Microsoft launches Windows Phone 7

Microsoft launches Windows Phone 7
Microsoft Corp. has launched its latest attack on rivals in the mobile space with the launch of Windows Phone 7, which will be available in smartphones launching in the U.S. and Europe over the next few weeks. The software giant said it built Windows Phone 7 from the ground up, with a much simpler user interface for consumers.


The main target of WP7 handsets is clearly consumers, with such strong integration with the popular Xbox Live online gaming service and the less-popular Zune music service. It also provides a suite of Office applications that automatically sync with Microsoft's cloud service for business users.



Microsoft's mobile operating systems have been criticized for limited functionality and a lack of available applications. Nokia' Symbian operating system is clearly the market leader, while Apple's iOS has grown with the popularity of the iPhone propelling it. Google's Android software will overtake Apple's OS soon.

"There's a huge amount resting on the launch of Windows Phone 7 for Microsoft, its device and operator partners, and for the ecosystem market in general," said Tony Cripps of technology consultants Ovum. "If it fails to claw back market share lost to iPhone and Android, then Windows Phone 7 may well mark the point at which Microsoft turns its back on smartphones forever."

Seven new handsets with Windows Phone 7 will launch in the UK on October 21, while nine will launch in the U.S. market in November. Handsets will be offered up by established partners such as Samsung, LG and HTC. The question for Microsoft's new OS is whether it can surpass its rivals in terms of usability and functionality.

"On the face of it Windows Phone 7 looks to have positioned Microsoft on the edge of a smartphone renaissance," Cripps said. "Its all-important user experience looks to have brought some genuinely new thinking to a smartphone market in which all operating systems feel somewhat similar in use."

Microsoft will be hoping for another positive response to its new product, following its recent success with Windows 7 for home PCs, the growing popularity of its revamped search engine Bing and the widely positive reviews for early versions of its upcoming Internet Explorer 9 web browser.

Written by: James Delahunty @ 11 Oct 2010 12:43
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  • 35 comments

  • Mez

    Apple has to be sh1tting bricks! This baby has the power of Windoze 7 behind it!

    11.10.2010 13:02 #1

  • baldfrog

    Quote:Google's Android software will overtake Apple's OS soon.
    I would be interested to know where this information was obtained? I am not arguing, It is just that I have never heard this before and It is quite a sweeping statement. A reference to back it up would be nice.

    11.10.2010 13:37 #2

  • SuckRaven

    Is it just me, or is it really aesthetically unsettling that the black border on the right side of the phone is so thick compared with the one on the left? It makes the whole phone look lopsided.

    Anyways, don't care for it personally. Too little too late I suspect from Microsoft.

    SuckRaven

    11.10.2010 14:10 #3

  • Mez

    Originally posted by SuckRaven: Is it just me, or is it really aesthetically unsettling that the black border on the right side of the phone is so thick compared with the one on the left? It makes the whole phone look lopsided.

    Anyways, don't care for it personally. Too little too late I suspect from Microsoft.     You are right on both accounts. M$ has been brain dead since before this century. The mindless giant just keeps lumbering around pissing away money on project like this and the Zune.

    11.10.2010 14:15 #4

  • Mysttic

    Lets save judgment until someone manages to get their hands on the phone and test it out. I not expecting this to be the next best thing in cellular dominance, but we don't know enough to say this will flop off the hop either.

    11.10.2010 15:11 #5

  • biglo30

    I always wondered how different it would be if the iOS actually showed up on other devices besides the iPhone.

    11.10.2010 15:27 #6

  • Mez

    Originally posted by Mysttic: Lets save judgment until someone manages to get their hands on the phone and test it out. I not expecting this to be the next best thing in cellular dominance, but we don't know enough to say this will flop off the hop either. The fun about posting comments in this forum is all you need is an opinion it doesn't have to be correct. I doubt that it will flop anymore than Zune flopped. Zunes are still around. They have a following, just not a big following. I doubt that they well ever recover development costs.

    11.10.2010 15:51 #7

  • mike.m

    WHAT THE HELL?? We only get 2 phones in Canada?? Another example of how we always get screwed over here. The US gets 9, and a whole bunch go to the UK and Europe. We get an LG (one of the worst companies to make phones,tv's,etc). And the only somewhat good phone we have left is the HTC Surround, which has the lowest ram and shortest battery life of all of the WP 7 launch phones. Why not also bring the Omnia 7, and HTC Mozart/Trophy???? ****ING A$$****S

    11.10.2010 18:10 #8

  • ThePastor

    Good lord that phone is ugly!

