Microsoft unveils plans for first nine Windows Phone 7 handsets
Microsoft on Monday announced its initial arsenal of handsets built around the new Windows Phone 7 mobile operating system, in what many believe is the company's last-ditch attempt to regain traction in the mobile handset arena that's fallen into the hands of rivals like Apple and Google.
The Redmond, Wash.-based software giant is pitching the new handsets as "a different kind of phone" that showcase a 'glance and go' format. Company chief executive Steve Ballmer said that in today's busy world, people are spending more and more time with their heads down looking into their phones rather than interacting with the people around them.
As such, he said Microsoft is looking to break the current smartphone convention by helping people quickly and easily find and consume data so that they can pick their heads back up and stop missing out on life's important moments.
For example, one of the core features fueling Windows Phone 7, which shouldn't be confused with Windows 7 for the PC, is a new Start screen with something called Live Tiles for highlighting a user's personal content. These customizable and configurable squares of data siphon real-time updates from the Web -- such as news, appointments or the status of friends -- and present them at a glance on the phones' home screen.
Users can also create Live Tiles from applications and music, then position them in a particular order on their Start screen. In this way, a user's Start screen can not only contain quick access to FaceBook and local weather information, but it can also display the next appointment in a user's calendar app.
Other features include a social gaming network with roots to Xbox LIVE, in addition integration of other key Microsoft services and platforms such as Office Mobile, Zune, Windows Live, and Bing search.
In total, Microsoft unveiled a portfolio of 9 different phones built around WVGA displays (480 x 800 pixels) from its 4 handset hardware manufacturers: Dell, HTC, LG and Samsung. They'll run across more than 60 mobile operators -- including América Móvil, AT&T, Deutsche Telekom AG, Movistar, O2, Orange, SFR, SingTel, Telstra, TELUS, T-Mobile USA and Vodafone -- in more than 30 countries when they arrive in parts of Europe and Asia on October 21st and the U.S. on November 8.
All nine of the first Windows Phone 7 phones that will ship before the holiday shopping season will include a high-performance Snapdragon processor from Qualcomm. Additional models will continue to arrive in 2011, including the first phones for Sprint (such as an HTC 7 Pro) and Verizon. In addition, Microsoft said it plans to sell some of the phones through big-box online retailers like Amazon.com.
Windows Phone 7 handsets announced Monday, as listed in order below from left to right
Windows Phone 7 Lineup
Dell Venue Pro (United States)
HTC HD7 (United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Spain)
HTC 7 Mozart (France, United Kingdom, Germany, Australia)
HTC 7 Surround (United States)
HTC 7 Trophy (France, Germany, Spain, United Kingdom, Australia)
LG Optimus 7 (Canada, Mexico, Spain, Germany, Italy, Spain, United Kingdom, Singapore, Australia)
LG Quantum (United States)
Samsung Focus (United States)
Samsung OMNIA 7 (France, United Kingdom, Spain, Germany)
One feature that won't be present in Windows Phone 7 devices at launch is Copy & Paste, which Microsoft promises as part of a software update in early 2011.
The Redmond, Wash.-based software giant is pitching the new handsets as "a different kind of phone" that showcase a 'glance and go' format. Company chief executive Steve Ballmer said that in today's busy world, people are spending more and more time with their heads down looking into their phones rather than interacting with the people around them.
As such, he said Microsoft is looking to break the current smartphone convention by helping people quickly and easily find and consume data so that they can pick their heads back up and stop missing out on life's important moments.
For example, one of the core features fueling Windows Phone 7, which shouldn't be confused with Windows 7 for the PC, is a new Start screen with something called Live Tiles for highlighting a user's personal content. These customizable and configurable squares of data siphon real-time updates from the Web -- such as news, appointments or the status of friends -- and present them at a glance on the phones' home screen.
Users can also create Live Tiles from applications and music, then position them in a particular order on their Start screen. In this way, a user's Start screen can not only contain quick access to FaceBook and local weather information, but it can also display the next appointment in a user's calendar app.
Other features include a social gaming network with roots to Xbox LIVE, in addition integration of other key Microsoft services and platforms such as Office Mobile, Zune, Windows Live, and Bing search.
In total, Microsoft unveiled a portfolio of 9 different phones built around WVGA displays (480 x 800 pixels) from its 4 handset hardware manufacturers: Dell, HTC, LG and Samsung. They'll run across more than 60 mobile operators -- including América Móvil, AT&T, Deutsche Telekom AG, Movistar, O2, Orange, SFR, SingTel, Telstra, TELUS, T-Mobile USA and Vodafone -- in more than 30 countries when they arrive in parts of Europe and Asia on October 21st and the U.S. on November 8.
