App Review: Wake up to your music with Music Alarm Clock.

I think you will all agree that the Windows Phone alarm clock sucks. You are limited to the default system sound and it is currently not possible to set your own music as alarm, the same you cannot have a customized ring tone. All of this will supposedly change with the Mango upgrade. If you’re out looking for an alternative to the default alarm clock, which by the way is extremely annoying, then look for Music Alarm Clock on Marketplace.

As its name implies, this nice utility lets you set your own music as your alarm thus ensuring a pleasant wake up. Very simple to use, Music Alarm Clock will tap into the songs you synchronized to your phone.

How it works?

Start the app and set the alarm time. Then you may choose to manually set your song or have the app randomly select a song from your playlist. I really like this feature.

What I don’t like.

In fact, there is just one thing I don’t like about Music Alarm Clock. It supports just one alarm. It would be nice to be able to set multiple alarms.  The other issue is not the developer’s fault. Because of restrictions set by Microsoft, the application does not run in the background. So you’ll have to keep Music Alarm Clock running in the foreground. Therefore, remember to bring it up before going to bed and switch off the screen and it will work fine. The developers said will they will update the app when Microsoft enables multitasking. Until then, Music Alarm Clock is a cool utility to have if you’re bored and annoyed by the default alarm sound.

Download here.

Seesmic for Windows Phone updated to version 1.5.

Seesmic is not just an app that lets you post to a Twitter account; it's also capable of handling multiple Twitter accounts and your Facebook account. It also helps you keep all these organized on a dashboard.

So what's new in 1.5:

·         Better user experience with context menus

·         Trend integration with services from What The Trend

·         Send tweet via SMS

·         User is now able to select how to open hyperlinks (in-app browser      or IE)

·         UI improvements in Salesforce Chatter

·         Fixed Facebook timeline bug

·         Fixed Twitter login bug

·         "speak" a tweet (it reads the tweet for you)

Seesmic can be downloaded free on Marketplace

zune://navigate/?phoneappid=bc081865-c2cc-df11-9eae-00237de2db9e

Sent from my Windows Phone 7

Microsoft has a security fix in the works for Windows Phone 7.

First, it is important to point out that this fix will be issued by Microsoft for a mistake made by a third party Certification Authority called Comodo. According to The Unwired, the latter “issued fraudulent digital certificates on behalf of a third party without sufficiently validating its identity. These certificates may be used to spoof content, perform phishing attacks or perform man-in-the-middle attacks against all web browsers including Internet Explorer on Windows Phone 7.”

The update is currently being tested by Microsoft and its partners. The fix is expected to be released early May.

App Review: “9 Contacts Quick”. Add 9 contacts to one tile on your home-screen.

The new Windows Phone screen lets you pin your favourite contacts to the home screen for easy and quick access. Which is great and efficient, but it’s not so when you have more than one favourite contacts. Adding them to your home screen will make for more scrolling. What if you could group them together under one tile? That is possible with “9 Contacts Quick”, a free app from NeverDecaf that lets you add nine members of your family or friends to one tile on the main screen.

“9 Contacts Quick” is very easy to use. After downloading and installing from Zune, open the app from the application list on your phone. The main screen has three headers: Call, SMS and Email. Below the headers are 9 tiles that you will fill up with your favourite contacts to quickly call, SMS or email them. Tap Call to initiate a phone call, SMS to send a message etc.

 

Tap a tile. Doing so will launch your contact list. Now choose your favourite contact and select a phone number. The data is added to the tile with the phone number displayed. This is somehow inconvenient, since it adds one more step to have the contacts name displayed. I think the developer should take that one step out. To have the name displayed, just tap the tile again and fill up the available fields: Name, Description and Symbol/Initial. Click OK when done. Repeat the same steps for the other tiles.

When you’re done filling up the other tiles, remember to pin the app to the Start menu.

Say that one of your friends is not a favourite anymore or you want to make update a tile. This is easily achieved by a tap and hold on a tile. A menu appears with the following self explanatory options: Select New Contact and Update Name and Description.

This is it. Now you have 9 persons who are important to you on your home screen. No need to search for them in your extensive contact list. “9 Contacts Quick” is extremely easy to use. However, some steps in the addition of a contact can be automated. For example, having the name of the contact added to the tile. One last thing that I believe should be change is the name of the app, really.

I recommend “9 Contacts Quick”.

zune://navigate/?appID=a61b7096-5265-e011-81d2-78e7d1fa76f8

Facebook for Windows Phone updated.

Microsoft is pushing an update for the Facebook Application for Windows Phone. The update does not bring features like push notifications but includes "a lot of fixes to known issues and significant performance improvements".

You should have received a notification on your home screen by now; if not make sure you add the Marketplace tile to your main screen.

Check out this app: NBA Scores Lite

This is a must have application if you're a NBA fan. Besides games schedules, NBA Scores Lite supports Live tile. Just choose your game and pin it to your Windows Phone 7 screen and watch the score evolve. The tile will display each teams jerseys with their respective score. As I'm writing this, I'm "watching" the Spurs vs Grizzlies game on my phone. Very useful when you cannot watch the game on TV.

I recommend this app.

NBA Scores Lite | zune://navigate/?appID=b11cc098-7bf7-df11-9264-00237de2db9e

Sent from my Windows Phone 7

My HTC Mozart - front

Sent from my Windows Phone

My HTC Mozart.

