Upcoming Windows Phone 8.1 features exposed in latest reports, detailing Cortana and more

Microsoft has successfully packaged and released Update 3 for Windows Phone 8, leaving only the 8.1 update, aka ‘Blue’, on the table for shipping. Expected to be reveled at Build 2014 in April, Windows Phone Central understands that 'M3' (Milestone 3), the escrow period and RTM dates have already been locked into place by Microsoft.

Today, The Verge has added to the story by detailing some new information to features already expected for the landmark release.

In an article published this morning, Tom Warren goes into more detail over the notification center and ‘Cortana’ the Siri-like personal assistant.

According to the report, a short swipe from the top will reveal ‘quick settings’ to quickly access common function and we can add that there will be four tabs as well. A longer swipe will bring up a full notification history.

On Cortana, the voice assistant program, the report mentions how it will learn location context and data from the phone, in addition to replacing Bing as the default search. It can also remind you of meetings with much more detail than the current system of alarms on Windows Phone 8.

Other features mentioned in the report that are coming to Windows Phone 8.1

Separate volume controls for ringtone volume and media playback (it won’t be on a per app basis, but rather system wide)
VPN support for enterprise users
Bing Smart Search results, similar to what is found on Windows 8.1 today
Xbox Music and Xbox Video will be separate apps, removed from the OS core to enable faster, more dynamic updates for users
Deeper integration into the People Hub for Twitter and Facebook

In addition to the new OS features, there are two new handsets from Nokia being prepped for launch ‘Goldfinger’ and ‘Moneypenny’. The former will pack a “3D Touch system”, allowing users to interact with the device without touching the display, while the latter will have those newly revealed on-screen buttons for Back, Windows and Cortana.

We understand that ‘Goldfinger’ will have “cutting edge technology” and it is considered to be the next flagship Windows Phone.

Even more on Windows Phone 8.1

Other features Windows Phone Central can exclusively reveal that are either coming to Windows Phone 8.1 or that are actively being worked on include micro SD card support for installing apps and games. This feature is especially important for low-cost devices, like the Lumia 520, where internal storage is limited to just 8 GB (and less than 5 GB actually available).

In terms of the notification center, we can reveal that they work even on the Lockscreen. The Lockscreen can still be swiped up like normal to unlock the phone, but in Windows Phone 8.1 you can also swipe down to go directly to the new Notification Center.

The default camera app is also being updated, with buttons and functions similar to the Windows 8.1 camera app, though these will be located on the left side of the viewfinder.

First-party Tiles, like Email, can be swiped towards the left to clear the Live Tile of notifications/counts. Currently, users can swipe from the Right to bring up the full app list for the OS, but swiping left will clear any Tiles without the user having to open the program directly in 8.1. As of now, this feature is only open to first-party functions like Email and the People Hub, though presumably Microsoft could open it up to developers via an API.

‘Cortana’ voice assistant is very contextual, meaning it will be woven throughout the OS and it will work based on information on-screen. For example, say a text message is sent that states "Want to get dinner tomorrow in New York?" you'll see parts of that text message underlined. Click that and you'll be able to instantly enter the info into your calendar with some of those fields already populated e.g. it would fill "New York" as the location. If the message had the time it will already have the time in there as well.

Ghost notifications, we’ve previously mentioned in an earlier article. How they work is that for something like a "Like" on Facebook or a "favorite" on Twitter don't warrant a full Toast notification, alerting the user. Instead, ghost notifications just go straight to the Notification Center and don't overtly notify you. This feature will be open to developers, we are told.

Windows Phone 8.1 is shaping up to be a significant update for Microsoft. Current Windows Phone 8 devices are expected to be able to update to the 8.1 OS, though when that will happen it is not known. Microsoft's Build 2014 developer conference will take place on April 2-4 in San Francisco, where the first major update for Windows 8.1 and Windows Phone 8.1 are likely to be announced. Developer previews of those updates may also be available at that time as well, similar to the current Update 3 Preview program.

Source: The Verge, Windows Phone Central

Daniel Rubino is the Editor-in-chief of Windows Central, 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 for some reason, watches. 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.

