Yesterday we officially unveiled Windows Phone 7 during a great event in the Sydney CBD. This marked the introduction of an entirely new way generation of handsets for mobile consumers and marked the countdown to Windows Phone 7 availability here in Australia. The Microsoft Mobility team is excited to share the news that Windows Phone 7 will be available in stores from Thursday 21 October.
The road to launch has been an exciting journey for us. With Windows Phone 7 we have completely redesigned the smartphone – and put the focus on how people use their phones to connect and to make every-day tasks easier and faster.
Windows Phone 7 simplifies the way you do things and is organised into ‘hubs’ to help people find and consume data, information, services and applications easily. The new phones are distinguished by the unique and diverse experiences built from Microsoft’s broad portfolio including Xbox LIVE*, Office Mobile*, Windows Live and more.
We created Windows Phone 7 to be highly customisable with live tiles that let you add your own content instead of just having a collection of random icons. This allows the tiles ‘come to life’, with real-time updates from the web such as news, appointments or the status of your friends through social media sites like Facebook. You can also create new, customised live tiles from whatever content you want, such as apps, websites – even photos and music.
Windows Phone 7 centres on six key Hubs, which allow you to easily organise and access all of your important information in one central spot. The Hubs include:
• People hub: Keep track of your social scene by scanning Windows Live and Facebook feeds and photos, in addition to dialling, texting or emailing friends in the address book.• Pictures hub: Share photos from pictures saved to the phone, Facebook and Windows Live with ease. Quickly capture the moment with and go from pocket to picture in seconds with a press of the camera button, and then send photos from the hub to friends or post to Windows Live or Facebook. • Games hub: Play games with friends, track scores and wins in your gamer profile. Access try-before-you-buy demos, Xbox LIVE leaderboards, participate in turn-based multiplayer games, view achievements and more. Windows Phone 7 brings the quality, consistency and community of the Xbox experience to gamers on the go*.• Music + Video: Play videos and music quickly. Enjoy custom playlists, listen to podcasts and recommend favourite songs to friends. • Office hub*: View, edit, share and sync Microsoft Office docs. Create a memo in Office OneNote Mobile then sync it wirelessly to the web. Collaborate with co-workers through SharePoint Workspace Mobile. • Marketplace hub: Get quality applications – games, music, entertainment, news, sports, social networking, productivity, travel and many more . Apps are tested and certified to deliver a consistently great experience. Marketplace is also accessible through a PC client that is integrated into Microsoft’s Zune software.
Microsoft has certainly come a long way in the mobility business and Windows Phone 7 is the pinnacle of our efforts. We couldn’t be more thrilled to be able to bring this new phone OS to you and are eager to hear what you have to say about it
If you’re looking for more information on Windows Phone 7 in Australia, please visit: www.windowsphone.com.au
You can also get updated by following us on Twitter: @windowsau or Facebook.
Cheers,Sheau-LanDirector of the mobile communications business
* Xbox LIVE subscription required. * There are some differences between the features of Office Mobile and Microsoft Office 2010. Usage fees and charges may apply as set by your service provider.