windows mobile

Bing disabled on non-US Windows Mobile 6.5

December 7, 2010 | By l3v5y

Microsoft has removed support for its Bing client on Windows Mobile 6.5 users outside the United States.

The updated Bing client, released last month, has only been made available to US users, with support withdrawn from earlier versions. While Bing can still be accessed through m.bing.com, Windows Mobile 6.5 users outside the United States will be unable to use the app, which includes a new turn-by-turn navigation feature.

Thanks to Ryan Smith for the tip.

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What Device Are You Getting Tomorrow?

November 8, 2010 | By WenWP

What device will you be getting tomorrow? In Europe and much of the world, Windows Phone 7 has been out and everyone has had their go at it. Tomorrow the United States and Canada gets a try at the next big thing, and I am personally myself a new HD7. I tell you this because I would like to know what device you are getting come launch day tomorrow.

The T-mobile HD7 seems to be the most anticipated by American’s, and with deals coming from not just T-mobile but Amazon, getting this device should not be too hard. I am getting my device from T-mobile without a contract for $499.99 which means $539.97 with tax included (I should know, I just bought a G2 two weeks ago). Amazon will be pricing this new device at $169.99 with a new contract for T-mobile.

Regardless, please comment below and tell us your device choice and maybe we have something in common.

Image/Amazon info via: W7P

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Windows Mobile hits 3% market share, Windows Phone 7 expected to do better

November 1, 2010 | By Surur

r2010111 Canalys have released their Q3 2010 smartphone market share numbers, and the latest numbers see Windows Phone 7 market share hitting what is likely to be rock bottom for a Microsoft mobile OS, 3%.

For the 80 million smartphones shipped, that would account for 2.4 million handsets sold, down 600,000 from Q2 2010, when the OS held 5% of the market.

Fortunately for Microsoft Microsoft has already started shipments of their new OS, with early reports indicating a great reception.

Canalys agrees, writing:

Devices running Microsoft’s OS accounted for just 3% of worldwide smart phone shipments in Q3 2010, though with the launch of Windows Phone 7 devices, the outlook for the fourth quarter and beyond is significantly improved.

"Windows Phone 7 is streets ahead of earlier iterations and provides a vastly improved user experience that will pleasantly surprise many people when they come to use it. The integration of Microsoft service assets, such as Xbox Live, Bing, Zune and Office, greatly strengthens the proposition and we are confident that the initial array of products will perform well," said Chris Jones. "But the big challenge will be for handset vendors to differentiate their devices sufficiently given the restrictions Microsoft has placed on customizing the user interface, and its relatively demanding minimum hardware requirements, which will confine devices to the higher end of the market. The market is also awaiting the platform’s availability in non-roman languages to support its expansion into important emerging markets. Failure to deliver this soon will restrict the volume opportunity."

Of particular interest in the numbers is how rapidly Android has moved to replace the iPhone, growing 1,309% YoY from 1.4 million units a year ago to 20 million units in Q3 2010 , now dwarfing the market share of Apple’s operating system in USA (43.6% vs 26.2%), despite the release of the iPhone 4 falling in the same period. While in some ways this may make Google look unassailable, it is actually much more an indication that the market remains volatile. Microsoft of course hopes some of that mojo, including multiple carriers, networks and manufacturers, rubs off on its Windows phone 7 handsets. Apple of course, with only one phone on the market, should be worried.

Read the full report of Canalys here.

Do our readers agree that, like Windows Mobile, the iPhone is heading towards becoming yesterday’s news? Let us know below.

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How Windows Phone 7 is better than Windows Mobile

October 21, 2010 | By Surur

Happiness is Windows Phone 7

Now that Windows phone 7 handsets have hit the market, many Windows Mobile users of old may be wondering if its worth the upgrade.

Many articles concentrate on what Windows Mobile users lose when going to Windows Phone 7 – cut and paste, 30,000 apps, USB Mass storage, tethering, multi-tasking and a whole lot of freedom.