Sent from my Windows Phone

MIX11 WP7 "Help Turn This Fan-Made Windows Phone Video into a Real TV Ad"

Voici une vidéo à ne pas manquer sur YouTube :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Xm-_gbmcM4&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Enjoy.

HTC releases app that makes WP7 see hidden networks.

A known issue since its release in October last year, Windows Phone 7 phones built by HTC now can see hidden networks. Hidden Wifi is available free for download on MarketPlace.

"The hidden Wi-Fi app let's you add 3 Wi-Fi access points with hidden network names to your Wi-Fi network list. After you add them to your list, you can connect to them like any other Wi-Fi network."

Hopefully we'll see a similar app built into Windows Phone 7 soon.

Follow the link on your HTC Windows Phone 7 to download the free app:

zune://navigate/?phoneappid=92a1beb6-c564-e011-81d2-78e7d1fa76f8

System Information Report for my HTC Mozart.

Phone
   Model: HTC 7 Mozart T8698
   Time: Wednesday, April 06, 2011 ● 7:55:12 PM
   Time zone: UTC+04
   Turned on since: Wednesday, April 06, 2011 ● 1:26:02 PM
   Operating time: 6 hours, 29 minutes and 10 seconds
   Screen resolution: 480 x 800
   Display language: English (United States)
   Region format: English (United States)
   OS version: 7.0.7390
   .NET CLR version: 3.7.10302.0
   Firmware version: 2250.09.13001.401
   Hardware version: 0004


Storage
   Total memory: 475.12 MB
   Available storage: 5.78 GB
   Number of songs: 0
   Number of pictures: 13
   Pictures size: 3.87 MB

Network
   Connection interface: WiFi
   IP address:

System Information by Eyjo is a free app for Windows Phone 7. Get it here: http://social.zune.net/redirect?type=phoneApp&id=c7469572-2950-e011-854c-00237de2db9e

Sent from my Windows Phone

Joe Belfiore talks about Windows Phone 7 and updates.

Enjoy

http://channel9.msdn.com/Shows/Counting-Down-to-Mix/Countdown-to-MIX11-Joe-Belfiore-Talks-Phone

Free: TuneIn Radio for Windows Phone - listen to radio everywhere you go.

TuneIn is the kind of app that you will always want to have handy especially when travelling as it lets you somehow stay in touch with home through live streaming. TuneIne radio on your Windows Phone offers free access to over 30,000 FM & AM radio stations over the world. I like this app; it's installed on all my devices and i'm happy to see it land on my Windows Phone - after all, it's the one device carry everywhere.

One very useful feature of TuneIn Radio is the ability to search not only radio stations, but you can also search by artist and song and see which radio stations are playing it right now. I find this to be very cool.

TuneIn is free for download in MarketPlace or visit tunein.com on your Windows Phone to download.

Posted using my good old HTC Touch Pro 2 running Windows Mobile 6.5.

Microsoft started updating Windows Phone 7 updater software to prepare phone for NoDo.

Since yesterday, Microsoft has started pushing a small update to Windows Phones globally. While this is not the update known as NoDo that will bring copy/paste to WP7, it prepares your device for it and for upcoming updates that Microsoft will push your way. As mentioned in the title of this post, the update upgrades the updater software on your phone. If you haven't got the update yet, don't worry, Microsoft is gradually pushing it out, so it will eventually reached your beloved device. So what can you do in the mean time.

First, check that you have the latest version of Zune on your computer. To verify that, open Zune, click Settings at the top of the screen, then Software > General > Check for updates.

On your phone, verify that the update notification is enabled. Navigate to Settings > System > Phone update. Check both boxes on that screen.

Connect your phone to your computer and restart. Try again later if, like me, you do not see the update notification.

Anyone got the update yet? 

Windows Phone 7 Connector for Mac out of beta.

Owners of Mac computers running Mac OS X 10.6.6 or later can you now use the free connector to sync a Windows Phone 7 with a Mac. So, if you're a Mac user and have been holding off purchasing a Windows Phone, you don't have to worry anymore.

Besides being easy to use, Windows Phone 7 Connector lets you:

• Sync music, movies, TV Shows and podcasts, from your existing iTunes library, to your devices*
• Sync photos and videos, from your existing iPhoto library, to your devices
• Retrieve photos and videos, taken on your Windows Phone, and automatically import them into your existing iPhoto library
• Browse and preview media items located on your devices
• Download and install operating system updates for your Windows Phone (as applicable)
* Only unprotected (non DRM) files are supported


Click the image to download the app from App Store.

A Geek is born

Free Amazon app for Windows Phone 7.

It's the Windows Phone platform to now receive the Amazon app after IOS and Android. The free app of course lets you purchase stuff on the online store, post reviews, compare prices, access account and shipping options right on the device on the go. Windows Phone users can access Amazon through their browsers without the app, but its was somehow inconvenient and slow. The new Amazon app makes perusing the online store more fun. Note that all prices are in U.S. dollar.

The app can be downloaded free in the Windows Phone MarketPlace.

Windows Phone 7 photos from Nokia press conference.

