Microsoft’s new Driving Mode for Windows Phone featured on NBC’s Today show

To our eyes and ears, it looks like even big media is getting behind Windows Phone. This morning, Natalie Morales on the popular NBC morning show ‘Today’ showcased Driving Mode, which comes in Update 3 for Windows Phone.

Though the segment is brief, clocking in at 15 seconds, it highlights the fact that drivers can now automatically silence incoming text messages and phone calls, in addition to auto-responding. They contrast it against the ubiquitous ‘Airplane Mode’ that mobile phone users are all familiar with an emphasis on consumer safety.

In our walkthrough of Update 3 for Windows Phone, due later this year for general consumers but available now for enthusiasts, we noted that Driving Mode was “the most underrated feature in Update 3”. That’s in part due to its focus on care while driving but also because you can use it for other “do not disturb” moments--so long as you’re paired with a Bluetooth device.

Of course, seeing as Driving Mode appears to be extremely useful and is a good selling point for Windows Phone, we imagine it will be just a matter of time before Microsoft’s competitors instantiate similar functionality. While that will take a feather out of Microsoft’s cap, in theory, we may all be a little safer because of it.

Check out the video clip above and let us know what you think of Driving Mode (we really like the voice prompt alerting you that it is enabled).

Source: NBC; Thanks, Albert N., for the tip!

Daniel Rubino
Editor-in-chief

Daniel Rubino is the Editor-in-chief of Windows Central. He is also the head reviewer, podcast co-host, and analyst. He has been covering Microsoft since 2007, when this site was called WMExperts (and later Windows Phone Central). His interests include Windows, laptops, next-gen computing, and watches. He has been reviewing laptops since 2015 and is particularly fond of 2-in-1 convertibles, ARM processors, new form factors, and thin-and-light PCs. Before all this tech stuff, he worked on a Ph.D. in linguistics, watched people sleep (for medical purposes!), and ran the projectors at movie theaters because it was fun.