The Cell Phone Junkie

Microsoft Tuesday announced new features coming in Windows Phone 7 Mango, along with new hardware partners and the inclusion of 4G in future devices.  Approximately 500 new features have been added in the Mango release of WP7, though Microsoft focused on a few key updates, all of which will be available for free to all Windows Phone 7 devices this fall.  Also, Mango is the code name only for the update, and the actual release number is likely to be Windows Phone OS 7.5.

• Message Threading – Mango allows for threading of multiple types of messages by contact.  This means that all emails, texts and instant messages can not be seen together, grouped by contact.
• Group Support – Users can group family and friends together in People
• Social Networking – Deeper social network integration has been added across multiple applications.
• Inbox Linking – Multiple inboxes can be viewed simultaneously.
• Voice Actions – voice commands and dictation are available in messaging
• Applications – Users can now see apps in search results, along with the Music, Video and Picture Hubs.  Live tiles have been improved, making them more dynamic, and offering additional information to the user.
• IE9 – Internet Explorer 9 has been added.
• Bing – Bing Vision, Voice and Music search join the standard search, which has been improved for better search results.  Also, Bing Maps will continue to be the mapping solution for the OS, and Nokia Maps will not be used until Nokia handsets are launched later this year, or early 2012.
• Quick Cards – When searching for a product, movie, event or place, see a quick summary of relevant information, including related apps.
• Web based WP Marketplace – customers can now shop, share and download apps via a new web based version of the Windows Phone Marketplace.  The service will send the apps directly to the handset.

Microsoft indicated they are still working to bring tethering to the platform, but acknowledged the recent ownership of the feature by mobile network operators has caused delays.  No timeline for the feature, though the company asks users to “stay tuned.”

Microsoft then announced additional hardware makers that will soon bring Windows Phone 7 devices to consumers.  Joining Dell, HTC, LG, Nokia, and Samsung are Acer, Fujitsu Limited, and ZTE Corporation.

Finally, Microsoft said that Samsung, LG and HTC would all be shipping new phones with Mango this fall that will also include 4G.  No details on the type of 4G, or which carriers we can expect to get the devices.

Following reports last week that ST-Ericsson would be taking over as the chip-maker for WP7, Qualcomm Tuesday announced they would be supplying second generation Snapdragon chipsets for future Mango devices.  The specific model was not mentioned.

Nokia, who has joined Microsoft to bring Windows Phone 7 to its devices starting later this year, announced that Mango will be the OS it ships on its multiple devices later this year.  The companies say a small portfolio of phones are currently on target for a 2011 release.

Press Release:

Microsoft Previews Next Release of Windows Phone

“Mango” to deliver smarter and easier communications, apps and Internet experiences and bring Windows Phone to more customers around the world.

REDMOND, Wash. — May 24, 2011 — Microsoft Corp. today previewed the next major release of Windows Phone, code-named “Mango,” through a series of media events around the world. “Mango” will deliver more than 500 new features to push the boundaries of the smartphone experience around communications, apps and the Internet. The “Mango” release will be available for free to Windows Phone 7 customers and is scheduled to ship on new phones beginning this fall. More details on device update timing will be provided closer to availability. Windows Phone will also add support for additional languages, expand access to apps by launching Windows Phone Marketplace in new countries, and partner with new OEMs to enable expansion to new markets.*

“Seven months ago we started our mission to make smartphones smarter and easier for people to do more,” said Andy Lees, president of the Mobile Communications Business at Microsoft. “With ‘Mango,’ Windows Phone takes a major step forward in redefining how people communicate and use apps and the Internet, giving you better results with less effort.”

Communications: Easier to Connect and Share

The smartphone experience can be complicated by a sea of disconnected apps and accounts as people attempt to keep pace with all the ways they communicate — from calls, texts, email and instant messages (IM) to status updates, Tweets, check-ins, photo posting and tagging. To help people stay on top of that growing complexity, the “Mango” release organizes information around the person or group people want to interact with, not the app they have to use.

A Smarter Approach to Apps

Windows Phone will challenge the way people think about apps. Today their usefulness is measured by what can be done within the app, but Microsoft sees the promise of apps in how they can be integrated directly into the core experiences of the phone. In addition to making it easy to get timely notifications and updates from apps right from the Start Screen, the “Mango” release also will surface apps as part of search results and within Windows Phone Hubs. As a result, a useful app is more likely to be right there when needed.

Taking the Internet Beyond the Browser

In addition to including Internet Explorer, the “Mango” release will connect the power of the Web to the unique capabilities of Windows Phones, such as location awareness, camera and access to apps, to present a way of viewing the Web that is more localized, actionable and relevant.

Strengthening the Ecosystem

The Windows Phone ecosystem has grown steadily since Windows Phone 7 first launched in October, with more than 17,000 apps currently available on Windows Phone Marketplace and Windows Phone handsets available from a range of partners worldwide, and Microsoft’s recently announced partnership with Nokia. “Mango” will further expand and strengthen the Windows Phone ecosystem through new partnerships with Acer Inc., Fujitsu Ltd. and ZTE Corp., which today announced plans to deliver new Windows Phone devices in markets around the world. Furthermore, Microsoft announced it will support additional languages, including Brazilian Portuguese, Simplified and Traditional Chinese, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Greek, Hungarian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, and Swedish, and will greatly expand the list of countries where consumers have access to apps via Windows Phone Marketplace. As well, a beta release of the free Windows Phone Developer tools, which will be used to create the next generation of “Mango” apps and games, will be posted for public download to Microsoft’s website within 24 hours of today’s events. More information about what “Mango” means for developers, the tools and a link to the public download page is available at http://windowsteamblog.com/windows_phone/b/wpdev/archive/2011/05/24/developer-news-beta-mango-tools-available-today.aspx.

Joe Belfiore from Microsoft shows off the Mango release of WP7

Source: This is my next BGR