Microsoft has released an updated application that provides tighter integration between Windows Live services and the company's mobile platform.

Windows Live for Windows Mobile 10 offers a variety of services for Microsoft-powered handsets like the Touch Pro and the Samsung Omnia. On the e-mail side, it provides more robust connectivity with Microsoft's Web-based e-mail by bringing full push and pull capabilities. This means Hotmail users can get their messages on the go quickly and nearly in real time.

Users also will be able get mobile access to Windows Live Messenger, Windows Live Contacts, Live search, and Live Spaces. The application is available for free from Microsoft's Web site, and it will work for standard and touch-screen Windows Mobile devices.

The move shows the increasing importance of mobile applications in the smartphone field. While customers have been able to buy apps from Handango for years, mobile apps really came to the forefront with Apple's App Store for the iPhone and iPod Touch. This over-the-air store has been a massive hit with developers and end users, and consumers have downloaded more than 800 million apps in less than a year.

Apple's rivals have taken notice, and Google, Research In Motion, and Microsoft have plans for app stores for their mobile platforms. Windows Mobile has had a dedicated group of developers who have created more than 20,000 apps so far, and most of these should wind up in the upcoming Windows Market for Mobile. Microsoft also will enable users to pay with a credit card or through their cellular carriers, which could give it a leg up on Apple because users have to be tied to an iTunes account to buy iPhone apps.

InformationWeek has published an in-depth report on Windows 7. Download the report here (registration required).