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Matthew Miller
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Review of Windows Phone 7 includes 70 screenshots

By | November 1, 2010, 4:45pm PDT

Summary: Detailed reviews of Windows Phone 7 are rolling out now on a regular basis as the devices roll out around the world. Next week when we see them appear in the U.S. I am sure we will see even more appear.

We are starting to see more and more Windows Phone 7 reviews appear online as the devices work through the media (here are some of my thoughts on a couple pieces of hardware) and are available in countries outside the U.S. My good friend Remo Knops posted an excellent five page review with 70 screenshots (I am still trying to find out how in the world he captured them) over on Mobility Minded.

Remo broke the review up into sections similar to a few chapters in my upcoming Windows Phone 7 Companion book, including the lock screen, six hubs, other core features, settings, and other thoughts. Similar to his experiences, I have found Windows Phone 7 to be extremely stable in both the Technical Preview phase and in the final retail release candidate. Remo likes Windows Phone 7 and as I spend the last couple of days on the road in DC with the HTC Surround I am finding I too am really liking Windows Phone 7 and am planning to buy the HTC HD7 next week.

Some other articles and reviews of Windows Phone 7 include:

Most articles and reviews are quite positive about Windows Phone 7 and even the critical ones acknowledge that Microsoft created a unique user interface that will appeal to many. Remember, this is a 1.0 product too and if you look at Windows Phone 7 as the new operating system it is, then you can see it is pretty amazing compared to 1.0 versions of iOS and Android.

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Topics

Microsoft Windows Phone 7, Microsoft Windows Phone, Microsoft Windows, Operating Systems, Software, Matthew Miller

Matthew Miller started using a Pilot 1000 in 1997 and has been writing news, reviews, and opinion pieces ever since.

Disclosure

Matthew Miller

Matthew is a professional naval architect by day and a mobile gadget freak at all other times. He purchases his own devices and then sells them on eBay or Craigslist to buy more. Many other devices are sent for review on a 30-day loaner basis and then returned to the carrier or manufacturer. If any are provided as “long term loaner units” this will be clearly disclosed in his reviews.

Biography

Matthew Miller

Matthew Miller started using a mobile devices in 1997 and has been writing news, reviews, and opinion pieces ever since. He is a co-host with GigaOM's Kevin Tofel on the MobileTechRoundup podcast and an author of three Wiley Companion series books. Matthew started using mobile devices with a US Robotics Pilot 1000 and has owned over 125 different devices running Palm, Linux, Symbian, Newton, BlackBerry, iOS, Android, webOS, Windows Mobile, and Windows Phone operating systems. His current collection includes an HTC Radar 4G, Dell Venue Pro, Apple iPad 2, HTC Flyer, Samsung Galaxy Nexus, Nokia N9, Apple iPhone 4S, MacBook Pro, and many more, along with tons of accessories and classic devices like the Apple Newton MessagePad 2100 and Sony CLIE UX50. Matthew can be found on various discussion forums under the user name of "palmsolo".
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RE: Review of Windows Phone 7 includes 70 screenshots
tomlin21-24319035676893835085146735905770 11th Oct
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RE: Review of Windows Phone 7 includes 70 screenshots
jennyrice41 1st Nov 2010
A video conference call continues to improve with more advanced technology and better devices.
http://hubpages.com/hub/video-conference-call-how-it-works
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List of Missing Features
gjafg 2nd Nov 2010
@jennyrice41 - But WP7 doesn't do video conferencing.

Here's the list of what Windows Phone 7 lacks:
-Copy & Paste not working
-Bluetooth file exchange not working
-No HTML5, No Flash, No video in the browser
-No 3rd party app multitasking
-No Custom Ringtones
-3rd party apps can't use the compass or video camera
-Doesn't recognise the full Exchange server policies (just a subset)
-Does not recognise Microsoft Office security permissions
-No alternate browsers (just Internet Explorer 7)
-No videocalling
-No 3rd party VoIP apps (eg No Skype, No Fring)
-No tethering to a laptop
-No USB syncing
-No realtime multi-player games
-Bing Button can't be changed to Google
-No Google Maps
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RE: Review of Windows Phone 7 includes 70 screenshots
jyar727 8th Nov 2010
@gyepera
This list is very informative. Of course I'm sure most of these will be taken care of within a few months (I hope). Otherwise I will stick to my windows 6.5 for now or go with android instead.
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Walt Mossberg??
John Zern 1st Nov 2010
Has he ever met a non Apple product that he liked?
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RE: Review of Windows Phone 7 includes 70 screenshots
kenosha77a 1st Nov 2010
@John Zern
No. Did Dvorak ever meet an Apple product that he liked?
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yup
ericesque 2nd Nov 2010
@kenosha7777
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2162397,00.asp

Some people are able to swallow their pride and actually review objectively. Perhaps Mosberg will find the fortitude to do so someday.
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Dvorak
msandersen 5th Nov 2010
@kenosha7777 Considering he uses one, I guess so.
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I don't really pay attention to him
Cylon Centurion 1st Nov 2010
NT
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RE: Review of Windows Phone 7 includes 70 screenshots
xristop 1st Nov 2010
... "in my upcoming Windows Phone 7 Companion book" ...

