We're not too sure what to make out of AT&T running out of the HTC Titan I and Titan II online but if you head to their site, you can see for yourself.
Now we could explain away the original Titan becoming unavailable -- after all, AT&T would probably be happy to put away any stock on that device for it's bigger and better sequel. But even the Titan II is not available, which makes us wonder if HTC is having some component or production issues (or maybe they just forgot to make more, instantrimshot).
Could the Titan II be selling so well that they can't keep up? Obviously, we doubt that though we do have reports of general increases in Windows Phone sales due to the Lumia 900 (insert the whole "rising tide lifts all boats" idiom here) and maybe, just maybe the Titan II is seeing an uptick in purchases too.
Heck, it should. It's a great Windows Phone and a great smartphone, rocking the largest camera available on the market. Which reminds us, why have we not seen a single commercial boasting that fact? Seems like an easy sell to us but what do we know...
For those interested, Amazon Wireless still has the Titan II in stock, which is a reversal from a few weeks ago. It's also listed at the $149.99 price point. Natch. No word on supplies at local stores either, so your mileage may vary.
Source: AT&T; Thanks, kylengai, for the heads up
It's a good day for Windows Phone users as they can now download an official version of the WSJ Live for their devices (as opposed to the half dozen clones). The Wall Street Journal is quite the major publication and follows other recent releases on Windows Phone including TIme Magazine and the Daily Beast in offering high quality official apps.
The app is an interesting twist on the WSJ as this is the online "Live" branded version meaning all of the content is in video. In other words, instead of typical WSJ articles, you're getting news segments that last anywhere from 30 seconds to nearly 5 minutes in length. We just fired it up and was rather impressed with the quality of the video (over LTE of course) and the content presented. Think of this as a mini-TV news app rather than the proper WSJ.
"WSJ Live: Original Programming, Live and On Demand from The Wall Street Journal. WSJ Live brings you live news and on-demand video directly from 2,000 reporters across the globe. With over 4.5 hours of live programming a day, you can stay on top of the latest in news, elections, markets, tech, opinion, lifestyle. You can also access the entire video archive of The Wall Street Journal."
Overall it should do a lot for the Windows Phone platform to have the Dow Jones & Company, Inc. behind it. Let us know in comments your thoughts on the app. [Note: the link just went live, so it may not appear on all servers just yet. World wide availability is not yet known]
Pick up the official WSJ.com app for Windows Phone here in the Marketplace.
We've chatted up TalkBox for Windows Phone now for a few weeks. The popular messaging app is already on iOS and Android and now thanks to an excellent beta program, the tried and tested version for Windows Phone is here.
What's TalkBox? It's more than a messaging app because it sends short voice clips in addition to straight text messaging to your contacts, making it a virtually hands free experience. Here are a few other key features that may interest you:
We're big fans of the app due to the care in its design--it's very Metro and well thought out for Windows Phone instead of just another port. Will it be as good as Kik or WhatsApp? As far as features go, we'd say this is in many ways better but really, the big determinant is whether or not your friends use TalkBox. Seeing as it's a popular app on iOS and Android, you stand a good chance of getting friend-parity.
At the very least though, you should give it a whirl. Heck, if you like it enough no reason you can't get others to switch around you.
Pick up TalkBox on Windows Phone for free in the Marketplace right here. Hit us up in comments and let us know what you think. [We have at least one report that German users may have issues with this app]
We're not to sure what to make of this ad for the Nokia Lumia 900 showing up on some sites but it caught one of our reader's attention and indeed, it is intriguing.
The ad is simple enough. It shows the 'beautifully different' Lumia 900 in glossy-white with a 4G icon (this is for the international version, not AT&T) spinning around, displaying various features.
But what is different relates to the Live Tiles:
Anyone who has used Windows Phone, any version, knows very well that the Live Tiles do neither of those things. Yet there they are flipping around like they belong there are a new ad.
Now we could easily chalk this up as some marketing error, a glitch made by someone getting Photoshop happy and not accurately representing Windows Phone 7.5--and to be honest, there's a good case for that theory. Or perhaps we're looking at something else, maybe something along the lines of Windows Phone 8 behavior. After all, those are small enough changes that also make tremendous amount of sense for "new features" in an updated OS.
No real way to know of course but if this isn't a Windows Phone 8 leak then Microsoft, you should probably make those changes because they're quite nice. And if a mistake, Nokia you should probably fix it.
