Mango to take on smartphone market

Microsoft is taking aim at the smartphone consumer market with the unveiling of the latest Windows Phone update, code-named “Mango”.

While some have welcomed the update and praised the user interface, others remain sceptical as Microsoft still tries to find a successful strategy to gain more of the smartphone market share.

According to reports, many analysts feel that, while Mango will provide a worthwhile update for current Windows Phone users, it will fail to capture the attention of the consumer market, which is already dominated by Apple and Android.

The operating system update does, however, offer some interesting innovations and promises over 500 new features, while trying to make smartphones “smarter and easier”.

“Seven months ago, we set about on a new mission to make smartphones smarter and easier so that people can do more and have more fun. We delivered this through a two-part strategy,” said Andy Lees, president of Windows Phone at Microsoft, who chaired the unveiling presentation.

“The first was to put the consumer at the centre and not the operating system. The second part of the strategy was a new approach to the ecosystem across handset makers to mobile operators. We strived to optimise how hardware, software and services worked together.

“We are unveiling the next chapter, which builds on our mission to make the smartphone smarter and easier. This release focuses on three main elements of the smartphone: communications, applications and Internet.

“We wanted a people-centric approach to communication, bringing together all the ways in which you connect and share across all services already used by you and your friends,” said Lees.

To help people stay on top of that growing complexity, the Mango release organises information around the person or group of people the user wants to interact with, not the app.

New communication innovations in Mango include “Threads”, which synthesises Facebook chat, Windows Live Messenger and text messages within the same conversation view.

Groups also allow contacts to be grouped into personalised “Live Tiles” that keep the latest updates on the home screen.

Microsoft also says Mango offers deeper social network integration with Twitter and LinkedIn feeds on contact cards. The update also includes built-in Facebook check-ins and new face-detection software for tagging photos and posting online.

Mango also offers a linked inbox, in which mail from multiple addresses can be viewed in one inbox. E-mail security features have also been added, such as the prevention of forwarding of certain messages.

Another new update includes voice recognition software that automatically kicks in when the user is listening to music or doing something else on the device. The software allows for voice-to-text conversion and vice versa. The software allows the user to listen to or ignore text messages, as well as dictate and send a reply - hands-free.

In terms of applications, Microsoft says: “Windows Phone will challenge the way people think about apps. Today, their usefulness is measured by what can be done within the app, but we see the promise of apps is how they can be integrated directly into the core experiences of the phone.”

App Connect connects apps to search results and allows their integration with the Windows Phone Hubs, including music, video and pictures. “Mango allows apps to be surfaced when and where they make sense,” says Microsoft.

“With Mango, third-party applications have been freed from their silos,” notes the company, explaining that developers would be able to use live tiles and app shortcuts with the update. The deep targeting of applications also allows for apps to run through Marketplace, without being visible to everyone - a potential plus for enterprise.

Hubs have also been improved, most notably with the addition of Xbox Live to the gaming hub.

The Mango update also includes Internet Explorer 9, with HTML5 support and full hardware acceleration. Bing is also included, not as an application, but rather “integrated into the experience” in an effort by Microsoft to blur the line between searching the Internet and finding applications.

The company also demonstrated an HTML5 speed-reading test between a Windows Phone 7 device, a dual-core Android-based Samsung Droid Charge, a BlackBerry Torch 9800 and an iPhone 4. The Mango device finished first, while the iPhone 4 did not render the HTML5 portion of the test.

A “Local Scout” capability uses search and location information to offer suggestions for nearby restaurants, shopping, and activities. The updated search features also include a “Quick Cards” feature, which provides a brief summary of relevant information and related apps when users search for a product, movie, or event.

The update will be made available as a free update for current Window Phone 7 users in the third quarter, and Microsoft promises new devices running Mango to be available on the market at the same time.

While Microsoft declined to reveal any details, the company said it is working with Skype on an application for Mango that will be available for its release later this year.

Not all of the new features will come to SA, however; most notably the highly-localised search Quick Cards. But Microsoft SA did add that it is working locally to get services such as airlines to support the Bing integrated and localised search features. The company is also working on launching the Zune music store locally.

The beta release of the free Windows Phone Developer tools that will be used to create Mango apps and games will be available for public download from today.

The launch of the Windows Phone 7 was anything but successful, and the company has reportedly been losing market share, which is currently at 7.5% for the first quarter. According to Nielson, only 6% of consumers want a Windows Phone.

Given the strong features and improvements offered by Mango, it may provide an opportunity for Microsoft to essentially re-launch the Windows Phone.

The company recently grabbed headlines following its acquisition of Skype, in what has widely been considered a move to regain the “cool” image Microsoft lost after it launched the largely unsuccessful Vista operating system several years ago.

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