While the list is long, we don’t often see a list talking about what an upgrading user gains. Lets try and make a change in this article:

1) A polished operating system – try as HTC might, Windows Mobile never did deliver a polished and consistent user experience. With Windows Phone 7, it is all about the user experience.

2) An operating system 3rd party developers care about. Windows Mobile did not have an official Twitter or Ebay or Tesco shopping app. While Windows Mobile has a huge legacy of apps, apps supporting modern services are severely lacking.

3) An integrated music and entertainment service – this is something Windows Mobile never had. Good bye to the awful Windows Media Player.

4) A predictable and stable platform which means a Samsung handset is as good as a HTC handset, meaning real freedom of choice.

5) An operating system Microsoft is fully behind and intends to upgrade – lets face it, for the last 4 years, since waiting for Photon and Windows Phone 7, this has not been Windows Mobile 6.5, which was severely neglected.

As a Windows Mobile user I know I have been waiting for much of the above for many years, and much of the freedom I enjoyed under Windows Mobile was to patch the holes in the user experience, now not necessary on Windows Phone 7.

Of course many critics may say you could get much of this from going iPhone, but I believe, like myself, many of our readers would rather slit an artery, and will leave it at that.

Is there any more advantages of going Windows phone 7? Let us know below.

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Samsung Omnia 7 knocks LG Optimus 7’s socks off in video comparison test

October 20, 2010 | By Surur

I have actually been considering the LG Optimus 7 over the Samsung Omnia 7 due to the great software features of the LG device (panorama, DLNA support etc).

This comparison of video quality for the two handsets, published by DieKoffieMan on Youtube, has however completely changed my mind.

The Optimus 7 appears to handle light much more poorly, and suffer extreme compression artefacts and appear to add red hues to the video.

What do our readers think of the picture quality on the comparison? Let us know below.

After the break, another video by DieKoffieMan of the camera settings, which appear pretty extensive on the LG, apparently to no good effect.

Edit: After the break also Jonathan has sent us a video, available on YouTube, taken in 720p on the LG Optimus 7. While he holds it up as a better example of the camera in action, it feels to be that the video remains overcompressed, and the framerate appears low also.

Do our readers agree? Let us know below.

Continue reading →

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Illium eWallet coming to Windows phone 7

October 13, 2010 | By Surur

We have posted recently that Phatware has not decided to support Windows Phone 7 yet, which is of course very disappointing for users who have their data locked into their app.

eWallet users will therefore be ecstatic to hear that Illium is much more convinced of the worth of Microsoft’s new platform and the need to carry on supporting their users into the future.

They write on their blog:

With the official Windows Phone 7 announcement going out yesterday, I wanted to let you know that we’re working on a version of eWallet for Microsoft’s new mobile OS! eWallet for Windows Phone 7 is designed to perfectly fit the look and feel of the new OS. It takes the best features of eWallet and adapts them to Window Phone 7’s unique interface.

If you’ve gotten your hands on a Windows Phone 7 device, you know that Microsoft has created a really compelling OS. I know a lot of people had their doubts, but I have to say that Microsoft pulled out all the stops on this. The end results are devices that are really exciting to design software for.

Unfortunately, I can’t offer much more at this stage – you’ll have to wait for the official release for that – but I did include a screenshot below to give you a little hint of what we’re working on!

Keep an eye on their blog here for the latest developments, and of course on our site to see if your favourite Windows Mobile app is making the jump to Windows Phone 7.

Via MobilityDigest and JAMM

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Windows Mobile Fable players–time to rebel against Microsoft and boycott Fable III

October 6, 2010 | By Surur

nokingmakerforwm

Fable III:Kingmaker does work on Windows Mobile! Its not often we advocate boycotting a Microsoft product, but it is also not often that we are completely outraged at the behaviour of the company.