Source of ad: PC Advisor; Thanks, Victor V., for the tip
On Sunday we posted a method by which you can get a free Avatar prop featuring Windows Phone--either a Longboard, foam finger or tee-shirt. All you had to do was sign up for the Windows Phone Insider newsletter and you were sent a redeem code.
Then late Sunday/early Monday we started to get word that the offer had suddenly ended, even before most of you were able to try and get one. Now, Microsoft's KC Lemson has posted why on the Windows Phone Blog.
In short, some jerk managed to sweep up all the remaining redeem codes, locking out future users. What's worse, they're selling them on eBay for $10 a pop.
The good news is Microsoft will do right and extend free I <3 Windows Phone shirt avatar props to those users who received a rejection email, meaning not only will you get something, you'll get a more rare item.
No word though if they'll open this up for others who missed the original offer. From the sound of it, it was a successful program. Let's hope they do it again.
Source: Windows Phone Blog; Thanks, FalconX, for the eBay link
Although we like playing video games with bombs on our Windows Phone, we have to remember in the real world, bombs and mines are a real problem for war-torn territories.
Evidently a few students at the Military University of Technology in Warsaw have decided to do something about it so they created SAPER. What is SAPER? The name means “minesweeper” in Polish and is also an acronym for “Sensor Amplified Perception For Explosives Recognition.” Yes, that's right, it uses the magnetometer in Windows Phone to detect bombs, specifically the magnetic field around an forty different types of explosive material from 30 cm (11.8 inches) away.
In short, you launch the app and let it calibrate in the area you intend to scan. Then waving the phone around it compares the recorded magnetic disturbance signature with other signatures in the database via a cloud-based connection, giving a probable threat cause and even a potential ID of the type of explosive. It even uses Bing Maps to then mark the area for future extraction.
Currently the app is exclusive to Windows Phone and is an Imagine Cup entry though the developers do have plans to extend it to other platforms and potentially extend it to other areas (detecting wires in a wall, body scans, etc.). And no, it's not intended to replace proper mine-sweeping technology but rather to supplant it where it can't be made readily available until a later time.
Certainly this is very impressive stuff and demonstrates just how powerful smartphones can be made--it's a tell tale sign of where things are going in the future. And for once an app on a smartphone will do good for the world instead of just waste time by shooting birds at pigs.
Source: WAT; via Microsoft, Gizmag; Thanks, Bernard M., for the tip!
Since Windows Phone users can't spend a lot of time customizing their OS (instead we live our lives), there's much focus on the lock-screen. We know we change ours every few days (we use Ffffound for inspiration).
Today, Microsoft has announced a partnership with London based graphic designer Levi Freeman and as a result, they've released eight "officially sanctioned" wallpapers to spiffy up your Windows Phone.
The eight images are nature focused so they may not appeal to everyone (we're more into abstract art here). Still, the designs are nice and they're meant to look perfect on your phone. What's more, the images all have a corresponding QR code for easy download (see, not even Microsoft uses Tag). Plus Microsoft notes that they hope more of these collaborations will happen with Levi, meaning we can probably expect different themes in the future--we like that idea. Levi also plans to release desktop versions too.
There's some interesting tidbits about the inspiration for each image and details about Freeman at his site, so hop on over to grab those images and learn a little bit about their origins.
Source: Windows Phone Blog, Levi Freeman's blog
File this under "vague but encouraging". T-Mobile's CEO Philipp Humm gave an interview with the Seattle Times where he talked about the transitions that company is going through including their future plans.
Humm was asked about Microsoft and Windows Phone in particular and while no firm numbers or details were given, the message was at least positive:
Q: T-Mobile made a commitment to push Windows Phone this year. How is that working out?
A: I think we have a very good relationship with Microsoft, and we discovered that, in particular, for customers who are new to smartphones, they really enjoy the simplicity of the Microsoft [user interface], so they like the design and the ease of it.
Q: Are Windows phones selling as well as you hoped?
A: We are so far quite pleased and I think Microsoft, if you talk to them, [is] quite pleased with T-Mobile.
Indeed, T-Mobile has been the 2nd most important carrier in the US for Windows Phone. They launched with the popular HD7, had the Dell Venue Pro and recently exclusively acquired the HTC Radar (review) and Nokia Lumia 710 (review). While those latter two phones won't woo those who want a high-end, large screen device, both phones have exceptionally high user satisfaction ratings (and they're amongst our favorite devices here at Windows Phone Central).
