Windows Phone 7 Series ... what we know, and what we don't

Microsoft has just wrapped up its Windows Phone 7 Series press conference at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, so it's now time for a roundup of what we know, and what we don't.

OK, here's what we know:

• Windows Phone 7 Series will be a touchscreen device that's basically a Zune HD with a handset attached.

  

• There won't be a single form factor, and OEMs will be able to bring in their own variations.
• The UI is very Zune-like ...
• Three physical buttons - Start, Search and back.

• The OS user experience will be centered around five Hubs - People, Pictures, Office, Music and Video, and games.
• Lots of emphasis on home/work delineation, which i think it good.
• Handful of partners - Qualcomm, Asus, LG, Toshiba, HP, Dell, Garmin, HTC, Sony Ericsson.
• AT&T will be the first to offer Windows Phone 7 in the US.
• There will be no Adobe Flash support at release … no objection to Flash though.
• There has been a lot of emphasis on integration with online services, and not just Microsoft services.

• In the demos the hardware looked super-fast.
• Availability will be by the holidays 2010 ... so handsets are a good 8 to 10 months away.

What we don't know -->

What we don't know:

• Hardware spec - not a whisper.
• Details on software, such as what support the browser offers for web technologies.

• Price.
• Does it multitask????

• Nothing on battery life.
• No idea if current handsets will be upgradable, although I suspect not.
• Very little platform details.
• Memory expansion????

Thoughts:

• I think that it's fair to say that Microsoft is back in the game with Windows Phone 7.
• It's good to see something that isn't an iPhone clone, although it is without a doubt a product that's bee inspired by the iPhone.
• The interface is interesting, looking a lot like the Zune UI. This could be one of those "love it\hate it" points.
• Availability is a long way away. Microsoft is playing catch-up with Apple, and adding an 8 to 10 month lead up time to release gives Apple plenty of opportunity to respond with iPhone OS 4.0.
• That long lead time for release also give Windows Mobile 6.x plenty more time to pollute the pond. This is a bad thing.
• I like the fact that Microsoft emphasized non-Microsoft online services in the demo, such as Facebook. Microsoft is slowly learning that people want to choose what they use, not have choice (and change) foisted upon them.
• Today's press event was really a teaser. Sure, it was a smooth, well-organized event, but it was still a teaser.

And to my biggest questions ...

• Can Microsoft keep the platform going long enough without breaking compatibility to be able to pull all this off?
• Will you be able to upgrade the OS a first-gen Windows Phone 7 handset sold in 2010 to the latest So in 2012/2013?
• How locked-down will the OS be?

Thoughts?

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