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Microsoft demos third-party apps for Windows Phone 7 Series: Silverlight, extensions, and true Xbox gaming (video!)
Microsoft demos third-party apps for Windows Phone 7 Series: Silverlight, extensions, and true Xbox gaming (video!) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Mar 2010 13:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Microsoft tells its Windows Phone 7 Series developer story, tools available today
digg_url = ‘http://digg.com/microsoft/Microsoft_tells_its_Windows_Phone_7_Series_developer_story’; At its dev-focused MIX10 event kicking off today, Microsoft’s closing the loop on some of the Windows Phone 7 Series third-party development details it started sharing in the days leading up to GDC last week — and as you might expect, Silverlight and XNA are the stars of the show. XNA will naturally be the core, critical element of Redmond’s gaming story while Silverlight is serving as a catch-all for the “rich internet applications” that make up much of your other mobile activities for those rare moments when you’re not… you know, blowing up aliens or navigating a race course littered with your opponents’ destroyed vehicles. To that end, Microsoft is kicking things off on the right foot by offering a free package of developer tools to would-be WP7S coders that includes both Visual Studio 2010 Express for Windows Phone and the Silverlight-focused Expression Blend for Windows Phone, pretty much everything you need to start building apps in preparation for the platform’s anticipated launch toward the latter part of the year. The beta dev tools are available today.
Developers are going to be treated to a host of must-have services out of the gate, including accelerometer support, location-based APIs using Microsoft’s own Location Service, a newly-announced Microsoft Notification Service for pushing notifications regardless of whether an app is running (sound familiar?), hardware-accelerated video with integrated DRM and support for Microsoft’s Smooth Streaming tech, multitouch, and camera / microphone access.
On a related note, Microsoft has shared some important details on the revised Windows Phone Marketplace (notice the subtle name change) for WP7S-based devices today. The revenue split remains unchanged — 70 percent goes to the publisher, 30 percent to Microsoft — but the developer portal for managing submissions has been “streamlined” and some of the incremental costs associated with it have been killed off; what’s more, students enrolled in the DreamSpark submission will have their registration fees waived altogether. The Marketplace has evolved from an app store to a content “destination,” housing apps, casual and premium Xbox Live games, music, and customized carrier stuff in one spot. We’ll be wandering MIX10 throughout the day, so stay tuned as we get more of the story.
Microsoft tells its Windows Phone 7 Series developer story, tools available today originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Mar 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Windows Phone 7 Series demo video reveals new apps, screens
Continue reading Windows Phone 7 Series demo video reveals new apps, screens
Windows Phone 7 Series demo video reveals new apps, screens originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 05 Mar 2010 21:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Microsoft talks Windows Phone 7 Series development ahead of GDC: Silverlight, XNA, and no backward compatibility
digg_url = ‘http://digg.com/microsoft/Windows_Phone_7_Series_uses_Silverlight_won_t_run_6_5_apps’; Microsoft is keen on unveiling the meat of its developer story around Windows Phone 7 Series at MIX10 in less than two weeks, but with GDC coming up next week, they’re figuring that now is a good time to start dropping hints — they’ll want to be capturing the collective imagination of the gaming industry, after all, what with that Xbox Live integration they’ve got going on. To that end, Charlie Kindel of WinPho’s developer experience team has outed a few key items at a reception in San Francisco this evening.
The major points are that Silverlight, XNA, and .NET will figure prominently into the developer story — not a surprise considering that Microsoft is heavily invested in both, gaming is central to the Windows Phone 7 Series story, XNA is a big deal on Zune HD already, and this all lines up with what we’d heard in the past. In fact, Kindel boldly proclaims that “If you are Silverlight or XNA developer today you’re gonna be really happy.” On the flipside, it’s a bit ironic considering that Silverlight spends much of its existence going head-to-head with Flash, and all indications are that we won’t see Flash support on 7 at initial availability (though it’s sounding like a lock post-launch).
One final note at today’s event is that Microsoft has now officially confirmed for the first time that 7 represents a clean break from Windows Mobile as we know it today; existing apps won’t be compatible. Though that’s likely to be a pain for existing owners with specialized apps who are looking to stay in the Microsoft ecosystem, Windows Phone 7 Series itself is a very different beast than the operating system it replaces — it feels different, seeks a different demographic, and symbolically represents a very important clean-slate departure for a company that had lost its way in the mobile space. The bright side for the 6.5 faithful, we suppose, is that Kindel closes by saying that they “will continue to work with our partners to deliver new devices based on Windows Mobile 6.5 and will support those products for many years to come” — a message Microsoft has been echoing recently.
We expect to hear much, much more on this at MIX — and we might hear a few more tidbits at GDC as well — but in the meantime, there’s a developer Q&A going down on Twitter around 9:00PM ET (check the #wp7dev tag) where we could get some details. Stay tuned.
Microsoft talks Windows Phone 7 Series development ahead of GDC: Silverlight, XNA, and no backward compatibility originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 04 Mar 2010 20:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Windows Phone 7 development policies and guidelines leaked?