Today is day one of the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona and Nokia did not wait for today to show some Windows Phone 7 concepts at a press briefing held yesterday. The concepts phone have great looks. They sure look attractive, eye-catching and thin. The different colors are a differentiating factor already, considering that other existing Windows Phone 7 phones are mostly black or grey. Unfortunately Stephen Elop, the former Microsoft Vice president turned Nokia CEO, did not mention any availability dates.

Check out the video of the Nokia press briefing at MWC.

Seesmic Gets updated.

There is an update to Seesmic for Windows Phone 7. You should see it
on your home screen on your phone if you have MarketPlace tile there.
The update brings Seesmic to version 1.3 and includes the following:

Timelines are now caches for increased loading speed.
Speed and scrolling improvements everywhere in the app.
Display of private and verified Twitter accounts.
Added animations and transitions.
Bug fixes.

Nokia and Microsoft announce plans for a broad strategic partnership to build a new global ecosystem

London, Feb. 11, 2011 - Nokia and Microsoft today announced plans to form a broad strategic partnership that would use their complementary strengths and expertise to create a new global mobile ecosystem.

Nokia and Microsoft intend to jointly create market-leading mobile products and services designed to offer consumers, operators and developers unrivalled choice and opportunity.  As each company would focus on its core competencies, the partnership would create the opportunity for rapid time to market execution.  Additionally, Nokia and Microsoft plan to work together to integrate key assets and create completely new service offerings, while extending established products and services to new markets. 

Under the proposed partnership:

- Nokia would adopt Windows Phone as its principal smartphone strategy, innovating on top of the platform in areas such as imaging, where Nokia is a market leader.

- Nokia would help drive the future of Windows Phone.  Nokia would contribute its expertise on hardware design, language support, and help bring Windows Phone to a larger range of price points, market segments and geographies.

- Nokia and Microsoft would closely collaborate on joint marketing initiatives and a shared development roadmap to align on the future evolution of mobile products.

- Bing would power Nokia's search services across Nokia devices and services, giving customers access to Bing's next generation search capabilities.  Microsoft adCenter would provide search advertising services on Nokia's line of devices and services.

- Nokia Maps would be a core part of Microsoft's mapping services.   For example, Maps would be integrated with Microsoft's Bing search engine and adCenter advertising platform to form a unique local search and advertising experience

- Nokia's extensive operator billing agreements would make it easier for consumers to purchase Nokia Windows Phone services in countries where credit-card use is low.

- Microsoft development tools would be used to create applications to run on Nokia Windows Phones, allowing developers to easily leverage the ecosystem's global reach. 

- Nokia's content and application store would be integrated with Microsoft Marketplace for a more compelling consumer experience.

"Today, developers, operators and consumers want  compelling mobile products, which include not only the device, but the software, services, applications and customer support that make a great  experience," Stephen Elop, Nokia President and CEO, said at a joint news conference in London. "Nokia and Microsoft will combine our strengths to deliver an ecosystem with unrivalled global reach and scale. It's now a three-horse race."

"I am excited about this partnership with Nokia," said Steven A. Ballmer, Microsoft CEO. "Ecosystems thrive when fueled by speed, innovation and scale. The partnership announced today provides incredible scale, vast expertise in hardware and software innovation and a proven ability to execute."

Please visit www.nokia.com/press for press materials.

Article: The Why and How’s of Windows Phone 7

The Why and How's of Windows Phone 7
http://mstruys.wordpress.com/2011/01/29/the-why-and-hows-of-windows-phone-7/

(Sent from Flipboard)

Sent from my iPad

Article: Sony's official NGP announcement video hits the web

Sony's official NGP announcement video hits the web
http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/29/sonys-official-ngp-announcement-video-hits-the-web/

(Sent from Flipboard)

Sent from my iPad

Skype variant for Windows Phone 7 is a work in progress.

You probably remember sometime back, Skype announced that they had no
plans to develop Skype for Microsoft mobile platform. Well they
haven't change their mind for whatever reasons which we can imagine is
politically motivated. Fortunately, a developer over at Xda has
started working on a variant of Skype which for now allows for
chatting only. The project is still in progress and the developer is
looking for help in the design of the app. So, if you have time and
the skills, go to
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=926939.

At this stage, contacts and ability to chat are working.

I have the feeling that Skype is not going to like this.

eWallet Go! for Windows Phone 7 released.

My first encounter with Ilium Software goes back to the days when Windows Phone was known as Pocket PC for touchscreen devices and Smartphones for non-touchscreen devices. At that time, Microsoft nearly owned theses names. Now that Windows Phone 7 is out, most developers have or are working to port their software to the new platform and Ilium is the latest to announce the release of eWallet.

eWallet is an application that lets you securely store your data on your Windows Phone 7 using 256 bit AES encryption. eWallet does not stop there as it lets you backup and restore your information using Google Docs and Dropbox. Very useful in case you have to perform a hard reset.

eWallet is available on MarketPlace for $4.99.

For more information, visit http://www.iliumsoft.com/ewalletgo.

New URL.

With the new year, I thought convenient to change the URL to the new name Microsoft has chosen for its phone. As from now, I am moving from Pocket PC Mauritius to Windowsphonemu.blogspot.com. Please, change your bookmarks. Thanks for following this blog. Happy new year to you all.

Linley

Merry Christmas all

I'm currently on vacation in Hong Kong, that is why this blog has been silent for a while. I will be back next year. Until then, I wish you all a Merry Christmas. Hope Santa will bring some cool stuff to all of you.