The recent history of their Fable III:Kingmaker mobile game however has my blood boiling somewhat. It was already known that Microsoft did not announce Windows Mobile support when they announced the game, despite supporting Android, Symbian and the iPhone. This by itself was disappointing.

A video then turned up showing the software in action, clearly working on a Windows phone. The software looks pretty complete, and does not look like a mock-up at all.

Now Rick Dodkins has been able to confirm via twitter with Microsoft’s European Social Media Editor that, despite appearing to have a fully working Windows Mobile version of the software, they will not be releasing it, keeping it for a Windows Phone 7 exclusive.

Now we have seen this behaviour numerous times in the phone world, with simple software features like graphics acceleration being kept for a next generation of devices. This does not however mean we have to like it, and the best way a consumer shows they do not like the behaviour of a company is not to buy their product.

We therefore suggest any current Windows Mobile users who were thinking of buying Fable III to think again, and let Microsoft know why via their Facebook page here and why not join the latest fashion – email Steve Ballmer directly at [email protected] .

Thanks Rick for the tip.

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Windows Mobile Fable players–time to rebel against Microsoft and boycott Fable III

October 6, 2010 | By Surur

nokingmakerforwm

Fable III:Kingmaker does work on Windows Mobile! Its not often we advocate boycotting a Microsoft product, but it is also not often that we are completely outraged at the behaviour of the company.

The recent history of their Fable III:Kingmaker mobile game however has my blood boiling somewhat. It was already known that Microsoft did not announce Windows Mobile support when they announced the game, despite supporting Android, Symbian and the iPhone. This by itself was disappointing.

A video then turned up showing the software in action, clearly working on a Windows phone. The software looks pretty complete, and does not look like a mock-up at all.

Now Rick Dodkins has been able to confirm via twitter with Microsoft’s European Social Media Editor that, despite appearing to have a fully working Windows Mobile version of the software, they will not be releasing it, keeping it for a Windows Phone 7 exclusive.

Now we have seen this behaviour numerous times in the phone world, with simple software features like graphics acceleration being kept for a next generation of devices. This does not however mean we have to like it, and the best way a consumer shows they do not like the behaviour of a company is not to buy their product.

We therefore suggest any current Windows Mobile users who were thinking of buying Fable III to think again, and let Microsoft know why via their Facebook page here and why not join the latest fashion – email Steve Ballmer directly at [email protected] .

Thanks Rick for the tip.

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Press shots of the LG Optimus 7 leaked

October 6, 2010 | By Surur

WPSEVEN_LG_E900_BESTBOYS1

Bestboys.de must be sitting on a pretty nice cache of Windows Phone 7 press shots, as they have just released a set for the upcoming LG Optimus 7 . The sleek handset with a 3.8 inch screen as expected looks pretty nice, and will feature LG’s panorama and DLNA software.

See more shots after the break.

Continue reading →

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Forget Pandora–Spotify is here for Windows Mobile, coming to Windows Phone 7

October 4, 2010 | By Surur

mobile_platform_windowsmobile

We have just heard recently that Pandora will not be there at the Windows Phone 7 marketplace launch, but the good news, for Europe at least (where we can not get Pandora in any case) is that Spotify, the popular music streaming app will in fact be available for Windows Phone 7, and in fact has just been released for Windows Mobile 6.x

Spotify writes:

If you’re using a Windows 6.x phone you’re good to go. For the best Spotify experience on Windows Mobile we recommend the following handsets: HTC HD2, HTC Touch Pro 2, Samsung Omnia 2, Sony Ericsson Xperia 1, Sony Ericsson Xperia 2.

First of all, you’ll need to have a Spotify Premium account. If you don’t have already have one you can create an account or upgrade your existing account here.

You can install Spotify either by going to Marketplace on your phone or by going to m.spotify.com in your mobile web browser.

Installing from Marketplace:
Open Marketplace on your phone and search for Spotify. Once you’ve found it, simply press “Install” and Spotify will be installed in your phone.

