by dave on April 21st, 2010 /
Category: News
These leaked Microsoft documents from Tweakers.net keep giving more and more goodies. In addition to great details on hardware specs, OS architecture, and the Windows Update process for Windows Phone 7 devices, the documents also outlined the types of customizations OEMs and carriers will be allowed to make.
As we pretty much knew already, carriers and OEM manufacturers will not be allowed to change the UI very much. The leaked documents show that minor changes to the interface will be allowed:
- Connection icons (3G, etc.)
- Add logo and tiles to home screen, can NOT remove default Microsoft tiles
- Can add apps BUT:
- maximum of six apps
- must be approved my Microsoft first
- no bigger than 60MB total
- Change web search provider in IE only, other apps still use Bing
- Customize the boot screen
- Add wallpaper and ringtones
- Camera software can be tweaked
While we already knew the total customization available on Windows Mobile 6.x with apps like Spb Mobile Shell or HTC’s TouchFlo/Sense UIs was gone, it still hurts to see it in black and white. Microsoft is really reigning in the carriers and OEMs here in an effort to maintain a consistent(ly high) user experience.
That said, Microsoft is implementing some nice controls on bloatware, which should help address one of the primary causes for poor user experiences on Windows Mobile devices in the past.
Check out these other three posts for more details from the leaked Microsoft documents:
[via]
by dave on April 21st, 2010 /
Category: News
This screenshot from a leaked Microsoft document that Tweakers.net got their hands on shows the update process for Windows Phone 7 devices.
As you can clearly see, all roads lead to Microsoft! All updates – from Microsoft, manufacturers, carriers or others – will be distributed via Microsoft’s Windows Update service. It looks like the Windows Phone 7 device will check OTA to see if there are updates available, and then you download and install the the updates through your PC using Activesync/Zune software.
This is terrific news! No more waiting for your carrier to put out an updated ROM (which they never do) or tracking down a pirated ROM on the forums because you want the latest version of your OS. Plus, it ensures a consistent experience for Microsoft, one of their primary goals with Windows Phone 7.
Good move, Microsoft.
Check out these other three posts for more details from the leaked Microsoft documents:
[via]
by dave on March 1st, 2010 /
Category: News
Last year some smartphone specs were leaked out of Microsoft that many guessed were Microsoft’s Project Pink Chassis: a.k.a. the magical Zune Phone. Well Mary Jo Foley over at ZDnet seems to think that this Chassis was actually part of an evolving discussion at Microsoft on how to lock down their phone ecosystem so that they had fewer hardware partners that were required to adhere to much stricter specifications.
On a recent “Frankly Speaking” podcast (feb 20) the Microsoft Australia Developer Evangelist hosts Michael Kordahi and Andrew Coates discuss the three different chassis that will be available for Windows Phone 7 Series devices. Chassis 1, which was the one in circulation already, was for big, touchscreen-only devices with 1GHz processors a-la HTC HD2.
Chassis 2 phones will feature hardware keyboads – either Palm Treo-esque or of the sliding QWERTY variety – and touchscreens. Then there was Chassis 3, which they guessed might be candybar form factor.
They suggested that Chassis 1 devices would be the first out of the gates around Christmas, but offered no details on when the Chassis 2 and 3 devices might be available. We’ve already seen a prototype of the LG “Chassis 2” type design, with a sliding QWERY keyboard, so maybe we’ll see more than just Chassis 1 devices at Christmas?
The sheer variety of hardware devices available will certainly be one of the main advantages of Windows Phone 7. By locking in some rigorous hardware requirements for partners and OEM manufacturers Microsoft can ensure a consistent user experience across a broad spectrum of devices.
by dave on September 14th, 2009 /
Category: News
Microsoft business marketing manager James McCarthy has confirmed stories about a minimum system requirement of sorts for all new Windows 7 devices. Stories about this chassis were appearing in the Spring, so I’m not sure why it is big news, but it is reassuring to hear they are still committed to high-quality devices landing in stores.
The basic Windows 7 Chassis, once called Pink, I believe, looks like this:
WM7 Chassis 1 Specification
Core requirements:
- Processor: ARM v6+, L2 Cache, VFP, Open GL ES 2.0 graphics HW (QCOM 8k, Nvidia “Tegra” AP15/16* and TI 3430 all meet spec)
- Memory: 256MB+ DRAM, 1G+ Flash (at least 512MB fast flash – 5MB/s unbuffered read @4K block size)
- Display: WVGA (800×480) or FWVGA (854×480) 3.5” or greater diagonal
- Touch: Multi-touch required
- Battery: Sufficient to meet Days of Use LTK requirements.
- Controls: Start, Back, Send and End are required (soft controls allowed as long as they are always present).
Peripherals:
- Camera: 3MP+, flash optional, 2nd camera optional (VGA resolution sufficient)
- GPS: aGPS required
- Sensors required: Light Sensor, Compass (3 axis, 5 degrees, 100 Hz sample rate), Accelerometer (3 axis, 2mg resolution, 100 Hz sample rate)
- USB: High speed required, 20 MB/s transfer rate.
- BlueTooth: BT2.1 required, must run MSFT BT stack, CSR BlueCore6 or later recommended.
- Wi-Fi: 802.11B/G required, must run MSFT Native Wi-Fi stack, Atheros 6002 or Broadcomm 4325 recommended.
- Connectors: Micro USB and 3.5mm Audio required.
Options:
- FM tuner: If tuner HW is present it will be detected and supported by the Media application.
- Haptics
- SD Card (Micro SD recommended)
- DPAD, qwerty or 12/20 key keyboards all optional
Microsoft has also announced HTC and Acer as OEM manufacturers for Windows 7, and has indicated they plan to work more closely with these and other OEM manufacturers as Windows 7 nears launch. You can read the article that got me on this track here, at itPro.com.