    11.10.2010 18:38 #9

  • Frogfart

    Will it be launched in the UK/Europe? If it is then the Zune aspect of the phone will be irrelevant as there is no Zune service in UK/Europe.

    11.10.2010 18:40 #10

  • Frogfart

    Its the Ugly Duckling of phones and one day it could grow up to become the Big Bloated Turkey of phones. Its a very ugly phone.

    11.10.2010 18:58 #11

  • KillerBug

    Originally posted by Mez: Originally posted by Mysttic: Lets save judgment until someone manages to get their hands on the phone and test it out. I not expecting this to be the next best thing in cellular dominance, but we don't know enough to say this will flop off the hop either. The fun about posting comments in this forum is all you need is an opinion it doesn't have to be correct. I doubt that it will flop anymore than Zune flopped. Zunes are still around. They have a following, just not a big following. I doubt that they well ever recover development costs. Who said this was the Zune phone? I thought it was the Kin 2! Not only did they make it ugly, but they actually gave up screen space to make it as ugly as it is!

    11.10.2010 23:59 #12

  • DSWarrior

    Well, no one here is judging...we're just expressing our opinions based on M$'s experiences since Windoze XP...Ever since they released it, all their other big bright ideas have failed horribly, except maybe for Windoze 7, which isn't all that great either. The only reason people liked 7 so much is because Vista was such a huge PoS, that when consumers saw how shiny and fast 7 was they thought it was the best OS M$ had made...

    M$ computer OSes are #1 in sales because over 95% of computers come bundled with it. I personally prefer Mac OS X or even Linux (Ubuntu, OpenSUSE, even PuppyLinux) rather than those bloated full-of-crap Windoze installations...So based on what I've seen of them lately: Zune, Vista, Xbox 360 (ring of death), Kin, WinMo6.5 ... I believe that Windoze Phone 7 is another disappointment waiting to happen...Oh yeah, copy/paste comes on the first trimester of next year guys! Have fun typing!

    DS Warrior ! ! !

    12.10.2010 07:24 #13

  • Mez

    Originally posted by DSWarrior: ideas have failed horribly, except maybe for Windoze 7, which isn't all that great either. The only reason people liked 7 so much is because Vista was such a huge PoS

    I don't think many will disagree with you there. Even on AD where opinions are like ass-holes (everyone has one) or is it the posters might be ass-holes wasting time with this rubbish. I find AD therapeutic and am extremely fond of so many of the cleaver ass-holes who entertain me every day.

    Thanks again, all of you!

    12.10.2010 07:49 #14

  • Jemborg

    Ooo Luke 6:42 to you Mez! :P

    Anyway... Almost any of these type of large scale markets usually wind up only supporting a couple of major players after a while. I doubt one of them will be this M$ OS.

    To the person who questioned the Android vs iOS stats before. I would not be surprised myself. Android is cheaper and iPhone have had some f**k ups this year including a "brand" new one with the casing cracking under certain circumstances even though, I know, status counts for a lot.

    Its a lot easier being righteous than right.


    12.10.2010 11:09 #15

  • Mez

    Originally posted by Jemborg: Ooo Luke 6:42 to you Mez! :P
    I forgot to add educate, as well as entertain. Wasn't there an AD article about if you read enough rubbish on the web it is more educating than going to Harvard?

    What the f**k is Luke 6:42???
    It takes one to know one?

    If so, you have me nailed!

    12.10.2010 11:59 #16

  • Jemborg

    Originally posted by Mez: Originally posted by Jemborg: Ooo Luke 6:42 to you Mez! :P
    I forgot to add educate, as well as entertain. Wasn't there an AD article about if you read enough rubbish on the web it is more educating than going to Harvard?

    What the f**k is Luke 6:42???
    It takes one to know one?

    If so, you have me nailed!     Heh.. I was only teasing Mez. Luke 6:24 is the one about the beam in your own eye blah blah. I use it in YouTube comments to Creationists in response to some of their lazy outrageous BS (for a laugh ~ to stir them up).

    Funnily enough, there is some very informative stuff on YouTube... if you know where to look. Some great pedagogues there. :)

    Its a lot easier being righteous than right.


    12.10.2010 13:36 #17

  • Mez

    I know Mate about the teasing! I don't recall ever hearing that one. I don't think I cracked a bible since Sunday School and that was a while ago.

    I can imagine a Creationist has got to be as dogged as Dan. Remember the king of jerks!

