Windows Phone 7 readies
Earlier this month Microsoft released Windows Phone 7 to manufacturing (RTM). What this means is that Microsoft has now declared its new mobile phone operating system ready to be released.
Consumers won’t actually see devices on shop shelves until later this year but the operating system code is now in the hands of handset makers and networks, which will allow them to prepare for the official release.
The RTM of Windows Phone 7 comes almost nine months after Steve Ballmer announced the new operating system. Nine months during which the competition in the mobile phone OS market grew stronger and the likes of Android have snapped up significant market share.
Which makes Windows Phone 7 an important release for Microsoft. So, what will Windows Phone 7 offer users?
Integration
Social network integration in Windows Phone 7 is a key part of the new operating system. Although Windows Phone 7 is largely aimed at business users, the growth of social networks such as Twitter and Facebook make these capabilities essential in every platform.
Also for the social/gaming sector of the market, Windows Phone 7 will integrate Microsoft’s Xbox Live service into the mobile OS. This capability could be among Microsoft’s secret weapons in the battle against Apple’s iOS which has nothing comparable, yet.
General integration is also a key component of Windows Phone 7. Which means, for example, that contacts on the phone are connected to their profiles on social networks in addition to their details. This will mean it will be possible to communicate with contacts through any of the available channels.
Multimedia
Multimedia is also important and Windows Phone 7 will integrate support for Microsoft’s Zune platform into the phone OS. The OS will also use Microsoft’s Silverlight rich media platform as well as a new MSN media player to enrich the multimedia capabilities.
Perhaps the most noticeable change in Windows Phone 7 over Windows Mobile 6.5 is the completely re-engineered interface. And the key component of this is the concept of “hubs” which are groupings of related content. So, for example, there will be standard hubs for things such as People, Games, Pictures, Music and Videos, Market Place and Microsoft Office. Each of these will house related content.
Windows Phone 7 is expected to be released later this year, most likely during the course of October.
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