I just got a tweet from Santa, and he's bringing me an iPad. I'm so excited.

Dear readers,  thank you for your Support and again, have a great Christmas.

I'm posting this from my Nexus One.

Tips: How to change language on your Windows Phone 7.

I speak three languages, English, French and Creole. The latter is our mother tongue. Since I'm active on the Windows Phone forums, both English and French, i find it very useful to be able to switch between the two languages. However, it would be great to be able to do so without having to reboot the phone like it's the case on another mobile operating system. Most Windows Phone 7 supports at least two languages and they vary depending on your location. So, how do you go about doing the switch? Follow the steps below:

From the main screen, flick to the left to access the application list.

Scroll down to Settings. Tap to open.

Tap Region & Language.

Tap the "Display language" field to select your preferred language. When done, you are taken back to the Region & Language screen.

Notice just above the "Display language", there is a message saying "Tap here to accept changes and restart your phone." Tap that message to restart your phone into the new language.

To revert back to your initial language, follow the same steps.

Now if you have been through all these steps and finally decided not to proceed with the switch, do not tap to restart the phone, instead press the Back button.

HTC Hub now has live tile.

The HTC Hub application has been updated on HTC phones running Windows Phone 7. It is now live and and shows your local weather. It's good to see more and more apps with live tiles on the main screen. This is, among other things, what makes Windows Phone 7 unique. In case you missed it, there is also a Twitter client on MarketPlace called Beezz that supports push nofication and live tile. 

Check out the video to see the live tile in action:

Source: WMPoweruser via: PocketNow

APPA Mundi brings Tasks sync to Windows Phone 7.

While Windows Phone 7 has tight Exchange server integration, it does not support Tasks synchronization. I don't think ever reading anything about the reasons Tasks was left out. Thanks to a third party developer, Tasks synchronization is now possible. The application lets you update your to-do list and sync with Exchange and, of course, see your Tasks in Outlook. Other options include:

• Filter your Task list by Status
• Sort your Tasks by Status, Priority, Subject, Start Date or Due Date
• Create new Tasks on your Windows Phone
• Edit and Delete existing Tasks
• Synchronize with Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 and later
• Trial version supports a maximum of 6 Tasks
• Credentials are securely stored and only used to communicate directly with your Exchange Server

For more info, visit APPA Mundi website.

Windows Phone unlocker released.

Rafael Rivera, Chris Walsh and Long Zheng have put their efforts together to build a simple program that will let you install applications that did not make it to Microsoft MarketPlace. In other words, the software unlocks your Windows Phone 7 and the process is reversible. So it's not like you're jailbreaking your phone. Installing the unlocker on your phone does not modify the operating system.

Check out www.chevronwp7.com for more details.

Google Search app hits Windows Phone 7.

Yes and that is no surprise since Bing has long had its presence on Android. Google Search for Windows Phone 7 has such features like suggestions while typing, results based on location using the built-in GPS. Of course Google Search is free, but is not available globally yet.

Tips: "service unavailable right now. Check back in a little while" when connecting to MarketPlace on WP7

You try to connect to Marketplace or initiate a download on your Windows Phone and the error above is displayed?
Open your browser on your computer and sign-in to www.zune.net and signout. Launch MarketPlace on your Windows Phone again and you should be good to go.

The same error in French reads like this:

"Nous ne parvenons pas à obtenir cette info. Ré-essayez dans quelques instants."

Sent with my Windows Phone 7

Free: Flickr Manager for Windows Phone 7.

I have seen several requests on the forum about the ability to upload stuffs to Flickr. now this is possible with the free Flickr Manager. using flickr Manager, you will be able to view/manage your photostream, view your favorites, upload photos right from your Windows Phone 7.

Visit MarketPlace on your device or Zune MarketPlace on your phone to download your free copy.

Xbox Live Extras updated.

If you have been experiencing issues with Xbox Live Extras, you may want to download this free update from MarketPlace. Microsoft does not say anything about the changes the update brings, but I guess it contains a fix to the problems evoked on the forums.

Note that Xbox Live Extras is available in 8 countries only:

United States
United Kingdom
Canada
Australia
Ireland
New Zealand
Singapore
Hong Kong

Xbox Live Extras has worked well for me, so I won't apply the update because of the location restrictions. Microsoft has announced that more countries will be added.


Sent with my Windows Phone 7

How to: Save a new phone # from SMS to Contact on Windows Phone 7.

A new business contact sends you a sms and since you just met a few minutes ago, the sms shows up on your new Windows Phone 7 with the phone number displayed. Obvious, this is a new contact. So how do you go about adding the phone number to your contacts?

Simple, open the SMS you just received and tap on the phone number at the top of the screen and this brings up the unknown contact profile page. Tap the Save icon on the application bar and you will be presented with the Choose a contact screen. You have to choices here: (1) Search or (2) New Contact.

The option to search a contact lets you save the phone number to an existing contact. But this is not what we want here. Tap "New Contact". The phone number is automatically added to the phone field and you get to set the Phone number type. Save your changes by tapping the tick at the bottom of the screen and you're taken back to the standard Contact page where you'll be able to add a photo, name of the new contact, assign a ringtone or add an email address. Tap Save and the contact are added to your phone. One last thing, if you have more than just the default Windows Live account, you will be given the choice to select to which account to save your new contact. For that, tap that Account field.