588 Comments

Awesome.
Separate volume controls! FINALLY!
this excites me
Goldfinger is probably the 920 successor!
Then what is the 929
The 928 successor
From what I understand the 929 was developed seperately purely for Verizon and won't be offered to anyone else anywhere globally. So a seperate product skew and not a successor to anything really.
The successor to the 920 is the 1020 and the successor to the 1020 is the 1520.... Really... Get with the program dude!
Not really sure that is true. It seems the 1520 is on parallell with the 1020. Being flagships of their respective categories. Standard size smartphone VS Aircraft carrier sized smartphone :) The 1020 still has the better camera..
The 1020 and 1520 are not followups to the 920. One is a phablet and the other is a 920 with a super camera on the back. The successor to the 920 will be the 930.
This
I hate that everyone says the 1020 is a 920 with a better camera, that's sooo ignorant, the 1020 has a amoled screen instead of LCD, 2gigs of system memory instead of just 1, the physical button build and feedback is much improved, it has more microphones with better noise cancellation, improved vibration motor and a ton of other major improvements under the hood that I don't have the time to explain here like redesigned PCB! The gap between the 820 and 920 is smaller then the 920 and 1020! So YES the 1020 is the successor to the 920... That's why NOKIA calls it a frikkin 1020!!! The same goes for the 1520!
Mmm, no I don't think so. I consider the amoled and lack of wireless charging as downgrades. It's apparent since 1520 went back to LCD. Also the 2 gigs of memory don't improve performance at all. In fact 1020 scores marginally worse than 920 in benchmarks. The successor will be 930, 940, or 950 I'd bet.
That's completely wrong..
Totally worth waiting if all these reports are true ..!!! Damn cool that i chose wp over android . :)
Made a good choice there bro! Good to hear your happy with WP... Myself... Won't ever look back! Lumia all the way baby!!
I second that notion :) I just bought a Lumia 521 and trashed my crappy Android phone (of which I had originally paid double what I just paid for the Lumia). I loved it so much, that I bought 2 more for friends of mine... both of them say it's the best phone they've ever had!
I simply can't even use Android after using Windows Phone. iOS 7 is the only iOS I like too. Only thing I would get Google related is a Chromebook (because of the price and I'm always connected to Internet.) And even then, I would prefer Windows 8. I mean come on, METRO IS SO BEAUTIFUL.
+920, that and EAP-TLS support are probably top two features i'm waiting for now if whatsapp also releases speach support in 2014 it'll be perfect! someone post the "it's happening" gif
there we go :) my body is ready
shut up and take my money?
Being waiting EAP-TLS for more than a Year. MicroSlow really knows the speed of the mobile business.
I think they should also introduce a sound balance option for people who have slightly impaired hearing.
I like !!!
I wonder if we'll finally be able to fully mute the phone.
You know you can, go into settings, ring tone, and there are two "switches" that let you turn on and off both sound, and vibration. If you turn off vibrate, the shortcut setting when you press the volume button will switch between ring and silent, and if vibration is on, then it will switch between vibrate and ring + vibrate.
Thx.
I'm excited too, but are we the laughing stock of phone OS' because at this point in phone technology, we have to wait for this feature til next year? Ughh
Dude, if you really know people who laugh at you over that, then you probably need to know new people.
Not to mention any amount of research could have been applied so that he didn't purchase the phone in the first place thereby removing the concern of being mocked by his peers.
Wow, what a dumb assumption. I bet you're still stick on WP7, still whining about the lack of support.
Finally.... And only after 3 years or so.... Go Microsoft...
I know. I feel like they are still just trying to play catch up. Don't get me wrong, they have some nice features that iOS doesn't have and they don't far apart like Android but there are plenty of functionality being added in this update that should have been there already. I've had a Windows Phone since day one released with WP7, but it just seems like until they can play catch up with certain things/feature, they won't be able to fully fight for dominance in the mobile industry especially in the US where the market is very convuluted.
Totally. It's right now, just a game of catch up. Only thing I have seen people have a problem with on Windows Phone is that my nephew got one, L520, and my sister put his actual age on there, and forgot to set up a parent account before hand. Only a matter of time until Apple and other companies actually realize that Nokia is an amazing phone maker. Imagine if Nokia made a full fledged Android phone? Nokia and Samsung would go at it.
THE BEST PHONE MAKER dude...the BEST
Nokia X, let's see how that works as an Android device.
apple iphone est 2007, WP EST 2010. And we are almost caught up in (REAL) apps, already there in build quality, and almost there OS wise.
covered alot more ground in many less years.and we have 41 mp tech, glance, and soon, the coolest voice assistant. Buy stock in MS.
Yep, we've been advocating for that feature for so long. Glad Microsoft finally got the hint. :)
That is amazing
I asked for help here and my comment was deleted :(
Again! :-P
ha ha !! u again...will anyone here with a HTC 8x (Tmobile) help me out
Not sure what you need help with but your best bet would be to ask for support in the forums. I got lots of help there when I had 8X problems earlier in the year.
Why would you ask for help in the comments of a news article? That's what forums are for.
I am sorry but no one ever visits them and i dont get any response
Dude you posted in a thread that is almost a year old, and it doesn't appear that you read the original post. He says (in caps) "STOCK, NON CARRIER BRANDED ROM for the 8X". So, no, his solution mentioned 10 months ago will not work for your carrier branded phone. You could also try PM'ing the OP.
look at the swipe to left gesture!! that so cool! i hope MS allows other apps to use this one too.
Heck yeah! Christ, if this is all true and turns up next year I might actually cry. I have my wallet ready!!! Go Microsoft!
Any bets on when AT&T customers will actually get this? 2014 seems out of the question.
I'm sure we will see this in 2015. I like that we finally get a notification center. Cortana is legit considering its/her history.
I cannot wait. Finally Microsoft is bridging the gap. Big yay for following. Quick Settings Notification Center Separate volume controls for ringtone volume and media playback (it won’t be on a per app basis, but rather system wide) VPN support for enterprise users Deeper integration into the People Hub for Twitter and Facebook
Does anyone know if GDR3 has been released for the Nokia Lumia 521 for T-Mobile? I haven't received the update yet. I'm running Nokia Amber currently
Have it on my 521 through the dev preview.
I don't think it has, but you can easily sign up for the Microsoft Developer program and download it. I too run it on my Lumia 521 and it works like a charm.
20 seconds on Nokia's website produced this: "The Lumia Black update (bundled with GDR3 of Windows Phone 8) will be made available in early 2014. No other details have been made available as of yet."
Official GDR3 for all Nokia Lumia's will launch with the Lumia Black update, sometime until February.
Thanks everyone for the heads up on the update.
It hasn't been released "officially" (as in including the Black firmware) to any Nokia phone yet (just the HTC 8X from what I've seen), which makes sense because Nokia brings the Black firmware too, so that much extra work. :)
Hey Freak (sorry -could not help myself), I suppose it could have been a coincidence and my Lumia 1020 just happened to update the moment I un-installed the Windows Phone under Device Management, but I think that's unlikely. So, it's worth trying: With Lumia connected to your Surface Pro 2 - make sure Auto-Update is temporarily disabled so you can "see" it if it becomes a available Go to Dervice Mgr and remove "Windows Phone" - Restart PC/Tablet Verify Windows Phone is back in Device Mgr-disconnect phone. If update notification doesn't appear, restart device. That worked for me and I got my GDR3 Update for my Lumia 1020 – would like to hear if it works.
Cool stuff coming. Hope there will be more...but kinda don't want this to be leaked, i love surprises :D :D
LOL I'm the same I want to know but also love surprises when I get OS updates.
I say leak it all! You can keep your surprise by not reading the article. I want to know as much as possible as soon as possible so I can make decisions.
What's the difference... Just let the leaks surprise you LOL!!!
Ohh...come on, you can't be so impatient,all those leaks harm more than do good to the platform, if there will be something available only for WP, something new and impressive and will get leaked let's say half a year before availability, those leaks will do good only to competition. I can understand why all you guys love leaks, i love them too, but i was just reffering to the fact that not all stuff needs to be leaked, so one can have time and mature it's proposal before competition catch up.
You are making my impatience worse! Arg. I hope Att started "testing" 8.1 months ago so its ready soon after build...
I hope my ATIV S will get this update. :)
I'm sure it will. I would not be surprised if Samsung decided to release a flagship device that takes advantage of the gesture controls mentioned. Seems right up their alley.
Its hardware is capable, so I don't see why not!
With you there, brother. I've got one too. If this is true, yeah , I think I'll jump over the moon. Especially love that I'll be able to put apps on my sd card. Love everything else too. Just wondering if it will actually come to Windows Phone 8, read on a website that it wouldn't.
That sounds great. Especially for Xbox music :)
Exactly!!
Indeed, I can't wait for XB music to be decoupled from the OS. They need to update it like every month because it's in a disgraceful state right now. Zune worked better in WP7 and the fact that the WP8 app for Win8 doesn't even sync properly... well, it's embarrasing.
Zune just worked better, period. Lol
I still have my Lumia 900 and one of the things keeping me from upgrading is the horrible disgrace that is XB Music. I'm still enjoying wireless sync and other features of Zune software!!
Finally, the world has been so quiet on WP 8.1 that I thought it died!
Everyone has know for some time it was due Q2 2014. You need to be punished. Please read WP Central _every day_ until you are more enlightened! Do it for 365 days, then you have served your sentence ;)
Haha I love how they keep using that shambolic leak photo for these updates ;)
Yeah the pic has become a real call to arms, fire up the troops!
Let the excitrment begin. Cant wait to load this on my 1520 :)
Sounds like the TITS!!!!
Daniel, why do you keep deleting my comments?
Just the stupid ones, no worries.
Lmao!
Should have deleted that one too! Joking of course.
Bwahahaha
Classic, lol.
Would never be treated like this on MacRumors. Thanks, Daniel :)
Only wise people come here so stupidity is out, even in comments
Probably because the reality distortion field is working in full force over there and have you completely covered. LOL!
So much win..
hhahahaha, nice, although im typing this with the fear of getting doubled burned by Daniel hahahaa
