The iPhone has had no issues working with Windows-based PCs since the very beginning. iTunes for Windows was released long before Apple's first smartphone, so Windows users were able to connect to Apple's iPhone right away. No one ever really considered that the iPhone would be Mac-only.

But will Windows Phone 7 be PC-only? Microsoft obviously has Apple as their enemy, and in the mobile division, Apple is actually on top in terms of market share. It's not often that Microsoft has the play the role of the underdog, but even though the global Mac market share is just under 10%, the company obviously sees that segment as an important one.


It just wouldn't be right for the iPhone to support Windows while Windows Phone 7 didn't support OS X, so now Microsoft has made an official (but brief) statement confirming that eventually WP7 will support Macs. Here's the statement:

"Later in 2010 Microsoft will make a public beta available of a tool that allows Windows Phone 7 to sync select content with Mac computers."

That's still not as good as the iPhone having out-of-the-box support for Windows, but it's a nice gesture. Of course, it's doubtful that too many Mac users will select WP7 over iOS, but at least the option will be here eventually. It will be interesting to see what software will be used to sync and if any limits will be in place, but at least these two giant, bitter enemies are working together enough to help spread compatibility to the consumer.