update

We've just got word that UK mobile operator EE has begun rolling out the Portico update for Lumia 920 Windows Phones that are tied to the network. The Windows Phone 8 update introduces a number of improvements, including SMS call reject, persistent Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi hotspot and addresses stability issues (such as those annoying soft-resets).

AT&T's previous Nokia flagship, the Lumia 900, will be one of the first to sport the 7.8 OS upgrade

Nokia Lumia 900 users on AT&T can look forward to receiving the Windows Phone 7.8 OS update on Wednesday, January 30th—one day earlier than what we were anticipating. Windows Phone Central has learned (via an internal AT&T email) details of the update including that it was approved on January 7th by the carrier.

We’ve written extensively on the 7.8 update recently including giving a full video-tour of what the update will look like. That was accomplished by flashing our Lumia 900 with the Nokia-approved ROM files that  were posted to Nokia’s servers. While this method works, it also wipes the phone and can be risky (in addition to frustrating if you don’t have the right drivers).

We began to get rather hopeful with news of an imminent release for the Windows Phone 7.8 update, thanks to a tweet published by UK mobile operator O2. The company has quickly become the premier Windows Phone carrier in the UK, supporting the platform with stock of not only Lumia handsets, but Samsung and HTC as well.

Now Telstra has provided some hints that consumers with Windows Phone 7 hardware won't have to wait too long for the much anticipated update.

As we covered in last week's announcement of the v3.3 update, there was a minor content enrichment bug which slipped past our normal quality control procedures, and so today brings v3.4 to fix said bug. You can download to your heart's content here in the marketplace.

Just when you thought the Samsung Focus Flash had vanished into thin air, AT&T has started pushing out the Windows Phone 7.5 (a.k.a. Tango) update to the tiny little phone.

Windows Phone Tango brings a handful of small fixes to the OS that includes multiple images in MMS, send ringtones via MMS, more reliable push notifications, new wallpapers and a few other performance optimizations.

We reported on the demise of Microsoft’s long serving Messenger instant chat and video calling service some time back. If you are already an existing user then you’ll have been greeted with pop up notices urging you to update to Skype over the last month or so.

Seems like Microsoft is now putting the word out in full, an official email was sent to users today explaining what you’ll need to do and how long the service will continue to work for.

BBC Podcast Lounge, now known as Podcast Lounge, has been updated for Windows Phone. The app, now bumped to version 1.4 is a well rated podcast player that enables users to stream and download shows from a number of sources, including the BBC.

The British corporation has long been shy of Microsoft's mobile platform with lack of iPlayer support, as well as podcast, radio and other media. Consumers have relied on third-party developers to bring support to the platform.

Speaking of which, Windows Phone itself lacks full podcast support for a number of markets, which this app helps address. Igneous has proven their worth by offering such functionality and opening up content for those who have no official means to do so. 

The Skype team have published a new entry on the official blog that details changes applied in the latest version of the popular message and calling app for Windows Phone 8. Version 2.1 was recently pushed to the latest hardware running on Microsoft's platform. We previously looked at the update and noticed a number of changes, but with the official changelog it's now easier to list everything that's included in the release. So what's new in 2.1?

Want to update your Lumia 920 early? Read below on getting started, including the risks.

Although folks on Rogers and AT&T have successfully received the Windows Phone “Portico” and firmware updates for their Nokia Lumia 920s, there’s a good chunk of the rest of the world who has not. In fact, the plan is not roll out that update for another month or so, which is a bummer for those looking to improve their camera or get new features.

What follows down below is a very detailed and well written guide on how to manually update your Lumia 920. The information is actually well known and many of us have used the same “system” for updating our previous Lumias, but this one is clearly written and regularly updated. Started in our forums by Nabkawe5, it’s one of our hottest threads.

But first, we need to explain a few things…