After months since Windows Phone 7.5 Mango was announced, earlier this spring, the mobile operating system update is finally finding its way onto phones all around the world today. Late last week, reports stated September 27th would be “Mango day,” earlier today support pages for Sprint showed an update was available (Mango) — those rumors and news pieces are correct.
Zunited users chimed in that they had received notice of an update available and many have completed the process.
But after an entire summer of Microsoft touting “this fall” as the release date for the update, the company has officially launched it.
In a statement, Microsoft said phones would “ding” with the update. Windows Phone 7.5 will “gradually roll out” to preexisting Windows Phones and will come preloaded on all future devices. Ninety-eight percent of all preexisting phones should have the update within the next four weeks.
On the official Windows Phone blog, Microsoft explained that the less-than-speedy rollout is to be expected since the update is essentially various different operating systems delivered to a variety of handsets (credit to manufacturers’ own softwares).
By week’s end, only 10% of customers will have received the update. Users who are a bit antsy can check the “Where’s My Phone Update?” page on the official website.
(Tell us if you have Mango already!)
Today is reportedly Mango day. AT&T is supposed to get the Windows Phone 7.5 update first before any other carrier but Sprint may be getting it themselves.
Sprint updated its support page for the HTC Arrive today, September 27, to include a new version of the operating system that includes all of Mango’s features. (Thus, if it looks like a duck….) The news is a little surprising since Sprint insisted that they didn’t have a date for Mango yet, even all last week.
It seems like Sprint customers are going to enjoy the benefits of Mango at the same time as AT&T customers. Have at it! (And tell us if you can see the update in the Zune software already.)
Thanks Martin!
Xbox is streaming the iHeartRadio Music Festival live in HD right now (and tomorrow night, or watch it online on their website) as it happens live in Vegas, Nevada, but during the performance there was an announcement of the music application’s availability on Xbox.
As reported by Elvis Duran (of Elvis Duran and the Morning Show) after Carrie Underwood’s performance, iHeartRadio will be making its way to Xbox “this holiday season” and it will be in HD (as in HD audio, we can only assume; iHeartRadio will not be converting to a video service as far as we know).
iHeartRadio is using the Music Festival to launch new services for its application. Previously, the application connected you with dozens of radio stations around the nation; it will now allow you to create custom playlists and stations by selecting certain artists or songs individually for free.
Not much more information is available beyond that since it was just announced.
You like music. You have an Xbox. You don’t have a ticket to iHeartRadio’s Music Festival, self-touted as the largest music event in radio history. Well, you’re in luck because Xbox LIVE will be streaming the event live in HD tonight (Sept 23) and tomorrow (Sept 24) for all members.
The iHeartRadio Music Festival has a lineup that includes Lady Gaga, Jay-Z, Steven Tyler, Coldplay, The Black Eyed Peas, Alicia Keys, Jennifer Lopez, Carrie Underwood, Kelly Clarkson, Nicki Minaj, Rascal Flatts, Usher, Sting, and more. Check out more inforamtion about it at iHeartRadio.com.
The Festival will be available online for anyone to stream, but not on any other television medium — and not in HD! A partnership with Clear Channel Radio and Xbox LIVE has made that possible for all 35 million LIVE members. To view the Festival, just log on to your Xbox Dashboard tonight between 7pm-12 midnight and tomorrow night at the same time.
Happy concert viewing!
A report claims that Windows Phone 7.5, also known as Mango, will make its debut on September 27th and AT&T is the first carrier to receive the update.
According to emails received by WPCentral, AT&T will unleash the Mango update for the HTC Surround, the LG Quantum, and the Samsung Focus all on the September 27th date. HTC HD7S customers will have to wait a while longer, until October 17th.
Some Samsung Focus customers will have to wait until mid-October as well, depending on their hardware revision. Revision 1.4 hardware models will need to wait until the aforementioned October 17th date.
It’s September 15th, 2011, and while it may be the second anniversary of the Zune HD’s release, it’s definitely not the day Windows Phone 7.5 Mango makes its debut as the rumor mill had been predicting quite fiercely for about a month now.
Yesterday, a T-Mobile support page may have hinted that the update would be available soon. But we’re not quite sure.
In any case, Microsoft’s Joe Belfiore took to Twitter and announced that today is not “Mango day.”
“9/15 isn’t Mango day, that was another rumor, folks,” he tweeted out earlier today. “We’ve been saying ‘fall’… it’s not fall yet!” He then proceeded to link to a website that shows the first day of autumn, fall, is Friday September 23rd. “Don’t jump to conclusions!” he later corrected.
T-Mobile’s support page for its Windows Phone HTC HD7 is currently displaying that an update for the mobile phone is available.
