Although the “Smoked by Windows Phone” shenanigans are mostly over and Microsoft is not routinely engaging in phone challenges anymore, it’s still great to finally see the gist of it coming to TV. Such is the case with this new ad featuring Microsoftie Ben Rudolph and a couple who were using a Samsung Galaxy S3. The concept is the same: do a challenge between two phones, in this case...
Last night during Nokia’s par-tay we managed to check out their little photo challenge area. In short, they literally had a cubby hole in a brick wall where you could mosey on up with your smartphone, snap a pic and then Nokia would do the same with the Lumia 920. Of course the Lumia 920 is better positioned to win such a contest, after all it has everything: lens stabilization, a...
Ben ("The PC Guy") Rudolph has continued to take the Smoked by Windows Phone marketing campaign across the states, and he's showing no signs of easing back with more videos being published to the Windows Phone YouTube account. We previously looked at a handful of new videos being added to the account and commented on how we enjoyed the new style, so it's pleasing to see the company...
Microsoft has released a number of new advertisements that carry on the "Smoked by Windows Phone" marketing campaign, which started at CES 2012 earlier this year. Ben ('The PC Guy') Rudolph heads up the adverts that are set to air on TV. The above video shows Rudolph challenging a member of public on the streets of Seattle (as opposed to Microsoft Stores) to see who can locate and share...
The Smoked by Windows Phone challenge, the popular marketing campaign that was born back at CES 2012, has made its way to Toronto, Canada. The public are challenged by the Windows Phone team to see if their smartphone can beat Microsoft's mobile OS and pocket $100. As usual, these challenges include common tasks such as uploading a photo to Facebook. Windows Phone has been steadily...
The Nokia-like Smoked by Windows Phone campaign, Blown Away by Lumia, has gone to Bulgaria with public heading through popular shopping malls in Sofia being challenged to beat the Lumia 800. Already witnessed in other countries, including India which produced some interesting (yet humorous) results, the challenge is successful at pulling in the punters to show off Microsoft's platform...
While our Windows Phones are busy smoking the competition they may need something to blow away all that fiery aftermath, so it only makes sense to have a special fan for the occasion. Microsoft Hong Kong has evidently commissioned a limited number of special portable fans just for these situations but they have a little trick up their sleeve. As you can see in the images above and the...
Microsoft's Smoked by Windows Phone began way back in January at the 2012 CES conference. Since, it's grown by leaps and bounds traveling to various Microsoft Stores across the nation and world wide. We've even seen the Smoke by Windows Phone challenges held by former Miss World, Priyanka Chopra. Ben Rudolph, who started all this, has released some numbers associated with the Smoked by...
Although the "Smoked by Windows Phone" campaign will always be controversial due to its selective nature, they're still fun to watch and occasionally surprise us. Malaysia is now getting in on the action and while this contest business is a bit "old" for us we have to understand that for a lot of folks, it's not. In the above video, a different Ben from Microsoft takes on others in the...
We recently put the question to you whether Microsoft is doing enough to promote and market Windows Phone, and now we've just caught wind of a new campaign kicking off from the software giant in the UK. The Windows Phone team will be touring the country (10 cities - 11 weeks) and challenging participants who believe their smartphone is faster than a Windows Phone. Much like the Smoked...
The Windows Phone team has taken the Smoked by Windows Phone challenge to Italy with a steady stream of contestants attempting to best the platform. Should they lose they would (as usual) have to hold up a sign and announce they've been smoked by a Windows Phone. But should they win, and this is the interesting part, they'd pocket a pair of headphones. What's so interesting about the...
The Smoked by Windows Phone marketing challenge has gone global since Ben ("the PC guy") Rudolph first started the campaign back at CES 2012. Now the Windows Phone team in Malaysia has taken to the streets to challenge the public who own competitor handsets and see if they can beat Microsoft's platform. Should the contestant manage to best Windows Phone, they'll walk away with RM100,...
Microsoft's Robert "The Phone Guy" Luciani brought the Smoked by Windows Phone challenge to attendees at the Web Days 2012 event, which was held in Stockholm. Should contestants beat the Windows Phone with a competitive handset, they pocketed 500kr. Rules were identical to Ben Rudolph's version with simple smartphone tasks being used as testing grounds. Thirty-four challenges were...
Although we could argue that the 'Smoked by Windows Phone' campaign is getting a bit tired, Nokia evidently shot some video last month where they took the same idea but they called the it "Lumia Challenge". The concept was the same -- challenge people on specific tasks using their smartphone -- if you win, you get £10 for your trouble, if you don't you have to mug for the camera. The...
A few days ago, it was announced that Microsoft was upping the stakes in their "Smoked by Windows Phone Challenge," giving away bigger prizes to winners and offering losers the opportunity to trade in their device for a new Windows Phone. It turns out that anyone can trade in just about any non-WP smartphone. Just bring a working smartphone to a participating Microsoft store and tell...
Ben (the "PC Guy") Rudolph has publicly addressed the disappointment of Sahas Katta, who felt slighted when the Microsoft employee he beat in the Smoked by Windows Phone challenge refused to accept defeat and provide him with his prize - a limited edition laptop worth $1,000. Rudolph has apologised to Katta via Twitter and has stated he has a Windows Phone and the laptop prize for him. ...
Don't colour us surprised if this is true to some extent as it's a simple marketing stunt that involves cash, but reports are coming in that the Smoked by Windows Phone challenges are sometimes rigged, or those who actually beat Microsoft's OS were denied their win / prize. Not only are relatively large sums of money involved, but Microsoft recently bumped the stakes to include a...
![Smoked by Windows Phone helps launch Lumia handsets in Brazil [Video]](https://www.windowscentral.com/sites/wpcentral.com/files/styles/w300h225crop/public/postimages/15741/smokedbywindowsphonebrazil.png?itok=EjxXCxUK)
To celebrate the launch of the Lumia 710 and Lumia 800 in Brazil this week, Nokia has teamed up with Microsoft to host the Smoked by Windows Phone challenge. Although the presentation is in native tongue, most of us can still follow the cheesy music and the humiliation of challengers. It has been relatively quiet on the Brazilian front with Windows Phone, but both the Lumia 710 and 800...
![Highlights of Smoked By Windows Phone marketing in Singapore [Video]](https://www.windowscentral.com/sites/wpcentral.com/files/styles/w300h225crop/public/postimages/15741/itshowsingaporesmokedbywp.png?itok=MpKiK5Cv)
Microsoft's Smoked by Windows Phone marketing campaign is still going strong, which all stemmed from CES 2012 in Las Vegas where Ben Rudolph challenged event attendees. The campaign made the move to Microsoft Stores across California, Hong Kong, and is currently being expanded to cover TV advertising. The challenges involved are simple smartphone tasks - which ever phone completes the...
The web is about to get smoked by Windows Phone again. Microsoft is scheduled to launch new ads on the web tomorrow that feature Ben Rudolph and his Smoked by Windows Phone Challenge. The challenge has Ben betting owners $100 that Windows Phone is faster at your typical, everyday tasks than other smartphones. What started as an attraction at the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show has grown...