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Zune Pass for UK gets briefly teased, priced?

Posted on 18. Jul, 2010 by IBM. 

If the above picture is to be believed, it looks like Microsoft’s Zune Pass is gearing up to make its UK debut. An across-the-pond tipster via LiveSide apparently stumbled upon (and was able to successfully score the 14-day trial) a Subscription page …

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LG’s Windows Phone 7 phone caught in the wild, looking good

Posted on 20. May, 2010 by IBM. 

Been wondering how that LG proto unit debuted on The Engadget Show is doing? Pocket-lint got to see the QWERTY slider up close and personal in London yesterday, and their takeaway from the meetup was that the device and OS are well on their way to stardom. Calling it the LG Panther, they delve into its deep Facebook integration, which throws up status updates when you hit on a contact in your address book, ability to recognize addresses and provide relevant links to Bing maps, as well as its quick and clear Zune media player. The latter was accompanied by confirmation that the Zune Store will be hitting the UK in time for Windows Phone 7′s release, which could happen as early as September — it all depends on who you talk to. Hit the source for more imagery and impressions.

LG’s Windows Phone 7 phone caught in the wild, looking good originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 May 2010 04:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Kin is basically a Zune HD inside, can go for a weekend on a charge

Posted on 12. Apr, 2010 by IBM. 

In a discussion with Kin product manager Derek Snyder this afternoon, we’ve confirmed that both the Kin One and Kin Two are built on the same foundation as the Zune HD — in other words, they’re running NVIDIA Tegra silicon, and there’s no reason that anything you see on a Zune HD couldn’t run just as well on a Kin. Of course, that’s a purely theoretical statement at this point since Zune apps don’t work on Kin as it stands — the platform’s completely closed, though Microsoft has been insistent that we should keep a close eye on its over-the-air updates after launch as features evolve. Either way, that’s a marked (and curious) departure from Windows Phone 7, where Microsoft’s been taking an all-Qualcomm, all-the-time approach.

Realistically, we’ve gotten the impression today that Kin doesn’t come close to tapping out a Tegra’s horsepower, but that might be by design: Snyder also mentioned that a key goal of the development phase was to make sure that the phones could go a whole weekend without a charge. Running a Tegra at full bore 24 / 7 doesn’t lend itself to miserly power consumption, so the overall simplicity of the UI — and the lack of 3D gaming — might play a role there.

Kin is basically a Zune HD inside, can go for a weekend on a charge originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 12 Apr 2010 18:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Zune software references rumored Project Pink devices, a video upload service?

Posted on 28. Jan, 2010 by IBM. 

We weren’t sure things could get any more interesting with Microsoft’s mobile rumor mill, but along comes Zune Boards with some tantalizing findings in the latest Zune software update. First up is the eEndpointFamily files, which lists all the compatible hardware — ZuneHD, for example. Also found, however, were entries for “PmxPure” and “PmxTurtle.” PMX, if you recall, seems to be a reference to Microsoft’s
Premium Mobile eXperiences group, the remnants of the Danger acquisition who have been whispered to be working on Project Pink. As for Pure and Turtle, let’s go back all the way to September 2009, when we first heard those names as the initial Pink duo — there were some supposed renders, too. If that’s not enough, two PMX table entries pointed to a snippet of text stating that “Studio members” can “View and manage pictures and videos taken with your phone at the Studio,” followed by a link that for now redirects to Zune.net. Could the mysterious Project Pink and the oft-rumored “Zune phone” be one in the same, with some “Studio” service for uploading media to the cloud? Is this all some red herring perpetuated by some amused Microsoft staffers? We don’t know, but it’s mean to tug at our heart strings like that, Microsoft, and worse that it makes Mobile World Congress even more painful to wait for. #tmdp

Zune software references rumored Project Pink devices, a video upload service? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 28 Jan 2010 23:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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International Zune with phone functionality hinted in Microsoft job listings, magic boxes

Posted on 27. Jan, 2010 by IBM. 

