windows phone

We're back, and just in time for the holiday shopping season! Welcome to the pre-Black Friday episode of Always On: the unboxing extravaganza.

This episode alone features Google's two new pure-Android Nexus devices -- the LG Nexus 4 and the Nexus 10 tablet. I so wanted to love the Nexus 4, since I'm definitely in the market for a pure-Android device, but I'm skeptical (as is our CNET reviewer, Lynn La) about the lack of 4G LTE in the unlocked model. Then again, I don't have to sit around worrying about it since the phone … Read more

Internet-connected phones and tablets are nearly everywhere, often ringing and chirping at the wrong time and in the wrong place.

Many e-mail and other messaging apps are set to send audible alerts by default. Not only can these unnecessary alerts be a major annoyance, they also use up some of the device's battery power each time they wake the machine from sleep mode.

In just a few steps you can silence some or all notifications and customize the way your device responds to alerts.

Of course, the simplest way to prevent your phone from ringing is to press its … Read more

Many humans are competitive.

They want to prove that they have the winning hand -- or even the winning phone in their hand.

Microsoft, over recent times, has been keen to humiliate these people in public. First, there was the "Smoked By Windows Phone" challenge, in which Redmond's indefatigable Ben Rudolph proved that Microsoft's phones were so much faster than iPhones or Samsungs.

With the advent of Windows Phone 8, you are invited to a new challenge. This is called "Meet Your Match."

It is similar to the "Smoked By Windows Phone" … Read more

Windows Phone 8 devices just started hitting the market, but a number of users are reporting spontaneous reboots and email-sync issues with various devices on different carriers.

I had not had any issues with my loaner HTC 8X Windows Phone 8 on AT&T, which I've been testing since October 29 -- until yesterday, that is. This morning, my email accounts, as well as my Microsoft Account, were stuck in an endless loop of continually trying to sync. This was not happening on my Windows Phone 7 device (an HTC Trophy on Verizon). My Windows Phone 8 device … Read more

Better mobile support and more desktop options give SkyDrive users a bit of a boost today, as Microsoft updates its cloud storage service.

The desktop improvements include the ability to share SkyDrive files with one click from Windows 8's File Explorer (also known as Windows Explorer in previous versions of Windows,) and selectively sync folders from a Windows or Mac. This can help keep small-drive devices from filing up too quickly.

Android and Windows Phone apps have been updated, too, so that you can now more easily browse files in your SkyDrive. You'll also be able to control … Read more

Former Microsoft executive Steven Sinofsky has sounded off on claims that he tried to take over the company's Windows Phone and developer businesses.

Hal Berenson, president of True Mountain Group, a company that provides technology and management consulting, wrote in a blog post earlier this week that he'd heard from Microsoft employees that Windows chief Sinofsky was waging battles over the last several months to take control of the company's Windows Phone and Developer divisions. His actions were turned away by Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and other top executives, leading to his departure, Berenson claims.

Sinofsky rebutted … Read more

Stars can be difficult, especially when you do ads with them.

No matter how much you pay them, some like to have input on the scripts. The bigger the star, sometimes the bigger the input. Sometimes, though, the stars just take the money.

So when rumors began to roll that Microsoft was launching Windows Phone 8 with ads featuring Gwen Stefani -- and, as the rumor had it at the time, Jay-Z -- I wondered whether the ads would follow the template of the one pleasant, but slightly pedestrian ad already released.

It featured British TV presenter, Holly Willoughby (embedded … Read more

As Microsoft goes through a major corporate shakeup, it seems to have made some other shifts and changes in its leadership recently. A company spokesperson told CNET that Microsoft quietly moved mobile guru Andy Lees to the head of corporate development and strategy about a month ago.

Lees has been with the company for more than 20 years. Less than a year ago, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer changed Lees from being president of the Windows Phone division to a vaguely described job that had Lees focusing on a set of projects with Windows Phone and Windows 8. In this role, … 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