Summary: LiveSide.net
Windows Live News and Information
In an “exclusive”, CNet’s Greg Sandoval is reporting that
CNet has learned that “Microsoft is in talks with some of the major
record companies about creating a new music service”.
Sandoval reports that the service would supply music to the Xbox as
well as “an upcoming Windows-based phone”, could launch sometime
this year, could include streaming music as well as downloads, but
it is “unclear exactly how this will differ from Microsoft’s Zune
Music Pass”. Which is interesting, because what the article
describes is basically a rebranded Zune Pass (with some new deals
cut with major music labels and new relationships with phone
manufacturers such as Nokia and HTC), which is what we’ve been
saying is on the way all [...]
Date Published: Feb 18, 2012 - 12:05 am
A short post on the Bing UK blog is announcing that as of
today, Bing Vision is officially available for Windows Phones in
the UK. A number of sites have previously reported that the
service has been up and running since late January, and is also
available in France The service, which has been available in
the US since Mango, allows you to scan a bar code or barcodes, CD,
DVD and book covers, and get product information provided by
(previously) Microsoft owned Ciao, a European shopping website (the
US info comes directly from Bing, providing reviews, pricing, and
apps related to the search). (update: even though Ciao still uses
the “Ciao from Bing” logo, and has a partnership with [...]
Date Published: Feb 17, 2012 - 12:31 pm
As we’re heading closer to Mobile World Congress 2012, where
Microsoft is expected to announce details of their next update of
Windows Phone, codenamed “Tango”, more details about the update are
leaking out. Today Russion website WP7forum.ru leaked several
screenshots from “Tango”, revealing several new features as well as
detailing how “Tango” will support low-cost devices with limited
RAM. New Features WP7forum detailed several new features that they
have heard about “Tango”: Ability to manage contacts on the
SIM-card Enhanced data roaming options Enhanced MMS, including
multiple attachments Support for adding voice notes to MMS
Support for adding videos to MMS Support for new languages
Limitations for lower spec devices With Windows Phone “Tango”, the
minimum hardware requirements for [...]
Date Published: Feb 16, 2012 - 6:29 am
Just yesterday we posted details about a possible new Windows
Phone coming soon – the Nokia Lumia 610. The device is set to be a
budget device running Microsoft’s Windows Phone operating system,
potentially to come with the latest “Tango” update. Today we found
that the device had passed through certification in Indonesia’s
testing centers, as shown below: The entry shows that the device
will support the GSM 900/1800 as well as WCDMA 2100 bands, and will
support the standard Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connections. The device is
also said to be made in the Republic of Korea. Not much else is
revealed by the entry, except the fact that the device exists. All
eyes are on Mobile World Congress 2012 [...]
Date Published: Feb 16, 2012 - 5:05 am
This week’s episode of “out with the old, in with the new”
stars Club Bing, which is being discontinued on May 31st, and
something called msnNOW, which was announced this evening. Club
Bing, itself a replacement for Live Search Club, offered up a
chance to play games like “Chicktionary”, and drive up search share
numbers, as we noted in June of 2009, when Club Bing first
appeared: The “club”, basically a blatant attempt to drive up
search share numbers (and ok, perhaps introduce Microsoft’s search
to new users), captured as much as 2.6% of all US search share last
summer according to numbers from Compete.com. Club Bing users
received an email recently announcing the end of the program: To be
[...]
Date Published: Feb 16, 2012 - 1:00 am
After we reported a rumor yesterday about a potential Nokia
Windows Phone to be launched at Mobile World Congress (MWC),
another rumor surfaces today about more devices that Nokia is set
to unveil at MWC. Pocketnow.com first got words that Nokia is set
to unveil six devices at MWC – three Nokia Asha-series S40 phones,
one Symbian device, as well as two Windows Phones. Specifically,
Pocketnow reports that the Nokia Lumia 610 will be unveiled during
the event, together with a global version of the Lumia 900: The six
devices are supposedly split evenly among smartphones – two Windows
Phones and a Symbian – and three S40 feature phones. Specifically,
we’re now expecting the global version of the Lumia 900, [...]
Date Published: Feb 15, 2012 - 3:21 am
(Update: the app is available now, thanks for the tweets and
comments. We received an update notice, but you can try to
uninstall and reinstall if you don’t get notified) A new version of
Facebook for Windows Phone, version 2.3, is set to be released
today, according to a post on the Facebook for Windows Phone’s
Facebook page. The post lists a number of improvements: •
News feed performance improvements • New panorama design. • New
profile design. • Banner Images. • Improved navigation. • Pages •
Groups • View “likes”. • Feed filters. • Posting privacy. • Bug
fixing We just checked, and although the Windows Phone Marketplace
page for the Facebook app lists the version as 2.3.0.0, it [...]
Date Published: Feb 14, 2012 - 11:21 am
Last June, we noticed a new feature that we were seeing, a
sidebar calendar in the Hotmail inbox. While some of you
reported seeing it too, we learned today that it’s going
away. We asked David Dennis, a Principal Lead Program Manager
for Hotmail, for clarification: “We recently tested the calendar in
the inbox feature with a small number of our users. The results of
the test suggested to us that we should take a different design
approach. So, it’s back to the drawing board. Sometimes we evaluate
features and make changes or remove them altogether depending on
what we learn, but we do this with very small groups of users with
features that don’t fundamentally change the product’s behavior.”
[...]
Date Published: Feb 13, 2012 - 5:49 pm
According to a new study by Cascade Insights, as cited by an
Inside Windows Live post, Microsoft’s Hotmail narrowly beat out
Gmail (and they both significantly out-performed Yahoo! Mail, and
an unfiltered web host account) in a test by the independent firm.
The test signed up newly created email accounts to a number of
newsletters and both legitimate and suspicious looking
websites, and let the email flow in. After a little over a
month (from Nov. 14, 2011, through Dec. 20, 2011), results were
tallied, and Hotmail narrowly beat out Gmail (HAM refers to
legitimate emails, ie: newsletters they signed up for, etc.): You
can check out Cascade Insights at CascadeInsights.com and
read the full report here. The Inside Windows [...]
Date Published: Feb 13, 2012 - 11:52 am
As we’re getting closer to Mobile World Congress 2012, more
rumors are surfacing about what Microsoft and Nokia might announce
at the event. We know that Nokia will be holding a press conference
on February 27 at 8:30am, but details are thin. Forbes recently
reported that Nokia will be launching at least one high-end phone
at the event, with an “unusual software feature” according to one
of Nokia’s partners. Today Chinese website WPDang reported that
according to their sources, Nokia is set to announce the Lumia 730
at Mobile World Congress. Below is a translation of the report:
According to our sources, Nokia will be releasing another Windows
Phone positioned between the Lumia 710 and 800. The device will
have [...]
Date Published: Feb 13, 2012 - 2:53 am
