Windows Phone 8 is based on the same software core as the next generation of Microsoft's desktop OS, Windows 8. If you own one of the Lumia Windows Phones, made by Nokia, the Finnish mobile maker has said it will bring some 'visual enhancements' and app updates to its current Lumia line-up -- the ones that are being cut off from Windows 8.
But the wider point about app compatibility is that any apps built specifically for Windows Phone 8 won't run on 7. So anyone with a Windows Phone in their pocket now will miss out on the next wave of Windows Phone apps -- while anyone who buys a Windows Phone 8 handset will enjoy all existing and future apps. I recently argued that with this schism Microsoft has sucker-punched the fans Windows Phone has gained in the 20 or so months since it launched by locking them out of the platform's future.
It's true that no technology lasts forever, but Windows Phone is still a newcomer, so having a radical reboot after such a small space of time risks taking the wind out of what are barely unfurled sails.
Yet according to Greg Sullivan, senior product manager for Windows Phone, Microsoft knew all along it would be orphaning Windows Phone 7. Asked when it started developing Windows Phone 8, he reveals development work was going on in parallel with Windows Phone 7 -- and even earlier. The team that developed the 7. In fact some of that work was already initiated before Windows Phone 7 was even available -- so this goes back a little bit.
He refers to this Windows 7 to 8 schism as a "generational shift". Sullivan points out that existing Windows Phone devices will still be able to benefit from updates to the various services that underpin Microsoft's mobile platform -- such as its SkyDrive cloud storage , the Xbox Live service, Bing search, maps and so on -- even if they won't be able to integrate with its next generation of desktop software, Windows 8, in whatever ways Windows Phone 8 will be able to.
Microsoft hasn't given many examples of this coming Windows Phone 8 and Windows 8 "synergy" -- as Sullivan puts it -- beyond NFC-enabled features such as tapping one device against another to start a game. But he hints that there will be "cool stuff" to come. Whatever these new capabilities, features and "synergies" are, anyone who owns a Windows Phone today won't be getting them without buying new hardware. Of course, there are some new features that existing Windows Phone hardware would never have got via a software update because they require superior hardware -- such as Windows Phone 8's support for multi-core chipsets, higher screen resolutions, NFC technology and user-expandable storage.
The architecture's the same software that runs huge datacentres. All of the servers that manage petabytes of data for Bing utilise this OS architecture that will now be on your phone, so from scaling upwards to significant huge online transaction processing with 64 cores per virtual machine in these clusters of servers that do really really big computing, the identical architecture is now in your pocket. Reportedly, a Windows Phone 7.
It should carry over some of the new features of Windows Phone 8 down to the lineup of previous smartphones, as those would not be updated to Windows 8.
In October Microsoft released a major update to the mobile OS. Older devices are denied an update. Will existing updates for Windows Phone 8.
We have no current plans to remove historical Windows Phone 8. Has support ended for all phones running Microsoft software? Why is Microsoft ending support for Windows Phone 8. Is there a different path for an enterprise who has purchased a large number of Windows Phone 8.
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Can you help us improve? Resolved my issue. Clear instructions. In practice, you could make use of this as a handy guest feature for handing out your phone to others to use for whatever reason. The second feature was the rooms feature, if you had several members of your family using Windows Phone, you could add them to your family room and share calendars, notes as well as group chat.
Unfortunately, the relative unpopularity of Windows Phone hamstrung this feature for most users. The Wallet app stored your payment details like Paypal and debit and credit cards, it also allowed users to store cards like club cards and membership cards. The implementation of this feature was left to the carriers who for the most part neglected it. Effectively rendering it useless. Other than that, the Wallet was a pretty good passbook replacement, with third-party apps even offering ways to convert Passbook.
Windows Phone 8 introduced Internet Explorer 10 to the platform. Windows Phone did not support webkit, this made several websites render poorly in the browser as well as locked Windows Phone users out of any future Kik messenger updates. Tabbed browsing was a chore for most with only six tabs being supported. HTML5 video was not supported either with the OS having to download and play videos using the inbuilt video functionality, this resulted in an embarrassing fiasco between Microsoft and Google about a YouTube app eventually.
Options like flash that were previously hidden in the overflow menu were dragged out and now placed front and centre. The largest update was the addition of a lenses feature which allowed apps with camera features to register themselves as such and be launched from the camera app.
The other miscellaneous improvements include visual tweaks to the Office hub. OneNote was broken out of the hub to become its own app and OneDrive received further integration with the OS. Maps could now be downloaded for offline use, saving data for many users. The OS had a major problem in the form of storage management. When Windows Phones were used, the OS would cache files from apps and pictures that were backed up to OneDrive and not delete them.
