What are the major differences between Windows CE and Windows Mobile for a programmer?

Question

What are the major differences between Windows CE and Windows Mobile for a programmer? I'd love to find a feature table, but haven't been able to find one on the Microsoft web site.

I'm starting to work on a project involving industrial handheld terminals. I'm early into the design phase and need to find a comparison of Windows CE and Windows Mobile.

Many of the people I'll be talking to jump on the first option that sounds "good enough". I want my first suggestion to be the best based on their needs.

We're talking heavy duty hardware with a heavy duty price. I've got to get the programming questions out of the way early.

We're currently a MFC6 and .Net 2.0 shop

Answer 1

No big difference between them, you can Target Windows CE from VS and your application will work on both Windows CE and Windows Mobile. because you are working under Compact Framework so that's logical, for me as a developer working on PDAs, just I find deference when I tried to make full screen program.

Answer 2

Windows CE developers normally develop in C and use eMbedded Visual Tools, different of the Windows Mobile developers that can use Visual Studio and develop in .Net languages, because Windows Mobile haves the .Net compact framework.

Answer 3

Windows CE and Windows Mobile are two different entities. In many cases they differ in a very big way!

In your case, being the OEM and having one HW to target, you should pick Windows CE. With Windows CE you pick what components to include in the image and most important difference is the licensing scheme. Windows Mobile is more expensive and requires to pass a certification program with high costs. With Windows CE you can keep expensive components that you don't use out of the image and thus reduce cost.

In any case - Windows CE and Windows Mobile are not the same thing. And Windows Mobile is not

Windows CE with the phone stuff added

Windows Mobile is based on Windows CE 5, but is different.