23
Feb
2010
Microsoft’s New Battle Plan
The Mobile World Congress came with a flood of brand new mobile devices, apps, gadgets and even new mobile platforms. Samsung’s Wave phone debut the new Bada OS for the Korean developer and while that was amazing, one cannot deny that Microsoft stole most of the spot light with their presentation of the new Windows Phone 7 series.
If you are wondering why there is so much excitement over a mobile platform that is not due until later this October, then you probably missed the part where they showed the user interface.
On paper, it sounds pretty basic. Large pages that go beyond the range of a phone display will be used as the main interface. The touch screen will allow users to pan around to get to the specific information needed and the bleeding effect is both stylish to look at and telling of the fact that there is always more to see.
Each major page delivers one specific phone feature –people, music and videos, pictures, games, marketplace and office. At present most of the pages still have missing features. Take office for example; so far only OneNote and SharePoint is accessible. “Games” only has Xbox Live Games and no actual games.
When shown in an actual working demonstration however, everything falls into place. Not to mention that they also added in Zune for media and Bing services as well.
Microsoft has been focusing not only on delivering a user experience that is unique, but also a platform that will attract developers to invest time and effort in the platform. There are thousands of apps out there, but to actually have applications that are well made and can deliver “immersive experiences” would be a key factor to the success of WP7.
Read more about Windows Phone 7 at Tech Radar.
18
Feb
2010
Windows Phone 7 Brings Absolute Change
Change is a great thing when you have a platform that never seemed to work right. And so, Windows Mobile changed.
Steve Ballmer and his troops have been at the front lines of the Mobile World Congress as they showcased the new Windows Phone 7 series platform. Yep, you heard that right. The new system comes with a new name. Phone 7 replaces Mobile 7. Despite Windows Mobile 7 being a lot more catchy, the new name designates the vast change in pace.
This strong symbolism comes from strong will and intent. It is clear from looking at the new Windows Phone user interface that the developers have worked hard to create a mobile phone experience that changes the way we view and use mobile phones.
To quote the presenters, “the phone is not a PC”.
It’s a great mantra that has allowed MS to reinvent the way we handle and open data. The new page hubs layout makes things so much easier to find and customize. Speaking of customization, the new tiles system will be replacing widgets and will allow you to assign almost any form of content.
Office was also shown in the demonstration, though only OneNote, SharePoint and Mobile Outlook are confirmed to be present. It is expected that when the full version comes out, Office will be with complete systems.
Zune is confirmed to be present. While Zune is not yet locally available in the UK, it is impressive in the way it handles music. It certainly makes tagging and sorting so much easier.
Xbox Live Games is also new. Too bad there are no game demos so it is still anyone’s guess if exclusive XBL titles will make it to the mobile form.
Get the full scoop on the Windows Phone 7 series at the Telegraph UK.
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