Tag Archives: wp7

Editorial: Windows Phone 8 looks good, but can it uproot those entrenched in other ecosystems?

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Editorial Windows Phone 8 looks good, but can it uproot those entrenched in other ecosystems

At the tail end of Microsoft's marathon Windows Phone Summit keynote, the company's own Kevin Gallo said the following: "Everyone in the Windows ecosystem benefits." He was waxing poetic about the myriad new features coming to the outfit's latest and greatest mobile operating system, and nothing about his quote was incorrect. Developers will adore the shared codebase. Users will adore the new additions to the software framework. Carriers probably won't shun the opportunity to push yet another platform this holiday season. But the one word in there that sticks out most to me is this: "Windows."

I've been wrestling with the ecosystem issue for some time, but the gravity of it has never been so evident. Starting in 2008, one could argue that it stopped being purely about hardware. Purely about design. Purely about software. Purely about partnerships. Particularly when it came to smartphones. Slate-style handsets were en vogue years ago, with design changing extremely little and software becoming ever more of a factor. But it wasn't just software in the simplest sense -- it was how the software was interconnected to every other piece of the digital ecosystem. Phones were no longer standalone devices; they were simply the most convenient entry into a rabbit hole that Microsoft's going to have a tough time digging people out of. Allow me to explain.

Continue reading Editorial: Windows Phone 8 looks good, but can it uproot those entrenched in other ecosystems?

Editorial: Windows Phone 8 looks good, but can it uproot those entrenched in other ecosystems? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 21 Jun 2012 12:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Windows Phone Marketplace has 100,000 published apps, counts Words with Friends and Draw Something among ’em

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Windows Phone Marketplace now has 100,000 published apps, counts Words with Friends and Draw Something among 'em

It's not quite App Store numbers, but the Windows Phone Marketplace has finally managed to break the six-digit published apps barrier (making good on the promise of all those app submissions) as Microsoft just announced that its mobile users now have over 100,000 apps to choose from. And, while it may not be as big a deal as multi-core proccessor support, a new Start screen, or turn-by-turn navigation, Microsoft just told of two more apps that'll be popping up in the Marketplace soon. That's right, a duo of Zynga's most popular titles, Words with Friends and Draw Something, are coming to Windows Phone. Congratulations, all you Microsoft mobile aficionados, your time-wasting can now reach levels previously seen only by your iOS and Android-toting friends.

Windows Phone Marketplace has 100,000 published apps, counts Words with Friends and Draw Something among 'em originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Jun 2012 14:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Windows Phone 8 updates coming over the air, early access to ‘registered enthusiasts,’ 18 month support program announced

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Windows Phone 8 updates coming over the air, early access to 'registered enthusiasts,' 18 month support program announced

Tired of plugging your Lumia 900 into your PC or Mac in order to apply software updates? Tough luck -- you'll still be doing it while future buyers snack on Windows Phone 8. Harshness aside, Microsoft made clear at today's Windows Phone Summit that all WP8 updates will be delivered over the air, with an available program to give "registered enthusiasts" early access prior to broad consumer pushes. The real kicker, however, is this line: "Devices are supported with updates for at least 18 months." For those keeping count, the Lumia 900 shipped here in the US on April 8th. Two months later, it's already confirmed that the flagship WP7 handset in America won't get Windows Phone 8. We'd also like to take this opportunity to remind you just how poorly an identical promise from Google went over in May of 2011. You may remember Andy Rubin confessing that an 18 month Android update program was being put into place at Google I/O 2011, and here we are -- halfway through 2012 -- and we've still heard zero details on how that's being policed. Pardon our skepticism, but we'll need to see it to believe it.

To check out the latest updates from Microsoft's Windows Phone event, visit our liveblog!

