Posted on 10/21/2010 8:20:09 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach
Review We've been playing with a Windows Phone 7 device for a week or so now, and have been surprisingly impressed with the detail, though sadly disappointed with the bigger picture.
Microsoft has put a lot into Windows Phone 7, and plans to spend a fortune developing it, but while the interface and functionality has a host of beautiful touches - from the dots that fly around the place showing activity, to the elegant animations bringing a minimalist interface to life - the whole fails to satisfy entirely and one can't help feeling there's still a lot of work to be done.
Microsoft has spent a great deal of time making sure its baby gets everyone's attention; reviewers were required to attend a half-day briefing to ensure they understood the motivation behind every nuance of the interface. Just in case they dozed off, MS helpfully provided a 107-page reviewers' guide. One can hardly fault a company for providing dedicated support, but it's indicative of how important it is to Redmond that Windows Mobile 7 is loved by all.
And there's a lot to love, with applications heavily integrated and tied (or locked) to cloud services from Microsoft and its partners. But before we get into the interface and what's behind it, we'll start with the hardware, which is mandated on every Windows Phone 7 device.
Every Windows Phone 7 must have three buttons on the front, providing Back, Search and Start (which means Home, but Microsoft insists on calling it "Start"). Back and Search are context-sensitive, but Start always takes you back to the tiled home screen.
(Excerpt) Read more at theregister.co.uk ...
Another review...good words on the browser.
Well.. I myself am getting a windows 7 phone. I’m quite impressed with what I’ve seen so far.
By Hard Reg • Get more from this author
UK mobile phone network operators will start selling Windows Phone 7 handsets tomorrow.
Orange will be offering the HTC 7 Mozart and the Samsung Omnia 7 - the latter shared with T-Mobile and Three. Vodafone has the HTC 7 Trophy, and O2 the HTC 7 HD.
O2's HTC 7 HD
Orange is trying to tempt buyers at its 155 Oxford Street store with a free Bluetooth headset if they buy one of its WinPho 7 handsets.
The carrier didn't mention that it will also be offering the LG Optimus 7 - so that's clearly not out on the big day.
Three will begin selling the Omnia 7 tomorrow on its The One Plan for £40 a month, on its Internet Texter 900 tariff for £38 a month, and on its Internet Texter 500 plan for £35 per month.
Samusung Omnia 7 will be available free from T-Mobile too, on plans starting at £35 a month - on a 24-month contract which will include 900 minutes, 500 texts and unlimited internet.
Orange's version will also be free to anyone taking out a £40-per-month, two-year contract. The package includes 1200 any-network call minutes, unlimited text, unlimited email, sat nav with Orange Maps as well as inclusive anytime internet browsing, Orange said.
The Mozart will also be free, if you sign up for a two-year, £35-a-month plan that includes 600 any-network call minutes, unlimited text, unlimited email, sat nav with Orange Maps as well as inclusive anytime internet browsing.
O2 said the HTC 7 HD will be available on its range of pay monthly smartphone tariffs, all of which come with unlimited Wi-Fi. The HD is free on a £40 two-year tariff that comes with 900 minutes, unlimited texts and 750MB UK data. The phone will also be available on O2’s PAYG tariffs for £379.
Vodafone hasn't released its pricing plans yet.
You can get a full run-down of the handsets' tech specs on Reg Hardware's phone comparison page.
And you can read our Windows Phone 7 hands-on to see what we think of the new smartphone OS. ®
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More a re-skin than a re-invention
Analysis Will Windows Phone 7 succeed? That's difficult to say, but Microsoft can at least claim that it has come up with something different.
Not very different, mind. WinPho 7 isn't the radical departure Microsoft might want us to think it is, but it is a refreshing alternative to the apps'n'icons approach its rivals have taken.
In that respect, WinPho 7 owes more the Palm's WebOS than to either Apple's iOS or Google's Android. There's a much greater blurring of the lines between apps, services and data than there there is on the latter platforms, and, like WebOS, it puts social networking and email accounts on a par and at the heart of the system.
The downside here is that if you're not an avid Facebooker and you don't own an Xbox, you probably don't care about any of this. And you'll notice some big, empty gaps in WinPho 7's "hubs", the zones in which the OS groups related data and services.
The Photos hub, for instance, has an area headed Latest News which presents uploaded and shared snaps for your social networked chums. No chums - at least none you follow online - no pics.
Hubs comprise a large area with the screen showing just a portion of the whole. You swipe left or right to move on to the next part. It's a novel idea that dispenses with the notion of a screen as a menu containing iconic options you can tap.
They seemed to think that it will be a good platform in a year or two. I wonder where the competition will be in a year or two?
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