Latest mobile gadgets: Hands on at MWC

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The star of this year's show was arguably Microsoft - which unveiled the next generation of its Windows Mobile OS - a completely overhauled operating system dubbed 7 Series including an elegant new-look UI that integrates with a variety of third-party web services, such as Facebook and X-Box live.

Michael Chang, senior product manager at Microsoft, confirmed 7 Series has been completely rebuilt from the ground up. The look of the new UI draws from Microsoft's Zune HD MP3 player interface but Chang said Nike was also involved in the design process. 7 Series devices won't be able to be skinned with a proprietary UI by device manufacturers as Microsoft is keen to preserve the look and feel of its next-gen smartphones.

At MWC Microsoft demoed an early build of the OS running on a prototype handset which silicon.com got its hands on - pictured above and below. Devices running 7 Series will be in the market in time for Christmas, according to CEO Steve Ballmer.

"We hope 7's our lucky number," he said.

Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 Series UI has a strong social networking flavour

Photo credits: Natasha Lomas/silicon.com