All nine of the first Windows Phone 7 phones that will ship before the holiday shopping season will include a high-performance Snapdragon processor from Qualcomm. Additional models will continue to arrive in 2011, including the first phones for Sprint (such as an HTC 7 Pro) and Verizon. In addition, Microsoft said it plans to sell some of the phones through big-box online retailers like Amazon.com.
Windows Phone 7 handsets announced Monday, as listed in order below from left to right
Windows Phone 7 Lineup
Dell Venue Pro (United States)
HTC HD7 (United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Spain)
HTC 7 Mozart (France, United Kingdom, Germany, Australia)
HTC 7 Surround (United States)
HTC 7 Trophy (France, Germany, Spain, United Kingdom, Australia)
LG Optimus 7 (Canada, Mexico, Spain, Germany, Italy, Spain, United Kingdom, Singapore, Australia)
LG Quantum (United States)
Samsung Focus (United States)
Samsung OMNIA 7 (France, United Kingdom, Spain, Germany)
One feature that won't be present in Windows Phone 7 devices at launch is Copy & Paste, which Microsoft promises as part of a software update in early 2011.
Comments
You better not switch them on.
sounds more like a desperate last attempt.
7 phones? really?
sounds more like a desperate last attempt.
If you actually read the article, it clearly says 9
3+ years late to the party and no copy/paste? Geez.
Its being added early 2011
Apart from the stupid name, it seems like a fresh direction. It will be interesting to see if that new direction appeals to consumers, or just confuses them.
C.
I'll give it six weeks.
Lots of different hardware, yeah, no way this can fail. How long will it be until we hear the first "It's the drivers fault, or no driver available" comments.
7 phones? really?
sounds more like a desperate last attempt.
I disagree.
As much as I hate Microsoft and have the lowest opinion of their design chops, these look like credible competitors to me. They are striking right at Apple's achilles heel with these things and I would expect that unless the actual user experience on the hardware is shite (and early reviews are that they are actually pretty slick BTW), that they will gain a lot of traction. Apple is focussed like a laser on the consumer as a sort of target to sell media to. Their offerings in terms of productivity however, are minimal, beta-esque and fraught with usability problems. This is the main weakness of the iOS platform IMO and Microsoft is going for the jugular here.
The whole "tiles" metaphor seems junky and clunky to me, but people will put up a lot to get the integration and because a lot of the views Microsoft is giving on your data with these phones is actually useful as opposed to the iOS way of doing things. Business users, and anyone who actually does work on their phone will gravitate towards these kinds of devices until Apple gets their finger out and decides to make phones or tablets for that part of the market (if they ever do).
I'll give it six weeks.
Now that's just mean! Very funny, though! Made me smile!
Best
who picks all the terrible colors MS always uses?
The same guy that does their icons found on MS OS any version!
I still hate that black strip to the right... makes the rest look as if off alignment... Of course, we are talking MS here... they invented 'off alignment'!
I disagree.
As much as I hate Microsoft and have the lowest opinion of their design chops, these look like credible competitors to me. They are striking right at Apple's achilles heel with these things and I would expect that unless the actual user experience on the hardware is shite (and early reviews are that they are actually pretty slick BTW), that they will gain a lot of traction. Apple is focussed like a laser on the consumer as a sort of target to sell media to. Their offerings in terms of productivity however, are minimal, beta-esque and fraught with usability problems. This is the main weakness of the iOS platform IMO and Microsoft is going for the jugular here.
I agree that the WP7 looks quite credible. But I think MS would be stupid to target Apple. Apple is not their rival here.
Their real target should be Android. Their goal is persuading Android manufacturers to switch to MS. And I think the way to do that is to keep pushing their "delightful" and "personal" selling points.
My concern is that Microsoft is culturally very weak at communicating this kind of message.
An example of very bad Microsoft communication
C.
Everything about WP7 seems rushed. The hardware is underwhelming and inferior to the iPhone. The interface?Live Tiles specifically?looks like some bad web design from the late 90s. The animations are cheesy and overdone.
Microsoft thinks they?re going to regain market share with this? It?s not even competitive.
(Sadly, WP7 is probably more polished than Android.)
i would LOVE it if apple allowed you to customize the info on your iOS lock screen - to include a selection of widgets [weather, stocks, scores, recent sms, etc...]