wp8

The Lumia 620 is Nokia's stab at an affordable unlocked Windows Phone 8 device for the global masses, and its fun, youthful design so typical of the Lumia line will help it stand out from competitors in the same price point.

Still a dual-core Windows 8 phone with front and rear cameras, the 620 isn't as stacked with high-end features as its fellows -- the screen comes in sub-4 inches, there are some design flaws, and there's no wireless charging. However, NFC, an anti-glare screen, and a decent camera make it an appealing, and fairly feature-rich, smartphone … Read more

It doesn't take much searching on Google to find out that the battery life on a couple of the top-of-the-line Windows Phones -- the Nokia Lumia 920 and the HTC Windows Phone 8X -- are less than spectacular. Forums are rampant with angry user complaints about how quickly their phones are draining, turning their phones into useless bricks by each day's end.

But WP8 isn't alone -- mediocre battery life is an issue that plagues many phones. Remember when users freaked out about the iPhone 4S' battery life? (We had a fix for that, too.)

Decreasing brightness … Read more

Looks like Microsoft has some good news coming its way. Apparently Asustek Computer is close to committing to putting serious resources behind the Windows Phone 8 mobile platform. Specifically, the Taiwanese electronics maker plans to begin creating phones that run WP8. … Read more

LAS VEGAS--Coming in big with two extra-large Android smartphones wasn't enough of a splash for Huawei here at CES. This morning, the Chinese networking provider and handset-maker launched the Huawei Ascend W1, its first-ever Windows 8 phone.

The first thing that struck me, both when I first saw the press images and when I finally got three of the models in my hands, is how similar to W1 looks to Nokia's Lumia 900 and 920.

There's the same block shape with squared-off corners and a glossy display set onto bright colors. In fact, Huawei's W1 (as it's known in the U.S.) … Read more

In addition to announcing that its two Windows Phone 8 handsets, the HTC Windows Phone 8X and the Nokia Lumia 822, will be available starting November 13, Verizon will also offer one of its handsets for free by the end of the year.

According to The Verge, Tami Erwin, Verizon's chief marketing officer, said that a phone from the carrier's WP8 lineup will come "in at the free [price] point."

Currently, the HTC 8X retails for $199.99 with a two-year contract, and the Lumia 822 will be sold for $99.99 after discounts are applied.… Read more

Skype's VoIP app is "coming soon" for Windows Phone 8, but when it arrives, it'll be outfitted with more options than its Skype sibling for Windows Phone 7.5.

Written in native code, the app integrates into your address book and partially into the dialer, so you can receive incoming Skype calls the same way you would receive a cellular call. You'll be able to answer with a video chat in addition to voice. Skype contacts also integrate into your address book, so you can find your buddies from your contacts screen, not solely from … Read more

Four months after Microsoft previewed its new Windows Phone 8 operating system for mobile phones, the Redmond crew returned to San Francisco today to reveal even more details.

Windows Phone 8, which is characterized by its newly expanded Start screen, maintains the distinctive design that first set it apart from iOS and Android. Hardware features like support for NFC, multiple processing cores, and expandable memory will help bring Windows phones up to speed against the competition, along with in-app purchases, integrated Skype, and the shared Internet Explorer 10 code that Redmond also revealed months ago.

With Windows 8 launched and the holiday shopping season upon us, the time has come for Microsoft to show the world all that Windows Phone 8 can do.

Back in June, Microsoft previewed a handful of Windows Phone 8 capabilities. Some were hardware-related, like NFC, multicore processing support, and the addition of HD screen resolutions.

Others were software-based: a new home-screen look with resizable widgets and much more space for all those live tiles, plus … Read more

Microsoft and Nokia may have vowed to support one another through thick and thin, but Redmond's newfound vocal support of HTC's Windows Phone 8X device means Microsoft isn't relying on one partner to see its platform through.

Our invitation to Microsoft' official launch of the Windows Phone 8 operating system cleverly wraps event details into HTC's premier Windows Phone. It turns out that this design is one of four depicting key Windows phones that Microsoft sent to journalists inviting them to the event. Two show off HTC handsets and two depict the Nokia Lumia phones.

Microsoft … Read more