We expect to learn a lot more about Microsoft’s plan to entice developers to Windows Phone 7 at the MIX 2010 developers conference. Until then (March 15-17), aspiring WP7 devs have to rely upon rumor and innuendo to feed their curiosity. So here you go: three purportedly official Microsoft docs from January that provide a glimpse into Microsoft’s Windows Phone OS 7.0 Application Platform. First up, the docs claim that WPOS 7.0 is built around Silverlight, XNA (like the Zune HD), and the .NET Compact Framework — a mostly clean break from WinMo’s past as far as developers are concerned. Native apps are restricted to OEMs and mobile operators in order to extend the experience and functionality specific to a phone or network. Even then, they’ll be limited to a set of managed APIs that Microsoft will audit during the app submission and provisioning process. Sound familiar?
As you’d expect, the OS supports preemptive multitasking — not that Microsoft will necessarily allow its devs (OEMs, mobile operators, and independent software vendors) to send their apps to the background. The primary development tools include Microsoft’s Visual Studio 2010 and Express Blend used in combination with a Windows Phone emulator. Check the docs in the gallery for the full read and be sure to hit up XDA-Developers if you want to commiserate with your like-minded peers.
Windows Phone 7 development policies and guidelines leaked? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Feb 2010 05:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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1080p, 5.1 surround sound coming to Netflix Watch Instantly in 2010?
Netflix Watch Instantly fans could be due for a big upgrade, as CNET has heard the company will roll out 1080p and 5.1 surround sound later this year. No word on timing or any other details, but this could mean its moving to version 3 of Microsoft’s Silverlight streaming platform with its additional tweaks for adaptive streaming and hardware graphics acceleration. Also unknown is how much bandwidth would be necessary, but considering Microsoft already uses very similar technology for its 1080p Instant On videos on Zune Marketplace through the Xbox 360 while only requiring 3 Mbps and VUDU HDX 1080p videos only state a minimum of 4500 Kbps, a massive jump in available bandwidth might not be necessary if you already get clear 720p video. The last big hurdle? How much content will be available that way, Gizmodo points out only about 6 percent of current offerings stream in HD we’ll be watching carefully if the pace picks up going forward.
1080p, 5.1 surround sound coming to Netflix Watch Instantly in 2010? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Feb 2010 18:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Windows Mobile 7 rumors coalesce around Q4 launch, MWC announcement
While DigiTimes isn’t our go-to source for all things Microsoft, the Taiwanese tattler does have its finger on the pulse of the Taiwanese / Chinese manufacturing juggernaut. As such, we expect it to be privy to information related to HTC, Acer, and ASUS handsets. So lean in close when it cites “sources familiar to Microsoft’s roadmap” in claiming a September 2010 release of Windows Mobile 7 to its handset partners — the same month pegged by that LG leak last week. That should translate into consumer availability by the end of Q4, or Q1 2011 at the latest. As it’s stated, WinMo7 will bring an improved interface, browsing, and multimedia experience with integrated support for Zune, Xbox Live, and Silverlight; nothing we haven’t heard before (and long wished for). DigiTimes claims that only English and “common European languages” will be available initially with Asian localization coming in 2011. Oh, and it’ll be announced at Mobile World Congress.
One thing’s clear: the rapid convergence of the rumor mill around dates and feature sets has us very excited about Microsoft’s chances at resurrecting its smartphone soul in time for the holidays. As such, we’ll be at Mobile World Congress in force to bring you the full story starting February 15th. It’s going to be good.
Windows Mobile 7 rumors coalesce around Q4 launch, MWC announcement originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 22 Jan 2010 04:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Microsoft giving Bing Maps a 3D overhaul, tacking on apps for good measure
Google’s not the only one in the game when it comes to wild mapping tech, and while Microsoft’s excellent collection of bird’s eye photos has never gotten it quite the attention of Google’s Street View, the hope is that lasers and its much-lauded Photosynth tool can do the trick. Microsoft has done up a Street View-style canvassing of 56 US cities with cars that not only snap photos but include range-finding lasers to map out the architecture in 3D. The Silverlight-based viewer for this view (dubbed Streetside) is similar in interface to Google Maps, a tad slower, and rather visually impressive. In addition, Microsoft is leaning on its Photosynth technology to collect navigable panoramas of scenery and even building interiors. Finally, Microsoft has tacked on “apps” of sorts, little overlays that include traffic cameras, restaurants, a Twitter API and so forth. All of this coupled with an improved version of the bird’s eye view is quite a visual treat, but the Silverlight requirement and non-Google-ness of it all might might keep away the Bing-averse among us. But really, with all this tit-for-tat going on between Microsoft and Google, we have to wonder what sort of stone age we’d be stuck in if we didn’t have these two behemoths going at each other like this. The “Beta” is live now at the source link.
[Thanks Aimee]
Microsoft giving Bing Maps a 3D overhaul, tacking on apps for good measure originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Dec 2009 18:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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