Eventually the phone would fill up and be rendered unusable till a hard reset was triggered. This was a problem especially on handsets like the HTC 8S and the Lumia 8XX and below which all had paltry amounts of storage that were easily consumed.
OEMs would issue updates to enable better storage management but the problem would not be solved till the Windows Phone 8. Windows Phone 8 was a continuation of the Windows Phone 7 story, while there were huge under the hood changes, for most users, the experience was fundamentally the same.
Not only that, the OS still lacked features like a notification centre, support for manipulation of video files and hardware diversity. On the whole, Windows Phone 8 felt like incomplete, with many good ideas but hamstrung by OS limitations and missing features.
Windows Phone 7 had come out two years ago, iOS6 and Android Jellybean had been launched and Windows Phone 8 was still closer, feature-wise, to its predecessor than its competitors. When Windows Phone 7 launched, Microsoft had a whole group of OEMs with devices ready to go, this number fell to four with the launch of Windows Phone 8.
Nokia would grow to dominate Windows Phone market share with and grab attention with devices such as the Lumia and , among others.
In , approximately 30 million Lumia devices were sold. Windows Phone first update, Portico, was a minor update full of minor enhancements and bug fixes. First of all, you could now keep WiFi on when the screen was timed out, a useful feature for saving data and preserving battery life.
Staying on the topic of data conservation, you could now choose not to download pictures on IE 10 mobile. The messaging hub added drafts functionality and the ability to text to multiple recipients. You could also now decline calls with a text. We should note here that the Window Phone team had now begun to work on the next major update for Windows Phone 8. Data management was improved with the addition of a Data Sense feature which allowed a degree of control over mobile data usage. Users were allowed to set monthly limits, as well as restrict background data depending on user preference.
The third and final update as well as final change in minor OS nomenclature , this update was the biggest update for Windows Phone 8. It ushered in the Preview for Developers era which allowed enthusiasts early access to OS builds. These were not beta builds but rather the final builds which would be sent to OEMs for bundling with their firmware.
This also enabled new hardware support for quad-core processors and p screens, allowing new flagship devices like the Lumia Icon, and Samsung Ativ SE. In terms of consumer facing features, a rotation lock feature was finally added to the settings pane. The storage manager was overhauled, with a new manager allowing users to delete temporary files and manage space. The music hub received a speed boost, improving the experience for users of lower specced handsets.
Microsoft also implemented an instant hotspot feature which allowed Windows devices to remotely activate the hotspot function on a nearby Windows Phone if said device had already been paired by Bluetooth. For those who made use of Bluetooth accessories with their device, apart from enhancing the Bluetooth functionality, a driving mode was added for those who made use of Bluetooth headsets while driving.
This would limit distractions by ignoring calls and texts with an option to send an auto reply. These were all besides the usual big fixes and improvements of course.
On April 2nd , Microsoft announced Windows Phone 8. This was made available in less than two weeks using its Preview for Developers program.
This new OS was much more an upgrade than Windows Phone 8, with many user facing features available immediately. The Windows Phone UI has, on the surface, remained the same in all iterations. Live tiles, a start screen, huge fonts etc.
However, it has gotten refinements in each updates. Windows Phone 8 added the ability to resize tiles and more accent colours and now 8. An elegant parallax scroll was added as well. Still on the Start Screen, Microsoft enabled support for a user configurable third column of tiles. Another more noticeable change was the size of system fonts. The Blue update reduced the size of the fonts in system apps, making for a cleaner and more information rich UI.
Internet Explorer 11 fixed many of the qualms users had with previous versions of it. The UI more or less got out of your way with options like a tab switcher and refresh button being on the toolbar by default. The arbitrary tab limit was removed, with IE now allowing unlimited tabs. A new and highly customizable reading view that stripped pages of all extraneous content was implemented as well. On the backend, it was now possible for tabs and favourites to sync between computers thanks to Windows Phones improved sync and backup system.
This improved sync and backup system would now allow users to sync more than just settings, with theme colour and Start screen arrangements being synced across as well. One of the biggest additions to Window Phone in 8. She was a personal assistant that handled tasks like reminders, calendar appointments and quiet hours, among others. She could also be integrated with apps so one could interact with them without opening the app at first.
Where Cortana especially excelled was in contextual tasks, she would know where you lived and how you moved around and remind you to get to work or leave the office with a map that showed the route you could take. Reminders could be set based on person, place or time etc.
For a more detailed look at Cortana, see here. In short, Cortana was one of the best bits of Windows Phone 8. Unfortunately she was limited to the US at launch with Microsoft promising to release her to other countries gradually. This was the Action centre.
It was designed to host both the quick settings centre and a notifications area which gathered toasts and other notifications from apps. It was a basic implementation, but in this case, basic was enough. It was now also easier to take control of your Windows Phone with the new sense apps.
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