Microsoft boots Windows Phone manager following mini-review of Nokia’s Mango handset

The man who previously led the development of IE Mobile for Windows Phone is no longer with Microsoft, whose termination followed a series of tweets regarding one of Nokia’s unreleased Mango handsets. A representative of Ballmer & Co. has confirmed to us “that Joe Marini no longer works at Microsoft,” and while the company refuses to discuss the details of his termination, you be the judge. In his first tweet, Mr. Marini expressed glowing enthusiasm for the device, having called it one of Nokia’s slickest ever. Then, however, he went on to give the phone an “8” (to summarize his 144 character review), criticize the camera as being good, but not great, and bemoan its screen size. Oops. If anything, unbridled enthusiasm is encouraged at Microsoft (just think back to Steve Ballmer’s monkey dance if you had any doubt), but when sheer excitement erupts into stunning frankness regarding unreleased products from partner companies, perhaps this ex-Microsoftee should have kept his thoughts offline. We wish you luck, Joe, but next time, just remember that review scores are a relic of the past. Instead, just let the words speak for themselves.

Microsoft boots Windows Phone manager following mini-review of Nokia’s Mango handset originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 22 Sep 2011 02:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Tango video calling demoed on Mango-based HTC Titan (video)

Looks like Mango’s got yet another trick up its sleeve — at least, a trick that’ll be noticeable on HTC’s looming Titan. Windows Phone Director Aaron Woodman — the same Aaron that stopped by our own Engadget Show a few months back — recently paused to show off a Tango video calling application on the aforementioned handset. We knew good and well that the front-facing Titan camera would be put to use by something, and now you know. ‘Course, the “demo” looks pretty well scripted — don’t expect an accurate representation of video quality over a crowded 3G network — but it sure serves to make the wait that much harder. Have a peek yourself just after the break.

[Thanks, Stephen]

Continue reading Tango video calling demoed on Mango-based HTC Titan (video)

Tango video calling demoed on Mango-based HTC Titan (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 15 Sep 2011 16:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ballmer: Windows Phones aren’t selling very well, but we’re not worried

Microsoft’s Steve Ballmer was his usual frank self when he met financial analysts yesterday, admitting that the world isn’t yet as keen on Windows Phone as he’d hoped. To be precise, AllThingsD reported him as saying: “We haven’t sold quite as many as I would have liked in the first year.” His cunning plan? Well, that’s easy: make it all Nokia’s problem. Or, as he put it: “With Nokia we have a dedicated hardware partner that is all-in on Windows Phones.” Indeed, the Finnish manufacturer has now staked far more than Microsoft on the success of this “third ecosystem” and, if its imminent Mango handsets fail to turn things around, we may eventually see Stephen Elop standing behind that silent cash register.

Ballmer: Windows Phones aren’t selling very well, but we’re not worried originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 15 Sep 2011 06:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Windows Phone Mango demoed by Microsoft in dramatic fashion (video)

Sure we’ve seen plenty of Windows Phone Mango demos — heck, we’ve done a few hands-ons ourselves — but so far as slickness is concerned, few can compare to this latest offering from Microsoft, which looks to bring developers on board, while showing off some key features like Live Tiles and speedy switching between apps in dramatic hands-off fashion. The Mango is so close we can taste it. Video after the break.

Continue reading Windows Phone Mango demoed by Microsoft in dramatic fashion (video)

Windows Phone Mango demoed by Microsoft in dramatic fashion (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Sep 2011 20:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sprint launches Drive First Android app to curb texting and driving, keep chatty teens at bay

Are you concerned that your talky teenager is trying to keep up on the high school gossip whilst behind the wheel? Or are you a more experienced driver looking to get rid of the temptation to update your status at 65 MPH? Sprint’s got you covered with Drive First. The app, announced by CEO Dan Hesse at CTIA in March, will lock up your phone when it detects you’re in a moving vehicle; calls will be automatically redirected to voicemail and incoming texts can get automatically replied to with a customized message. The service costs $2 / month per phone after a 15-day trial, and unfortunately only is available for Android devices, though BlackBerry and Windows Phone support has been promised in the near future as well. We’d say the more the merrier — for parents, that is. Head below for the full press release.

Continue reading Sprint launches Drive First Android app to curb texting and driving, keep chatty teens at bay

Sprint launches Drive First Android app to curb texting and driving, keep chatty teens at bay originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 12 Sep 2011 21:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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New Mediaroom clients to bring Microsoft’s TV platform everywhere this year

Windows Media Center using Mediaroom 2.0

The days of being tied to a traditional TV to watch your favorite shows is becoming less and less of a dream — at least for Mediaroom 2.0 users, like those who subscribe to AT&T U-Verse. It hasn’t even been a full year since Xbox 360 owners were first able to launch a U-Verse blade to watch TV, but it has been about nine months when we first heard rumors of Mediaroom clients for Windows Media Center (aka Monaco), Silverlight (aka Taos) and Windows Phone (aka Rome) would see the light of day. A recent post on William Zhang’s blog, a Microsoft employee, confirms the rumored code names in addition to giving us reason to believe those using Mediaroom 2.0 software might still realize the three screen dream by the end of 2011 after all.

