Windows Phone 8: Eight New WinPhone Platform Announcements (Softie's Joe Belfiore Presenting) ...
Joe Belfiore led off the presentations. The following is not a transcript: The text and photos below are from the Verge ...
>> There were lots of changes that Microsoft wanted to put in Windows Phone. One thing they couldn't change earlier was the core of Windows Phone — Windows CE. Windows Phone 8 "this holiday" will ship with a "shared core" with Windows 8. So what exactly does that mean? "Shared core?" That means a bunch of stuff: kernel, networking, multimedia, driver support — that stuff will be shared with the two platforms. So Windows Phone will get to use software that's already used by 1.3 billion people (aka Windows users). Belfiore says this will give consumers "greater choice in hardware."
Hardware wise, it should mean a wider ranges of form factors, price points, and capabilities. He also says this will make for better apps from developers. Hardware partners will also benefit. Manufacturers will be able to re-use the same hardware drivers they build for Windows 8 on Windows Phone 8. We're going to talk about eight new platform announcements today. Eight: get it? "What we're not doing today is disclosing all the end user features."
Windows Phone 8 will support multi-core chipsets. "Dual-core & more....." Ha, he's suggesting that Windows Phone would run just fine on a 64-core machine. Microsoft is focusing on dual-core chipsets for this fall.
More screen resolutions coming: WVGA, WXGA, and 720p. That's 800 x 480 15:9, 1280x768 15:9, and 1280x720 16:9 if you're wondering. Developers can optimize for the new resolutions if they want to, but they don't have to.
Next up: removable microSD supported. (Finally!)
The slide lists support for "Photos, Music, Videos," and, wait for it, "Installing apps." Interesting. "These will help Windows Phone scale up and scale down" this fall.
Internet Explorer 10 will be built in. It will use the same HTML rendering as the desktop version. It will also provide some IE10 features, like "SmartScreen anti-phishing." Performance-wise, they show that WP8 is out-performing the Galaxy S III, HTC One S, and iPhone 4S on iOS 6 Beta on a SunSpider test.
Whoa. Microsoft will allow "Native code developers" to work on Windows Phone 8. This will have a common platform with Windows 8: DirectX and graphics drivers. Developers could quickly port their games to Windows Phones without re-writing a whole lot. It should also make it easier for iOS and Android developers to port their apps to Windows Phone. Belfiore says he expects more apps, more big-name apps, and better games.
Support for native NFC coming too. It should allow interoperability between phones, laptops, and tablets using NFC. Whoa, Windows Phone 8 will have a mobile wallet.Credit and Debit cards, loyalty and membership cards, deals, and NFC tap-to-pay. Microsoft calls it "The most complete wallet experience." Interesting - if the phone has NFC and a "secure SIM" from your carrier, you can make payments. That's a bit different from other mobile wallets we've seen. He's knocking Google for putting NFC into the device directly and not letting carriers do it. So the mobile operators remove Google Wallet. Instead, Microsoft works closer with mobile operators, they are putting the secure element on the SIM itself instead of the phone. Lead mobile operator partner on wallet: Orange France. ("Orange" pronounced the French way, of course.) The interface they are showing is straight Metro, you can swipe left and right between payment cards, membership cards, and deals. "Every Windows Phone will include the wallet hub." Orange France will be first with secure SIMs, but Microsoft is working with other carriers. AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile are working with ISIS. Microsoft has been working with ISIS. "We expect to have a solution with ISIS next year, but not at launch." paywithisis.com
Windows Phone 8 will include Nokia's mapping technology. It will use NAVTEQ data, offline map support, map control for developers, and turn-by-turn directions. (So the Lumia's advantage on maps will go away with Windows Phone 8.) [Not Really]
Now talking about business and enterprise features.
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Belfiore says that up to now, Windows Phone hasn't really had all the features it has needed. WP8 will support encryption (he mentions BitLocker), secure boot, LOB App deployment, Device Management, and Office. This is pretty great for enterprise IT managers, it looks like. They can use the same tools they use to manage PCs to manage phones now, thanks to that "shared core."
One last feature. "It's the sexiest thing in Windows Phone 8." Changing the start screen.
He's explaining LiveTiles on Windows Phone while a video rolls on screen. It's a beautiful soliloquy about Live Tiles. It's magical. The colors in the room are changing. New Start Screen! The right rail is gone. And there are three sizes of icons now. Large "double-wide," standard medium, and small. Users can set the size of any tile to any of those three sizes. (Yeah, you can really cram a lot more information on the start screen now.) The music fades in and out and ends on a nicely timed note.
Demo time! ###
Lots more to come. While perhaps not as charismatic as Steve Jobs, and utilizing a different and more animated style) he's probably at least almost as good if not as good (which he just may be) presenting and demonstrating product.
- Eric - |