daniel can u tell me why microsoft restricted or locked video hub for saving downloaded videos in wp8 device in video hub and share video hub content.. tell me if u know please.. n it resolve in wp8.1 blue or not.. please answer
Relax bro, some apps are already getting this ability privately from msft it seems - like whatsapp
Have almost the same doubt..... Where do the downloaded videos go ??? I downloaded a few videos using UC. But i can't find them anywhere except in UC's download manager. Couldn't find even using PC. Can anyone help please ???
One of the many reasons why I would LOVE a file explorer/manager for WP.
It will always be in apps own memory. No other app can see it. May be even third party file manager can't see it
I hope every WP8 devices will get this update.
Read the article
I read it. It said "devices are expected". So, there you go.
The current line is yes, all current WP8 devices will get the update. Of course, 8.1 will have new hardware dependent features, so not every feature will be there and presumably "something could happen" that would prevent the update. But we are expecting all phones, even the Lumia 520, to get updated.
Hopefully Verizon will allow it for the seemingly discontinued 822. I don't want to become a dev (no matter how easy it is (if I did, I'd buy an Android phone)) to side load it.
You do know that you basically just sign up with an email and the update pops up in your phone update que just as if it were regularly scheduled to be. It's not side loaded and it's less work than signing up for a forum.
Stop fearing the unknown. It's extremely easy to install Update 3. No need to sideload anything. Just sign up and the update pops up on your phone. Highly recommend it.
You keep talking about the 520 with its 8gb of storage, but there are some of us, like me, who, im sorry to say, have an 8S, with its 4gb of storage, of which less than 3gb is available to the user.
Maybe it's because a vast chunk of WP8 devices out there in the world is the lowly but great 520. Maybe it's also because by the time WP8.1 rolls out, Nokia D&S (of which the 520 is part and parcel of) will already be in the hands of MS therefore they'll have control over the 520. Maybe HTC (of which the 8S is part and parcel of) will not spend time and money and effort to test WP8.1 for the 8S and MS has very little control over that. But if HTC spends the time and money and effort to test WP8.1 for 8S, I'm sure it will get the update.
April seems so far off lol
They announce it on April first devices receive it by November att receives it by summer 2015.
+920 :D
+1020 ;)
this sounds amazing
^.^^.^^.^ i just wet me pants
I wish you were a girl...
.........
I just shipped my bed!
Daniel.. Halo... Your missing some! ^
My god
Great to hear, hopefully they release a beta version of 8.1 prior to the BUILD event. Something actually bothers me: "VPN support for enterprise users". I hope, everyone gets VPN support including support for Cisco IPSec (which Windows 8.1 unfortunately lacks).
I'm sure they will. But VPN is rarely going to be used outside enterprise environments. Not saying there's no use but not a lot.
Every WP8.1 phone will have VPN support, it just part of the whole Enterprise pack that MS has been touting as coming soon in order to get more companies on board. Enterprise users are just the target, not the exclusive.
Read as 'VPN support, good for enterprise users'.
Any IT department that forces VPN usage on a nice shiny smartphone should be taken out at dawn and shot.
So you would prefer that anyone can remote in without security?
IT departments usually don't dictate use cases, only implement and support the solutions requested of them by other parts of the business. For most of our mobility users, having VPN availability on corporate devices would give end users an option for accessing a lot of intranet based resources that aren't available without pulling out their laptop and tunneling into the network. Access from the phone to, say, timekeeping resources, IT support resources, HR information, etc. would make a lot of our end users happy to keep the laptop at the office or in its bag. Not sure what you were getting at with this comment. Unless you're one of the "everything should be SSL and in the cloud" types. In that case, I would say that the majority of companies either aren't comfortable with, or aren't capable of changing all internal systems to accommodate this.
DE? Are u a fellow Delawarean?
Nope, I'm from Germany :P
Where in the Diamond State are you from?
#newark
Sounds amazing. I'm confused about the Goldfinger and Moneypenny. Does not Goldfinger not have Cortana and onscreen buttons?
I'm sure it will have Cortana since it is integrated into the OS. On-screen buttons are intended for price-conscious devices so probably not since Goldfinger is intended to be a flagship and will most likely have dedicated buttons for them.
Every WP8 will have Cortana, it's a major OS feature. Goldfinger will have HW buttons since it's a flagship, Moneypenny will have on-screen ones.
I'm sure it will have Cortana, but onscreen buttons will likely be used for low cost devices and potentially Android dual boot devices. Many people (myself included) despise the idea of onscreen buttons.
Wow, I see Fiann beat me to it, and using a nearly identical post!
That makes sense. And I don't care for them either.
I think on screen buttons will enable larger screens and smaller bezels.
I don't understand why either of those would be any different.
Now we need some info on "GoldFinger" ... I will miss my 920 :(
Keep it handy as a secondary phone. ;)
Looks like my kid is getting a mid-year upgrade from Lumia 520 to 920!
Lucky kid. But u and me are luckier. ;)
I'm actually looking forward to Moneypenny. I'm a fan of on-screen buttons and if it makes the handset cheaper, win-win!
Ugh... Why must the notification center be a swipe from the top! Don't get me wrong I want a notification center but it should be a swipe from the left (opposite the full app list). Having it be from the top just makes it feel like a copy of the other major OS's. The left swipe would have made it more unique.
Well the status bar is swipe from the top as well, so I don't see why not notifications also. The core OS of WP is enough to differentiate between other OS's anyway
Agreed.
It would have made it unique, but would have interfered with the normal working of the UI within apps. Swiping from the top actually enables you to get the notification center from within any app, while swiping from the left will require making a sort of status bar which might look ugly like it did in WP7 or would sometimes register a swipe for notification center even when you don't want it to. That's what i think. So the universal way is actually good, sometimes, its good to go the conventional way, especially when so many other things are unconventional..awesome though. ;)
Good point. I was just thinking of use from the home screen, and forgot about usability while in an app. Guess that's why I'm not a UI designer. :)
No worries brother. I see a lot of people said the same thing to you. :D i wonder why they thought they had to type it all again when they all said the same thing. :D
My thoughts exactly. As much as I like the unique points of WP8 I was really hoping they'd do this as a swipe down, I don't think its worth compromising usability for uniqueness. This is especially important when a lot of the apps in the store are poorly designed and either don't quick-resume or lose their place when resumed, you don't want to force users out of an app to access notifications (especially with the BRILLIANT idea of ghost notifications). And quick settings need to be accessible everywhere, else they are useless.
It wouldn't work well in apps that use swipe to right and left to navigate (almost every app in the store) , swiping down from the top it's accessible from anywhere.
This is exactly the issue. The pivots in apps are swipe left AND swipe right. Having a notification center hidden on the left side (swipe right to reveal) would affect the pivots. Top down is very reasonable and I don't see a better way.
If u'r in app & want to access the notification centre, u have to leave ur app & go to home screen to access them. Swipe down from top means it's always accessible from every where even from the lock screen!
because a swipe from the left interacts with live tiles, that's even a more wow feature than the notification center :P
They want it accessible from anywhere not just the Start screen that's likely why.
I agree! Make WP unique! Left swipe won't be accessible to anywhere tho. See my suggestion below: http://windowsphone.uservoice.com/forums/101801-feature-suggestions/sugg...
I agree 100%, but I guess the only really saving grace (for me, anyway) is that the other's aped theirs from the old Windows Moble status bar. :-/
The swipe down is NOT a feature from iOS or android. It was is use much earlier. Remember Symbian.
Great news!
Orgasm.
Awww yeah, come on, April! Can't wait. I like the sound of "Quick Settings" in the notification area, hopefully they do that right (wifi, data, bluetooth, brightness, music controls sounds good to me).
Yes. I want toggles, not shortcuts.
Yep, toggles are important. I even wouldn't mind 'toggle tiles' as an option for ones that you can't have or don't want in the drawer.
Ohhh I'd so love for the live tiles to be more dynamic. For instance, we hit them once to open the app, but a double click will sort of let them hover on the start screen much like they do while changing their position on the start screen, so everything else becomes dormant and only that live tile is interactive and thus we can scroll within the live tile to view what's what. You know, kinda like the mail widget of Symbian 3. I was in love with that widget.
That would be very cool!
And screen rotation lock. Hopefully they let you pick which settings go there.
Oh yeah, definitely. And yes, toggles!
Screen rotation lock comes in GDR3, right,??
What did they mean by "there will be 4 tabs as well"? Didn't really get that part
Yes, I wondered about that too. But I think it means the Notification Center will have tabs to tap to get from page 1, to 2, to 3, to 4 rather than scroll all the way down to the last notification.
I was hoping this would drop a bit sooner than April though that's a looooong way off
Its not really expected until about June, however, devs MAY get a preview around April.
I think this article is just saying that the Build conference is in April, and that the first UPDATE to WP8.1 should be announced there, not that 8.1 itself won't be released until then. However, it's pretty hard to say exactly what the schedule will be. I hope its earlier.
No, it doesn't say that. It says 8.1 is expected to be announced at //BUILD (where MS announce most if not all their major OS updates), and that it's possible the dev preview will be available on the same day like they do for Windows Consumer Previews.
Ugh. Thanks for the clarification. I guess. :-)
Actually I see where the confusion may be because of a previous article about //BUILD ... - Windows 8.next (update to 8.1) is expected to be announced
- Windows Phone 8.1 (update to 8.0) is expected to be announced and possibly available for preview Unfortunately it seems like the two OSes are destined to remain a version out of sync, at least until whenever W(P)9 comes out. Not to say that the feature-set will be out of sync, but it would be nice for the version numbers to align.
We are talking about Microsoft here.
I am glad to read such promising things about WP. Though, I'd really like it if they sped the process. I know, its difficult and all, but i really cant wait to do all what has been described in the article, and i am sure i am not the only one. I wish they release it in the first quarter of 2014, April basically, when they have the event for it, if they do. They need to learn pushing updates from apple. A week after their event. That's one of the very few things i actually like about apple, that and their hardware launch.
