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Microsoft’s new Xbox Music streaming service will leave many existing device owners – including Windows Phone 7 early-adopters – out in the cold, the company has conceded. The new cloud-based music service, which launches tomorrow for Xbox 360 but will eventually run on Windows Phone 8 handsets and Windows 8/RT PCs and tablets, cuts all ties with the existing version of Microsoft’s smartphone and PC platforms. Meanwhile, the threat of listening limits lurks in the small-print.

Microsoft has no plans to release Xbox Music apps for Windows 7 or Windows Phone 7/7.5/7.8, the company admitted to The Verge, leaving those desktop and mobile platforms with the existing Zune Pass program. That means the same catalog of tracks will be on offer – Microsoft says that amounts to over 30m globally, though not all tracks are available in all countries – but the cloud functionality won’t be present.

For instance, Xbox Music users will be able to create playlists of tracks and have those automatically synchronize across multiple devices logged into the same account, but Zune Pass users won’t get access to the functionality. Similarly, the upcoming “cloud match” service which will put existing music users own into the cloud for them to enjoy on any device will also not be extended to Zune Pass users.

Windows 7 users, meanwhile, will also miss out on the free streaming access that Windows 8/RT users will get. Xbox Music on Windows Phone 8 and Xbox 360 will demand a monthly subscription of $9.99 (on top of Xbox LIVE membership on the console), but Windows 8 users will have a free, ad-supported option instead.

However, that unlimited, ad-supported playback will be short-lived. According to Microsoft’s small-print, after six months of use the option will be limited to just ten hours of playback each month. That’s in contrast to Spotify, the ad-supported plan of which has no such limits.

It’s not the only indignity early-adopters of Windows Phone 7 have had to stomach. Microsoft cut backward compatibility with Windows Phone 8, promising those who bought earlier devices only a visual update to WP7.8 rather than the full, new OS.

Xbox Music flaws surface: Old Windows abandoned plus listening limits is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Microsoft has unveiled Xbox Music, its new all-encompassing streaming music service for Windows 8, Windows RT, Windows Phone 8, and Xbox 360. The new Spotify-rival will offer both free and paid plans and access to over 30m tracks globally, with ad-free playback for those who stump up $9.99 per month, and will go live from Tuesday on Xbox 360 and from October 26 for Windows PCs and tablets.

The number of tracks available in each country will vary – the US will get around 18m – though not all platforms will get the free plans. Xbox 360 owners will need to buy a pass (and have an Xbox LIVE Gold account). Those who pay the $10 for an Xbox Music Pass also get unlimited access to music video playback on their Xbox 360, and there’s the Xbox Music Store if you’d rather own an individual track or album rather than stream it. However, those with an Xbox Music Pass will also be able to cache tracks for offline playback, rather than buying them outright.

Windows Phone 8 support follows on after Windows PC/tablet support, though again there won’t be a free plan to choose; instead, just as Spotify demands, you’ll need to be a paid subscriber to access streaming music on the move. In the pipeline is support for other mobile platforms – Microsoft specifically mentions iOS and Android – and Social Music, the latter promising social networking integration.

The new Smart DJ feature of Xbox Music, meanwhile, bases a new playlist on a selected artist, with the promise of unlimited skips and full access to the upcoming playlist, similar to how Pandora works. Microsoft will also take on iTunes Match with its own Cloud Storage scan-and-match system, adding all of the tracks in your collection to its cloud, including those bought through iTunes and other services.

Microsoft’s key advantage over Spotify, Pandora, and other streaming services is likely to be its ubiquity: Xbox Music will be preloaded onto new Windows computers, including the Surface tablets, and that’s likely to encourage Xbox 360 and Windows Phone 8 users to give it a try as well (there’ll be a 30-day free trial period before they need to stump up for a Xbox Music Pass).

First to get access will be Xbox 360 users, from tomorrow, with the free trial and Xbox Music Pass on sale in 22 market.. Free streaming on Windows 8/RT hardware begins October 26 in fifteen markets; Xbox Music Pass will be available in 22 markets, for Windows 8, RT, and Windows Phone 8, and more regions are expected over the coming year.