Well, that just about says everything about this article. In the meantime, if iOS or Android still WERE at version 1.0, he'd have a point. Unfortunately (for MS, that is), they are not. Lots of features are missing from WP7, and lots of APIs and tools are missing from the development environment (native local database, for example). That said, WP7 has a compelling interface, and - from what I've seen - is very fast.
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RE: Review of Windows Phone 7 includes 70 screenshots
illegaloperation 1st Nov 2010
@xristop
iOS (iPhone) has reach its saturation point where new features arrive at slower place. Version 2.x and 3.x brings huge updates. Version 4.x, not so much

Same with Android. When 1.x, new features were added at lightning pace. With Android 2.1+, Google is slowing down release cycle and with only minor updates.

It is not only what features Windows Phone 7 has at version 1.0, but the potential of what it can become that matters.
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RE: Review of Windows Phone 7 includes 70 screenshots
xristop 1st Nov 2010
@day2die
So... by your analogy, when WP7 has finally reached the point where Android and iOS are now, it will reach its saturation point?

I am interested to know how exactly WP7 would have more potential than Android. (For iOS, I would say it's limited because it is just one device.) For that to happen, it would have to offer "more" - and that just does not seem to be the case right now.
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You are so WRONG
wackoae 1st Nov 2010
@day2die In order to compete, Android had to include many features that users wanted (not necessarily useful or needed) but were missing from the iPhone. Granted, many features in Android were (some still) buggy as hell, but they had a few extra features that distinguished the new brand from the leader.

If WP7 comes out without key features (specially features that were in older WM versions) and on top of that is buggy, it will only generate distaste on the brand (remember Vista?). No matter how many updates they produce, the brand will have a bad reputation from the beginning. And Bad reputation would mean NO BUYERS.

One feature that is completely ridiculous not to have at release date is copy and paste. WM had it and people b!tc3d about it being missing on the iPhone. The only multi-tasking that counts is being able to make a call while using a web enabled application or/and GPS.
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How can he call v1.0 when the OS is in v7 ??
wackoae 1st Nov 2010
@xristop You are correct, a brand new OS that is not an evolution of an older version can be called v1.0. Even with the change in name MS can't claim a v1.0 because it is was based on OLDER versions.

Claiming that WP7 is v1.0 is like claiming that a high-school student is a kid in kindergarten.
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RE: Review of Windows Phone 7 includes 70 screenshots
xristop 1st Nov 2010
@wackoae
Yeah, I did not want to delve into that... true, they made a fresh start, but that does not mean the previous 6.5 versions never happened.

Your analogy reminds me of that Family Guy episode where Peter is kicked out of his house by James Woods, and dresses up as a kid to get back in happy
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What ever comes out of Redmond
gbouchard99@... 2nd Nov 2010
It seems like whatever comes out or Redmond these days is not well received by the skeptics and the open source community?s soldiers. MS seems to personify everything we hate about the digital age. Sometimes, we should look elsewhere for something to hate. At least WP7 is new from A to Z and no codes were ?borough? from Java or Linux. MS Earned every patent and technologies used in this product. MS is well known for products that are opened to connectivity and enhancement from third parties. Their philosophy has always been: Let us be the Os and you can plug anything use any software on your device, and if you?re nice to us, you?ll have tons of updates and service for free.
I think we should give this product a break. It is a nicely done 1.0 product. It isn?t perfect but MS is showing so seriousness and effort. Users will be happy to have bought one in a few months after a 2 or 3 updates.
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Wasn't this supposed to be in the bargain bin by now?
Cylon Centurion 2nd Nov 2010
Sorry, I can't help but lol at those "predictions". I can't wait to get my hands on one of these next fall. Hopefully, some good things will come to the platform in that time.
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WP7 is sold out everywhere it has been released
NonZealot 2nd Nov 2010
@Cylon Centurion 0005
I agree, WP7 needs a year to ferment before it will meet my needs but when it does, I'm quite confident it will be the best smartphone platform out there. Of course, Zune is the best PMP so I'm sure that the combination of MS's marketing incompetence and Apple's anti-competitive practices will ensure that WP7 is never as successful as it should be. That's okay though. If anything, it means I will have a competitive advantage over people using inferior smartphones. happy
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RE: Review of Windows Phone 7 includes 70 screenshots
Loverock Davidson 2nd Nov 2010
Now that is one sweet looking GUI! I really like how Microsoft has designed the whole phone to really work for you by showing you what matters most instead of the current phones where you have to go out and seek the information on it. Waiting for more carriers to get these WP7 phones so that I can get one.
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RE: Review of Windows Phone 7 includes 70 screenshots
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RE: Review of Windows Phone 7 includes 70 screenshots
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