windows phone

It's coming. Windows Phone 8 is coming.

Microsoft plans to hold an event in Milan on October 29th for the unveiling of the next version of Windows Phone. The company is slowly reaching the release date for its mobile platform and we're set to see exactly what's what (as well as hardware pricing and availability) at the end of the month - just in time for the holiday season.

Ran across a Facebook posting by Windows Phone saying "Our Live Tiles may be trying to tell us something". The posting pictures a magenta AT&T Nokia Lumia 900 with the Phone Tile is displaying "10", the Linked Inbox an "11" and the Messaging Tile a "12".

The obvious thought is October 11, 2012, which is today. But so far all is quiet on the AT&T news front.  But many format their dates day/month/year which would put the date November 10, 2012. Up until this little riddle, the strong school of thought has the new Lumias landing on Sunday, November 4th. Which fits AT&T's launch habits (the 10th is the following Saturday).

Could this be the new launch date for the AT&T Lumia 920 and 820? Or are we reading too much into things and the Live Tiles simply telling us that it's 54 degrees in Redmond? 

We'll poke around and see what we can come up with but in the meantime, there's a discussion going on over in the WPCentral Forums on what this riddle could mean. Feel free to chime in and let us know your guess.

Hey, who you calling cheap?

The Canyons (IMdB) is a new film coming out in 2013 from writer Brett Easton Ellis (American Psycho), long-time director Paul Schrader (American Gigolo, Affliction) and stars Lindsey Lohan. The new trailer is a spoof off of 1970’s grindhouse, low budget films, which is sort of interesting but of course what caught our eye is the Windows Phone.

Sure, product placements are a dime a dozen but it’s still kind of neat to see what looks to be a Lumia 710 (?) used for a key scene in the movie.  Exposure is exposure. Full trailer is after the break. Thanks, HikiSpray, for the tip

Microsoft appears to be pushing out the golden envelopes for the final reveal-all of Windows Phone 8. The event is scant on actual details but the data is locked in for 5pm GMT on October 29th, London. This matches the upcoming event in San Francisco.

The events held so far have seen journalists physically restricted from properly playing with the OS, so aside from videos and SDKs precious few have any idea how well it works on a real device.

Late last week we wrote in length about the unwarranted uproar caused by the AT&T exclusive Nokia announcements. At the centre of the controversy was the notion that there would not be a Nokia Windows Phone 8 device coming to Verizon. [Actually, it was about them not getting the Lumia 920 -Ed.]

We could be seeing the first signs of life from the coming Nokia refresh for Verizon as The Verge reports, via @evkleaks, on this Atlas device.

Kantar Worldpanel has published its report based on latest smartphone sales data, which reveals Windows Phone seriously challenging RIM for third place in Europe with low-end devices such as the Lumia 610 driving sales in key markets.

Low-end Windows Phone growth rates representing multiple markets within Europe have been provided by Kantar. Italy tops the charts with an increase in market share of 6.6%, while France comes in second at 3.5% and Great Britan is third with 2.3%. What's more is Microsoft now sports 10.4% marketshare in Italy with Windows Phone.

There is plenty to look forward to with the new crop of Windows Phones. For example, with the Nokia Lumia 920 you have the Pureview Camera, the PureMotion screen, and the color choices. You can also add the Snapdragon S4 processor to the list of anticipated features--but you may be wondering what's so great about the S4 (MSM 8960) anyway?

The Snapdragon S4 won't be an exclusive to the Lumia 920. The Lumia 820, HTC 8X, HTC 8S and Samsung ATIV S will also bear Qualcomm's latest SoC. The new processor will benefit all our new Windows Phones across the board.  So what are those new perks?

Microsoft's Monthly Photo Contest - Favorite Places

Last month, Microsoft launched a monthly Windows Phone photo contest where the subject matter of the pictures changed from month to month.  It's a great opportunity to showcase our Windows Phone cameras. Last month the theme was pets and this month the theme shifts to favorite places.

Winning photos will be featured on the Windows Phone Blog and across Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest channels.

You can add T-Mobile (US) to the growing list of wireless carriers who will be adding the HTC 8X Windows Phone to their shelves in the coming months.

Details on pricing and availability were not released by T-Mobile beyond availability is expected in the coming months.  While no release date was announced, T-Mobile has set up a website where you can sign up for email notifications on the HTC 8X's availability.

So just to recap, it has been confirmed the the 8X is headed to Rogers Canada, AT&T and now T-Mobile. Could Verizon be next?

Source: T-Mobile