KB: When signing in to your Windows Phone with Live ID you are asked for an activation code.

Microsoft has published what probably is the first KB article for Windows Phone 7 after some users have reported that they cannot activate their shining new phone via Windows Live. While this issue does not affect the use of the phone itself, the user just won't be able to access services like Live email, Xbox, MarketPlace etc.

The good thing is that Microsoft has promptly issued a fix that requires you call Microsoft Support to get the activation code that will let you proceed with setting up your phone. Read the KB article for more information and to locate the Microsoft Customer Service nearest to you.

KB2431699

Microsoft adds YouTube plugin to MarketPlace.

Yes there is a free YouTube plugin on MarketPlace for Windows Phone 7. Now don't rush there you download it because you won't find it. Instead go to a site with YouTube videos, like m.youtube.com and tap on a video. The system will take you to MarketPlace to download the plugin. That  done, you will able to watch YouTube videos on your new phone.

Source: PocketNow

Windows Phone 7 launches in Europe, Asia and Australia today.

Today is the big day for Microsoft as Windows Phone 7 devices are already on store shelves in some part of the world; think Australia and New Zealand. There is a lot of buzz on the internet and reviews are all out with most of them positive. The not so positive thing about Windows Phone 7 is the lack of Copy/Paste and support for flash. But wait, all this is coming with an update soon. If you haven't get a chance to and play with the device yet, read he reviews posted on Engadget. The team offers an in-depth look at three devices: HTC HD 7; Samsung Omnia 7 and the HTC Surround.

Check them out and enjoy:

HTC HD7

Samsung Omnia 7

HTC Surround

There's another review on Gizmodo that 's also worth reading.

Windows Phone 7: How To.

The device is not out yet but you can still train yourself before the release next week in Europe and Asia with the How Tos posted by Microsoft on their website. I'm sure you will find them helpful.

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsphone/en-us/howto/wp7/default.aspx

Enjoy.

IliumSoft developing eWallet for Windows Phone 7.

With the official launch of Windows 7 last Monday and the growing excitement for the platform, we're starting to see developers from the Windows mobile 6.x world porting their applications to the new WP7 platform. Which is great and logical. So it comes as no surprise that eWallet will soon be part of MarketPlace offerings. However, no official release date has been announced with eWallet for Windows Phone 7 still in the works.

Read the blog post here.

Windows Phone 7 forums.

You don't know where to go to ask questions about Microsoft's Windows Phone 7? There are two places I highly recommend:

The English forums for WP7: Windows Phone 7 Forums

The French forums for WP7: Forums Windows Phone 7

You will find me on both. See you there :)

First looks at HTC devices powered by Windows Phone 7 - HTC 7 Mozart

The HTC Mozart has a WVGA LCD screen, a 1GHz Qualcomm processor, 576MB of RAM, 8GB built-in storage and an aluminum unibody.

First looks at HTC devices powered by Windows Phone 7 - HD7

The HD7 has 4.3 inch WVGA TFT screen, 1GHz Qualcomm processor, 576MB of RAM, a 5 megapixel camera and of course Windows Phone 7. Basically it has the same specs as the HD2, except for the OS.

Windows Phone 7 is now official.

Yesterday, Microsoft officially launched Windows Phone 7 at an event in New York. They also presented some devices with the new OS and they kind of looked cool. So if you missed the event, check out the links below:

Watch the press conference

Tour the variety of devices

For one thing, Windows Phone 7 has grabbed the attention of many.

Windows Phone Radio Episode Number 2

Listen to episode 2 in the link.

http://windowsteamblog.com/windows_phone/b/windowsphone/archive/2010/10/08/windows-phone-radio-episode-number-2.aspx

Windows Phone radio launched.

With the upcoming release of Windows Phone 7, Microsoft has released the first episode of their radio show a few days ago. Hosted by Matt Akers and Brian Seitz, the weekly podcast will feature behind the scene information and interviews of Microsoft staff and partners involved with Windows Phone.

Here's the link to the first episode of the show:

http://traffic.libsyn.com/wpradio/WPR_Episode1.mp3

Source.

iPhone vs. Windows Phone 7.

Brandon Miniman of Pocketnow.com produced a nice video comparing the new Windows Phone 7 to the iPhone. Even if the Windows Phone device is a prototype, the iPhone just look like a two or three generation old device with it's app-icon centric interface that hides data. Windows Phone 7 on the other hand has live tiles that aggregates your data on the home screen so you do not have to launch multiple apps to view your data. Windows Phone 7 brings the data that is important to you to the home screen.

Watch Brandon's video:

Pictures of HD7/3 surfaces.

Pictures of the HTC HD7/3 have shown up on a Taiwanese forum. The device is labeled HD3 on the back, but the community is referring to it as HD7 for the OS that powers it. Yes, Windows Phone 7. What else?

The device in the picture is not broken. It's just the a kickstand.

Check out the pictures via WMPoweruser.

At least one feature that won't work for me on Windows Phone 7.

I was reading an article over at Techflash about the availability of the Zune service in some countries in Europe, South America, Australia and New Zealand. Obviously, Microsoft has been hard at work to get deals in those countries before the launch of the new Windows Phone next month. But that had me wondering if Microsoft will make the service available worldwide, including State islands like Mauritius. For one thing, Windows Phone 7 will reach Mauritian shores by year end. Thus far, Microsoft and Google seem to have diligently ignored the non-U.S, European customers – much to the benefit of Nokia. By now, if you’re reading this, you are probably asking yourself what I’m talking about.

