When it announced Windows Phone 7 last week, Microsoft said nine handsets with the new mobile operating system would "be available this holiday season." More than 60 mobile operators in over 30 countries are committed to bringing Windows Phones to market, the company added.
Devices went on sale today in Europe -- United Kingdom, Germany, France, Spain and Italy -- as well as in Asia Pacific (Singapore, Australia and New Zealand), according to Microsoft. The first Windows Phone 7 device to be retailed is said to have been purchased by a user in New Zealand, as pictured below.
Jourdan Templeton, the first person to buy a new Windows 7 phone, at an unidentified store in New Zealand
Source: Microsoft
(Click to enlarge)Thus far, device availability is apparently spotty, however. For example, Arne Hess writes in a posting for the::unwired that in Germany, only Vodafone has a very limited stock of one HTC device; O2 won't have a phone until tomorrow; and T-Mobile has delayed availability until mid-November.
Hess further quotes "sources close to the development" as saying that, while Microsoft officially shipped the RTM (ready to manufacture) build of Windows Phone 7 in early September, handset manufacturers got it "quite late." This was a factor in the handset delays, he adds.
According to Microsoft, U.S customers will be able to purchase Windows Phone 7 devices on Nov. 8. The same presumably applies to Canada and Mexico, though a date for those countries was not called out by Redmond.
A Windows Phone 7 roundup
To celebrate customer shipments of Windows Phone 7 devices, we present a roundup of the phones that are now on sale. (Specifications and images were provided by Microsoft, though we've supplemented this with additional vendor information in some cases.)
The initial Windows Phone 7 devices are much less differentiated than Windows Mobile phones were, since their specifications were strictly defined by Redmond. For example, all the initial phones have touchscreens with 800 x 480 pixels, and all feature 1GHz Qualcomm chipsets (Microsoft reportedly collaborated with Qualcomm on the project for the last 18 months).
Whether sold in Europe, Asia Pacific, or North America, all the launch devices will work only on GSM carriers such as AT&T and T-Mobile. According to Microsoft, CDMA versions for networks such as Sprint and Verizon won't be available until next year.
In fact, the processors featured in the Windows Phone 7 handsets below give a strong clue as to which of the devices will turn up later on CDMA carriers. Each of the devices features either a Qualcomm QSD8250 or 8650 chipset: Both chipsets feature 1GHz "Scorpion" application processors, but the QSD8250 supports only GSM, GPRS, EDGE and HSPA networks, whereas the QSD8650 supports both these and CDMA2000 1X, 1xEV-DO 0/A/B networks, according to the chipmaker.
Therefore, it's a safe bet that the phones listed below as having QSD8650 chipsets will be offered in 2011 by Sprint and Verizon. Those listed as having the QSD8250 will remain GSM-only, assuming the information is accurate.
Other features listed by Qualcomm for both the QSD8250 and QSD8650 include:
- integrated 3G mobile broadband connectivity
- low-power 65nm process technology
- high-definition (720p) video recording and playback up to 30 frames per second
- multiple video codecs: (MPEG-4, H.264, H.263, VC-1, Sorenson Spark, VP6)
- 3D graphics with up to 22M triangles/sec and 133M 3D pixels/sec
- high-resolution up to WXGA (1280 x 720) display support
- 12 megapixel camera support
- seventh-generation GPS engine with standalone GPS and assisted GPS modes
- support for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity
- multiple audio codecs: (AAC+, eAAC+, AMR, FR, EFR, HR, WB-AMR, G.729a, G.711, AAC stereo encode)
- support for mobile broadcast TV (MediaFLO, DVB-H and ISDB-T)
The initial batch of Windows Phone 7 handsets are listed below. All have 800 x 480 pixel capacitive touchscreens flanked by three hardware buttons, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and GPS receivers.
