HTC Radar review
Windows Phone 7 Mango is here and that means a selection of new smartphones to choose from. The new version of the OS is aimed at users who are either upgrading from the first batch of 2010 handsets, or moving over to the platform for the first time.
The HTC Radar is a pretty risk-free handset. It has not got the massive 4.7-inch screen of the HTC Titan, nor is it as small as the iPhone 4S. The question is, does the Radar have anything to offer an increasing sophisticated mobile phone audience? We’ve been using one, so let’s take a more detailed look.
Design
The Radar is designed to replace the HTC 7 Mozart and HTC 7 Trophy. It introduces a number of new features, while at the same time offering a mid-range entry point into the wonderful world of Windows Phone 7. While the Titan will impress high-end users, those early adopters that like to show off their gleaming phone at the first chance, the Radar is going to be a subtler offering, and the design reflects that.
Measuring 120 x 61.5 x 10.8mm and weighing 137 grams it is not the thinnest phone, the fattest phone, or even the sexiest phone. It comes in white and silver, or gun metal grey, and at first glance is similar in design to the company’s HTC Desire and Desire S handsets.
The 3.8-inch Super LCD screen has a resolution of 480 x 800, and it is this that occupies the majority of the phone’s front surface. You’ll find the three standard Windows Phone 7 buttons beneath it, as you will on any Windows Phone 7 device. Read more 
Microsoft kicks off Windows Phone 7.5 roll out
Got a Windows Phone? Well, today’s the day you’ve been waiting for. The new version of the OS, Windows Phone 7.5, or Mango to give it its proper in-house title, is being rolled out now, with all devices getting the upgrade by the end of October.
The new software includes improved Twitter integration, proper multitasking, better Facebook features and beefed up contacts and messaging apps. In all, it promises to make an already impressive OS much better.
Some phones, including HTC’s new Titan and Radar handsets, have already got the update. Nokia’s first Windows Phone is expected to be released later this year, loaded up with the latest edition of the OS.
Got a Windows Phone? Have you received your update yet? Tell us all about it in the comments section now.
Acer W4 hands-on (video)
Hey, it’s our old pal, the Acer W4. We’ve heard tell of the device and seen our share of mockups, and this week at IFA, we actually got to play with the thing. The 3.6-inch handset is fairly compact, and pretty slick looking, with its black front and curved white backing. It’s not particularly exciting on the spec side, with its 1GHz Qualcomm processor. Nope, what’s most exciting here is the inclusion of Mango, which should look rather familiar to Windows Phone 7 owners, while adding some welcomed updates to the mix.
According to Acer, the handset should be arrive some point next month, though the company isn’t offering up much in terms of pricing. Check out a hands-on video after the break.
HTC Titan and Radar WP7 Mango phones revealed
HTC just threw two new Windows Phone handsets down on the table and politely requested that we be impressed. The high-end Titan (previously leaked as the ‘Eternity’) is indeed an awe-inspiring brute, wielding a 4.7-inch SLCD display, 8MP rear camera and 1.3MP front-facing snapper to take full advantage of Mango’s newfangled Skype integration. Its over-sized guts include a single-core 1.5GHz processor, 512MB of RAM and up to 16GB of fixed flash storage. Meanwhile, the Radar (which also recently leaked out as the ‘Omega’) comes significantly less pumped in order to meet a lower price point and — we suppose — the expectations of a more mainstream audience. It can be seen as an updated Trophy, with similar weight and dimensions, plus the same 3.8-inch LCD, 1GHz processor clock speed, 5MP rear camera resolution, RAM and maximum 8GB fixed storage. The key upgrades involve the cameras: HTC says it has an improved 28mm wide-angle lens on the rear, plus of course there’s the front-facer, which is unfortunately only VGA. Although HTC intends to update its existing WP7 range to Mango starting in mid September, the Titan and Radar will be the company’s first innately Mango-fied devices when they arrive in early October. What do we make of them? By all means, click past the break to find out.
via HTC Titan and Radar WP7 Mango phones revealed, we go hands-on — Engadget.
Nokia to retire Symbian in North America, going all-in on Windows Phone
We know that Symbian isn’t dying any time soon, but here in the US of A the little OS that couldn’t quite captivate our picky buyers will soon be mighty hard to find. Speaking with All Things D, Chris Weber, President of Nokia’s US operations, said “When we launch Windows Phones we will essentially be out of the Symbian business, the S40 business, etc.” That means no more full-price or business-focused devices in the US, and no more Symbian love. This is at least in part thanks to the failure of the Astound to find a solid foothold, but Nokia’s upcoming Windows Phone offerings (like the Sea Ray) will at least follow in its footsteps, being sold with proper carrier subsidies and riding the wave of a giant advertising blitz. Will it work? According to Weber, it has to: “The reality is if we are not successful with Windows Phone, it doesn’t matter what we do.”
via Nokia to retire Symbian in North America, going all-in on Windows Phone — Engadget.
HTC Omega: HTC’s first Windows Phone 7 Mango device?
Could the HTC Omega be the Mango-flavoured follow up to the HTC 7 Mozart?
It looks that way as detailed specs of the supposed Windows Phone 7.5 device have leaked online, with a spec sheet that hints at a refreshed Mozart.
Sadly, there are no pictures to back up the details (just a picture of a case that gives nothing away) but the spec sheet lists a HTC device with a bit more oomph than its previous Windows Phone 7 devices thanks to a 1.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon MSM8255 Processor.
