Windows Phone software

June was cruel to the iPad, which saw its tablet competition grow fearsome.

Microsoft showed off its Surface tablet, which is aimed squarely at stealing iPad lovers away with the lure of its keyboard case (though without pricing, launch date, or any real details, it's hard to know if the iPad has anything to fear). Not to be left behind, Google took the wraps off its much-rumored and ballyhooed 7-inch Nexus Tablet. All that excitement was enough to wake the dead; in this case, it reanimated the iPad Mini rumor, which had been laid to rest.

Not anymore! Analysts … Read more

You've got an important text to send, but you're also trying to flag down a taxi, make a rude gesture at an enemy, or fight off a marauding seagull. It's a nightmare scenario, but possibly not for much longer, as leaked spy-shots suggest Windows Phone 8 devices will feature a one-handed one-screen keyboard.

WMPoweruser got ahold of the picture above, which reportedly comes from a leaked Microsoft Research presentation. As you can see, the keyboard is curved to fit your thumb, with individual characters sorted into distinct blocks.

Read more of "Windows Phone 8 to get curvy one-handed keyboard?" at Crave UK.… Read more

Is Microsoft bringing back the old days of one-thumb typing?

Microsoft-tracking blog WM Power User today published an image of what it claims, is a new keyboard being considered by Microsoft Research. The "one-handed and next-gen soft keyboard" will be designed for Windows Phone 8, according to the blog, and feature a curved design. That curve places the keys in such a way that makes it easier for users to type with a single thumb.

Since the implementation would provide less screen real estate for the keyboard, the image WM Power User published shows each button housing three … Read more

Nokia has a plan in its back pocket should a deal with Microsoft fall through, or the forthcoming Windows Phone 8 software update fail to generate interest, according to Nokia's board chairman.

Speaking on his debut television appearance, F-Secure's founder and former chief executive Risto Siilasmaa, who became Nokia's board chairman in May, defended the move to Microsoft's Windows Phone, which replaced the ailing Symbian operating system last year.

But he said Nokia has a "contingency plan" should the forthcoming Windows Phone 8 "fail to live up to expectations," according to a … Read more

Back in January there was no question which carrier had built the best portfolio, and I'll give you a hint: it wasn't AT&T.

By December, Verizon already had an embarrassment of riches, and the toughest high-end Android decision for holiday shoppers was which Big Red phone to get: the angular Motorola Droid Razr, the HTC Rezound audio genius, or the world's first Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich phone, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus. With the budget HTC Rhyme and the broadest LTE coverage in the nation, Verizon was on fire.

Verizon fueled its momentum with the astounding long-life Droid Razr Maxx just after Motorola introduced the handset at CES.

Yet in the past few months, Verizon's verve has begun to flicker just enough for AT&T to illuminate its renewed vigor. Now before flinging your biting anti-AT&T protests my way, hear me out.… Read more

Microsoft Surface, the tablet running Windows 8 or Windows RT with the nifty keyboard cover, sure looks like it's gunning for Apple's iPad. But the more we hear about it, the more it seems Ballmer and company's new hardware play may be packing a BB gun rather than a bazooka.

Granted, there's a lot to like about the Surface -- the new Windows OS is intriguing, Gorilla Glass is great and that integrated stand is the kind of design ingenuity we'd expect from a company located a little further south on the Pacific coast.

But … Read more

Can't Nokia catch a break?

Analysts at Nomura today wrote in a note to investors that they had cut their estimates on Nokia's revenue next year down to 6 billion euros ($7.5 billion), according to Bloomberg, which obtained the note. The analysts had initially anticipated Nokia posting 10.9 billion euros in sales next year.

The analysts say that the revision is due to Microsoft's announcement this week that Windows Phone 7-based devices won't be upgradeable to Windows Phone 8. Instead, the handsets will receive an upgrade to Windows Phone 7.8 -- an operating … Read more

Windows is about to become a lot more portable. Microsoft hopes that its new mobile moves will also make it a lot more popular for buyers shopping for smartphones and tablets.

Microsoft has dabbled in both the phone and tablet worlds, but without the resounding sales success Apple and Android have achieved.

Now that Windows Phone 8 is due in the fall and Surface tablets are in the pipeline, it looks like Microsoft is going all in with the mobilization of Windows.

Both Windows Phone 8 and Surface will tie in strongly with the company's still-popular desktop OS, perhaps … Read more

Although current Windows Phone devices, like the Nokia Lumia 900, won't be upgradeable to Windows Phone 8, one Nokia executive says it's not nearly as big of a deal as some might think.

"I think that ultimately your typical customer probably isn't all that aware of this upgrade thing," Kevin Shields, Nokia senior vice president of program and product management, told The Verge in an interview published today. "I definitely think with products like the Lumia 900, where a consumer walks in and buys that product they're getting great value and they're … Read more