9 Things users should know about Windows Phone

In what can be called one of the most significant announcements that Microsoft made in recent times, the company unravelled its next generation Mobile OS at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.
The company for the first time displayed what many analysts are terming to be an iPhone Killer. Here's looking into what the users need to know about Windows Phone 7 that is said to be Microsoft's "final chance to get it right" in the rapidly-growing mobile market.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Its Windows Phone 7 series
The phone's supporting the new software won't be called "Zune phones," as had been speculated. The software will be called "Windows Phone 7 series." For now, Microsoft is sticking to its model of making the software and selling it to phone manufacturers, rather than making its own phones .

Completely new

Windows Phone 7 series is a dramatic change from previous generations of the software that used to be called Windows Mobile. The new OS is a drastic overhaul of the aging Windows Mobile platform.











Divided into six hubs

The new OS uses a 'live tile' metaphor, showing dynamically updated information. Users can have tiles for e-mail, calendar, pictures and individual people, playlists and other applications and information types.


The OS arranges information in six sections: People, Pictures, Games, Music and Video, Marketplace and Office. The People section is actually contacts option. However, it is not your typical contacts list. The contact list is connected with the contact's social networking accounts and users can see their updates right within the contact screen.

The operating system is designed to have three hardware buttons: start, search -- with a direct link to Bing -- and back .

Hardware support


Hardware supporters include Dell, Garmin-Asus, HTC, Hewlett-Packard, LG, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, Toshiba and Qualcomm.

Must-have features for Windows 7

Microsoft is imposing a set of required features for Windows phones. Manufacturers must include permanent buttons on the phone for "home," "search" and "back"; a high-resolution screen with the same touch-sensing technology as the iPhone; and a camera with at least 5 megapixels of resolution and a flash. Hardware QWERTY keyboards will be optional.









 
 
 
Clickable words format

The iPhone's success has spurred lots of look-alike phones with screenfuls of tiny square icons representing each programme. Just as it did with the Zune, Microsoft has tried to avoid an icon-intensive copy of that setup. Instead, it relies more on clickable words and images pulled from the content itself.
For example, if you put a weather program on the device's home page, it shows a constantly updated snapshot of conditions where you are, rather than a static icon that you have to click in order to see the weather.








Its no computer screen



Windows Phone 7 Series borrows the clean look of the Zune software, departing from the more "computer screen" look of earlier Microsoft efforts. These were also reliant on the user pulling out a stylus for more precise maneuvering, while the software is designed to be used with the fingers. It's not clear how older third-party applications designed for the stylus will work on the new phones


Gaming box



Most of the built-in applications complement or connect with existing Microsoft programmes or services, such as the Bing search engine. The games "hub" connects to an Xbox Live account and lets players pick up where they left off with multiplayer games.

They will even be able to play games against PC users. Microsoft also turns to the Zune programming for the phones' entertainment hub, much in the way the iPhone's music library is called iPod. And when users plug the phone into a PC, the Zune software pops up to manage music, movies and podcasts.

Will ship in Dec 2010



Microsoft said that manufacturing partners have started building devices based on the phones; the first devices based on Win Phone 7 should ship in late 2010. HTC said that the company has already started working on the new OS.