Isn't that what the developer program does?
I don't mean the developer program mate. Its like a beta version. GDR3 was also buggy when it was first released. I mean the finished OS. They should push it out as soon as they announce it. If they talk about it in April but actually push it out later, which usually happens, its a big turn off for me. All i am saying is that if they say April, let us have it by April.
I'm running GDR3 from the very start it was released and I did not experience any bugs. So as soon as a beta update can be downloaded I will jump right on it. And yes, hopefully before april 2014.
Mine did mate. I have a 620 lying around and i tried the dev preview on it. The apps were named incorrectly. Sometimes some apps would crash. Minor ones..but they were there..
Is the Lumia 928 ever gonna get GDR3???
You're lying or talking from ignorance. Dev program is NOT a beta program. Anything you get from the dev program is actual finished builds that you should get from the carriers but take forever because they insist on doing excessive network testing. GDR3 was NOT buggy, it was a perfectly solid and finalized release.
As I recall, Apple announced iOS7 mid-Summer... and wasn't released until September. Not exactly a week later.
Don't get your knickers in a twist just because i mentioned a few praises for apple. I am a WP fan too. What i said was "when they have the event." so within a week, every iOS device gets the update. And even when they talked about it to the general public, the beta version was out. So if Microsoft says April 2014, it should be April 2014. That's what i said. Read properly, understand and then reply. :)
Take your own advice.
I stand by my comment, iOS 7 was not released a week after their 'event' or announcement.
IOS 7 was released with the iPhone 5s, and i got the update for my iPhone 5 about a week later. Heck, the iPhone 4 got it the same day. Though it made the 4 slow as a snail. iOS 7 was showcased somewhere around April. That's not what i am talking about. They set a date for the release of their OS version and stick to it. thats what i am saying. Kindly understand.
Kindly understand, that is not what you said in your original comment.
But he was correct.
iOS7 was announced sometime around July 2013 and it was officially released with the iPhone 5S in September 2013 so tanglewoodDEV is closer to the truth since it was almost two months rather than two weeks.
I hope they decouple the default apps from the OS like W8/8.1. That way they could be updated more frequently without requiring a new OS version.
Likely. The verge says that its understandable that MS does this. And that it does make sense
Can't wait!
Btw .. Is there anything about the Skype/messaging integration?
YES!!! This is one of the Most important functions!
Agreed, we need this to be better... it's already quite good, but they need to get messages syncing and other Skype lines to stop ringing when you pick up. Ideally it should be nearly instantaneous to get into Skype too, like bring up the dialer.
They are on it. There was an article about that.
This is happening independent of the update. It's been an issue for Skype because historically it was a P2P system and now it needs to be anchored in the cloud, so it's very transitional. But completely independent of 8.1 (except maybe the dialler).
By the way, I had a Skype call yesterday showing on both my tablet and phone and as soon as I answered on the tablet the phone stopped ringing.
Agreed, as far as the sync issues (I've seen the articles), but I also would like to see a bit a bit better integration, so that it opens up much more snappily. I have a 1020 and sometimes when I try to answer a Skype call it takes 5 seconds or even more to get the actual call started. I'm pretty happy with it (compared to where it was a year ago), but the performance side of it is still pretty weak.
Yeah. Actually what it pretty much needs is a perpetual 'fast app resume'. One that doesn't clear on reboot or app close (or at least re-creates itself fresh at these times). This way the app can still remain out of memory when not being used, but can start up instantly whenever it's needed.
The goal should be for it to come up as fast as the phone dialer. Certainly that may be a bit out of reach, but I'm hopeful if they could bake in more of the underlying code maybe they could get it a lot closer.
Yep, fast-app-resume will come up that quickly. Except that it has to have already been loaded and then not quit (eg, get out using Windows button or task manager, not back) to save it's state to disk for the resume to work. So if they made a way for the state to always be saved (or at least, a fresh state created when you do quit it properly) then you could easily have this instant launch. Fast app resume doesn't mean it comes back to the same place you left it whenever you launch it – the developer actually has to conciously add that functionality – it just means that the app's resources and general state are 'hibernated' and can be rehydrated instantly, ready to show whichever page the developer wanted.
Correct. I am not a Skype user, but I think the main annoyance of Skype integration right now is the "messages syncing and other Skype lines to stop ringing when you pick up" I believe the Skype team already mentioned they are doing a huge overhaul to the core service to bring that syncing integration across every platform (android, iOS included) so if Microsoft doesn't mention any news about Skype for windows phone 8.1 then maybe its just the Skype team who needs to complete that overhaul then send out app updates.
^^thiss
^^ +1520 this!
The short-swipe for quick settings is kinda' like what Ubuntu Touch OS has got. And a long swipe for notifications. Oh, well. As long as its making it smarter!
Ubuntu Touch OS also copied most of its interaction styles from the MeeGo on the N9 and Windows 8 :)
WPC one-ups Verge! BTW, I don't like Verge at all. MS fans should boycott that site IMO.
I hope cortana will be available outside the US, MS has a nasty habit of making Bing features US only
+1
They are on it. There was an article about that.
Which is al the more stupid when we consider that their usage share in the US is minimal compared to european users.
How did WPC 'one up' The Verge? The source link is from The Verge.
Read the article again and you'll see...
April such a long way, surprising to see no reference to any type to skype improvement and/or integration. Skype needs to be deeply interegrated andt he messaging system needs to be overhauled which i believe they said would be. Pretty much, get group me into skype, group me works great. implementation is going to be key, hopefully it will work properly. I am one that really doesnt care abou the notification center, but i know it is needed for a competitive standpoint. Looking more forward to the deeper twitter/facebook integration and even perhaps instagram. Some other small quirks, have ability to attach emails from email app, open nokia camera without requiring a pin code, kids corner without pin code, better skype integration, xbox video, being able to create a playlist in music properly, and also able to manage xbox music frmo the phone to pc and vice versa. .
Nokia Camera without pin will be fixed in Nokia Black according to Nokia Beta Labs.
Since some countires don't have Xbox music I wonder if those changes affect Music+Videos as well.
Isn't Internet Explorer 11 also an obvious feature? BTW: howe sure are we that Windows Phone 8.1 will be announced as late as April 2nd? I mean, the MWC (and CES) conference are also to come, and Build has never been used to talk a lot about Windows Phone. It has always been, almost exclusivly, about Windows 8.x and Internet Explorer.
Definitely nothing at CES and I doubt at MWC. MS likes to do their own events now.
Wait, so that means moneypenny and goldfinger is due AFTER the build event? Nokia wont announce anything at all at CES and MWC?
I think moneypenny and goldfinger are still Nokia phones. I doubt they want to allow six months to pass with little to announce. Note that they announced the Lumia 900 on January 9 and offered it in stores starting April 8.
They may schedule a new event for Windows Phone 8.1, we can't rule that out just yet.
Yeah I would say IE11 is such a given that it wasn't mentioned. It would be great to have because IE10 doesn't support sensors (only GPS, no orientation/accelerometer/etc) whereas IE11 does.
Amazing I love the quick setting and notification center
What about that skype integration, like facetime!!!
Ohhh yeah. I like the quality of facetime video calls. I'd like that on Skype..
My 920 just had it's first birthday and I couldn't be more content with the phone. However, the second Goldfinger goes on sale at AT&T I can gaurentee you I will put this phone out to pasture. I'm so excited!
I got tha 920, it tha best phone I ever had
Until you find out that AT&T castrated Goldfinger because they believe in standards that no one else uses. F PMA
F PMS too for ruining so many good evenings
Lol
"Currently, users can swipe to the Right to bring up the full app list for the OS" You do the swipe motion to the left to bring up the full app list.
They accidently typed to instead of from. You know what they meant .
@Daniel Rubino.
Also adding file Manager in update Windows Phone 8.1 ??
Nope, probably not until WP/RT convergence, whenever that is.
False. It's not clear yet if they are going with the SkyDrive version (access to files) or a true folder manager.
Good Lord I hope they don't.
As you can see, there is not a damn word about it. So there will be ZERO filemanager in 8.1. Maybe in 2020 when WP9 is released.
It is coming as an skydrive app similar to skydrive app for w8.1
What is about quick settings and 4 tabs
I hope they make like show her on tha screen...that will be so Sweet
Yes it would...but then the women would complain and they'd have to provide a male version...
I demand Cortano because... equality and stuff.
This all sounds great and I do look forward to the updates. But MS takes way too long to get these updates out. I understand the need for testing, etc. but by the time they release some of these things people will have moved on to devices where this stuff is already included. I love the WP8 OS but I just wish we had more timely updates.
Agreed. I wish they would dedicate more resources to WP for a year or two, at least until they get it competitive. Otherwise it is a constant catchup cycle and they will never be on equal footing.
Which OS moves faster?
4 tabs?? Like Wifi On/Off, 3G/4G On/Off, Location On/Off, Bluetooth On/Off? Will be customizable? Deeper integration into the People Hub for Twitter and Facebook?? Can you give more details?? I always loved this kind of integration but since WP8 seams that the focus on that was disappearing... The only thing I didnt like is that all these things leave us with a possible GA of WP8.1 just for the second half of the year. This is too much time! I can only pray that this time Nokia will not release a customizable firmware, so that wont delay so much the WP 8.1 release.
4 tabs?? Like Wifi On/Off, 3G/4G On/Off, Location On/Off, Bluetooth On/Off? Will be customizable? Sorry, but only wishful thinking. None of them will be developed.
Did you read the artcile?
Quick settings on the swipe down page will be (I am predicting, but quite likely) just yet another stupid and useless SHORTCUT and not a TOGGLE. If its going to be a TOGGLE indeed, I shut up immediately ;)
If it's a shortcut and not a toggle I'm pretty sure I will just throw my Lumia 920 in a blender out of rage.
