Microsoft demonstrated the retail version of Windows Phone 7 on stage yesterday, in New York.
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer was joined on stage by an AT&T executive who announced pricing and availability for some of the phones on the American network.
Not much remained to be said for the new mobile operating system, but Microsoft's corporate VP, Joe Belfiore, demonstrated some of the key features, along with a few applications.
Windows Phone 7 focuses on ubiquitous information. Users don't need to open specific applications to download data; instead a lot of the common feeds are implemented into the main screen on the dynamic tiles comprising the interface. Each tile links to a hub, which presents a unified space for interacting with information.
The People Hub is a phonebook, and also shows Facebook status updates and other information for each of the people in the list. Integration with online services is also seen in the built-in mobile Office suite, which can synchronise to Microsoft's Windows Live service. Photos can also be uploaded directly from the Photo Hub.
Microsoft says “hundreds of thousands” of developers have downloaded the Windows 7 developer tools. Applications for the device will be made available at a centralised location called Marketplace, similar to Google's Android Market and Apple's iTunes App Store.
Applications on show included games for the new platform from Electronic Arts, with a handful of US-market-specific applications for entertainment services from AT&T, an eBay application and a Twitter application.
Ten devices were shown, all of which will be available on 8 November in the US: five devices from HTC, two each from Samsung and LG, and one from Dell.
Most boast screens in the region of 3.8-inch, with the exception of the Dell Venue Pro and its 4.1-inch display. Three phones featured slide-out keyboards - an option, not a requirement for Windows Phone 7 devices - and a single HTC features a slide-out speaker, the HTC Surround.
Microsoft SA's marketing lead for Windows Phone, Nkosi Kumalo, has confirmed HTC will be an OEM launch partner in November, and also said Windows Phone 7 devices will be available on Heita (Telkom Mobile) and Cell C.
Vodacom CEO Pieter Uys confirmed on Twitter that his network will start selling Windows Phone 7 devices early in November, in line with the international launch. MTN confirmed that it, too, will carry devices running Microsoft's new mobile OS.
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