Hasta La Gadget!

AllThingsD is reporting that Microsoft is replacing Andy Lees as head of its Windows Phone division… sort of. It looks like Terry Myerson, who has headed up engineering efforts for the group, will take over many of Lees’ responsibilities, though, he won’t be inheriting his title. At least not just yet. In a memo seen by AllThingsD, Ballmer announced that Lees would be taking on a new position with the company, though it’s not entirely clear what that might be — describing it only as “time-critical” and “focused on driving maximum impact in 2012 with Windows Phone and Windows 8.” (So, it’s safe to assume he’s not becoming a janitor.) The shakeup isn’t terribly surprising, especially considering the CEO’s own admission that Windows Phone 7 was not performing as well as expected in the market.

The division’s interim leader, Myerson, has been with Microsoft since 1997 and previously headed up the team in charge of Exchange. For now he will continue to report to Lees, who will remain the president of the Windows Phone group, even if that is in name only.

Microsoft replaces Andy Lees as Windows Phone head originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 12 Dec 2011 17:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging to get updated. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it’s easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don’t escape without notice, we’ve gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery from the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout attips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!

Official Android updates

• Guess which phone’s finally getting Gingerbread: the HTC Thunderbolt. Yes, we’re being serious. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in, and thanks Eddie for the image!]
• Gingerbread is now rolling out to the Motorola Droid Pro and Droid 2 Global. [PhoneScoop]
• The HTC EVO Design 4G wasn’t out for very long before it was ready for a maintenance release. It’s called version 1.19.651.0, and no change log was found right away.
• More HTC stuff: the EVO 3D also offers a small bug fix in the form of a security update under the name of version 2.08.651.3. [AndroidCentral]
• The LG Revolution on Verizon’s also officially gaining Android 2.3. [Pocketnow]
• In the UK, HTC Desire S owners are now finding themselves beneficiaries of the Android 2.3.5 firmware update as well as Sense 3.0. [AndroidCentral]
• How about a couple for the little guys? CSpire, formerly known as Cellular South, is pushing Gingerbread to its Samsung Galaxy S and Motorola Milestone X. [AndroidCentral(1) and (2)]
• Sony Ericsson announced this week that Android 2.3.4 is rolling out to the 2011 Xperia lineup around the world. Additional enhancements include 16x video zoom, WiFi DLNA, screen capture capability, ability to attach USB peripherals to Sony Ericsson LiveDock and more.

Unofficial Android updates, custom ROMs and misc. hackery

• The Samsung Stratosphere on Verizon has been successfully rooted. [AndroidCommunity]
• HTC devices receiving the official Gingerbread kernel source from HTCDev this week: The Evo Shift 4G, the Thunderbolt and Droid Incredible. [AndroidCentral]
• When it rains, it pours — the Thunderbolt, on top of receiving Gingerbread and its accompanying kernel source, has also found itself on the receiving end of an Ice Cream Sandwich SDK port. As can be expected, it’s still in prealpha stages and has a few bugs to work out. [AndroidCommunity]
• If you’re a CM7 user, there’s now a file available that will turn your lock screen into one that resembles Ice Cream Sandwich’s style. [Droid-Life]

Other platforms

• Microsoft’s pushing a firmware upgrade to the LG Optimus 7 Windows Phone which seems to grace the device with WiFi tethering and the ability to locate hidden WiFi networks. [WMPowerUser]
• It’s not a BlackBerry firmware update, but many people still have a soft spot for BBM and will be interested to know that RIM is putting out version 6.0.1 with a few enhancements. Head to the source to check it out. [MobileTechReview]

Refreshes we covered this week

• Windows Phone Mango now being delivered to 100 percent of compatible devices
• Windows Phone Apollo coming ‘middle of next year,’ says Nokia VP
• Nokia N8 gets Symbian Anna service pack update
• Symbian Anna update rolls out to compatible Nokia smartphones in the US
• Motorola Xoom will get updated with Ice Cream Sandwich
• Ice Cream Sandwich supports USB game controllers and HDMI
• RIM confirms PlayBook OS 2.0 delayed until February, still no BBM in sight
• Sprint issues OTA fix for HTC Android handset vulnerability

Refresh Roundup: week of October 24, 2011 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 30 Oct 2011 11:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A top Nokia exec just confirmed the much-rumored schedule for the next Windows Phone update, codenamed Apollo. Michael Halbherr, Executive VP for Location and Commerce, told us that it’ll launch in mid-2012 and be a “very different game” to Mango — hinting that Apollo actually refers to Windows Phone 8 rather than any mere decimal increment. What do we know about Apollo at this point? Well, not a great deal, but Halbherr also revealed that he’s been pushing Microsoft to integrate NFC and a “positioning framework” to make its mobile OS work better with Nokia’s Navteq mapping platform and thereby provide new location-based services. Sorry HTC, Samsung, but everything points to a more ‘Nokia-fied’ OS.

Update: We’ve spoken with some sources close to Microsoft who indicate that the timing given to us by Nokia is inaccurate. Unfortunately, the truth serum we used wore off before we were provided with a surrogate timeframe, but we’ll of course keep our ears to the ground.

Windows Phone Apollo coming ‘middle of next year,’ says Nokia VP originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Oct 2011 12:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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When Nokia made it known that the Meego-running N9 wouldn’t be making any official tour to the US, the sound of crushed dreams could be faintly heard in households across the nation. Would the newly-announced Lumia series suffer the same fate somehow? Might Uncle Sam’s invitation to the family BBQ get lost in the mail a second straight time? Thanks to Nokia’s US website, we know that at least one of the two Windows Phones will leave Espoo and land somewhere between sea and shining sea, as the budget-conscious Lumia 710 appears front and center on the OEM’s home page while the 800 is nowhere to be found. We’re not giving up just yet — if absence makes the heart grow fonder, we don’t want to get enamored with the AWOL phone this fast.

Update: Dampen down those hopes and dreams, kids. Nokia has said that it will be making a splash in the USA at the start of next year, but it won’t be with the Lumia phones. The page went up just for your information.

Lumia 710 makes an appearance on Nokia’s US site without its Windows Phone counterpart originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Oct 2011 00:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oh, Nokia. Earth mother and founding father of the mobile industry. At last, we have your newest creation nestled amidst our clammy palms: a 3.7-inch slab of polycarbonate Windows Phone wonderment, fronted by a ClearBlack AMOLED display. Has that sweet breeze off the Nokianvirta River worked its special magic? Or is this just another Windows Phone? Well, first impressions are that it… feels just like an N9. Read on for our detailed impressions.

Continue reading Nokia Lumia 800 hands-on (video)

Nokia Lumia 800 hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 26 Oct 2011 05:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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