At 3.8-inches, its S-LCD display is a tincy bit bigger than the Mozart, but it still has the same 800×480 WVGA resolution, with 16 million colours.
Back to hardware and there’s reportedly 16GB of on board storage and an 8-megapixel camera capable of shooting 720p video.
Nothing official on the HTC Omega (which is possibly a codename) yet, we’ll keep you posted on its official status.
via HTC Omega: HTC’s first Windows Phone 7 Mango device? – Pocket-lint.
Fujitsu Toshiba announces au IS12T, the world’s first Mango phone
Well, we can’t say we didn’t see this one coming. Fujitsu Toshiba mobile communications — now there’s a mouthful — just unveiled the IS12T: Japan’s first Windows Phone 7 device, and according to Microsoft prez Yasuyuki Higuchi, the world’s first Mango handset. The sexy and IPX5 waterproof (!) 3.7-inch WVGA slate is powered by Qualcomm’s MSM8655 CPU of undisclosed clock speed (which we’ve seen running at 1GHz in the Incredible 2 and Thunderbolt), and goes on sale in “September or beyond” on KDDI’s au network. The pink gizmo packs a 13.2 megapixel camera with autofocus and has a plentiful 32GB of flash storage for housing whatever content you’d fancy toting around. The usual Bluetooth (2.1 + EDR) and WiFi (802.11b/g/n) suspects are also onboard. Interest piqued? Peruse the gallery our Engadget Japanese brethren have handily tossed our way.
via Fujitsu Toshiba announces au IS12T, the world’s first Mango phone (hands-on!) — Engadget.
Microsoft details SkyDrive integration with Windows Phone Mango (video)
We already knew Windows Phone Mango would include SkyDrive functionality, but Microsoft has now released a few more details on some of the cloud storage features we can expect to see when the update rolls out, later this year. With the update, SkyDrive users will be able to share their stored photos via text message, e-mail or IM, and to upload their videos to the cloud with the touch of a button. They’ll also be able to browse, share and edit uploaded MS Office documents directly from their handhelds, while searching through their entire SkyDrive via the Office Hub. Storage limits remain capped at 25GB, though Microsoft says we should expect to see more cloud-based features roll out in the near future (including a revamped, HTML5-based SkyDrive web interface), so more changes may very well be on the horizon. Soar past the break for some demo videos from Redmond, along with a hands-on clip from WinRumors.
via Microsoft details SkyDrive integration with Windows Phone Mango (video) — Engadget.
Windows Phone ‘Mango’ will be used on first Nokia WP devices
Nokia has noted Microsoft’s announcement of the new Windows Phone 7 (aka Mango) with word that the software being demonstrated today will be the one we’ll see on the first Nokia with Windows Phone device. It also slightly contracts the roadmap for the first handset born from the Microkia partnership, though Nokia’s statement makes sure not to make any promises about when said device will show up. Finally, we find the “Nokia with Windows Phone” phrasing somewhat peculiar, don’t be surprised if you see it turn into a branding strategy for Nokia’s smartphones going forward. Here’s the relevant statement, straight out of Finland:
“Today Microsoft has announced the key new ingredients of the latest ‘Mango’ release of the Windows Phone operating system. This is the software that will be used on the first Nokia with Windows Phone device, and so should be of keen interest to Nokia-watchers everywhere.”
Update: Microsoft just concluded its keynote with word that it already has Nokia phones running Mango in its labs. And none have leaked out yet, amazing!
Update 2: We were just contacted by a Nokia representative indicating that there was a mistake in the original announcement the company distributed. It wasn’t supposed to read device, it was supposed to be devices. More than one!
via Windows Phone ‘Mango’ will be used on first Nokia WP devices (updated: multiple!) — Engadget.
Microsoft announces Windows Phone ‘Mango’ update, coming in early autumn
Mango may no longer be a secret in and of itself, but we doubt Microsoft would’ve set up an entire event to preview its big Windows Phone update if there was nothing hidden up that Redmond sleeve. To that end, we’ve just come across an official press release from the company, released on its Romanian website. The machine translation awaits after the break.
The first thing to note is that the update will be “freely available” to all current Windows Phone handsets, something Microsoft already committed to, and will be ready for download “at the beginning of this summer.” (Update: it looks like our translation machinery betrayed us, tipsters are saying it’s actually the beginning of autumn.) Naturally, the new goodness will also figure in new devices and from new partners, including Acer, Fujitsu, and ZTE. Those fresh faces join Nokia and the incumbent partners of Dell, HTC, Samsung, and LG to expand the WP ecosystem.
A Beta SDK of the new Windows Phone free tools will be available within 24 hours, we’re promised, for developers to sink their teeth into.
In the communications department, Microsoft is introducing conversation threads, which seamlessly transition between MSN Messenger chats, SMS, and other messaging to keep you talking to the same person irrespective of the method. New contact group tiles are also incoming, with the ability to send quick emails or IMs to entire groups. Twitter and LinkedIn contact integration is mentioned, though we expect this go a lot deeper in Twitter’s case, as Microsoft has already demonstrated. Speaking of more in-depth integration, Microsoft has improved the Live Tiles to allow the display of more dynamic information from apps, which will of course be able to multitask beautifully. Internet Explorer 9 is also joining in on the Mango fun with support for HTML5. Jump past the break for all the details.
via Engadget.
AIVAnet 