Earlier today Microsoft unveiled its latest creation, Windows Phone 7 Series. It is just a newer version of Windows Mobile that has been built from scratch. This was smart on Microsoft’s part because the only way they could ever catch up would be to forget backwards compatibility and just move forward. This could very well be what they have done since there is no word on whether or not any current programs will be compatible with 7 Series.
Microsoft also realized that resistive technology is a way of the past, and not only made it capacitive touch capable, but all devices are required to have capacitive touch support. There are also some more unreleased minimum specs that are required for all phone manufacturers that wish to have this OS on their smartphones. They also noted that physical keyboards are also permitted to use with the software.
The User Interface is largely inspired by Zune HD with large fonts and simple but stunning buttons. Unlike most touchscreen phones these days, the homescreen isn’t just a grid of tiny app icons, but it has a two column tile system. The tiles are very large to make it easier to tap. These tiles are also animated with live information from the cloud, as well as other notifications.
On that note, Microsoft is bragging about being extremely connected with social networks. They only seem to support Facebook and Windows Live natively though. Apparently other social networks like Twitter and Flickr are available through Windows Live, but I am not too sure how well that will work out.
For years there have been rumors about Xbox Live integration with Windows Mobile. Today that is finally confirmed! Unfortunately there is no working example of it. Joe Belfiore explains the future features though, “I want to show you how this looks and works on a real phone. So you’ve got your avatar here, spotlight updates, and recent achievements. There are requests — you can see someone is nudging Anna to come and game with them.” On top of that some games will be able to earn you Achievement Points.
Xbox integration was not the only other Microsoft product added to the operating system. Zune, Microsoft’s semi-successful portable media player, is available in all of its glory. This full featured media player is simple and sexy. The operating system will also be compatible with the Zune Pass, which is the envy of iPod owners. For $15 a month users can listen to and download unlimited songs from the Zune Marketplace. This gives owners millions of songs available on their phone via the built in marketplace.
Of course there are tons and tons more features to this operating system including Microsoft Office, third party apps, and GPS. The OS won’t launch until this holiday season though. Windows Phone 7 Series will likely become obsolete by then considering all the new highly anticipated and rumored phones like the iPhone 4G. As a Microsoft fanboy, I can not wait to try out this on the latest hardware later this year.
Tags: microsoft, Mobile World Congress, MWC, Windows, windows mobile, Windows Phone, Windows Phone 7 Series