New Mediaroom clients to bring Microsoft’s TV platform everywhere this year originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 09 Sep 2011 23:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink The Digital Lifestyle  |  sourceMSDN Mediaroom blog  | Email this | Comments

Samsung High Fidelity Position app gives Mango GPS a Russian boost

Using your phone’s GPS to guide you down city streets can sometimes be a harrowing experience, especially in signal blackspots (or when there’s a mild breeze). Fortunately, there’s a fancy new solution — for some of you at least. High Fidelity Position is an app specifically for Samsung Mango phones that supercharges the GPS module with two upgrades to help positioning. The first leverages the on-board accelerometer and compass to help the Windows 7 device orient itself on congested city streets. Second is that it will now access GLONASS — Russia’s equivalent to GPS — pinpointing your location to within a few feet. When installed, the app is only visible in the settings menu, where you will need to activate it. We can also expect to see more of GLONASS in the future, since Russia’s imposing import taxes of about 25-percent on any device that’s incompatible with the Soviet standard, and manufacturers won’t want to take a hit of that magnitude on a feature they can use. Samsung WP7.5 owners who want every excuse to celebrate the triumphs of Gagarin, Sputnik and Laika can find the app available at the source link below.

Samsung High Fidelity Position app gives Mango GPS a Russian boost originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Sep 2011 21:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Acer W4 hands-on (video)

Hey, it’s our old pal, the Acer W4. We’ve heard tell of the device and seen our share of mockups, and this week at IFA, we actually got to play with the thing. The 3.6-inch handset is fairly compact, and pretty slick looking, with its black front and curved white backing. It’s not particularly exciting on the spec side, with its 1GHz Qualcomm processor. Nope, what’s most exciting here is the inclusion of Mango, which should look rather familiar to Windows Phone 7 owners, while adding some welcomed updates to the mix.

According to Acer, the handset should be arrive some point next month, though the company isn’t offering up much in terms of pricing. Check out a hands-on video after the break.

Continue reading Acer W4 hands-on (video)

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Acer W4 hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 04 Sep 2011 17:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC Titan and Radar WP7 Mango phones revealed, we go hands-on

HTC just threw two new Windows Phone handsets down on the table and politely requested that we be impressed. The high-end Titan (previously leaked as the ‘Eternity‘) is indeed an awe-inspiring brute, wielding a 4.7-inch SLCD display, 8MP rear camera and 1.3MP front-facing snapper to take full advantage of Mango’s newfangled Skype integration. Its over-sized guts include a single-core 1.5GHz processor, 512MB of RAM and up to 16GB of fixed flash storage. Meanwhile, the Radar (which also recently leaked out as the ‘Omega‘) comes significantly less pumped in order to meet a lower price point and — we suppose — the expectations of a more mainstream audience. It can be seen as an updated Trophy, with similar weight and dimensions, plus the same 3.8-inch LCD, 1GHz processor clock speed, 5MP rear camera resolution, RAM and maximum 8GB fixed storage. The key upgrades involve the cameras: HTC says it has an improved 28mm wide-angle lens on the rear, plus of course there’s the front-facer, which is unfortunately only VGA. Although HTC intends to update its existing WP7 range to Mango starting in mid September, the Titan and Radar will be the company’s first innately Mango-fied devices when they arrive in early October. What do we make of them? By all means, click past the break to find out.

Continue reading HTC Titan and Radar WP7 Mango phones revealed, we go hands-on

HTC Titan and Radar WP7 Mango phones revealed, we go hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 01 Sep 2011 14:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Windows Phone 7 Mango will play nicer with Macs, update your Connector app now

Windows Phone 7.5 will be wearing more Mac-friendly pajamas when it comes. Microsoft’s Connector app just got updated to Version 2.0 and it enables both Marketplace support and ringtone transfers for Mango-equipped handsets. It also packs some other improvements which already work with WP 7.0, including drag-and-drop file importing from the Browse Device window, better backup and restore operations, and full sync and import support for Apple Aperture software. Connector 2.0 is ready and waiting at the App Store and Mango should poke its head around the mountain any day.

Windows Phone 7 Mango will play nicer with Macs, update your Connector app now originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 31 Aug 2011 08:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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