    The fun about religion is IT IS NOT SUPPOSED TO MAKE SENSE. It if made sense it is just a simple fact. If it is wacky, then it can be religion that require faith to believe it. I guess "they" figure you must be a better person because you believe in the ridiculous. I figure it makes you a fool. I guess I am going to hell!

    This has been fun!

    12.10.2010 14:04 #18

  • Jemborg

    Originally posted by Mez: The fun about religion is IT IS NOT SUPPOSED TO MAKE SENSE. It if made sense it is just a simple fact. If it is wacky, then it can be religion that require faith to believe it. I guess "they" figure you must be a better person because you believe in the ridiculous. I figure it makes you a fool. But they get so wordy it MUST be true. lol


    Its a lot easier being righteous than right.


    12.10.2010 15:24 #19

  • KillerBug

    Originally posted by Mez: I know Mate about the teasing! I don't recall ever hearing that one. I don't think I cracked a bible since Sunday School and that was a while ago.

    I can imagine a Creationist has got to be as dogged as Dan. Remember the king of jerks!

    The fun about religion is IT IS NOT SUPPOSED TO MAKE SENSE. It if made sense it is just a simple fact. If it is wacky, then it can be religion that require faith to believe it. I guess "they" figure you must be a better person because you believe in the ridiculous. I figure it makes you a fool. I guess I am going to hell!

    This has been fun!     You do not believe in the invisible flying spaghetti monster? You are going to hell! All praise the all-mighty invisible flying spaghetti monster!

    ...How did we get from Kin 2.0 to Religion?

    13.10.2010 00:04 #20

  • Jemborg

    Originally posted by KillerBug: Originally posted by Mez: I know Mate about the teasing! I don't recall ever hearing that one. I don't think I cracked a bible since Sunday School and that was a while ago.

    I can imagine a Creationist has got to be as dogged as Dan. Remember the king of jerks!

    The fun about religion is IT IS NOT SUPPOSED TO MAKE SENSE. It if made sense it is just a simple fact. If it is wacky, then it can be religion that require faith to believe it. I guess "they" figure you must be a better person because you believe in the ridiculous. I figure it makes you a fool. I guess I am going to hell!

    This has been fun!     You do not believe in the invisible flying spaghetti monster? You are going to hell! All praise the all-mighty invisible flying spaghetti monster!

    ...How did we get from Kin 2.0 to Religion?     It's all Mezzez fault! :P

    Please forgive me great FSM ~ I have now become a Pastafarian! Yours is the ultimate sauce.

    I have seen incontrovertible proof and been touched by his Noodley Appendage from his Interstellar Teapot!






    Its a lot easier being righteous than right.


    13.10.2010 01:06 #21

  • KillerBug

    It sounds like we have the start on a major money-making scheme that is tax free.

    Good people go to pastaland when they die.

    Bad people go to the infernal city of breadsticks.

    Being good consists of being mean to people, avoiding charity, and giving me lots of money.

    Being bad consists of not giving me money. Anything else is fine (other than eating pasta of course...this would be like eating god).

    14.10.2010 05:57 #22

  • eLeCTR0n

    Originally posted by baldfrog: Quote:Google's Android software will overtake Apple's OS soon.
    I would be interested to know where this information was obtained? I am not arguing, It is just that I have never heard this before and It is quite a sweeping statement. A reference to back it up would be nice.     This has already happened. They are talking about the number of all the phones that use Android versus the one and only phone that uses iOS, iPhone. In similar news, all the American car manufactures combined have surpassed Toyota's car sales.

    Here is one reference from Nielsen:
    http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/onli...rtphone-buyers/


    15.10.2010 14:05 #23

  • eLeCTR0n

    Originally posted by Mez: Apple has to be sh1tting bricks! This baby has the power of Windoze 7 behind it! Actually it doesn't. It's based on Zune HD software not Windows Mobile or Windows 7 for that matter. Apple doesn't have much to worry about at least for while. You have to have some serious issues to choose a WP7 phone over iPhone 4.


    15.10.2010 14:12 #24

  • eLeCTR0n

    Originally posted by mike.m: WHAT THE HELL?? We only get 2 phones in Canada?? Another example of how we always get screwed over here. The US gets 9, and a whole bunch go to the UK and Europe. We get an LG (one of the worst companies to make phones,tv's,etc). And the only somewhat good phone we have left is the HTC Surround, which has the lowest ram and shortest battery life of all of the WP 7 launch phones. Why not also bring the Omnia 7, and HTC Mozart/Trophy???? ****ING A$$****S LOL you might wanna consider moving dude!
    Who wants to live in a place full of crappy phones?