Windows Phone 8 updates coming over the air, early access to 'registered enthusiasts,' 18 month support program announced originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Jun 2012 14:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nokia to bring range of new and updated apps to existing Lumia lineup

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Nokia to bring range of new and updated apps to existing Lumia lineup

That Nokia would be joining Microsoft on this day of Windows Phone 8 revelations is no surprise -- the companies long ago inked their blood pact on the back of Mango. Now, at today's summit in San Francisco, Espoo's Kevin Shields just announced a slew of new and updated apps to currently available Lumia handsets starting next week. Spreading the love to Mango and above, existing users will be treated to a new DLNA app dubbed PlayTo that allows for video, music and photo sharing wirelessly, Nokia Counter to monitor and manage data usage, My Commute which utilizes Drive to compute travel time and arrange routing and a 3.0 update to Nokia Music.

And, given that this is the company behind PureView, current Lumia devices running Windows Phone will receive an imaging facelift of sorts, augmenting the baked-in optics via Camera Extras. This suite of apps will effectively upgrade the core photo-taking experience with the addition of a self-timer, action shots, panorama and a Smart Group Shot setting (likely built upon Scalado software). So, while your eagerness to adopt that cyan Lumia 900 may not pay off with an upgrade to WP 8, at the very least Nokia is adopting a policy of no Lumia user left (that far) behind.

To check out the latest updates from Microsoft's Windows Phone event, visit our liveblog!

Nokia to bring range of new and updated apps to existing Lumia lineup originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Jun 2012 13:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft confirms no upgrade path to Windows Phone 8, unveils 7.8 for legacy devices

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Microsoft unveils Windows Phone 7.8 for legacy devices

The debate can now be laid to rest: devices currently running on Windows Phone 7.5 will not be on the receiving end of the long-awaited Apollo update (aka Windows Phone 8). But that doesn't mean those smartphones are at the end of the line. It's long been speculated that the reason Microsoft would want to restrict WP8 to new phones is primarily due to improvements in hardware support and the change in platform architecture, and this conjecture appears to be right on the money. After all, how can single-core devices with WVGA screens take advantage of multi-core and additional resolution support? That part makes sense, but that leaves the software side.

So here's the plan to ensure current Windows Phone users stay happy: a few software benefits will be included in WP8, and a hearty helping of these killer features (such as the new Start screen) will be available to legacy devices in the form of Windows Phone 7.8. There'll be support for three tile sizes, with the smallest being fingertip size (a quarter of the standard square). The update will be delivered directly to users, sidestepping carriers, and can be done over WiFi.

Update: While Microsoft was keen to announce that 7.x apps will run on Windows Phone 8, ZDNet has just confirmed, via a statement from Redmond, that apps built for the new platform won't be backwards compatible:

"New applications compiled specifically for Windows Phone 8 will not be made available for Windows Phone 7.x devices."

To check out the latest updates from Microsoft's Windows Phone event, visit our liveblog!

Microsoft confirms no upgrade path to Windows Phone 8, unveils 7.8 for legacy devices originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Jun 2012 12:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Windows Phone 8 introduces new Start screen

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Yes, Windows Phone 8 is coming later this year, and it introduces some important changes to the user interface. The most noticeable is probably the new Start screen, which offers more customization and makes more efficient use of its real estate. As a user, you'll be able to choose any tile and tweak its appearance to suit your sensibilities. Sizing can be configured with a resize arrow while in customization mode and offers the option of small, medium or double-wide tiles that span the entire width of the display. All current applications will be automatically designed for small and medium versions by default and devs will be able to dive in to add support for the larger options should they feel the need to do so -- something that until today was reserved for Microsoft and its partners / carriers. What's that? You want more colors? Yeah, you'll get those too.

Gallery: Windows Phone 8 Start screen

To check out the latest updates from Microsoft's Windows Phone event, visit our liveblog!