Installing from m.spotify.com:
Go to m.spotify.com and select to “manually select your version” unless your phone is recognized automatically. Choose your phone model in the list and press “OK”. Follow the instructions on your screen and Spotify for Windows Mobile will be installed.

That’s it. Done.

As usual for other handsets and operating systems Spotify Premium is required, which runs to about £10 per month, but the brand may make it worth while over Zune streaming for example, which is about £1 cheaper.

Fable III: Kingmaker trailer shown working on Windows Mobile

October 4, 2010 | By Surur

We just came across this trailer for the Fable III:Kingmaker game which we had written about earlier, and in the initial press release there had been no indication of Windows Mobile support for what is in the end pretty simple software.

The trailer however shows the app running perfectly fine on an HTC HD Mini, and one wonder why Microsoft has not mentioned anything about the release of the app on the 4th October on Windows Mobile also. If it turns out Microsoft is not releasing the software for its old platform it seems they are not above playing games with its Windows Mobile users to encourage them to upgrade while at the same time refusing to give Windows Phone 7 a competitive advantage by still serving iPhone, Symbian and Android users.

Do our readers agree? Let us know below.

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Ballmer rapped over the knuckles for KIN, tablet failure (and that’s a good thing)

October 1, 2010 | By Surur

The Microsoft CEO has been blamed for the KIN debacle and late delivery of Windows Phone 7.

Many have claimed that employees at Microsoft lacked accountability for underperformance, noting a culture of under-delivery and delay.

It seems on this occasion at least more than the rank and file employees have been punished for what is in the end a failure by management to run a project properly.

Steve Ballmer has been denied the maximum bonus (twice his base salary of $670,000) he was eligible for, despite the company’s great performance in its traditional markets (with record sales of $62.5 billion), with an SEC filing blaming the “unsuccessful launch of the Kin phone, loss of market share in the company’s mobile phone business, and the need for the company to pursue innovations to take advantage of new form factors.”

While the company clearly did not suffer any significant financial injury due to these failures, the share price of the Microsoft has been stagnant or dropping due to lack of confidence by the market in the company’s ability to compete in the future, related specifically to the smartphone and tablet market.

While Steve Ballmer has suffered a cut in his annual salary from $2.010 million to to $1.340 million, with an estimated fortune of $10 billion it is obviously no more than symbolic. Hopefully however it is a further indication that the Microsoft board is putting even greater emphasis on the company innovating, delivering and competing even faster, rather that always arriving to the market 2 years after everyone else.

Read the full Reuters report at news.yahoo.com here.

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Ballmer rapped over the knuckles for KIN, tablet failure (and that’s a good thing)

October 1, 2010 | By Surur

The Microsoft CEO has been blamed for the KIN debacle and late delivery of Windows Phone 7.

Many have claimed that employees at Microsoft lacked accountability for underperformance, noting a culture of under-delivery and delay.

It seems on this occasion at least more than the rank and file employees have been punished for what is in the end a failure by management to run a project properly.

Steve Ballmer has been denied the maximum bonus (twice his base salary of $670,000) he was eligible for, despite the company’s great performance in its traditional markets (with record sales of $62.5 billion), with an SEC filing blaming the “unsuccessful launch of the Kin phone, loss of market share in the company’s mobile phone business, and the need for the company to pursue innovations to take advantage of new form factors.”

While the company clearly did not suffer any significant financial injury due to these failures, the share price of the Microsoft has been stagnant or dropping due to lack of confidence by the market in the company’s ability to compete in the future, related specifically to the smartphone and tablet market.

While Steve Ballmer has suffered a cut in his annual salary from $2.010 million to to $1.340 million, with an estimated fortune of $10 billion it is obviously no more than symbolic. Hopefully however it is a further indication that the Microsoft board is putting even greater emphasis on the company innovating, delivering and competing even faster, rather that always arriving to the market 2 years after everyone else.

Read the full Reuters report at news.yahoo.com here.

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