Windows Mobile

Windows Phone store doubles to 150K-plus apps

Windows Phone users can now find a wider array of apps in Microsoft's online phone store.

A new Microsoft blog post touting the growth of the Windows Phone store in 2012 revealed the latest facts and figures. Over the past year, Microsoft has published more than 75,000 new apps and games (which more than doubled the total number). And more than 300,000 app updates were added.

The average Windows Phone user has downloaded around 54 apps, according to Microsoft. Live Apps in particular have drummed up a lot of interest. Based on customer feedback, 85 percent of … Read more

Microsoft: Five events that shaped 2012

In hindsight, 2012 may well be the year that marks the biggest transition in Microsoft's storied corporate history.

That statement might get some argument from Microsoft watchers, who would put the debut of Windows 95 and the retiring of co-founder Bill Gates ahead of 2012 for sea change at the company. But 2012 marked the year that Microsoft decided that basing its business on software alone isn't enough to survive in the evolving world of technology.

Now, as Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer says at every opportunity, Microsoft is about devices and services. The company is building devices, … Read more

Microsoft: Five things to look for in 2013

To most tech watchers, Microsoft is a giant software maker.

But that's not how Microsoft sees itself anymore. For the past several months, Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer has repeated as often as he possibly can that the tech behemoth is now a devices and services company. He was a plain as he could be in the annual letter he wrote to shareholders in October.

"This is a significant shift, both in what we do and how we see ourselves -- as a devices and services company." Ballmer wrote. "It impacts how we run the company, … Read more

Android fanboys rage at Microsoft's Droid Rage hype

Microsoft has been bestially competitive of late.

It has gnashed its teeth, thrust out its limbs, and accused most of its rivals of being little more than mice.

It has called Google "Scroogle" and called IE haters sad.

And it has sent its cohorts out into the world to prove that iPhones and their Android counterparts are nothing but slugs.

But all this fit hissing sometimes has side effects.

One of Microsoft's latest aggressive stances was to use its Windows Phone Twitter account to ask whether people were suffering from DroidRage.

Should you be unaware of this … Read more

Nokia puts color first with new Lumia 620 Windows phone

PARIS -- Nokia announced a new lower-end Windows Phone today, the $249 Nokia Lumia 620, hoping customers will be drawn to its rounded corners and bright colors when it launches in January of 2013.

The Lumia 620 is a 3G model with a 3.8-inch screen, 1GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor, a back camera that'll shoot 720p video, a 5-megapixel front camera for video chat, near-field communications (NFC) technology, and loudspeakers, the company said. But Marko Ahtisaari, Nokia's executive vice president of design, put the new colors front and center as he unveiled the phone at the LeWeb … Read more

Microsoft plans to fix rebooting Windows Phones next month

Microsoft said today it has determined what is causing some Windows Phone 8 devices to spontaneously reboot and said it plans to issue a fix next month.

"We're continuing to investigate some reports of phones rebooting and have identified a cause with our partners," Microsoft said in a statement. "We are working to get an over-the-air update out in December."

However, the company declined to identify the cause of the reboots.

The issue materialized earlier this month when some users of Windows 8 devices complained of spontaneous reboots and e-mail sync issues. ZDNet's Mary … Read more

Windows Phone 7.8 rumored to launch this week

Microsoft will be launching its Windows Phone 7.8 upgrade on Wednesday, if rumors reported by Tonis Tech Blog today are correct.

The blog cited unnamed sources "near the subject." Meanwhile, WPCentral found some Finnish promotional materials that revealed there will be another update after the 7.8 update.

The materials also appear to shed some light on new features. The operating system will have a new start screen and more color themes to chose from, according to the translation posted to WPCentral.

CNET has contacted Microsoft for a comment and will update when we hear back, but … Read more

New Windows 8 Phone ads: Big stars, small ambitions

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

Nvidia still has a lot to prove in the mobile market

Nvidia may be flying high on its tablet wins, but it still has a long way to go before it can call itself a real mobile player.

The Santa Clara, Calif., company, traditionally known for making graphics processing units found in computers and game consoles, has been counting on its Tegra mobile chip to help offset weakness in its core PC market. So far, it hasn't been enough. Nvidia is showing up in many tablets, but its presence in smartphones is minimal. In addition, the bulk of Tegra sales are for a couple of tablets, the Google Nexus 7 … Read more