It also has a sharp, 5-inch HD screen and dual rear cameras that let you take photos and readjust the focus later. With the latest 8. If you have an older Windows Phone, you'll be getting the update soon if you haven't already. Between Cortana, the notification menu, and the ability to group apps into folders, there's almost nothing Windows Phones can't do that other smartphones can. It took Microsoft a long time, but it eventually caught up. My favorite new feature is Cortana, which is smarter and more capable than Siri.
When you launch Cortana, it gives you a snapshot of your calendar along with some headlines and other stuff you might be interested in reading. Cortana handles search a lot better too, giving you the one answer you're looking for instead of a list of search results like Siri often does.
And you can even follow up with something like, "Where is it? Siri simply isn't smart enough to do that. Google Now, the digital assistant for Android devices, is though. Most Windows Phones work the same way, but the One does have a few special tricks. The most important one is the dual camera system that lets you snap a photo and readjust the focus later. You can create some nifty photos with that feature, but the overall image quality isn't as good as photos taken with the iPhone 5S, Samsung Galaxy S5, or Nokia's flagship Windows Phones.
The newly announced Lumia and Lumia may be the last devices attached to Nokia's brand. Upcoming Windows-based phones will keep the Lumia name, but will only be branded by Microsoft. The longtime PC software company also plans to cut the "Phone" from Windows Phone as well, according to the report.
In advertisements and promotions, Microsoft is likely to place the regular Windows logo alongside its future smartphones rather than its Windows Phone label. This could all be part of a larger plan to ax the Windows Phone operating system entirely, Geek On Gadgets reports.
Microsoft may be planning to merge its smartphone software with its desktop operating system, meaning there may not be a Windows Phone 9 in the pipeline. Internet Explorer crunches web pages down to a manageable size so you don't kill your mobile data plan. The People app collects information from Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook and puts all your contacts' updates in one place. People now has "Rooms" and "Groups" that let you share messages, photos, and calendars with small groups of friends.
The new Wallet app can store your credit cards so you can make mobile payments. Unfortunately, this feature won't be available in the U. Other apps can tie into Wallet so you can store gift cards, coupons, and boarding passes. It's very similar to Passbook on the iPhone. A new app called Local Scout will help you track down things to do near you.
It can also use recommendations from your friends to help you find stuff you'd likely be interested in. Windows Phone 8 ships with Microsoft Office.
You can access all your documents using SkyDrive, which is Microsoft's answer to Dropbox. More from Microsoft It enabled carriers to do what they do best market lots of devices. It enabled users tons of choice. My hypothesis is that it also enables too much fragmentation that will eventually drive end users nuts.
On the other hand, although Windows Phone 7 can be licensed to any device, Microsoft has a set of specs each manufacturer must follow in order to ensure the best user experience. It's not as perfect as Apple's approach of designing both the hardware and software, but it's a whole lot better than letting manufacturers and carriers run wild and causing a massive fragmentation problem where even phones that are barely a year old miss out on the latest updates.
Microsoft's approach seems nice and balanced. It evens the power struggle between the carrier, manufacturer, and OS developer. Unfortunately, as MG Siegler points out , it may be too late:. But Apple could also afford to do this because they were first to market. When the iPhone launched in , the other smartphones on the market were shit. There was no actual competition for the iPhone. The first Android phones that launched over a year later were a joke. Contrast that with Windows Phone which launched far too late into the market.
Had Windows Phone launched in or even , the story would have been different.
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