We’re not sure how it happened (ok, we have an idea) but Microsoft went from confident incumbent to the scrappy tech underdog in the last few years. We’re not talking marketshare here, but mindshare. Through it all the Xbox 360 has remained a constant fave and Windows 7 has certainly helped the company rekindle consumer enthusiasm as did the release of the Zune HD. Now, if we’re reading our tea leaves correctly, then Microsoft’s got a whole lot more in store for 2010. Redmond’s already hinted pretty strongly that it’s hell-bent on bringing the acclaimed Zune media experience to more devices including its Windows Mobile handsets — something we hope to see unveiled in Barcelona. The problem, is that dedicated Zune hardware is pretty much restricted to the US and Canada at the moment. A quick look at Microsoft’s job boards, however, reveals the need for a London-based “Business Development Manager” responsible for driving European content licensing deals for digital music and support engineering and development divisions including Zune, Xbox, and Windows Mobile. Another Zune-related posting reveals a position for a hardware test engineer with “working knowledge of cell-phone 2G and 3G technologies.” We’re also seeing that the latest Zune software update is country aware judging by Arne Hess’ language and localization testing over at the::unwired. Man, if Microsoft can get its act together and horizontally integrate the best of its killer apps and services then the rest of the industry had better watch out.

International Zune with phone functionality hinted in Microsoft job listings, magic boxes originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 27 Jan 2010 06:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Windows Mobile 7 roadmap elucidated, starts with MWC 2010 demo

Posted on 27. Jan, 2010 by IBM. 

You know, January is all but expired now. Gone are the heady (or is that headless?) days of CES 2010, and we’re nearly past the rumor euphoria of the decade, so what do we have to look forward to? According to CNET‘s sources, WinMo 7. This year. Sure, we heard as much from DigiTimes, but it’s always good to put a more legitimate source to what is quite the juicy forecast. Confirmation that Microsoft is planning to finalize all code by this summer also meshes with an earlier leak of an LG Windows Mobile 7 handset set for a September release, while the latest Pink phone rumors are also reiterated. At any rate, it all kicks off in Barcelona come February 15, with Microsoft also circling its MIX 2010 web development conference a month later as the time it’ll start dishing the dirt on how to code for the new OS. So there we have it, new consumer phones and a long overdue WinMo overhaul all coming to you within the next few months.

Windows Mobile 7 roadmap elucidated, starts with MWC 2010 demo originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 27 Jan 2010 02:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Zune ‘Phone’ devices listed in latest software update

Posted on 26. Jan, 2010 by IBM. 

digg_url = ‘http://digg.com/gadgets/Zune_Phone_devices_listed_in_updated_Zune_software’; Whoa, what’s this? The so-called Zune software maintenance release has a trio of Phone device drivers tucked away inside the Zune.inf file according to Long Zheng over at istartedsomething. And similar to the three devices listed representing the three types of Zunes, we have three Phone.DeviceDesc placeholders for three unannounced (Pink and WinMo 6.x/7?) phones presumably running premium Zune media services. We expect Microsoft will come clean at Mobile World Congress starting February 15th. We’ll be there live which means that you will be too.

Zune ‘Phone’ devices listed in latest software update originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Jan 2010 08:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Windows Mobile 7 rumors coalesce around Q4 launch, MWC announcement

Posted on 22. Jan, 2010 by IBM. 

While DigiTimes isn’t our go-to source for all things Microsoft, the Taiwanese tattler does have its finger on the pulse of the Taiwanese / Chinese manufacturing juggernaut. As such, we expect it to be privy to information related to HTC, Acer, and ASUS handsets. So lean in close when it cites “sources familiar to Microsoft’s roadmap” in claiming a September 2010 release of Windows Mobile 7 to its handset partners — the same month pegged by that LG leak last week. That should translate into consumer availability by the end of Q4, or Q1 2011 at the latest. As it’s stated, WinMo7 will bring an improved interface, browsing, and multimedia experience with integrated support for Zune, Xbox Live, and Silverlight; nothing we haven’t heard before (and long wished for). DigiTimes claims that only English and “common European languages” will be available initially with Asian localization coming in 2011. Oh, and it’ll be announced at Mobile World Congress.

One thing’s clear: the rapid convergence of the rumor mill around dates and feature sets has us very excited about Microsoft’s chances at resurrecting its smartphone soul in time for the holidays. As such, we’ll be at Mobile World Congress in force to bring you the full story starting February 15th. It’s going to be good.

Windows Mobile 7 rumors coalesce around Q4 launch, MWC announcement originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 22 Jan 2010 04:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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