Yesterday Nokia took covers off what will be their next Operating System for the range of Mobile phones called the Windows Phone 8, an increment from the WP 7 and WP 7.5. So let us see what exactly is new in
the mobile version of Windows 8. Here are the detailed features from Microsoft team itself:
Multi-core processor support: As reviewers have noted, Windows Phone runs buttery smooth on phones with a single processor. But piggybacking on the Windows core provides support for multiple cores—so we’re ready for whatever hardware makers dream up.
Bigger, sharper screens: Windows Phone 8 supports two new screen resolutions—1280×768 and 1280×720, opening the door to amazing new handsets with high-definition 720p displays.
More flexible storage: Windows Phone 8 supports removable MicroSD cards, so you can stuff your phone with extra photos, music, and whatever else is important to you, and then easily move it all onto your PC.
NFC wireless sharing: If you haven’t heard the term “NFC” yet, I’m betting you soon will. This emerging wireless technology lets phones share things over short distances. In Windows Phone 8, it helps make sharing photos, Office docs, and contact info easier—just tap your phone another NFC-equipped device. How cool is that?
Internet Explorer 10: The next version of Windows Phone comes with the same web browsing engine that’s headed for Window 8 PCs and tablets. IE10 is faster and more secure, with advanced anti-phishing features like SmartScreen Filter to block dangerous websites and malware.
Wallet: Windows Phone 8’s new digital Wallet feature does two great things. It can keep debit and credit cards, coupons, boarding passes, and other important info right at your fingertips. And when paired with a secure SIM from your carrier, you can also pay for things with a tap of your phone at compatible checkout counters.
Better maps and directions: Windows Phone 8 builds in Nokia mapping as part of the platform. Our partnership will provide more detailed maps and turn-by-turn directions in many countries, plus the ability to store maps offline on your phone so you can work with maps without a data connection.
Cooler apps and games: Basing Windows Phone 8 on the Windows core will unleash a new wave of amazing apps and especially games, for reasons I’ll touch on in a moment.”
Not just these features, there were a lot of other new things such as:
A Brand New Start where you have the ability to chose more sizes of tiles. It is not just set to the 4×1 or 2×2 or 1×4 how it earlier was. The live tiles are even better now with even more theme like customizations possible. There are a lot more customization possible such as those shown below:
For those who are currently using the Windows Phone 7 or 7.5, an update named Windows Phone 7.8 will be released which will bring the awesome new start to their phones, so no need to feel left out if you are using one of these devices.
The applications of WP8 would be entirely written in C and C++ so as a result more and more developers would be able to get on board easily with the new Windows Phone 8 so that would definitely mean more applications. In App payments have also been enabled now. Also new is the ability to make integrated VoIP calls which was a glaring miss previously. Multi-tasking has been improved a lot with plenty of applications now being able to run in the background. The phone security has been taking to a high level too with things such as data encryption now available out of box just like on Android. About 50 new languages have been added too to the WIndows Phone 8 now. The OS updates would also be available now Over The Air just like Android and iOS which must come as a huge relief to everyone. So far you had to connect your device to Zune in order to update your device. All the WP8 partners such as Samsung, HTC, Nokia remain on board and will be delivering new handsets running WP 8 running on Qualcomm chipsets.
So it does seem like most of the features that were glaring misses have been covered very well by Microsoft in the update to WP8. However, we cannot say for sure that there has been one standout feature. Maybe the new start screen will be better or more attractive when we see it running on an actual devic rather than just the computer screen. Apart from that it seems like most features were necessary and Microsoft has done just about enough to make Windows Phone a little more competitive.
the mobile version of Windows 8. Here are the detailed features from Microsoft team itself:
Bigger, sharper screens: Windows Phone 8 supports two new screen resolutions—1280×768 and 1280×720, opening the door to amazing new handsets with high-definition 720p displays.
More flexible storage: Windows Phone 8 supports removable MicroSD cards, so you can stuff your phone with extra photos, music, and whatever else is important to you, and then easily move it all onto your PC.
NFC wireless sharing: If you haven’t heard the term “NFC” yet, I’m betting you soon will. This emerging wireless technology lets phones share things over short distances. In Windows Phone 8, it helps make sharing photos, Office docs, and contact info easier—just tap your phone another NFC-equipped device. How cool is that?
Internet Explorer 10: The next version of Windows Phone comes with the same web browsing engine that’s headed for Window 8 PCs and tablets. IE10 is faster and more secure, with advanced anti-phishing features like SmartScreen Filter to block dangerous websites and malware.
Wallet: Windows Phone 8’s new digital Wallet feature does two great things. It can keep debit and credit cards, coupons, boarding passes, and other important info right at your fingertips. And when paired with a secure SIM from your carrier, you can also pay for things with a tap of your phone at compatible checkout counters.
Better maps and directions: Windows Phone 8 builds in Nokia mapping as part of the platform. Our partnership will provide more detailed maps and turn-by-turn directions in many countries, plus the ability to store maps offline on your phone so you can work with maps without a data connection.
Cooler apps and games: Basing Windows Phone 8 on the Windows core will unleash a new wave of amazing apps and especially games, for reasons I’ll touch on in a moment.”
Not just these features, there were a lot of other new things such as:
A Brand New Start where you have the ability to chose more sizes of tiles. It is not just set to the 4×1 or 2×2 or 1×4 how it earlier was. The live tiles are even better now with even more theme like customizations possible. There are a lot more customization possible such as those shown below:
For those who are currently using the Windows Phone 7 or 7.5, an update named Windows Phone 7.8 will be released which will bring the awesome new start to their phones, so no need to feel left out if you are using one of these devices.
The applications of WP8 would be entirely written in C and C++ so as a result more and more developers would be able to get on board easily with the new Windows Phone 8 so that would definitely mean more applications. In App payments have also been enabled now. Also new is the ability to make integrated VoIP calls which was a glaring miss previously. Multi-tasking has been improved a lot with plenty of applications now being able to run in the background. The phone security has been taking to a high level too with things such as data encryption now available out of box just like on Android. About 50 new languages have been added too to the WIndows Phone 8 now. The OS updates would also be available now Over The Air just like Android and iOS which must come as a huge relief to everyone. So far you had to connect your device to Zune in order to update your device. All the WP8 partners such as Samsung, HTC, Nokia remain on board and will be delivering new handsets running WP 8 running on Qualcomm chipsets.
So it does seem like most of the features that were glaring misses have been covered very well by Microsoft in the update to WP8. However, we cannot say for sure that there has been one standout feature. Maybe the new start screen will be better or more attractive when we see it running on an actual devic rather than just the computer screen. Apart from that it seems like most features were necessary and Microsoft has done just about enough to make Windows Phone a little more competitive.