For the facebook and twitter integration im guessing more things being available that you can do, i.e. seeing who liked your photos/comments, liking comments, and maybe seeing pages/groups you are in, I don't know. Twitter i don't use it but like favorites that they said in the article perhaps. And I hope to God it's toggles instead of just a shortcut... that'd be pretty annoying lol. so many apps for that already :P
video calling when you have the time to insert, plzz, this is a feature that really missing the WP.
I can not call 925 and nokia video call network.
Can I use Skype, Viber and other applications will but video calling is a function that should not be missing, there is a chance, if not I'll have to change the android operating system! Thank you! I'm sorry but I hope you understand what I mean because not master English well. I wonder if someone from WP seeks comments and wishes!
Wow!! That sounds really amazing. That would bring windows phone right on par with other devices. Definitely another option for people to consider when buying a phone. Windows can't be ignored by everyone any longer after these features are released.
So you really think people consider "notification centers" when they buy phones? ;-)
Apparently, that's all I been hearing about for the past year. Make a tile, have it slide from the left, no thee right. Hope it's not a tile. Eww, now it's going to be like android. Windows is fine as is.,we need one, we dont need one. Remember?
The vast majority of people who walk into carrier stores, or whatever don't care. They might like and appreciate it when they have it, but they do not care.
I am really excited to see this update. I am however, sad that is taking them so darn long. I was hoping that it would come early in 2014 (which is still too long since WP8 shipped in Nov 2012) but if they are revealing the features at BUILD in April, it might be summer by the time I actually get it on my Lumia 920 :-( I am still waiting for Nokia to finish their Black update to GDR3 and how long ago did Microsoft ship that? So we are looking at almost 2 years between major releases of Windows Phone. I am not giving up on my favorite platform but it is clear that Microsoft has to be more nimble than this if they want to remain competitive. I really hope the changes happening at Microsoft help them to be more agile going forward.
Yes, it'll probably come to existing devices much later but I'm also certain that when they reveal WP8.1 at Build, they will also introduce new devices with WP8.1 pre installed. This is what's giving me second thoughts about getting the 1520 now or maybe wait for new devices with WP8.1 preinstalled to come out to the market.
Also why I'm having second thoughts about the 1520. As a long time iPhone user the rate of updates for older WinPho handsets is painful. Look at Amber, the 920, 1020, 928 and 925 all basically have the exact same hardware but took months for Amber to trickle down. One can only imagine that with a major OS revision it's going to be even longer.
Now That's an awesome news
Will be looking forward to buy the upcoming Nokia WP 8.1 device
Since we're getting a bunch of new features, many that have been requested over and over again, maybe I shouldn't be greedy... but, wouldn't it be great if large tiles could have their info changed by swiping on them left-to-right (currently an unused motion), like a slide-show? I would love that for news, sports, pictures, FB, etc...
The article states that swiping from right to left may clear notifications from tiles.
Right, that was not what I wrote though, I wrote "left to right". The article is unclear on what gesture they are actually referring to, they say
First-party Tiles, like Email, can be swiped towards the left to clear the Live Tile of notifications/counts. Currently, users can swipe from the Right to bring up the full app list for the OS, but swiping left will clear any Tiles without the user having to open the program directly in 8.1.
I can't make heads or tails of that. "Swiped towards the left" is the opposite of what I'm suggesting though. Either way, the swipe would be on the actual large tile anyway, so it doesn't really matter (and maybe that's what they are talking about here). I just figured doing it from left to right would eliminate unintended swipes.
Awesome , just imagine the cortana (hope I can talk to her , just like siri ;-)
HER!
Cortana is a she mail.
LOL :D
Nice.
So, another six month for basic functionality like separate volumes that everybody else got right the first time. 3 years later, still not fixed. That's it, I'm done with Windows Phone. Hopefully I can sell this 822 for $100 to cover half the cost of a Moto G.
See ya, sounds like a good plan to leave the platform because of missing features just before a huge update.
BTW, I highly doubt you get any money at all for the 822.
LOL. "My phone is getting updates in 6 months? That's it, I'm leaving!"
LOL. After 3 years of stupid design! THREE. YEARS.
See ya, wouldn't want to be ya
you KNEW what features WP missed compared with other OSs. if you were stupid enough to waste your time and money in something that didnt have the features you want and *need*. then I will say its your fault, and I dont know you but sounds more dumb to complain about it before this article, since you know its coming. but really, nobody will miss you, nobody here even cares what you do or use since they dont even know you in this site. you can do whatever you want, but I still say its dumb to buy something when it doesnt cover your *needs* (I mean its a phone... you wont die but oh well) and then complain about it.
why didnt you buy another OS before then and got Windows Phone? you didnt know how to research features and your needs, but you know how to complain?
but anyway, you might not even have a Windows Phone and you just want to troll... so how to take someone like you serious? I have no idea. but have a good day :)
You're not going to cry, are you? I didn't run over your dog, you know.I think thus is the saddest thing I've ever read. "No one here will miss you, because no one knows you!" I've been out of high school a long, long time, kid. I couldn't care less about any cliques here. Or your opinion on anything at all. You are not special. Is your self esteem tied to phone? Seriously? Grow up, Barbie.
This is what happens when you buy a device for what it MIGHT become in the future instead of for what it IS right now in the present. There's no reason to be mad at MS for what's essentially your mistake.
True. I won't buy a half baked feature phone that takes 3 years to get no-brainer basic functionality again.
Well, you may not like it, but a WP smartphone is hardly a feature phone. The fact that you consider specific abilities on a phone "no-brainers" doesn't mean they are so. I could not care less about having separate volume controls and like me, so think millions of other people. If you don't like the platform you're welcome to leave it, but don't make a fuss about it and diss it like it's the worst thing ever. Recognize it doesn't work for you, but it's perfectly fine and progressively getting even better for many millions of other people. When I went from WP7 to Android with a Nexus 4, I didn't think WP was the worst, but I did want to try having all those updates and infinite variety of apps. Once I realized that Android offered me nothing I really wanted, that the OS seemed completely incoherent, buggy, unoptimized and with badly designed apps, I switched to WP8 and I'm happier. That doesn't mean Android is bad, but that WP serves my needs better - be them functional, emotional or pragmatic (I actually wish I could keep the Nexus 4 hardware with WP8 installed on it). The sooner you realize this logic also applies to you, the happier you will be with any platform you chose to migrate to.
And THAT ^ is what I mean when I call some of you all "crybabies".
I'm not the one crying. Fanboyism is pathetic.
WHAT YOU"RE STILL HERE!!! Go sell your fictional 822 already and leave. LOL!
Swipe down quick settings sounds better to me than the left swipe "leak" we saw months ago, and it makes more sense than a swipe up (i.e., iPhone).
How does that jive with the fact that right now when you swipe from the top it's to get the status bar? MS better just make the status bar permanent.
Damn Nokia! I can't afford to keep upgrading anymore! Guess I will sell the 1020 & 1520 when the time comes for Goldfinger.
That's good news :3
More excited about the hardware than the software.
Still no gdr3 for my 920 :/
If all these features turn up to be real this will be quite the update.
Will people with Developers Preview get the update sooner? I hope the update comes to all the WP8 devices and not just those with 1GB of RAM or more. I also hope that it isn't like iOS where they strip off the features. I am already doubtful of the Cortana feature. iPhone 4 didn't get Siri.
Out of all those features Cortana is the one I care less. To me it's near useless.
Xbox Music and Xbox Video will be separate apps, removed from the OS core to enable faster, more dynamic updates for users
I really hope that this also happens to Office and OneNote. MS needs to be able to update these indpendently of the OS.
I haven't heard anyone clamoring for updates to Office... what is missing? I know it doesn't have every feature of the desktop version, but I think the number of people that want that on their phone is incredibly small.
Well, I'm particularly interested in OneNote. I would love to have hand writing support in the app, especially with the onset of 6" Windows phones, which will hopefully have active digitizer support in future versions. I remember I couldn't open password protected Office documents, but that might have been rectified already (don't do it often).
The only thing I personally need is for Excel on the phone to handle spreadsheets that are formatted as a table. It's really annoying that they can't be sorted in the browser like that and opened on the phone.
Office needs to be able to handle more document formats as well as special formatting in those documents.
Is to early to start complaining that AT&T users will never see this update? If they are going to preview in April, perhaps rollout begins in May/June which means users on AT&T will see it in 2015 -- if ever
I remeber when i had my WP7 i would have to wait forever for updates so i would plug my phone into my computer open zune then search for an update, disconect from the internet wait about 10 seconds, reconnect and if im lucky i would trick zune and get the update early. Takes a few tries and not sure if it still works but someone should try next time there's an update out! Too bad there wasnt moddified rom's for WP like cyanogenmod!
Arghhhhhhhh so far away sounds so good already!
and then there are those lucky ones testing this very piece of software that makes us go crazy ..... hope dev preview will come out say in feb ...
I'm pretty sure I'll be purchasing Goldfinger day one off,contract. This would be a great time to launch as first official flagship.
really looking forward to this update *_* what i would like to know though, is , when wifi tethering gonna come to wp8 T_T
It is already there from wp7.5!
Tethering works great on my 822.
It could be restricted by your carrier.
Lol dude its been there for a while. However carriers can muck with things, so check if they support it. Also try a software update to see if its been added recently.
Disappointing! There is nothing special, this is just wp8.1 is getting on par with android and ios and it is taking way too long. I hope w8.1 has some exclusive features that make WP a leading platform instead of following.
Cortana is supposed to be "special".
Odd that you would be disappointed by WP finally getting "on par" with the big 2.