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Dell Venue Pro- Display size -- 4.1 inches
- Chipset -- QSD8250
- RAM -- 512MB
- Flash storage -- 8GB
- Camera -- 5 megapixel
- Battery life -- 420 minutes talk time; 336 hours standby
- Dimensions -- 4.78 x 2.53 x 0.62 inches
- Weight -- 6.7 ounces
- Special features -- slide-out, portrait mode QWERTY keyboard
- Carriers -- T-Mobile
 (Click image to enlarge) |
HTC HD7- Display size -- 4.3 inches
- Chipset -- QSD8250
- RAM -- 576MB
- Flash storage -- 8GB
- Camera -- 5 megapixel with flash
- Battery life -- 380 minutes talk time, 310 hours standby
- Dimensions -- 4.8 x 2.68 x 0.44 inches
- Weight -- 5.7 ounces
- Special features -- surround sound, kickstand
- Carriers -- Movistar, O2, SingTel, T-Mobile
 (Click image to enlarge) |
HTC 7 Mozart- Display size -- 3.7 inches
- Chipset -- QSD8250
- RAM -- 576MB
- Flash storage -- 8GB
- Camera -- 8 megapixel with xenon flash
- Battery life -- 405 minutes talk time; 360 hours standby
- Dimensions -- 4.69 x 2.37 x 0.47 inches
- Weight -- 4.58 ounces
- Special features -- SRS WOW HD sound
- Carriers -- Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telstra
 (Click image to enlarge) |
HTC Surround- Display size -- 3.8 inches
- Chipset -- QSD8250
- RAM -- 512MB
- Flash storage -- 16MB
- Camera -- 5 megapixel with flash
- Battery life -- 240 minutes talk time; 255 hours standby
- Dimensions -- 4.71 x 2.42 x 0.51 inches
- Weight -- 5.82 ounces
- Special features -- slide-out Yamaha speaker; SRS Wow; virtual Dolby Surround Sound
- Carriers -- AT&T, Telus
 (Click image to enlarge) |
HTC 7 Trophy- Display size -- 3.8 inches
- Chipset -- QSD8250
- RAM -- 576MB
- Flash storage -- 8GB
- Camera -- 5 megapixel
- Battery life -- 405 minutes talk time; 360 hours standby
- Dimensions -- 4.67 x 2.43 x 0.47 inches
- Weight -- 4.93 ounces
- Special features -- n/s
- Carriers -- SFR, Vodafone
 (Click image to enlarge) |
LG Optimus 7- Display size -- 3.8 inches
- Chipset -- QSD8650
- RAM -- n/s
- Flash storage -- 16GB
- Camera -- 5 megapixel
- Battery life -- 480 minutes talk time; 416 hours standby
- Dimensions -- 4.92 x 2.35 x 0.45 inches
- Weight -- 5.53 ounces
- Special features -- DLNA playback, voice-to-text
- Carriers -- America Movil, Movistar, Orange, SingTel, Telus, Vodafone
 (Click image to enlarge) |
LQ Quantum/Optimus 7Q- Display size -- 3.5 inches
- Chipset -- QSD8650
- RAM -- n/s
- Flash storage -- 16GB
- Camera -- 5 megapixel
- Battery life -- 420 minutes talk time; 466 hours standby
- Dimensions -- 4.7 x 2.34 x 0.59 inches
- Weight -- 6.52 ounces
- Special features -- horizontal QWERTY keyboard, DLNA sharing, voice recognition
- Carriers -- AT&T, Telstra
 (Click image to enlarge) |
Samsung Focus- Display size -- 4.0-inch AMOLED
- Chipset -- QSD8250
- RAM -- 512MB
- Flash storage -- 8GB expandable to 32GB
- Camera -- 5 megapixel
- Battery life -- 390 minutes talk time; 300 hours standby
- Dimensions -- 4.91 x 2.53 x 0.39 inches
- Weight -- 4.2 ounces
- Special features -- enhanced photo options (smile detector, BeautyShot, Lomo mode)
- Carriers -- AT&T
 (Click image to enlarge) |
Samsung Omnia 7- Display size -- 4.0-inch AMOLED
- Chipset -- QSD8250
- RAM -- 512MB
- Flash storage -- 8GB
- Camera -- 5 megapixel
- Battery life -- 370 minutes talk time, 330 hours standby
- Dimensions -- 4.81 x 2.52 x 0.43 inches
- Weight -- 4.9 ounces
- Special features -- n/s
- Carriers -- Deutsche Telekom, Movistar, Orange, SFR
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