Post Tagged with: "windows phone"

I like public development.

Microsoft is trying to build a better Facebook app. The FB BETA looks like it’s moving away from the sliding panel layout of traditional Windows Phone apps, and instead is bringing in a more traditional design that iOS and Android users will be more familiar with. Rather than trying to keep this in-house and development under wraps, they’re enlisting the help of the Windows Phone community to help them identify bugs and user issues.

If you’re familiar with other Facebook apps, the layout here will be immediately accessible. The app opens to your main news feed. Sliding the screen to the right gives you access to your different feeds and pages. Sliding the screen to the left shows your friends and favorites.

Notifications work the same way. Once you’ve opened the notification alert sliding left or right will slide you through messages, friend requests, and notifications/replies.

Also new to the app is the ability to share posts. It’s kind of funny how long it’s taken us to get this feature on our mobile devices…

The app is fluid and responsive. Thankfully, the problems with the old FB app aren’t reflected here. I continue to have problems with the old app and “Liking” posts. Unfortunately, I don’t think there is a Facebook app I’ve used yet which can consistently “Like” a comment on the first tap; it always seems to take a couple stabs at the little Like link to get it to toggle.

It’s still a BETA of course, and some are complaining about feeds getting stuck and not updating. I’ve been running the app for a couple of days now without issue on a Lumia 920, but I’m also not the heaviest FB user–so take my experience with a grain of salt. Personally, I appreciate the performance improvements, and this should help people transitioning from Android or iOS, as both FB BETA and the new Twitter apps have more consistent user interfaces; but I really like the sliding panel Windows Phone app guidelines. I’ll miss that.

The new Facebook app is in the Windows Phone App Store, but you wont be able to search for it. Instead you’ll need to click on this link which will take you directly to the store to download it.

A new version of Evernote has been released for Windows Phone users, bringing great features to fans of the Windows Phone operating system. Version 3 is now available and brings a new UI, as well as shortcuts which now sync cross platform and allow you to jump between notes and notebook. Other features include a tag list and notebook stacks, and premium users can access Document Search as well. Let us know your what you think!

If you use a Windows Phone, specifically the Lumia 920, you probably know about the dreaded “Other” storage bug. It’s a chunk of storage which gets dedicated to some mysterious purpose, and there’s no way to clear it or manage it. It’s like the blob, growing larger, catastrophically eating more and more. Insatiable.

Ok, it’s not really that bad, but it’s friggen obnoxious.

Nokia just dropped an update which helps clean up the “Other” bug and improves performance.

Hey Microsoft,

How ya been? I’m writing as I have a small issue that I hope you can help me out with. I happen to really enjoy using your products. I’m a fan of both Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8. I guess what I’m having an issue with is how difficult you make it to discuss your products simply by how you name them…

You’ve achieved something kind of great. A unified UI across all screen sizes: from smallest phone, to wall-sized screen. Every one of these devices runs “Windows 8” in some way. Since Live Tiles are consistent, why is the naming convention so inconsistent?

As happy as we always are for a new Skype update, don’t expect anything too earth shattering in the latest version. Skype has updated its Windows 8 application to 1.5.0.109 (are you keeping track?), and new features include the ability to send and receive files, performance improvements and general bug fixes. If you’ve had a chance to spend some time with the updated version, let us know what you think.

Sammy was a bit late to the party with Windows Phone 8 gear, but now that they’ve finally arrived, let’s take a look at what they have to offer in an entry level smartphone.

If you’re using Windows Phone 8, chances are you came from another platform first; and if marketing data is any indication, there’s a very good chance that your previous phone platform was Android. Even if it wasn’t, there are a lot of people who are considering WP8, but are afraid of the lack of Google apps on Microsoft’s platform.

I personally made the swap to Google Voice for my personal number a couple of years ago. It’s been invaluable as a tech blogger because I never really know what phone I’m going to leave the house with until I’m pretty much walking out the door. The lack of a true blue GV app has been disappointing, but there are a couple of third party app developers hoping to fill that void.

MetroTalk is my favorite.

Samsung fans have been waiting for the company to release its first Windows 8 phone–and it officially arrives tomorrow in the form of the ATIV Odyssey for Verizon. Though not a flagship device ($49 on a two-year contract after rebate), the phone does pack some nice specs into its compact form-factor, including a 4″ Super AMOLED display, 1.5GHz dual-core processor, 1080p video playback and recording, 8 gigs of on board storage (with support for a 64GB microSD card as well), and a 2100mAh battery. Our unit will arrive this week, and we’ll give you are full opinion once we’ve spent some time with it; but for now, you can check out the full PR after the jump for more details.

The Lumia 900 was a radically important phone…and I’m not sure enough people noticed. It marked a tremendous change of direction for three humongous companies: Nokia, Microsoft, and AT&T. It started a new UI design aesthetic which is only just now being fully realized by Windows 8.

My saga in reviewing the Lumia 900 was something of a comedy of errors. Plagued by delays in acquiring one, falling prey to a battery bug, it would have been a sad affair if it hadn’t been so damn funny.

I’m happy to report that my relationship with the Lumia 920 has been quite the opposite.

Sometimes having one of the brightest screens on the market just isn’t enough on a super bright, sunny Southern California day. This is old news to the Windows Phone elite users; but if you’ve just jumped on to the platform, here’s a neat trick to help with outdoor visibility.