Microsoft's Mango Windows Phone 7 update
05:15AM Wed 25 May, 2011
Microsoft has announced an update to its Windows Phone operating system, delivering 500 new features and announcing new partnerships with manufacturers ZTE, Fujitsu and Acer.
Combined with the announcements about availability in new languages and the company's partnership with Nokia, the move will see Microsoft aim to get Windows Phone into a range of new markets that are currently not yet dominated by Google Android and Apple's iOS.
Among the new features Windows Phone will offer, from the autumn, are integrated display of text messages and those on Facebook, improved web browsing and more thorough integration of social networking data with contact information.
New 'Groups' functions will also allow mass-messaging, and local search will allow users to, say, book restaurants more easily. Integration with cloud services such as Skydrive will also let users to synchronise documents if they edit them on a PC or their phone.
Microsoft also announced that it now has 18,000 apps on offer, and showcased the new British Airways app, which included improved 'live tiles' to provide quick access to information.
Analysts were sceptical about the update. Ovum principal analyst Tony Cripps said that "Mango will provide a worthwhile upgrade for both existing and new users of Windows Phone devices once it arrives in the autumn. However, Microsoft needs to do better if it is to persuade the market that it has the most user friendly - and desirable - mobile platform in the market today. ZTE in particular can be expected to take advantage of the more achievable hardware specs now being touted by Microsoft - plus carriers' desire for low cost alternatives to Android smartphones. That said, Mango still lacks the potential for customisation and brand differentiation that some manufacturers are looking for."
Mango is a codename for the official branding, which will be released closer to launch.
source: The Telegraph
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