At this point, the only update that would be available is Windows Phone 7.5, codename Mango, which has been rumored for a September 15th release (tomorrow). However, it is not known whether or not the support page is old and is specified for NoDo or if it was recently updated for Mango.
The page reads:
HD7 Update Available
NOTE: Do not call T-Mobile Customer Support in regards to getting the HD7 Update.
Notifications will be sent to customers at random over the next few weeks. To complete the update, customers will need to tether their device to a computer and complete the upgrade through Zune.
Go to the T-Mobile HTC HD7 support page for more info.
Thanks David!
Labor Day has past, and according to radio show hosts everywhere, that means fall is now upon us — which is conveniently the timeline we were supposed to see the Windows Phone 7.5 devices debut. (All rumors point to a September 15 date for when Mango will be released on its own.) AT&T has decided to announce its lineup of Windows Phones, which includes two Samsung devices and one HTC model.
The first is the HTC Titan, previously known as the Eternity, which sports the largest Windows Phone screen to date, according to the press release, at 4.7″. It runs a 1.5GHz processor and has an 8 megapixel dual LED flash camera.
The other two devices are from Samsung including a follow up to, the highest-selling Windows Phone, the Samsung Focus with the Samsung Focus S. The Focus S has a 4.3″ Super AMOLED screen, a front-facing 1.3 megapixel camera and a rear 8 megapixel camera, with 1.4GHz, all at 8.55 millimeters thin.
And the third, one not many knew about, is the Samsung Flash — with a 3.7″ Super AMOLED screen, 1.4GHz processor, and a 5 megapixel camera, this phone is reportedly designed to be “packed with value.” Will this be for a low-end market?
All phones are capable of 4G speeds.
As for when AT&T will release Windows Phone 7.5 to its existing customers of the LG Quantum, the Samsung Focus, the HTC Surround, and the HTC HD7S, all the company had to say is that it “will be among the first” to release Mango.
News broke late Tuesday that Microsoft’s Zune HD Senior Business Development Manager, Dave McLauchlan, would be leaving the company — which he did, this past Friday, to begin on a new startup called Buddy.
McLauchlan, most commonly known online as DaveMac or DaveMacMS, was an integral part of the Zune’s online voice (that is to say the company’s) and fostered countering the “Zune is dead” headlines by making a post on Anything But iPod’s forum. And while McLauchlan may have worked with hardware, thus surely letting the public question the future of Zune HD models, the uncertainty of Zune HD applications is still a hot topic.
Not to mention, McLauchlan and others have stated that the Zune hardware has become Windows Phones — and that’s likely where they’ll stay.
Regardless, McLauchlan has been key in the growth of applications for Zune HD. He created a beta testing program for future Zune HD apps. (As an aside: his new startup, Buddy, runs with the tagline “Build mobile apps cheaper, faster & easier” and to get into a business, you should know the business, right?) The program allowed those who signed up and were approved to try out applications before release, like any other beta testing program. But beta testing is quiet as of late.
“Beta testing has been completely lacking action,” one beta tester said quite bluntly to Zunited. When asked to clarify the timeline since beta testing has simmered down, the beta tester said, “Since the last app release.” For those that do not remember, Zune last released new applications (and updates to old ones) on August 2nd.
That’s not to say that testing of applications should be an ongoing active practice, but our source seemed to indicate that the lull was unusual if not just out of the ordinary even if there had been a release recently. Surely, McLauchlan’s departure could instead mean the death of beta testing, not the death of apps entirely, but could they spell both?
Unfortunately, it’s impossible to know for sure without hearing it out of the horse’s mouth. And anything less is just speculation. The Zune HD turns two years old this week and its roster of apps is underwhelming in comparison to its main competitor. Does the public expect more applications when Microsoft, McLauchlan included, has stated and reiterated that the Zune hardware has shifted focus to Windows Phones? And in that case, the question really is: should they?
That’s neither here nor there. Consumers will always expect more.
But when it comes to applications made specifically for the Zune HD, I’d stay cautiously optimistic at best and resigned at worst.
Image credit: Gear Live
Dave McLauchlan, known on the Internet as DaveMacMS, has relieved himself of his duties at Microsoft. McLauchlan is the Senior Business Development Manager for Microsoft’s Zune HD — or he will be until Friday, September 9th, McLauchlan’s last day with the company. He tweeted out the news late Tuesday.
McLauchlan has always been an active member of the online Zune community; he was mostly an active user over at the Anything But iPod forums where he posted many facts (then turned news items) and squashed many rumors — the latest of which was putting a rest to the Zune is dead headlines, which didn’t work much thereafter.
McLauchlan will step down this Friday and pursue a startup of his own called Buddy. We wish him the best.