So let’s get to the point with a hands-on, no matter if you have a Windows Phone (version 6.1 or later) or an Android phone. Launch Marketplace and Market, select any paid application and start the process to buy it.

Marketplace is smart enough to display both paid and free apps. But it’s also frustrating because you can’t actually buy those apps in Mauritius. Android Market lets you see only free apps. If you try looking for a paid application, the result is an annoying message saying that the app does not exist.

Why is it that I cannot access paid applications on both these platforms? Is my money not smart enough? You get the same frustrating experience on your PC with Windows Media Center which lists a bunch of great shows for you to watch, only that they are not available in your region. WHY?

I understand that each country has its own modus operandi, tax hungry governments and that companies like Microsoft have first to comply with local laws. Isn’t that the very reason why Microsoft has a bureau in Mauritius? To help, among other things, be in compliance and to strike deals with local business partners, policy makers.

Windows Phone 7 has everything it needs to get Microsoft win back market shares. It’s likely that we’ll see a dazzling lineup of Windows Phones next month on the market that will move Microsoft current ranking north. But that will only happen in the U.S. and Europe. Other markets will remain deprived of paid apps, Zune service and probably Xbox live. Limited to Nokia's offerings and not enjoy the full potential of the Windows Phone.

These features won't work for me on the new Windows Phone.

Opera releases Opera Mini 5.1 for windows Mobile.

Looking for a better Windows Mobile browser? Opera today released the improved Opera Mini 5.1 for Windows Mobile. The new update brings better support for high resolution handsets, accelerometer support and the ability to set Opera Mini as the default browser.

Opera Mini 5.1 has already been released for Java, Android and BlackBerry phones. Now available for Windows Mobile 2003 SE, 5.x and 6.x handsets, Opera Mini’s server backbone speeds up browsing while reducing the data transferred to the phone. For users roaming on expensive networks, or with pay-as-you-go data plans, Opera Mini can cut your mobile data bill by up to 90 percent.

Opera Mini 5.1 features many compelling updates, including: 

• The ability to set Opera Mini as the default browser
• Support for devices with high-resolution (high DPI)
• Improved page layout and font rendering
• Support for auto-rotation
• Advanced configuration support for power users

“Opera Mini 5.1 contains several key improvements for the millions of people with a Windows Mobile phone,” said Jon von Tetzchner, Co-founder, Opera Software. “The new Opera Mini is particularly vibrant and really takes advantage of high resolution screens. And, now that you can set Opera Mini as your default browser on a Windows Mobile phone, it is much easier to enjoy the speed boost and data compression. It is our way of making your Windows Mobile phone better.”

Download

Visit m.opera.com with your phone’s default browser, and Opera will automatically select the optimized version for your phone. Opera Mini is free to download and use. Opera Mini works on Windows Mobile 2003 SE, Windows Mobile 5.x and Windows Mobile 6.x phones.

Windows Phone Ads appear on YouTube.

Microsoft is getting ready for the Windows Phone release with these two adverts that appeared on YouTube. While I have never seen the one before because it was shown at an event in London during the last weekend, I am sure the second video is not new. If my memory serves me well, it's been out there since Microsoft CEO, Steve Ballmer, officially announced Windows Phone 7 at MWC in Barcelona earlier this year. Anyway, sit back and enjoy.





Source: Geek in Disguise

Windows Phone 7 released to manufacturing.

This is so exciting and it must be even more for the Windows Phone team after they've taken the gamble of re-writing Windows phone code from scratch. This has been a huge undertaking.  According to Terry Myerson's post on the team's blogs, " Windows phone 7 is the most thoroughly tested mobile platform Microsoft has ever released. We had nearly ten thousand devices running automated tests daily, over a half million hours of active self-hosting use, over three and a half million hours of stress test passes, and eight and half million hours of fully automated test passes. We've had thousands of independent software vendors and early adopters testing our software and giving us feedback. We are ready." So are we.

Congratulations to the Windows Phone team.

Tips: The following appointment failed to synchronize on the device. Support code 1

If you see the error in the title on your device or PC, then, most likely, you have a ghost entry in your calendar. Don't waste your time looking for the appointments, you'll find them nowhere. There is an easy way to solve this problem.

Bring up the command prompt by right-clicking on it and choosing "Run as administrator". Then type:

Regsvr32.exe %Windir%\system32\ole32.dll.

Press Enter.

Type Exit.

Reboot your computer.

You should now be able to sync.

UI firm designs interface for Windows tablet.

UI Centric, a user-interface design firm, has created an interface for the Windows Tablet. The interface looks a lot like the Windows Phone and Zune UI. In fact, with Microsoft looking to impose a touch-enabled  Windows 7 interface to its tablet has led the UI firm to create this overlay that will make the device more usable. The results are quite impressive. Check out the video.



Source: Seattle PI

Astraware releases new game - Brad Mitchum: Lost in Time.

Brad Mitchum is an archeologist who discovers a mysterious talisman. His curiosity will turn his world upside down when he gets lost in time. This is where you intervene and makes Brad see the funny side of this desperate situation. Your intervention will cost you $2.99 only.

