressed) the 800-pound gorilla known as multitasking, it's time to take a good, hard look at how iPhone OS 4 stacks up against Redmond's completely redesigned mobile monster that's destined to hit handsets toward the end of the year. Though the two companies have taken vastly different paths to get to where they are with their mobile strategies today, there are some striking similarities between the platforms; take that multitasking we already mentioned, for example -- both iPhone OS and Windows Phone are looking to keep processor and battery utilization to a minimum by putting the emphasis on managed services for background apps rather than just letting them run roughshod over your fragile hardware. Of course, there are some striking differences, too -- so let's have a look, shall we?

iPhone OS 4

iPhone OS 3.1.3

Windows Phone 7

Windows Mobile 6.5.3

Kernel Type	OS X	OS X	Windows CE 6	Windows CE 5
Platform Adaptability	Good	Good	Good	Excellent
Platform Age	Adolescent	Adolescent	Young	Mature
First-party Enterprise Support	Exchange	Exchange	Exchange	Exchange
Wireless Tech	GSM, WiFi	GSM, WiFi	GSM, CDMA, WiFi	GSM, CDMA, WiFi
Screen Gestures	Yes	Yes	Yes	Limited
Screen Tech	Capacitive	Capacitive	Capacitive	Capacitive / Resistive
Multitouch	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
UI skinning	Limited	No	No	Yes
Input methods	Virtual / external keyboards	Virtual keyboard only	Virtual / physical keyboards	Virtual / physical keyboards, T9 / triple tap, character recognition
Notification style	Modal pop-up, icon badge	Modal pop-up, icon badge	Unobtrusive banner / pop-up	Modal pop-up
Contact integration / management	Exchange ActiveSync, Mac OS Address Book, Google Sync	Exchange ActiveSync, Mac OS Address Book, Google Sync	Exchange ActiveSync, Google Sync	Exchange ActiveSync, Google Sync, Domino, BlackBerry
Multitasking	Limited / managed	No	Limited / managed	Yes
Copy / paste	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
Media support / ecosystem	iTunes	iTunes	Zune	None
Global search	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
Firmware updates	Tethered	Tethered	Tethered, OTA	Tethered, limited OTA
Browser Engine	WebKit	WebKit	Trident (IE)	Trident (IE)
Tethering	Yes (varies by carrier)	Yes (varies by carrier)	Unknown	Yes
Stereo Blutooth	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
SDK Availability / Support	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Official App Store	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
App Availability	High	High	Low (unreleased)	Medium
Native Applications	Yes	Yes	No	Yes
Unsigned Applications	No	No	No	Yes
On-Device App Management	Excellent	Good (no folders)	Good (no folders)	Good

All credits and information was found on engadget.com