Windows Phone 8 introduces new Start screen originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Jun 2012 12:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Windows Phone 8 to support multi-core CPUs, HD resolutions, SD cards and NFC

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STUB Windows Phone 8 to support multicore CPUs, HD resolutions

Microsoft is on stage at the Windows Phone Developer Summit offering us a bite of what's to come in Windows Phone 8, and one of the tastiest morsels may just be the noticeably more diverse hardware it will support. The new platform won't just support dual-core processors -- it will support as many as 64 cores, should such massively parallel chips come to exist in the platform's lifetime. Also gone is that long-criticized 800 x 480 display resolution ceiling: if phone builders like, they can either opt for the increasingly common 1280 x 720 or a rarer 1280 x 768. A few subtler feature parities are coming with the upgrade, such as NFC for tags and payments as well as a long, long requested support for SD cards beyond the crude initial expansion. All told, Microsoft just brought Windows Phone right up to hardware parity with its biggest rivals, and possibly a bit beyond.

To check out the latest updates from Microsoft's Windows Phone event, visit our liveblog!

Gallery: Windows Phone 8 Hardware

Windows Phone 8 to support multi-core CPUs, HD resolutions, SD cards and NFC originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Jun 2012 12:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Live from Microsoft’s ‘sneak peek’ at Windows Phone!

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Live from Microsoft's 'sneak peek' at Windows Phone!

Can the days of Apollo's reign finally be upon us? Microsoft's Joe Belfiore -- along with a select entourage of other speakers -- will soon take the stage to show us a sneak peek at Windows Phone, and we're hoping it's everything dreams are made of and more. Join us as we bring the news straight to you as it happens!

June 20, 2012 12:00 PM EDT

Live from Microsoft's 'sneak peek' at Windows Phone! originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Jun 2012 12:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft offers a sneak peek at Windows Phone, we’ll be liveblogging at 12pm ET!

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Microsoft offers a sneak peek at Windows Phone, we'll be liveblogging at 12pm ET!

Microsoft is definitely having a field day week, sandwiched right in between WWDC and Google I/O. Tomorrow morning the giant's offered us a sneak peek at Windows Phone, and that's leaving us plenty of food for thought to chew on. Will it be this Apollo we've heard all about? We're going to be at tomorrow morning's keynote, bringing you all of the updates as the news flows out of Joe Belfiore & Co. Join us then -- the fun begins at noon!

June 20, 2012 12:00 PM EDT

Microsoft offers a sneak peek at Windows Phone, we'll be liveblogging at 12pm ET! originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Jun 2012 21:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nokia ‘sharpens strategy’ by dropping three executives, laying off 10,000 and dumping Vertu

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Nokia is still trying to turn things around after a slew of losses, and has made some tough decisions about how to move forward by announcing it will reduce staff by up to 10,000 people before the end of 2013. That's all part of a plan to close factories in Finland, Germany and Canada. as well as refocusing its marketing efforts, streamlining support staff and reducing "non-core" assets. Also on the outs are three executives including chief marketing officer Jerri Devard, executive VP of mobile phones Mary McDowell and executive VP of markets Niklas Savander who will step down from the company's Leadership Team effective June 30th. Replacing them July 1st are executive VP of mobile phones Timo Toikkanen, executive VP of sales and marketing Chris Weber and senior VP of communications Susan Sheehan.

Additionally, it has sold the luxury brand Vertu to private equity group EQT VI in a deal that is expected to close during the second half of the year leaving just 10 percent of it in Nokia's hands. That's not the end of the bad news either, as Nokia will take a charge of 1 billion Euros ($1.3 billion) by the end of 2013 as a result of the restructuring and its efforts to return to profitability. Investments going forward including buying imaging company Scalado, extending its mapping technology to "multiple industries" and pushing more Series 40 and Series 30 devices. Check the press releases after the break for all the numbers and details currently available before it reports Q2 earnings July 19th, and we also may be able to glean more info from a call scheduled for 8AM ET.

Continue reading Nokia 'sharpens strategy' by dropping three executives, laying off 10,000 and dumping Vertu

Nokia 'sharpens strategy' by dropping three executives, laying off 10,000 and dumping Vertu originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 14 Jun 2012 02:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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