Mobile Nations Weekly: S7, SE, W10M, and even BB10

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By Derek Kessler
last updated

Deciding, releasing, updating, and event...ing.

So you've read the Samsung Galaxy S7 reviews and you're wondering if you should go buy one. Well, here's some more data to help inform your decision: should you get the standard S7 or the S7 edge? Should an S6 owner upgrade to the S7?? Is the Galaxy S7 camera really the best? And should you just wait for the Note 6?

The past two weeks have been all Samsung, but things are about to get crazy with an Apple event on March 21st. What are are we expecting there? Probably the 4-inch iPhone SE, a new 9.7-inch iPad Pro, software updates, and maybe a few cutting references to the fight between Apple and the FBI.

But if Windows is more your thing, it was a big week on the mobile front with the full public roll-out of Windows 10 Mobile. A total of 18 different phones got the update, but owners of some lower-end and older high-profile devices were left out in the cold. And in big app news, Twitter for Windows 10 Mobile arrived, bringing a bunch of long-awaited features to the mobile platform.

Now, that's not everything — not by a long shot. Keep going for more of this edition of Mobile Nations Weekly!

Windows Central — At long last

Windows 10 Mobile

Microsoft had a rather substantial week as Windows 10 Mobile is now officially official. Rollout of the OS upgrade for Windows Phone 8.1 began at 10:10am on Thursday and landing on 18 different Windows Phone models. Of course, not everyone was thrilled as older devices with 512MB of RAM and the Lumia 1020 were left in the cold.

Windows 10 and Windows 10 Mobile for Insiders were also updated in the Fast Ring to build 14291 with Extension support for the Edge browser, improved Maps and driving, and much more.

Twitter released their app for Windows 10 Mobile after months of being on the PC desktop. The app launched with high praise from users with smooth scrolling, excellent performance and an exclusive dark theme. Twitter promised more updates to add new features in the coming months.

Speaking of apps, we caught our first glimpse of the new Bank of America app for Windows 10 and Windows 10 Mobile. The app is set to launch on Monday, March 28 right before Microsoft's Build conference.

Android Central — S7palooza

We're well into the swing of the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge being available, and there's still so much to talk about. Verizon is now offering an annual upgrade program for the new phones, while SD card makers are duking it out to offer great deals to accompany your new phone.

We've been exploring the larger decisions around the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge, such as which model you should pick, whether it's worth the upgrade from last year and if it might even be an upgrade from a six-month-old phone.

The LG G5 is back in the news after a bit of a lull following its announcement, as we now have details on pre-orders, more information on the cost of its modules and how carriers are going to sweeten their deals for the phone.

CrackBerry — Core updates

BlackBerry OS 10.3.3 is now one step closer to release

The past week was a pretty eventful one for BlackBerry, all things considered. We got several core app updates for BlackBerry 10 including Twitter, BBM and what has now become a hotly debated update for Facebook that caused BlackBerry to reiterate their strong commitment to the BlackBerry developer community. Plus, we're now seeing the first real signs of BlackBerry 10.3.3 being released.

iMore — March event madness!

Apple March event preview

Monday March 21st sees the first Apple Event of 2016, where Tim Cook, Jony Ive, and company are widely expected to announce a new 4-inch iPhone SE, a new 9.7-inch iPad Pro, some new Apple Watch bands, and the final versions of iOS 9.3, watchOS 2.2, and tvOS 9.2. New Macs? We'll have to wait and see!

iMore will be there live to bring you back all the action, so make sure you keep it locked and re-loaded! And if you're curious what's been happening with the ongoing battle over encryption and privacy, check out all our FBI vs. Apple updates.

See you Monday!

Derek Kessler
Derek Kessler

Derek Kessler is Special Projects Manager for Mobile Nations. He's been writing about tech since 2009, has far more phones than is considered humane, still carries a torch for Palm, and got a Tesla because it was the biggest gadget he could find. You can follow him on Twitter at @derekakessler.