Brad Mitchum: Lost in Time is a fun action arcade game inspired by classic ball-shooting titles like Pang or Buster Bros which includes 3 high action game modes:

• Story: with cinematic sequences and progressive difficulty for an ever-increasing challenge;
• Pure: an arcade style mode with multiple weapon types;
• X-trem: a special extra-difficulty mode with combo systems for hardcore players.

Video

GSMA Mobile World Congress 2011 speakers announced.

Mobile World Congress is a yearly exhibition/Conference about mobility. The event is held in Barcelona from February 14 to 17. So this is the place to be to see the future as every mobile actors seize this opportunity to showcase their advancement in mobile technology.

You also get to hear from speakers from prominent companies from across the world.  This year confirmed speakers are:

Randall Stephenson,  Chairman,  CEO be President of AT&T.

Li Yue,  President, China Mobile.

Eric Schmidt, Chairman and CEO,  Google.

Paul Jacobs, Chairman and CEO,  Qualcomm.

Jack Dorsey, CEO,  Square.

Evan Williams,  CEO,  Twitter.

The 2011 website is now launched.  You will find a wealth of information related to not only the event, but also about accommodation, agenda etc.

Learn more @ www.mobileworldcongress.com

Posted on the go.

Windows Phone 7 coming to Europe in October.

Kevin Turner, Microsoft COO, said during a presentation yesterday that Europe will be first to get Windows Phone 7 phones. Americans will see the device on the market in November. Never before has a Microsoft executive been giving such specifics about release dates. Unfortunately, Kevin Turner does not mention about availability for Africa and Asia. No surprise here.

Watch the video:



Source: Engadget

HTC Quietly releases update for HTC Touch Diamond2.

HTC never post much details about the updates on their website. All I know is that the update affects SMS and "amends the internal management of SMS functionality, and enhances SMS transmission stability" It's pretty vague.

Anyway, the update applies to ROM versions between 2.51.xxx.x to 2.54.xxx.x

Download the update on HTC's Support site.

Engadget's Joshua Topolsky interviews Joe Belfiore, corporate VP of Windows Phone.

Here's an excellent interview conducted by Joshua Topolsky, editor in chief of Engadget, of Joe Belfiore, one of the brains behind Windows Phone 7. I also encourage you read the "in-depth blowout of Windows Phone 7" by Engadget.

Enjoy!



Update: I'm editing this post to include other Windows Phone 7 previews by other sites who were lucky to be given a prototype device to play with:

Gizmodo
CNET (Part 1)
CNET (Part 2)
ZDNET

SPB Mobile TV is free for Windows Phones.

SPB Software is offering their Mobile TV  2.0 application for free. Mobile TV offers live TV streams along with video-on-demand channels from more than 17 countries. Of course, using Mobile TV on the go requires an unlimited data plan and, probably, a spare battery.

Get SPB TV 

Fring sends explanatory email to users about feud with Skype.

I'm publishing the email i just got from Fring about the issue with skype.

Hello fringsters,

As you may have noticed, Skype has blocked fring. We are very sorry for any inconvenience this Skype policy has unfairly caused you.

As loyal fring users, you deserve an explanation: Last week, following the surge in fring video calling traffic, fring service to Skype was temporarily reduced . Unfortunately, Skype and their legal team demanded not to restore your connectivity to Skype via fring.

Needless to say, we are very disappointed that Skype is now trying to muzzle competition, even at the expense of its own users.

While we regret Skype's decision to block fring, we are committed to continuing to provide you with market-leading innovation, to keep you in touch with your friends, wherever they are.

On fring you can freely use the best mobile over internet communication like video calling, calls and chat anywhere (3G/4G/WiFi) on any advanced Smartphone.

So, if you are frustrated like us with communication barriers, and are just looking for a fun and easy way to stay in touch with your friends on the go, tell them about fring and

invite your friends to join fring here

We appreciate your support and look forward to continuing to provide you with great mobile innovations.

Let freedom fring!

the fringTEAM.

How come Skype still does not have an application for Windows Phone yet? 

Astraware releases two new games for Windows Phone.

I love Astraware games. They're fun to play and they keep me awake when commuting to work. I must say that I'm amazed that they are still developing games for the current Windows Phone platform knowing that Windows Phone 7 is targeted for release in a few months. That's good for customers. About the new releases.

The first game released is Police Range, a perfect game to test your shooting skills and accuracy. You are not going to shoot anyone, so no blood spill. The name says it all. Their are two types of ranges for you to try your skills:

(1) Target Practice: Test your accuracy as targets appear at variable distances, and aim for the highest scores. Increase your reaction speeds as targets pop-up faster in later levels to increase the challenge.

(2) Crime Alley: test your eye and nerve in the street range as perps and civilians appear in windows and doorways. Take down the criminals but avoid shooting the civilians if you want to pass the training!

Police Range is available now for purchase at $2.99

More on Police Range here.

The second game is OddBlob.
Meet OddBlob: the groovy clay dude who loves to bounce! Help OddBlob bound across the squishy maze to grab bonuses, chomp fruit, and win points as quickly as he can as the chasing tiles disappear behind. Watch out for bounce and double bounce tiles that can help you reach your goal or throw you through the gaps to impending peril below! Cake slices earn you a try at the cake or doom mini-puzzle, the more bounces you make to get the cake, the bigger the bonus!