Getting on par years later is what blind fans like you worship yea. And cortana? Who ever uses this? I never used voice stuff on Android or anywhere, except for the sake of fun 10 minutes long. It never works and is nothing more than a toy.
Blind would be expecting the next update to not only catch up with the big 2, but also innovate beyond them in one update. One step at a time is realistic thinking.
If you follow the news/rumors about Cortana, you'll know that it is apparently beyond a voice search... according to MS, its supposed to be revolutionary... although I'm more excited about quick settings and notification center.
Until we really see how it works, it is just nothing special on papers. MS claimed that tiles are special, but now, it require a good notification center just like Android to please users. I no longer believe in all these "special" craps from MS anymore.
Just because you think Tiles are craps, so they are! I love Tiles in my WP and I see them as special and unique since nobody else has them - and I suspect I'm not the only one since WP sales are picking up in many parts of the world. Also, you're the only one I know who is disappointed because MS listens to what users are asking from them. To me, YOUR attitude is what is truly "craps"!
Oh please. I don't think tiles are crap. In fact, they ARE craps! Who in the right mind will have notifications happening all over the screen?? Perhaps you like such messy stuffs, but there are only 4% in the market agree like you TBH. Of course MS needs to listen, else their precious WP will continue to fail badly. I think is you who should change your attitude because not everything by MS is good and sensible. Until we really see how the new notification center works, we should not believe anything from MS yet.
This is exactly what I was thinking.
I would agree that it seems to be taking a long time to reach something like feature parity with Android and iOS, but there are only so many developers and so many hours in a day. And given that limitation, how would you propose they balance the competing needs of "parity" and "exclusivity"? If you read the comments and forum posts here and on other sites, 95% of the WP8 complaints are actually about "missing" features- things that people already know and like from iOS or Android, and would like to see on WP8. Exactly what "exclusive" features would you like? WP8 already has a unique UX (Metro UI, Hubs and Live Tiles) and unique compatibility with Office, SkyDrive and Xbox Live.
IMO it already leads in many ways. But far too many people have mistakenly propped up ios or android as "the standard" so anything different from what they do is not deemed as better. Sorry, but number of sales means absolutely nothing in the realm of ' what's better or worse' these days.
I hope they let us install the preview like the did for GDR3 and making sure we are not at the mercy of AT&T.
This all sounds realy awesome but still a good 4-5 months away bugger
The Update3 hasnt even be started to deployed on non-developer phones. So how the hell do mobile operators suppose to "test" (yes yes I know, they havent tested sh*t in the past either) two releases in 4 months? I think all the articles is wishful thinking and bullsh*t. In April, MAYBE Microsoft will announce, that SOMEDAY in the end of 2014 they will ship 8.1. So its not until April 2nd cheated customers have to wait, but until December 31st.
Sorry to hear that. Some carriers already release the update 3 to their phones, hope all of them could work that fast...
Comment of the year..!! Although WORST ONE.!!
False. Update 3 went live weeks ago. HTC and Samsung pushed out GDR3 last month to the public. You're confusing Nokia's delay with Lumia Black with Update 3 from Microsoft, so you need to get your fact straight. Regarding the rest of your post, it's complete nonsense. Let's come back to it in April and see.
They did but hardly anyone has GDR3 yet apart from those using the developer preview.
As the WP8 market is owned mostly by some type of Lumia device, I think what Nokia releases, its what reflects the current state of the platform the most reliably. And they havent officially released the 3rd patch yet. Regarding the rest of my post, lets really see in which quearter of the next year I will see the 8.1 appear on my phone. I would be really really really surprised, if thats before June 30th, or even before July31st.
Backtracking? You said December 31 at first.
What I said is that by 31st Dec it should come. Coming by the end of July, I would be surprised about that. There is no backtrack...
MS already released GDR3 a month ago, and to the OEMs even earlier than that. Your perception, or even the public's, of the current "state of the platform" does not change that fact. Just because Lumia devices own 90% of the market does not make it "the most reliable" arbiter of what is fact and what is not. The fact remains that MS already released GDR3 a month ago! I'm surprised that being a poster here, you are still ignorant of the difference between perception and fact.
The Fact is - None of us the public has received GDR3, except the developers sets. You are the one who is still living in denial.
Who cares?! The point is - no one beside the developers phones have GDR3. Public are still waiting and waiting for GDR3 to be released, be it Nokia Black or the official ones. WP market is flooded with Nokia phones, that's the main piece of sector which is important.
Will L920 receive this 8.1 update?
Of course!
So they have more than 3 months to keep adding features, hope this to be a massive update! XD
OMG SOMEONE CREATE A TIME MACHINE AND FAST FORWARD TO APRIL!!!
+1520
+810
Sounds like a pretty descent update. The only thing I don't like is swiping left to erase time notifications. I thought they would come up with a better function for swiping left. I was hoping for a notification center. But who knows I might use it alot more. Honestly I'm more excited for the Lumia black update. Also interesting to note vpn and notification isn't in W8 although it should be.
I think the vast majority of apps in WP, in fact all the apps I have, use swipe left and right. Using either of those gestures for the Notification Center would interfer with the functions of the apps. Unless of course they would make it only accessible from the start screen, which would then send a lot of users screaming their heads off with complaints. I think swipe from the top is a good compromise, which is a good borrow from Nokia's defunct Symbian.
How long until the world of fanboys screams that Microsoft copied android if they actually use swipe down for the notifications centre?
Don't play that card, pal. Android stole that from iOS, and Heaven knows where Apple got that from. You see, great artists steal...
Omg, can't wait :D
Can't wait. Very excited for the changes. This should finally bring Windows phones on par with the features that IOS and Android have.
WHAT ABOUT WEEK VIEW FOR CALENDAR?! IT'S DRIVING ME NUTS!!!!! 1. Day view only shows one day. Most of my appointments dont have a specific time, it's mostly exams that I need to know the date, not the time. So day view is useless for me. 2. Agenda view is bad for an overview on what days you have an appointment and what you have this week, next week etc. 3. Month view doesnt show appointments when I tap a day, it's only for "jumping" to specific days, instead of appointments it just shows "Lorem Ipsum Dolet" in a very tiny font. 4. 3rd party calendars cant differentiate and color-code the different calendars inside my outlook.com account (School, Private, Events, Holidays, Birthdays, ...)
They already said that's coming long time ago in the update as well, or at least it's rumoured too with those screenshots. Calm your tits. These confirmed updates are FAR MORE IMPORTANT than that anyway.
Actually, I'm pretty sure super calendar added the ability to color code your calendar nearly a month ago.
Not forgetting that the month view is for the super eye sights users only. LOL!
This all sounds amazing, but it makes me reconsider getting the 929 ... I may wait for goldfinger or moneypenny instead.
Problem is, if you're thinking about the 929, you're probably on Verizon... and I'm sure Goldfinger & Moneypenny will be AT&T exclusives.
And the 929 will probably not get released worldwide... so I prefer that Goldfinger & Moneypenny get released at AT&T so we can see their international versions over here at the other side of the world. But the rumors of Goldfinger & Moneypenny, which will obviously have WP8.1 preinstalled in them, is what's making me hesitate to get the 1520, which is available now in my country.
But is it Jen Taylor's voice!? P.S. Excited for VPN support!
No Skype details :(
Skype is the biggest crap about WP though I think they're making a piss poor job on all mobile platforms. There are better solutions out there and if the Skype team doesn't wake up soon enough nobody will use that anymore, unless you're on a PC.
How about the simple ability to copy an image and paste it/share it in a text or email, without having to first download it. That's been around since iPhone1!
Go get an iPhone.
*BOOM*!
Typical reply from WP fan. Plain dumb.
Typical or not, it makes perfect sense!!! If the feature you want is not in WP but is in iOS, then go buy iOS! What's dumb about that!!!
The problem is, how can you call WP a smart phone when WP can't even do such simple stuffs??! If he wanna use an iPhone, he will not even post here! Get it Mr Denial?
Add a folders option and i will be happy.
Can you give an honoest reson why folders (and file managers) are necessary on a phone?
File manager so I can download torrents and have them go where I want them and actually ACCESS them later.
stop pirating stuffs. consider paying for things you use. don't ask for features that support your illegal activities. yes torrent = piracy 99% of the time.
See here's the thing, NOTHING is "lost" on WP at all. Everything goes to the place or "hub" it's associated with. Pictures go to the Photo Hub, music and video will show up in the Music Hub, all documents show up in Office. Is there another file type that you all are downloading that get's lost? Are you talking about zip files, and if so does WP even have a sip file extractor? This is the part that bothers me about all the crying that is disguised as 'requests'. Do you want stuff because it's necessary, or do you want it because another OS has it and you've somehow convinced yourself that if WP doesn't have that then they are lagging behind. I mean because back when Windows Mobile had true (like, very robust, PC style) file managers nobody cared that ios didn't have it.
scary spinning gears long time
Cool... Great features... :-)
Cant wait!!!
WOWWWWWW THIS UPDATE IS BIGGER THAN I EXPECTED!!! I hope they move Mail/Calendar/People as apps too to allow faster updates as well (similiar to how the Music/Video apps are). The swipe to left to clear tiles sounds interesting and weird... would have to see it before judging. This is truly exciting! Omg I can't wait!!
A Storm is coming !
Oh man , looking forward to BUILD & see what Microsoft got for us !
Awww, damn... :( Now I won't be able to sleep properly until my phone updates to 8.1. I'm actually turned on a bit right now by all this.
If the voice and personality of the digital assistant is that of Cortana... That'd be awesome. So awesome.
Improved features for sure. Unfortunately all it does is make WP only slightly less crappy. If the one redeeming quality of WP (Xbox Live enabled games) is actually dead as it looks to be I as well as every person I know who owns a WP will be back on Android long before 8.1 even launches.
Don't let the door hit ya!
Actually let the door wake him up. Do not buy the phone if you feels that it is lacking. I like the phone as it is an every update is a Christmas.
