Hasta La Gadget!

Earlier this week Microsoft updated its Skype for Windows Phone application. Making good on its plans to retire Messenger, users can now IM their buddy list from within the app. In addition, the new software push adds the ability to receive calls and messages while Skype is closed, but the changelog cautions that this feature is a “work-in-progress.” While we welcome these new features with open arms, they come at somewhat of a steep price. Skype 2.1.0.241 “temporarily” kills the app’s integration with Windows Phone’s People Hub. Something that Microsoft plans to patch up via another update at an undisclosed time. If you can get past losing such a prominent feature for the sake of being up to date, then head on over to the Windows Phone Store to claim your 8MB prize.

Filed under: Software, Mobile, Microsoft

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Via: CNET, GeekWire

Source: Microsoft

Lingering concerns that Nokia might not upgrade all its Windows Phone 7.5 roster to 7.8 might have just been put to rest. Just a day after updates for the Lumia 510 and 800 were caught on Nokia’s servers through NaviFirm, updates have also been spotted for those devices that didn’t make the initial cut: the Lumia 610, 710 and 900 have all appeared, each with numerous region-specific updates in tow. Their existence still doesn’t constitute a formal update, so be aware that you’re gambling with your phone’s health if you install them without any word from Microsoft or Nokia. Suffice it to say that full availability is clearly getting close — and that it’s less probable any Lumia will be left behind.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Microsoft, Nokia

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Source: Nokiapoweruser

Go ahead — lambaste me for even mentioning it. I’ll wait. Now, how’s about we look beyond the surface — the beautified tile regime and the whimsical animations — and focus on what actually matters when looking at a smartphone platform. You don’t have to look far to get a solid grasp on which platforms are soaring, which are hanging tough and which have one foot in the proverbial grave. Gartner’s latest worldwide mobile report shows Android and iOS at the top, with rarely discussed terms like “Symbian” and “Bada” above some company called “Microsoft.” Which brings me to a question that has been haunting me for months: “Why?”

Microsoft unveiled Windows Phone 7 Series nearly three full years ago, bringing with it an extraordinarily fresh take on a smartphone world that has grown soggy with pages of grid-mapped programs. But, as things have turned out, beauty that’s only skin deep doesn’t do much for market share — even when you’re pouring millions upon millions of dollars into marketing, coaxing one of the most notable names in mobile to run your OS exclusively and cutting deals with carriers like it’s just some trivial affair.

I’ve waxed lyrical about the danger of Windows Phone losing out simply because it offers (comparably) little in terms of ecosystem glitz, but these days, I’m growing closer to putting the platform’s fate on a single name: Google.

Continue reading Editorial: Does Windows Phone even have a chance without Google?

Filed under: Cellphones, Software, Mobile, Apple, Microsoft, Google

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Either this latest KIRF contender apes Windows Phone to a seriously piratical degree, or someone has simply chopped in a screengrab from an HTC device. Either way, the aptly-named Lemon T109 could at least have tried mimicking the latest version of Redmond’s mobile OS instead of Mango. The handset, which has just popped up in India for the equivalent of $54, accepts a pair of SIMs and boasts a 3.7-inch HVGA capacitive touch display. There’s a “long” 1,200mAh battery that helps fuel features like the King Movie Player, an automatic call recorder and a 1.3-megapixel snapper circa 2004. We’re not sure what the “PC Tablet” accessory refers to, but the free wristwatch on offer could possibly help sweeten the citrusy deal — especially since the other core specs are MIA. The phone may not look like it’s going to smoke anything, but if you’re in the area and desperate for vitamins after all that fried bacon, a tap on the source link might just help you meet your match.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

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Via: WMPoweruser

Source: Indiatimes Shopping

With all the hubbub surrounding Windows Phone 8, it’s easy to forget that Microsoft has another new OS in the pipeline: a refresh known as Windows Phone 7.8. One group hasn’t forgotten about the update, however, and that’s all the current users of Windows Phone 7.5. Now, Microsoft is issuing a reminder that, yes, the update really is coming — just not this year. The folks in Redmond assert that they’re currently working with hardware manufacturers and carriers to deploy Windows Phone 7.8 to “as many devices as possible” in early 2013. So, it seems that Christmas will come a bit later for owners of older hardware, but at least Microsoft has a New Year’s resolution worth sticking to.

Filed under: Software, Mobile, Microsoft

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Source: Windows Phone Blog