Microsoft Xbox Music takes on Spotify and iTunes Cloud is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 - 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Just in case you thought Nokia’s Lumia 822 for Verizon was an illusion, the FCC has given us good (if not quite smoking gun) evidence that it’s tangible. A filing at the agency shows a device that’s only listed as the RM-845 on the surface, but has Verizon’s CDMA and LTE bands, measurements very close to those of the GSM-based Lumia 820 and a microSD slot that you wouldn’t find in a Lumia 920 variant — short of a surprise new model, there’s little beyond the 822 that would currently fit the bill. Those disappointed that it’s not a higher-end Lumia might take some consolation in seeing both the expected NFC as well as quad-band HSPA 3G for world roaming. Between the FCC and earlier photos, fans are really just left waiting for Verizon to make this new piece of its Windows Phone revival official, whether it’s on October 29th or some other date.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Nokia

Nokia Lumia 822 for Verizon possibly caught stopping by the FCC originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 13 Oct 2012 19:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Teething problems with Apple Maps failed to blunt mass market enthusiasm for the iPhone 5, new research suggests, with demand significantly higher than ahead of the iPhone 4S. 451 Research and ChangeWave Research surveyed 4,270 consumers in September, and found that those saying they were “very likely” to buy an iPhone 5 were almost double the number of those saying the same thing ahead of its predecessor’s release last year. Meanwhile, Windows Phone 8 could “make serious inroads in the smartphone industry” the researchers claim, surprisingly highlighting Samsung as likely to be the manufacturer that benefits the most.

While some suggested that the poor performance of Apple Maps might sour the iPhone 5′s appeal, consumers don’t appear to have reached the same conclusion. Only 3-percent of those iOS 6 users questioned said Maps presented a “very big problem” to them, while 90-percent said it was “no problem at all”; in fact, the change to the new Lightning port was more of an issue, with 6-percent saying the different connector was a “very big problem.” Only 26-percent said it was “no problem at all.”

“Despite the media attention surrounding both the Apple Maps issue and the Apple Lightning port issue, neither has had an impact on the massive numbers of buyers queuing up to buy the iPhone 5,” said Dr. Paul Carton, ChangeWave’s VP of Research. “Rather, the survey results show both issues hardly rank as bumps in the road.”

In fact, those who decided not to buy the iPhone 5 mainly did so because they were content with their existing device, according to the ChangeWave research. 61-percent said “their current cellphone is sufficient” while no respondents said it they were dissuaded because of “reported problems with Apple Maps.”

“Has Apple Maps been a problem for you?”:

As for Windows Phone 8, 2-percent of respondents said they were “very likely” to buy a phone running the OS in the future, while 7-percent said they were “somewhat likely”; integration with existing Windows apps and devices was the most cited reason for that decision, at 36-percent of the responses.

Most interestingly, though, despite Nokia and HTC being the two brands who have put the most effort into Windows Phone 8 device launches, it’s Samsung which gets most cited as the go-to manufacturer. Of the 55-percent who knew which Windows Phone 8 OEM they were likely to buy from, just over half said Samsung would be their brand of choice, with Nokia following in second place.

iPhone 5 appeal unblunted by Apple Maps says research is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Photos have emerged of the Nokia Lumia 822, which is the yet-to-be-released Verizon version of the Nokia Lumia 820. The Nokia Lumia 822 is a Windows Phone 8 smartphone, and is joined in the Lumia family by the 920 and 810 models. Little is known about this phone, but the pictures show that it is a sleek handset with an interesting matte-type finish on the back.

The Nokia 822 will, presumably, have the same specifications as the Nokia Lumia 820, considering the only difference between the two is the 822′s exclusivity to Verizon and slight differences in the way the device is shaped. The mobile gadget is mid-range all around, with a 4.3 inch WVGA display, and a front camera and 8MP rear camera. The Lumia 820 is an LTE device, so it’s safe to assume that the Lumia 822 will support Verizon’s 4G LTE.

Nokia’s push of the Lumia models across multiple US carriers puts it in a precarious – and potentially lucrative – position. With the right marketing, the Lumia models could give the company a large sales jump. Due to the newness of Windows Phone 8, however, and Nokia’s “meh” status at the moment, without the right marketing hook, consumers may hesitate to take the jump, causing the entire endeavor to flounder.

There’s no word yet on when the Nokia Lumia 822 will be available from Verizon, or what its price will be. Because the phone is mid-range, with moderate specs, its probably safe to assume that the price will be lowish. Rumor says this handset will be released sometime around the HTC 8X‘s launch.

[via WM Power User]

Verizon Nokia Lumia 822 appears in leaked photos is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.