Windows Phone Launch Event

Windows Phone

I had the pleasure of attending the London launch of Microsoft’s Windows Phone. This involved presentations from both Microsoft and some of there associated partners and detailed the new features found in windows mobile 6.5.

The most prominent changes to the Windows Phones are Visual ones. Microsoft have tweaked as many bits as they can to make using the OS a more attractive experience as well as more finger friendly with bigger icons.

The initial visual change you will see when first using a new Windows Phone is the lock screen.

Lock Screen

The supplied picture above is not the best to demonstrate the lock screen but you should get the idea from my explanation. The icon at the top will normally be the only one present and this will show you of any new notifications you may have. If you have voicemail, for example, you can drag this notification down and open the notification without unlocking the screen. The same goes for messages and missed calls. A nice feature if the only reason you are checking your phone is the notifications.

To unlock the device the unlock button at the top just has to be swiped left or right. Simple

The Windows Phone homescreen has had a major facelift. Gone are the days of the boring homescreen with limited information available.

Home Screens

Now there is tonnes of info on the screen and each header allows you to view more info by sweeping left or right. For example – pressing on text messages will show you the latest message but you could also sweep to the right to view the next message and so on. Each swipe only shows you the basic info of the message but this allow you to see who is communicating with you without having to go all the way into the messaging application.

The start screen has also seen some major changes. No longer does a drop down list appear which is fiddly to use. Now you get a full page grid design with big icons making it super finger friendly.

Start Screen

These icons can be rearranged by means of dragging the ones you want to the top of the screen. This is 100 times nicer than the 6.1 option. Good stuff Microsoft!

Windows Marketplace was next on the list.

Marketplace

Marketplace is Microsoft’s app store. Initially it launched with 246 quality apps, according to Microsoft, with many more to come. With some catching up to do compared to the IPhone, Marketplace has its work cut out and it will be interesting to see how prices compare with other app stores. The interface certainly looks nice and user friendly. At the moment here in the UK Marketplace customers will need to register a credit card for payment, where as in the USA they also have the option to be billed by there network provider on there phone bill. This will make life easier if we can get this option here.

My Phone is an amazing service that lets you back up phone data to the cloud.

My Phone

I have been using the Beta version of My Phone for a few months now and its great. Not only can you sync your phone contacts but also photos, videos, sms, calendar, tasks, browser favorites, music and documents. This means if you do lose or damage your phone all you need to do is install My Phone on the new handset and all your personal info syncs back to the phone. Nice!

You can set My Phone to sync automatically at a time of the day to suit or just do it manually. In addition it will also back up the information you have stored on a memory card.

My Phone online

All your saved data can be viewed online and you may find it easier to edit data this way. My Phone works, plain and simple.

A new feature with My Phone will come in handy if your phone is lost or stolen. Firstly you can locate the phone on a map using its last cell position! If you cant find your phone you can make it ring! Finally you can remotely lock the phone to prevent others from using it. Genius!

I have given details of the main new features discussed by Microsoft at the launch, although in windows mobile 6.5 there are dozens and dozens of new tweaks in the OS. The only real way to check them all out is to get a Windows Phone. Windows is my platform of choice and im happy with the new changes/features. It should be enough to see me through the next year or so until version 7 arrives which should be a major event.

Once I have got the new 6.5 rom on my Touch Pro2 I will share my thoughts on the blog. Watch this space..

Posted by: James