    15.10.2010 14:15 #25

  • Mez

    Originally posted by eLeCTR0n: LOL you might wanna consider moving dude!
    Who want's to live in a place full of crappy phones?

    Right! He is going to move to another country so he can have more cell phones.

    15.10.2010 14:46 #26

  • drhanaba

    Originally posted by DSWarrior: Well, no one here is judging...we're just expressing our opinions based on M$'s experiences since Windoze XP...Ever since they released it, all their other big bright ideas have failed horribly, except maybe for Windoze 7, which isn't all that great either. The only reason people liked 7 so much is because Vista was such a huge PoS, that when consumers saw how shiny and fast 7 was they thought it was the best OS M$ had made...

    M$ computer OSes are #1 in sales because over 95% of computers come bundled with it. I personally prefer Mac OS X or even Linux (Ubuntu, OpenSUSE, even PuppyLinux) rather than those bloated full-of-crap Windoze installations...So based on what I've seen of them lately: Zune, Vista, Xbox 360 (ring of death), Kin, WinMo6.5 ... I believe that Windoze Phone 7 is another disappointment waiting to happen...Oh yeah, copy/paste comes on the first trimester of next year guys! Have fun typing!     Do I smell hipocracy here (95
    5 of computer comes bundled with windows). Tell me, dont 100% of Apple computers come bundled with osx? Why aren't they #1? Be interesting to see your answer.

    15.10.2010 17:02 #27

  • Mez

    drhanaba, I know that answer, the world is stupid.

    15.10.2010 17:14 #28

  • robertmro

    Originally posted by Mez: Apple has to be sh1tting bricks! This baby has the power of Windoze 7 behind it! Little tiny bricks, there really pebbles.

    15.10.2010 19:06 #29

  • drhanaba

    Originally posted by Mez: drhanaba, I know that answer, the world is stupid. Remember, you said that, I did not want to go there.

    15.10.2010 20:25 #30

  • Jemborg

    Originally posted by drhanaba: Originally posted by Mez: drhanaba, I know that answer, the world is stupid. Remember, you said that, I did not want to go there. Oh, it's the World that's stupid... that explains a lot. Thanks for clearing that up for me Mez. :P

    Its a lot easier being righteous than right.


    15.10.2010 21:53 #31

  • KillerBug

    Originally posted by Jemborg: Originally posted by drhanaba: Originally posted by Mez: drhanaba, I know that answer, the world is stupid. Remember, you said that, I did not want to go there. Oh, it's the World that's stupid... that explains a lot. Thanks for clearing that up for me Mez. :P The world is stupid...but that is a good thing. If this planet was any smarter, it would have killed all of the humans long ago. The humans? They are not as dumb as you think...it takes a lot of mental power to live in a world that is nothing but lies. If you built a robot with AI, it would start throwing errors and would get stuck in an infinite loop within a matter of minutes.

    16.10.2010 07:01 #32

  • Jemborg

    Originally posted by KillerBug: Originally posted by Jemborg: Originally posted by drhanaba: Originally posted by Mez: drhanaba, I know that answer, the world is stupid. Remember, you said that, I did not want to go there. Oh, it's the World that's stupid... that explains a lot. Thanks for clearing that up for me Mez. :P The world is stupid...but that is a good thing. If this planet was any smarter, it would have killed all of the humans long ago. The humans? They are not as dumb as you think...it takes a lot of mental power to live in a world that is nothing but lies. If you built a robot with AI, it would start throwing errors and would get stuck in an infinite loop within a matter of minutes. More evidence for Unintelligent Design (UD) and His great Noodliness the FSM moving amongst us!

    Praise be His Holy Starchiness and his mischievous but not-so-bright ways.

    RAmen.


    ========================================================

    Its a lot easier being righteous than right.


    16.10.2010 14:56 #33

  • blueboy09

    What is a Windows phone? Come again, what does it do? They're screwed if they think they can get a leg up on Android or Apple. If they would have launched alongside with Android or Apple, then they could've got some attention, but I just don't see that happening. Too little too late, says I!

    Life is about walking on thin ice, if you make too much drama, youll crack under pressure. - BLUEBOY

    17.10.2010 08:22 #34

  • BigDixon

    Windows 7 is easily the best OS ever created, far better than the rapid bore-fests that are Mac OS or Linux. Whether or not the Windows Phone 7 is any good remains to be seen, but early reviews are that its awesome. Having said that, I'm happy with an iPhone but will gracefully acknowledge another product is better even if i don't have it, unlike the Mac fanbois.

    24.10.2010 04:37 #35

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