Three of the four games that were released on WP without Xbox Integration were also released on Windows 8/RT without Xbox Integration so your point about it being dead is... well... dead wrong. A recent Disney game on Windows 8/RT was released with Xbox Integration as well so I guess that also proves it isn't dead. I think you should just go back to that laggy spyware called Android!!
Bye! Enjoy being scroogled with lagdroid!
That's your opinion so I beg to disagree! But then it's obvious you don't use WP and are using some other OS so your comment about it being "less crappy" is your own biased opinion. Now go troll somewhere else.
That's a great solution. I hear all games on android come with Xbox integration.
omg this is f***ing awesome...WP8.1
Be nice to ser update 3 pushed out on ATT
It was pushed to the HTC 8x on AT&T back at the end of October. ATIV S Neo launched with it. Let me guess: you have a Lumia. And you're confusing the delay in the update due to Nokia's corresponding firmware Lumia Black with AT&T?
^ this. Hopefully you won't have to explain this again.
I honestly feel like I'm reading the release notes of iOS 6 & 7. Along with the release notes android 4.0 ICS. Goldfinger sounds like Galaxy S4 features. I'm glad to see this stuff make its way over, but c'mon spring of 2014? If the delay is due to the Nokia acquisition, I completely understand. C'mon man.
Many features
More awesomeness
So excited
Wow
YES!
I think I just came....
Increased sd functionality is massive for mid/low end phones. Speaking as an 820 owner this is the best feature among many pretty impressive features. Roll on April.
+820
I truly hope we get all this without any further delays, as its really about time!
The update sounds badass. The short swipe from the top shortcut sounds very useful
I can't wait!! Seriously, put me in a coma and wake me up as soon as this is out
Wish we could control some things directly from the live tile, i.e play/pause from the tile itself; and perhaps, with the arrival of the 3D Touch System, we could see small previews from messages or emails, for instance!
I agree with this. Inside tile controls would be awesome.
Yes!
Particularly for the Music app.
Like how with Sailfish OS has active covers.
Can not wait untill the new version is out xD
So, Cortana / Bing Smart Search will be triggered by the search button? Because something like Cortana + Bing Smart Search but actually give that button a reason to exist, and it would make WP the first OS with a dedicated button for voice assistant. But I am disappointed that there is no info about app data sync between Windows 8.1 + WP 8.1. Syncing history, tabs, favourites, passwords is already done by other OS for a long time now. How awesome would it be if pages you add to your Reading List on PC would appear on your phone? If stocks added to your watchlist in Bing finance would sync across devices? Alarms in the alarm app? Lockscreen images? Also, making SkyDrive files available offline makes sense on a 16GB phone with limited data, more than on a 1TB PC with Ethernet. Imagine you want to show your grandmother some photos from your 50GB SkyDrive library, you select the 2GB album of the last holidays to make it available offline, and you can show it to your granny (who doesnt have WiFi at home). And, of course, Skype chat should replace Live Messenger in the messages hub. Skype should always run in the background. Oh, and, MS has to clean up the maps apps clutter. Atm, we have the normal maps app, which sucks, and we have HERE Maps, which has a weird design and is only present on WP (and the web). Microsoft should release a new Bing Maps app, like Bing News, Weather etc., that can sync my home location and favourites across devices, can get me routes to adresses of contacts so that I just have to enter the name. And it should have the 3D imagery from that maps preview app we recently saw on Windows 8.1.
Does anyone know if there is a post at uservoice or something about the speech function and making it available for a country? Since I'm from the Netherlands it's a function, difficult in use, cause I have to say "call DUTCH NAME" and he doesn't understand me, except for saying it with an American accent. That makes it sound silly and therefore I don't use it.. If Cortana doesn't understand more languages, it just isn't a function which will be common if it will not support more languages.. Look at Google and Apple.. They support more languages and that makes Siri and Google Now easy to use.. If they try to make Cortana like Siri or Google Now, they have to start localize more.. (Bing USA isn't even the same as Bing Other parts of the world.. I believe that, thát is ridiculous in this time of age)
i have seen people using the bing on xbox one (portuguese, and works fine around here. I hope they use the same technology for Cortana. The Xbox One technology is very smart even for non-english users.
Finally my lumia 620 will get apps on sdcard and my volume rocker is broken so this update might solve the problem
Im happy
Happy and best news
Nice. I'm looking forward to purchasing a new flagship phone next year. 5" 1080p screen with minimal bezel design to reduce size Aluminum or VaporMg build with optional wireless charge cover Most recent Snapdragon 800 processor 20MP Pureview camera with Xenon flash
Exciting!
Windows Phone iis getting better and better. That's amazing.
Any news on a 'Do Not Disturb' feature?
Long press the power button and then swipe down. Best do not disturb ever :)
I 100% agree, but, when you ditch your landline and have kids, and grandkids, having a do not disturb feature is really nice. Right now, I just turn off the sound for my emails, which suffices, but it would be nice to be able to filter who can call you in the middle of the night.
Slightly concerning they're still only "considering" pulling the main apps out of the OS so they can be updated more frequently. I figured that would be one of the first things to change. At least they're definitely doing it with the Xbox apps. Swiping from the top is expected (with iOS and Android doing the same), though a swipe to the left would have been more in keeping with the way the app list is accessed. I'm fascinated to see what they do here as I was expecting to see it become more like Windows RT (the Metro part of RT anyway, no desktop please). Really looking forward to the update, hopefully we'll at least get a preview we can install at Build 2014 and a final release by summer. Though really the final release should be happening before April... If Microsoft are going to press forward with Cortana though, they really need to give her a redesign. The current one isn't really appropriate and they're just asking for bad press if their personal assistant is a naked woman. Cortana as a name is gender neutral enough to work, but there needs to be a male voice available and obviously less of the 'naked with electric blue body paint' style for the look.
The operative words there are "updated more frequently". They are "considering" because they might be able to find a way to "update more frequently" without actually pulling the primary apps from the OS. Whatever they decide to finally do about would be in the service of "more frequent updates". Swiping from the top is not unique to iOS and Android. It has been done before by other OSes before those two. And swiping from either left or right for the notification center cannot be practically used anymore because practically every app uses it so the same gestures would interfer both to the proper functions of the notification center and the apps. Cortana does not bother me but I think you have a point there. Like you, I'm also looking forward to WP8.1!!!
Hey Daniel, Any news on scaling or optimization for the Lumia 1520 with 8.1? The font is so unnecessarily enormous in menus, Skydrive, Office, etc. I understand it being an issue for 3rd party apps, but it's just too big in a lot of cases.
What about ability to add/customize notification sounds? Not a big deal, but kinda fun to do...
I have a simple request... How about additional colors to choose from for live tiles? How hard can this be to include? Better yet, how about a custom color picker?
I believe this is already in the list of changes...
I hope you're right.
All sounds very good. Probably the final update will be even bigger. Many stock apps could use a little tweaking. Browser (more quick buttons, favourites folders...), calendar (week view, better live tile,,,), camera (better camera controls on screen), mail (better file attachment...), store (better search...) ...
Beautiful news!!!
Maybe launch in April on Build and the assistants receives a Nokia Goldfinger with the update inside.
Awesome. WP is growing up!
Will the video restrictions be removed?
Now this is exactly the update they need! Perfect!
Yup my 1520 is ready and future proof!!! So amazing!! I'm loving windowsphone 8 now imagine 8.1
And if you all want the best experience unfortunately gotta get the newest one..
Notification Center FTW! Now all we need is our YouTube app back if Google will stop.
MyTube or MetroTube work perfectly. I don't think google will quit trying being evil any time soon.
I hope that it's possible to get a "slider" in the music app. Such a simple feature and it's missing until now.
What kind of "slider"?
How should i explain it.. There should be a circle or whatever of the current position of the music length. So if i want to "jump" to a position, i just slide the circle to where I want the music to be. Right now I need to press the forward or backward button for a long time until I'm there where I want it to be.
Makes me sad that I can't get exited for Cortana. :'( I live in Sweden.
don't worry chief, she'll get there :P
:)
To bad Microsoft is a small U.S. company so its hard to get the resources to make it world wide and ... wait, ehh, no. Eh, forget that last.
that's too many "ehs" for a guy from Sweden, you a Canadian spy or something? ;P
Eh, what, no, eh'm, I'm like (run's and hide). :P
Still not got Update 3 yet. =/ Lumia 920 on Three.
Daniel explained why a couple of times already in this thread.....
Thanks, but given how long the thread is and how fast it grew you must understand why I hadn't looked in detail.
Finally looks like being the complete OS. Cant wait for this, will keep my 920 until the new hardware :D
I guess it will be available for low end 512mb ram devices as well.. What u all think guys??
Well 525 has 1GB ram, was thinking that for all features in the OS you may need 1GB.
If I get my GDR3 through the Develop Program (and the recent update for it), I'll receive the update from Nokia later (I mean, firmware update)?
Maybe after this Microsoft can start to think about features above what the competition has to give people more reasons to try WP.
I'm going to be ticked if the separate volume system isn't optional. I really love just having to worry about one volume control.
Cortana sounds like a decent addition for english speaking WP-users. Other than that, nice to see them catch up on some of the features.
[dumb phrase]I had a boner when reading this...[/dumb phrase]
It the use of SD card for program storage and install, why would i buy any of the present WP 8.1 phones on the market. I have the Nokia 928 from Verizon. It has 32 GB but no SD card slot. I have it almost full now. I wanted to update to the 929 but not if it does not have SD card capability. Maybe that's why Verizon has not introduced this to the market more than the AT&T time protection of the 1520. WTF, I'm not able to update twice in 6 months; assuming the new 8.1 doesn't come out till April 2014.
When Microsoft says "from the ground up" they mean just that. And I will be there.