OddBlob is also available at $2.99


More on OddBlob here.

Youtube gets a Vuvuzela of it's own.

The world's largest video portal added a small soccer ball icon that, when clicked, mimics the now infamous Vuvuzela sound. Click the button again to stop the sound. After two weeks watching the FIFA world cup, I have accustomed myself to it. I even have Vuvuzela's apps on my phones. Ask my friends, they should know. At least two things we will remember about the 2010 world cup will be the Vuvuzelas and the French rout.

Download: Kin launcher for windows Mobile 6.5.

Want to give a Kin-like feel to your Windows Mobile device? Head over to Windows Phone Hacker for a free download. However, there is not much to it. Tapping on the shortcuts will take you back to the default Windows mobile theme or HTC sense or whichever theme you're using. So if you feel like bringing some change to your phone, download the cab file to your phone.

Here's a video that shows how it works:

Microsoft releases hotfix for recurring Calendar events synchronization issues.,

If you are experiencing issues where after synchronizing your phone with Outlook, your recurring events shift from one year to 12 years, then this hotfix will solve your problem. I have been seeing some reports on the Microsoft forums about this and I am happy that Microsoft has chosen to publish this fix. Here's an example of a situation on the Microsoft forums where this hotfix has solved this problem.
 

"You create a yearly recurring event on a Windows Mobile device, and you synchronize the Windows Mobile device with a computer that is running Office Outlook 2007. However, in both the Office Outlook 2007 calendar and on the Windows Mobile device, the recurring event shows that it will occur every 12 years instead of every year (12 months) after you perform the synchronization."

The hotfix can be requested for download here. For more information, read more.

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Press-Release: SPB TV for Windows Mobile Smartphones Gets a Major Update

SPB Software, a leading mobile software developer, has updated the Windows Mobile version of its flagship application SPB TV to version 2.0. Due to advertising revenues support the program is now free-of-charge and subscription-free. Ads featured in SPB TV only last as long as channel buffering takes and therefore preserve the best user experience.
 
In addition to the existing features that include quick channel previews, a TV guide for more than 150 offered channels in more than 20 languages, picture-in-picture mode, fast channel launching and switching, the new version offers also a video on demand (VOD) option. With this new feature the users can control what they are watching and when. Unlike broadcast TV, VOD provides greater choice and interactivity.
 
Another significant enhancement is the Advanced Video Codec (H.264) support which improves video quality. As a result even with substantial lower bitrates the resolution is strongly improved. SPB TV 2.0 also allows to watch TV with low speed mobile network connections.
 
SPB TV works on iPhone, Symbian, Android, BlackBerry and WebOS smartphones as well. Last month SPB TV has reached one million users milestone. It is interesting to see how mobile TV watching behaviour is different in different countries. For example 71% of US users use SPB TV via 3G while in Greece and Poland only 10% of users use 3G and others use WiFi.
 
"Taken into consideration all the statistics and feedback collected from our users, we created the new version of SPB TV, which can not only offer our users better video quality but can be also available to all Windows Mobile users absolutely for free", said Sebastian-Justus Schmidt, CEO of SPB Software.
 
SPB TV is also available as a solution for mobile operators. SPB TV Mobile Operators Solution allows carriers to couple SPB's proven solution with their own infrastructure and various subscription models. Three mobile operators world-wide has already deployed SPB TV based mobile TV solutions.
 
*** SPB TV 2.0 for Windows Mobile Main Features: ***
 
- Integrated TV Guide with the list of current and upcoming TV-shows
- Unique browser with fast channels launch and switching
- Quick channel preview (picture-in-picture mode)
- On-Screen Control Panel
- Video on Demand
- Setting a Reminder
- Video Quality Switcher
- Advanced Video Codec support

 

http://spb.com/pocketpc-software/tv/

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Give your Windows Phone battery cover a new look.

There is not much going on in the Windows Phone world these days; No new devices and no new software. Microsoft is busy finalizing Windows phone 7, which will be released sometime at the end of the year. While we are all patiently waiting for the the OS, some have found a way to enhance their current phones.

Paul White, editor at Whitesites, posted a step-by-step tutorial that turned his black HD2 battery  cover into a chrome mirrored finish. If you need something to keep you busy until Windows Phone 7 comes out, check out the tutorial @ Paul White's site.

SPB Shell updated.

Do you use SPB Shell? I have it on my HTC Advantage. Why? Simply put, it offers a better UI experience than the default Windows screen navigation. The new version brings some interesting changes, namely the replacement of Google Search by Microsoft Bing. A trial is available @ http://spbsoftwarehouse.com/pocketpc-software/mobileshell/

Note that the upgrade from 3.x to 3.5 is free.

Posted using my HTC Advantage.

New update brings turn-by-turn navigation to Bing.

That is great news for U.S. Citizens, yay. Microsoft added a "Navigate" button that makes Bing calculate your route. If you have your Windows Phone on the main carriers in the U.S., then you are lucky enough to use the voice guided navigation.

I just checked on MarketPlace and it is still showing the 2009 version of Bing.

Read more @ http://www.bing.com/community/blogs/search/archive/2010/05/10/updated-bing-app-for-windows-phone.aspx

Sent from my HTC Touch Pro 2.