Change the Default Home Page for IE Mobile on Windows Mobile

This post was originally posted on my personal blog a while back (long before Mobile Jaw came to exist). I’m re-posting / moving it here as my personal blog is about to get a fresh start and I felt that many people could still benefit from this information.

Please Note: The following information applies to Windows Mobile Standard 6.0 devices and older. If you’re device has a touch screen, or is running a newer version of Windows Mobile Standard, then this does not apply to you.

You wouldn’t think this was a hard task. After all, you can do it very easily on the Pocket PC. However, for some reason known only to the developers at Microsoft, it’s not an easy task for Windows Mobile Standard (Smartphone / Non-Touchscreen) based devices. I know that some are you are wondering why anyone would want to change the default home page on IE mobile. To all of you I say "Why not?" and "UNLIMITED DATA".

So, let’s get down to how this is done.  First, you will need a good registry editor.  If you don’t already have one, grab a copy of PHM or even SOTI’s Pocket Controller – then you can edit from the desktop. Browse to the following location HKLM / Software / Microsoft / Internet Explorer / AboutURLs.  In this section you should see a number of entries labelled home_04xx that has a value of file://\windows\default_04xx.htm The trick here is to pick the correct entry.  For me, it’s home_0409, edit this and change the value to whatever you want to use for your home page – http://www.google.com I think the different entries are for different languages.  With a little testing and you should be able to figure out what page your device is loading.

I would be interested to hear what others find as their default home page and what language they are using on the device.  It would help others to figure out what entry they need to edit to get the same results.

That’s all there is to it.  Get going and change the your mobile home page.

About Mike Temporale

Mike Temporale has written 497 posts on Mobile Jaw..

Mike Temporale grew up fascinated by computers since an early age. His first hands on with a computer came when he was 7 years old and a travelling lab of Commodore PET computers made a stop at his school. Hooked on the new world these devices offered, he took any chance possible to get in front of a computer. When Compaq launched the iPaq 3600, he was hooked again. This time on a whole new world of mobile computing. Today, Mike spends his day helping clients deploy and manage their mobile device around the world. From installing custom software, to locking and securing data, and everything in between. He is also the Editor in Chief at Mobile Jaw - a site focused on today's mobile world.

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