The Windows Phone Store received a bug fix recently, closing a hole that allowed developers to publish applications that can access a user’s photo library without their permission. The quirk was originally brought to our attention by developer Al Gihuni, who makes the popular Sound Cloud app SoundClone for Windows Phone (don't worry, that app is safe). Gihuni demonstrated this quirk...
Earlier today, we reported on a Windows Phone Store weakness allowing savvy users to download Nokia-exclusive applications onto non-Nokia hardware (well, try to at least, as often those apps are API dependent). But we did a little more digging and discovered the weakness doesn't just cover Nokia apps. You can manipulate the Store into providing any device or operator-exclusive app for...
One of the missing components in the Windows Phone 8 developer story thus far has been the SDK. Aside from a leak back in July, there hasn't been any news regarding its official availability or state of completion. Well until now, that is. Windows Marketplace Sr. Director Todd Brix just hit publish on a blog post this morning that outlines Windows Phone 8 SDK Preview bits that will be...
You probably wouldn't have guessed it, but here at WPCentral we love two things: Windows Phone and our readers. That's why when redeemable Xbox Avatar codes for Windows Phone gear caught our eye during a press event, we grabbed a handful and ran. It was a close call but with the help of the good ol' rubber chicken with a pulley in the middle, we managed to escape with 30 of them (15 for...
Do you want to know why Skype is the way it is? We go into detail as to how the network works & why it's not so great on Windows Phone--yet. Soon after Skype for Windows Phone beta came out (and went gold months thereafter), users were dismayed to discover the app didn’t work, well, like Skype. That is, it couldn’t run in the background to receive phone calls or IMs from friends...
Phew! We've been following the evolution of eBuddy XMS on Windows Phone since inception. The once ugly duckling app is now a beautiful and powerful alternative to the native Threads feature built into Windows Phone. We're now hearing from the team that an update is propagating through the Marketplace, enabling 30-way group messaging across iOS, Android, BlackBerry, and Windows Phone...
Windows Phone hacker Heathcliff74 is announcing the immediate availability WP7 Root Tools 0.9 today. 'Root Tools is a suite of tools for Windows Phone that we've been following since inception and already features a full blown registry registry editor, file system browser, and certificate injection capabilities. But the new version comes jammed pack full of additional new and exciting...
I like experimenting and tinkering with software. A lot like how a circuit bender tries to get electronics to emit beautiful music, I attempt to coerce software into doing things it wasn’t designed to do. Often, like my recent Windows Phone Hackathon, I fail spectacularly. But rarely, I do make notable progress. Cue Audible. Audible.com (Audible for short) is a service owned by Amazon...
Well known Windows Phone hacker Heathcliff74 announced an upcoming revision to his homebrew suite of tools on Twitter today. He noted WP7 Root Tools 0.9 will bring additional device support and allow homebrew developers to mark their applications as "trusted", opening up unfettered access to the file system and Windows APIs. He also noted that he'll release a mini SDK, allowing...
![Tango PC app lets users break into any Tango account [Updated]](https://www.windowscentral.com/sites/wpcentral.com/files/styles/w250h188crop/public/postimages/20387/tango_security.png)
Tango, the cross-platform video calling application, appears to following in the footsteps of iPhone's Path application when it comes to the poor management of private account data. (Not to be confused with the Windows Phone update, codenamed Tango.) Today, a reader wrote in detailing how the PC client (version 1.6.14117 at time of writing) allows one armed with simply a mobile number...
If you're like us (read: human), you probably have a hard time remember how to trigger every single emoticon (or emoji in Japanese) on Windows Phone. Aside from marring your otherwise beautiful Nokia Lumia phone by taping our foldable guide onto the back, there is no good way to remember these things. Cue Messaging Emoticons. Messaging Emoticons is a completely free app written by...
Just yesterday, we covered the Marketplace disappearance of an enthusiast's Sega Genesis Sega Gamegear/Sega Master System emulator titled Sonic's Jewels 7. But after getting in touch with the developer, we have new information and insight into what went down. The author received an email from Microsoft on Feburary 9, 2012 entitled: "Mobile Application Content Infringement Complaint -...
As some of our readers may already know, Windows Phone allows for the execution of both managed and unmanaged code, with the latter requiring special sign off by Microsoft. (Or an unlocked phone.) It's always interesting, however, to keep track of who gets permission to publish apps onto the Marketplace with native code in place from both a security and enthusiast perspective. Windows...
The name Jesse Dudley should be no stranger to the Windows Phone community by now. I mean, WPCentral has been writing about this Marketplace scammer since September. But rest assured you won’t be seeing another post on this subject; I’ve pulled all of his illegal NES games off the Marketplace. Game over, Dudley. Read what went down, after the break. Thou Shalt Not Steal Back when...
In an exclusive report this morning, The Verge is trumpeting that the elusive Skype for Windows Phone application is "currently [in] testing" and that "at least one source indicated that it could launch at Mobile World Congress later this month." (Emphasis ours.) Wait, didn't we already know all this? Answer: Yes. Here's a compressed timeline: April 2011: A Skype for Windows Phone...
In response to circulating rumors regarding Windows Phone 8's lack of application backwards compatibility, Microsoft's Brandon Watson -- Director of Developer Experience -- confirmed today that the upcoming OS revision will run older Windows Phone 7 applications. Yep, that means Sally's Salon will port over just fine. But from a technical perspective, how existing apps will work...
![Twitter notifications spotty since Thursday [Updated]](https://www.windowscentral.com/sites/wpcentral.com/files/styles/w250h188crop/public/postimages/20387/notifications_stalled_0.png)
Update (6:48PM MST): Social media notifications appear to be working for most folks now. Windows Phone users are reporting that Twitter social media notifications – such as those found on your Me tile, under Notifications – have been spotty or (in most cases) stopped flowing to Windows Phone since Thursday (UTC-7). A cursory dissection of the communication between the phone and Windows...
Back in November, Windows Phone team blogger Michael Stroh teased users with some cheat sheets to many of the emoticons or emoji (Japanese) built right into the Windows Phone platform. He didn't share them all, though. Not content with waiting around for more blog posts, we decided to dig through the operating system, not stopping until we found the rare and beautiful emoji. And found...
As we mentioned earlier, Microsoft's Ben Rudolph (known as Ben the PC Guy) is on-site at CES, looking for inferior phone users willing to accept his speed test challenge. The test in question, from what we hear, involves both Ben and a challenger performing a selected common scenario -- like taking a picture and pushing it to Twitter as fast as possible --, network and fat fingers...
So you got a Windows Phone for Christmas? Sweet. If you're a developer, you're probably itching to start writing code for the device. If an advanced hobbyist, homebrew software may be more of your interest. While the emulator -- a part of the Windows Phone SDK -- rocks for testing locally, you'll eventually want to try the real deal by loading up XAPs on your phone. We'll cover the pros...