Daniel Rubino is executive editor of Windows Central. He has been covering Microsoft since 2009 back when this site was called WMExperts (and later Windows Phone Central). His interests include Windows, Surface, HoloLens, Xbox, and future computing visions. Follow him on Twitter: @daniel_rubino.
Last we checked there are 31 days in the month of October, which means 31 opportunities to schedule press events. And if you were feeling randy, we hear that November has 30 more occasions. So we can’t help but cast astonishment at Google’s insistence on having a big reveal on the very same day that Microsoft is holding its Windows Phone 8 announcement. With Microsoft on the West coast...
Verizon has begun selling customer information, according to a report by Yahoo!. The carrier is passing on geographical locations, app usage and even web browsing activities to third-parties. This - as one would expect - has raised privacy questions. The start of October saw Verizon start offering reports to marketers showing what subscribed customers are doing on mobile phones,...
Although we’ve already seen actual photos of the Ascend W1 from Huawei, which were leaked last week, we guess seeing a render is also somewhat interesting. The Ascend W1 is due out sometime next year and that should give Huawei ample time to further copy HTC and Nokia to make this phone just right. Seriously, we don’t mean to rant here but between the cyan color, the 2D glass and the...
About a week ago we mentioned how the Nokia Lumia 610 was due for a firmware update to improve the camera and device performance. Indeed that rollout has now begun as the 610 is being updated to firmware 8779.12340. The update itself should not take more than 10 minutes as the OS itself is not being updated but instead remains at 8773. The actual changelog for the 610-update states...
Nokia has published its financial results for Q3 2012, which shows the interesting position the company has found itself in. Smartphone sales have fallen drastically, as well as net sales from the division. Likely down to the imminent Windows Phone 8 release and new Lumia family of smartphones, Nokia experienced a 56 percent drop in net sales. In Q2 the company shipped 4 million Lumia...
We looked at NewsSpot back in September and have since been contacted by the developer to advise that version 2.7 is now available. The Google Reader client was well received by us and we were looking forward to seeing the updates trickle through so we’re glad things are now on track. To get the update you will need to hit a new link in the marketplace which you can find below....
It has been a busy week for Microsoft today with the pricing being revealed for its Surface RT Windows tablet, and pre-ordering being made available in a number of countries. As well as this, more news surrounding carrier and retailer availability for Windows Phone 8 handsets has also been coming to light. But what's being discussed in the Windows Phone Central forums? What kicks us...
Head of Windows Steven Sinofsky managed to take the Microsoft Surface out for a spin, and not in the way you might have assumed. Showing off just how durable the product is, Sinofsky took the Windows 8 tablet, which has just been made available for pre-order, and turned it into a skateboard. Yes, the head of Windows was literally riding the Surface. What appears to be an extension...
A story recently ran on the site Daily Mobile—a site which we are not familiar with—claiming that Windows Phone 8 devices on Verizon are running into problems, potentially causing a launch delay or even cancelation. We’ve been tipped on this by quite a few readers asking us to weigh in on the matter. After all the story does seem a bit sensational, bordering on hysteria. First off, we...
AT&T is gearing up to launch the Nokia Lumia 920 very soon—in fact we expect an announcement on pricing and availability sometime on Sunday. Word is that AT&T reps are also in the midst of training with the device, becoming familiar with its main features and selling points. Part of that training is being done with these videos that demonstrate the highlights of the Lumia 920...
Expansys UK is has listed the HTC 8X and 8S as available for pre-order. The HTC 8X is listed for £399.99 and the HTC 8S is listed for £239.99. It is our understanding that shipping dates for the 8X will be November 2, 2012 and the 8S will ship shortly thereafter on November 15, 2012. In looking at other Expansys sites, both HTC Windows Phone 8 devices appear to be available for pre-...
Although we know a lot about the Surface RT from Microsoft, there are still gaps in the finer details that you may want to know—either just for curiosity or because it factors into your decision on whether to buy one. Luckily for you the Surface team to a Q&A session on Reddit yesterday and they answered quite a few question about the upcoming tablet. To help you sort through, we’ll...
As if Amazon wasn't doing well enough with Windows 8 sales, seeing pre-orders dominate it's Best Sellers list, they have decided to sweeten the deal. Now you can pre-order Windows 8 Pro for $69.99 and get a $30 Amazon credit to boot. For those of you who aren't too good at subtraction, that brings the price down to $39.99, the same cost as the online upgrade price for current users of...
The Lumia 920 has gradually become available for pre-order through retailers and the like, but we've not yet been able to confirm globally what carriers will be stocking Windows Phones, except for those who have made the information publicly available. As for the number of pre-orders that have taken place, well ... that's another piece of information that we don't possess. Fortunately...
The Crimson Dragon Side Story update we promised a while back finally went live over the weekend. Now we have full details and impressions to share with you. Does the update make an already great game even better? You bet! Crimson Dragon Side Story version 1.1 release notes: Fixed the issue where the GPS distance calculation was not functioning properly The game will now...
Gamertags—they can be fun but also quite ridiculous. Same with people’s first names but probably less so, which may be the reason why the Windows Phone Store has started to use them. A few readers told us of the changes and sure enough, when you now look at reviews for apps you’re more likely to see “Pat”, “Sarah” and “Kyle” than “Moonstomper82”. What’s more, you will no longer see...
The Xbox on Windows Phone lineup is starting to amass a fair selection of racing games. We’ve got street racers, kart racers, and one awesome boat racer (Hydro Thunder GO). Now a new entry has come along: Cracking Sands - published by Microsoft and programmed by Swedish developer Polarbit, who also made Reckless Racing for Windows 8. If you’re looking for a racer that looks and plays...
Looks like Nokia might be set to have a big announcement in early November for Russia, perhaps to showcase the Lumia 920 Windows Phone. Or maybe the Lumia 820? Not much is said about what’s to be expected but the invite does reveal some clues. Nokia is rightly pushing photography as the big draw for the next generation of Lumia devices. The Lumia 920 has seen a barrage of OIS video and...
So... after the Surface frenzy, for October we have another huge expectation left: Windows Phone 8. Microsoft is expected to fully unveil its next-gen smartphone OS at the very end of this month. But as always, things have started to leak ahead of the schedule, and source of the leak is China. Chinese tech site WPDang cited unnamed source who claimed to have tried on the Chinese...
The Microsoft Surface tablet became available for pre-order earlier today and it appears interest is high. The original listing for all three versions of the Surface, 64GB and 32GB with Touch Cover and 32GB without cover, as "delivery by 10/26". It appears that the first shipment inventory for the 32GB version without the cover has already sold out. If you check the listing now, you'll...