When Microsoft launched its totally new Windows Phone 7 mobile operating system two years ago, it signaled Redmond's first real step into the smartphone market.
The 2-D, tile-based platform was visually stunning, and it showed Microsoft was intent on taking the smartphone operating system into new conceptual territory. It was different, and different looked good.
Windows Phone devices got good reviews for being speedy and intuitive when they rolled out, but people didn't actually buy them. Windows Phone now commands a meager 3.5 percent of the global smartphone market share today, while iOS and Android dominate the field at around 17 percent and 68 percent respectively, according to IDC (though iOS is significantly higher in the U.S.).
This is still Windows Phone, but more grown up, and now truly ready to challenge the big kids on the playground.With Windows Phone 8, Microsoft is trying to give its smartphone business another shot in the arm. It's stacked with new features, as well as enhancements to all the things that made previous versions enjoyable to use. This is still Windows Phone, but more grown up, and now truly ready to challenge the big kids on the playground.
First off, using Windows Phone 8 is as refreshing and fun as using Windows Phone 7.5. It maintains the same colorful, tile-based interface that's now also shared with Windows 8, yet it still feels new. The new Windows Phone is more slick. Navigation is fast, the apps and the interface are more customizable.
Hardware support that was missing in previous versions is now here: support for multi-core processors, higher screen resolutions, microSD card expansion controls, and built-in NFC. Whether these features show up in the WP8 devices depends on Microsoft's hardware partners, but the company has tried to make sure nobody will end up choosing another platform purely based on specs.
As for the actual software, the most noticeable improvement is the new Start Screen. The tiles now take up the entire screen – no more empty black right rail – and you can choose between three tile sizes. While this might seem like a small tweak, it makes a big difference for a customized experience. I love being able to now change the size and placement of each app's tile on my Start Screen to find a configuration that works best for me.
The Live apps, or Live Tiles, still work beautifully in this OS, and now each of the three sizes can support information snippets of different depths. For example, if you make the Calendar app large so it takes up a whole row on the screen, it can show specific information like the length and location of each calendar event. Set the Calendar app to the medium size, and it shows a more condensed version. The smallest size shows just the date.
The Windows Phone 8 Lock Screen also becomes its own useful Live Tile. You can choose a few apps that will show quick status updates on the screen, and one that will show detailed notifications. This is similar to Notification Center in iOS, though you can only choose five apps for this Lock Screen experience. I did appreciate having one constant app that showed more information. I used Calendar, and it was great to see what I had coming up at a glance.
The web browser is now Internet Explorer 10, and it's a big improvement. It's incredibly quick; not once did I grow irritated with sluggish performance. If I had decent Wi-Fi – or at least a couple bars of service – IE10 worked great. It was stunningly fast when I had full bars on HSPA+, and I can't imagine anybody will have complaints on a 4G LTE network.