The comments above, while vague, do echo what Nokia CEO Stephen Elop noted back in Mobile World Congress. There in regards to the T-Mobile Lumia 710, Elop noted that sales were "exceeding expectations" which we'll take as a positive sign as well. (Currently, the Lumia 710 is #4 under best-selling smartphones on T-Mobile, while the Radar is #19. Amazon Wireless has the Luma 710 at #6 and Radar at #7, respectively.)
Still, Windows Phone has a long away ahead and it's not clear that non-flagship devices like the Lumia 710 and HTC Radar can turn T-Mobile into the "must have" carrier for Windows Phone. Here's to hoping that T-Mobile still has a few Windows Phone tricks up their sleeve.
Source: Seattle Times
ZTE is slowly growing to be an important partner with Microsoft and Windows Phone as they're one of the largest OEMs in the world (that you never heard of). Their "Tania" has been around for some time now but it surprisingly hasn't launched yet in China, which received its big Windows Phone push last month with Nokia and HTC leading the way.
Now it looks like the device will finally be out within days though no specific carrier has been announced. According to Wei Xiaodong, ZTE sales director, the phone will be released by the end of this month and will get a CPU bump from 1GHz to 1.4Ghz--a trend we're seeing with the more premium Windows Phones like the 710 and Focus 2. Everything else will stay the same though: 4.3" screen, 4GB storage, 512MB RAM and a 5MP camera. Of course the OS is expected to be "Tango" for the Chinese localization.
We played with the Tania back at CES and actually like the little guy. While perhaps not amazing by certain standards, for a premium Windows Phone it's actually well done. ZTE has also announced plans to make a push here in the United States and it will be curious to see how that pans out.
See our hands-on video on the ZTE Tania from CES 2012 here.
Source: CNMO; via Unwired View
For many of us, the original Samsung Focus (review) was our first foray into the Windows Phone world. And truth be told, it was an excellent experience. With it's 4" Super AMOLED screen, slick design, light body and decent (for the time) camera, the Samsung Focus set the precedent. Recent numbers also reflect that status with upwards of 90% of AT&Ts first generation Windows Phone being the Focus.
Today, AT&T and Samsung have released the Focus 2, a moderate update to the original design (check out today's unboxing video). Eschewing glossy black for the new hip white, dropping in a faster 1.4GHz CPU and adding 4G LTE are the most notable changes. Adding a more rounded design with some updated sensors and cameras are the more under-the-hood type differences.
So how does it stack up in the first few hours I've been toying with it? For $50 on contract or $399 off, the Focus 2 is a nimble little guy that has certainly caught my attention.
The feel of the device is really good in the hands albeit a touch slippery. The roundness of the device, while slick, makes it a joy to hold and at 4" for the screen size, it's a more natural fit. The chrome accent adds a touch of class and while the device is very plastic, it doesn't feel cheap. The buttons have an interesting layout with the volume keys to the left, power and camera to the right. While odd, it does make it less confusing than the Lumia 900's where they are all lumped together on the same side. Travel of the keys is good and they're tactile with no rattle.
The Super AMOLED screen is really brilliant but obviously not as good as the Lumia 900's. Still, it holds its own and it's great to look at while not getting to grimy.
Audio quality is moderate with very little distortion when maxed out. It's a touch tinny but not by much.
The camera is surprisingly good even at 5MP, in fact forgetting the loss of resolution, it's as good if not better than the Nokia Lumia 900's. While it doesn't really contain any advanced settings e.g. no anti-shake or panorama, photos are well detailed and pleasing to the eye. We do however recommend turning up sharpness and contrast a smidge more to make the most of it.
Any extras worth reporting on? No, not really. There are the advanced GPS settings (GLONASS) and Samsung's "extra settings" present but other than that it has the same wallpapers as other Samsung Windows Phones and their regular cheesy ringtones.
Overall though, we're impressed and like the Focus 2 a ton. It feels great in the hand, is fun to use and makes a solid addition to AT&T's lineup. I'm going to have little problem adding it to my repertoire of Windows Phones.
Check after the break for a few more pics of the device and a couple camera samples (compared to the Lumia 900)...
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