Microsoft Previews Windows Phone 'Mango'

Microsoft previewed the next major release of Windows Phone, code-named 'Mango', that will deliver more than 500 new features. The new release will be available for free to Windows Phone 7 customers and is scheduled to ship on new phones beginning this fall.

To help people deal with calls, texts, emails and instant messages, status updates, Tweets, check-ins, photo posting and tagging, the 'Mango' release will organize information around the person or group people want to interact with, not the app they have to use. In particular:

• Threads. Switch between text, Facebook chat and Windows Live Messenger within the same conversation.
• Groups. Group contacts into personalized Live Tiles to see the latest status updates right from the Start Screen and quickly send a text, email or IM to the whole group.
• Deeper social network integration. Twitter and LinkedIn feeds are now integrated into contact cards, and 'Mango' includes built-in Facebook check-ins and new face detection software that makes it easier to quickly tag photos and post to the Web.
• Linked inbox. See multiple email accounts in one linked inbox. Conversations are organized to make it easy to stay on top of the latest mail.
• Hands-free messaging. Built-in voice-to-text and text-to-voice support enables hands-free texting or chatting.

In addition to making it easy to get timely notifications and updates from apps right from the Start Screen, the 'Mango' release also will surface apps as part of search results and within Windows Phone Hubs.

• App Connect. By connecting apps to search results and deepening their integration with Windows Phone Hubs, including Music and Video and Pictures, 'Mango' allows apps to be surfaced when and where they make sense.
• Improved Live Tiles. Get real-time information from apps without having to open them. Live Tiles can be more dynamic and hold more information.
• Multitasking. Quickly switch between apps in use and allow apps to run in the background, helping to preserve battery life and performance.

In addition to including Internet Explorer, the 'Mango' release will connect Web-related features to such capabilities of Windows Phones as location awareness, camera and access to apps, to present a way of viewing the Web that is more localized, actionable and relevant.

• Internet Explorer 9. A browser based on the powerful Internet Explorer 9 and including support for HTML5 and full hardware acceleration.
• Local Scout. Provides hyperlocal search results and recommends nearby restaurants, shopping and activities in an easy-to-use guide.
• Bing on Windows Phone. More ways to search the Web, including Bing Vision, Music Search and Voice so it's easy to discover and decide.
• Quick Cards. When searching for a product, movie, event or place, see a quick summary of relevant information, including related apps.

'Mango' will further expand and strengthen the Windows Phone ecosystem through new partnerships with Acer, Fujitsu and ZTE, which have announced plans to deliver new Windows Phone devices in markets around the world. Furthermore, Microsoft announced it will support additional languages, including Brazilian Portuguese, Simplified and Traditional Chinese, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Greek, Hungarian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, and Swedish, and will greatly expand the list of countries where consumers have access to apps via Windows Phone Marketplace.

As well, a beta release of the free Windows Phone Developer tools, which will be used to create the next generation of 'Mango' apps and games, will be posted for public download at Microsoft's website.

Source: Microsoft

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