Some good stuff BUT what about: podcast support in europe? native mp3 support for audio books? a "play to" in apps for streaming video and music to dlna devices like in win 8.1? miracastsupport? instagram support in people hub? saving user and passwords in IE? open api for messenger hub so we can chat with apps like whatsapp?
podcast support in europe?
--> No idea (I'm in US) but it should work globally.
Native mp3 support for audio books?
-->Is this not supported already? I thought all MP3 files play fine.
Play To in apps for streaming video and music to dlna devices like in win 8.1?
-->This would be awesome. Love sending content from my Win 8.1 tablet to my TV/X-Box
Miracastsupport?
-->Another excellent idea but it would still need miracast capable recievers.
Instagram support in people hub?
-->Not a instagram user but the idea makes sense.
Saving user and passwords in IE?
-->Two thumbs up! Especially because using mobile sites is sometimes the only option on WP when there is no app for certain services.
Open api for messenger hub so we can chat with apps like whatsapp?
-->Nice to have but notification center should take care of the biggest glaring issue.
Podcast. Nope, no native support in Europe. I live in Sweden but I'm pretty sure its the same in the rest of Europe since there's been alot of discussion about it here on wpcentral from other Europeans. Audiobooks Nope again. There's not even a menu in the muisc+videos hub for audiobooks. I have to sync them as podcasts As for other hub like the people hub, messenger hub. All of these should have third party support. A big thing with windows phone 8 and windows 8 is the hubs. Not app centric but more activity centric. All chat enabled apps should be able to function in the messenger hub. All social apps should be functional in people hub. It doesn't have to have 100% functionality but like the twitter and facebook-support in the people hub that the thing you do the most works. .
Able to install apps to MicroSD woud be very useful for ATT Lumia 1520
Now I can't wait to see these features (at least not the hardware dependant ones) on my Lumia 920.
Glad to see that they'll implement a Quick settings and Notifications Centre similar to the Android one instead of that tile idea. A swipe from the left would be nicer but to have it working all the time (much like Sailfish OS) it needs indeed to be a gesture that won't interfere with any app or gesture. Separate volume control should have been here a long time ago. That said...APRIL? Which means 8.1 won't come until the summer. I'm not sure Microsoft realizes but they're not in a position to keep dragging their feet. Even less with Nokia out the door then and all the work being placed on their shoulders.
I agree this needs to happen sooner than later
I wonder if the update will be carrier controlled, or will MS push it through regardless.
Hey,what about file manager ?
Whether cmng to wp 8.1 ?
Wow, this article mentions everything that we whined about on forums for months, this is amazing, i hope everything thats mentioned here is 100 percent legit.
I'm sure the file Explorer Will be there in some form. It's the clear number one on wpuservoice.
Wow this is amazing
Exciting!
Lets hope the dev preview will work with WP8.1. Otherwise we'll have to wait until September for this..
Big GREEAAAATTTTT !
This update must be huge ! I mean literally . About 1Gb++ I think . I can't wait for this ! I hope it will bypass the carrier .
Developer preview is the only way.
Now Microsoft started working !! I hope they dont abandon current phones with wp8 :s
I hope Cortana has some ability to "learn" pronunciation and new words- even if it requires some manual correction or perhaps an intelligent "call and response". There are contacts and places that the current Tell Me software will recognize maybe 1 in 10 times. Ideally the software will learn from tens of thousands of interactions with all users how to pronounce "Reiki". Failing that, at least give me a way to manually correct it. Instead of saying "Can't find that contact" over and over, let me just choose a contact manually from my address book after the first failed attempt and then tell Cortana how it should be pronounced.
Bring it on MS!!i want to show all those android user and make their eyes down..
Will this update bring the button as a notification lights ?
Cortana sounds incredible, especially the text message scenario. But I'm a little disappointed about the Notification Center and Quick Settings, they're both pretty much carbon copies from Android and iOS, I was really hoping Microsoft would put a more Metro and unique flare on these features, but I guess they're going the simple route and just copying. That's fine I guess, at least we'll have it now, but still disappointing how it's not unique. But otherwise, WP8.1!!!! Woot! So excited!!!
There's also nothing unique with the Notification Center in Android either (by the way, iOS just copied from Android) because Android was just inspired by other OSes before it. And how else could they have done to access the Notification Center in WP since it cannot anymore use swipe left or right because that is already being used by apps in WP. The other option is swipe from below which is akward, or tap some small icon near the small wifi icon, which would be a hit-or-miss thing. I think this is the best compromise and will definitely be familiar to users of Symbian, WM, Android, iOS, who might want to try WP for the first time.
File manager missing?
I'm gonna cry of happiness :`)
I really hope that the new update and Cortana will be ahead of the curve. How long has siri been in the i-phone? If Cortana is released at the minimum 5 months ( probably 6-7 months due to carrier testing) it better blow everyone and every phone enthusiast out of the water. It would be shameful for the amount of time I assume they have spent producing and perfecting this to come out imo as late as it is to be mediocre or "as good" as siri when it first was released... Lets get ahead of the curve on the OS side.
Why does Cortana look like a sleezy slut?
Hopefully she won't suck.
LOL! I hope so too! I'm very exited to talk to her though. Perhaps I'm just being too shallow! ;)
LOL! I hope so too! I'm very exited to talk to her though. Perhaps I'm just being too shallow! ;)
Great news, can't wait! :)
This is sounding great.... I'm looking forward to getting this early on the Developer Program!!!
I just wet myself...
Will all the WP 8 phones be upgradable to WP 8.1, or will it be like WP 7 not being able to upgrade to WP 8?
Article says current wp8...
Great new features, but hopefully Microsoft can make all of this flow and look nice. I'm really curious to see how the notification center turns out.
I hope we get option toggles for some of these. I like my sound couple together, actually.
What I would like to see is give Cortana an option to interface with the On Star app and so I could just say "Cortana start my car" and its all done for me. Of course this wouldn't be needed as badly if the app wasn't so slow to begin with.
Daniel. Please can you clear up exactly which way to swipe to clear tiles. You said "swipe towards the left" this is the same as swiping from the right. I'm worried if this is correct then when I'm trying to access the app list i might accidentally clear tile notifications instead.
File manager? "true live" tile? Background image?
Taking too long to get these updates out. What does MS have one person working on coding this thing? Sheesh.
Swipe towards the left, are you sure Daniel?
Honestly this needs to happen sooner than April. The pace is staggeringly slow for changes from Microsoft.
I hope they make Internet Explorer a separate app also like Xbox apps!
App to SD ??????
April?! This is taking for fucking ever
I can say that Microsoft is working hard for WP but except of new features i hope,Microsoft will also optimize the OS and make it even more stable and smooth that it already is and fix bugs with every OS update that is provided!
Only thing that i don't realy like on WP is that Microsoft is realy slow with the development of updates in contrast with Apple and Google!We need more major updates like 8.1 and more frequently!
Do the other OS's move faster with updates or new releases?
Hopefully 8.1 brings some colour to WP to make it more like the desktop. Getting really sick of this black and white text everywhere
+1
If by desktop you both mean WXP and W7, I say "ABSOLUTELY NO!!!" That would make WP8/8.1 look like iOS and Android and take away the uniqueness and simple beauty of the OS!
New background colors or images like W8? I've seen people asking for images before, but how would you see them behind all the tiles?
Finally a notification center. Marry this with a new HTC 4.7 1080P phone and take my money.
Finally ! A notification bar
Can't wait!
If all of these features actually show up in 8.1 along with the 3d touch phones and all that, then I can definitely see that update as the one that can make Windows Phone market share explode. I can't wait to use all this stuff!
I just have a big smile reading the shortcut settings and notification center :D, but no file manager?:\
I've been asking this a lot, but what's the true need for a file manager in WP?
Not trying to shit on you, just really trying to understand why this fascination with having one.
Looks promising. Now the issue is getting this update out ASAP, especially to phones from 2012 or 2013. Since the software architecture was already revamped from 920 on, this presumably shouldn't be an issue. Time will tell
Awesome , just imagine the cortana (hope I can talk to her , just like siri ;-)
Oh man! Decisions, decisions. I've hung on to my 7.5 Titan, waiting for the right phone. I finally decided that the near-mythical Lumia 929/Icon would be it. Now, 8.1 is looming, with a new flagship... DAMMIT!
Podcast support in Xbox Music outside the USA?
Release also some apps like air gesture control and flash transfer in android
Is there going to be a W8 kind of search option ??? Systemwide search perhaps....???
See, there you go! That makes sense.
I don't hate the idea of notification centre, I just hate the way Android does it which originally was too open and prone to dev abuse of pushing all sorts of crap into it (it's gotten better since JB as they gradually close it up, but still far from not annoying), that was one of the reason why I hope MS didn't rush into making a notification centre for WP but rather get it done right instead of getting it out fast. The idea of having Ghost Notification is a good start (but I'm afraid it's not something devs will make use of) + some way of blocking apps from ever displaying notification on the OS level instead of letting the devs control it on the app level would be what I want from a WP notification centre.
No Bing? Didn't mind it . What will replace?
There is this trend which I always see with WP fans / users in discussions. Before update- When they didn't have these features and you told them they were important they were like, "Meh, Windows doesn't need notification center we can check the live tiles and who needs Google now, taking to your phone is stupid!" After update - All of a sudden windows users will be like "Notification center on windows is awesome, Cortana is the best vice assistant EVER etc." Is always like this. Not only in WP central, but every WP forums. Is just so hilarious seeing how they react. LOL!
And you are obviously NOT a WP user, nor probably ever will be one, whatever you might claim so you are obviously just trolling here. For your information, WP is already great the way it was and is but like all tech, it needs to grow and develope. It is the prospect of growth and development that excites people, not the Notification Center nor Cortana by themselves per se. But even if people have changed their minds about Notification and Cortana, so what's so funny or wrong about that because I'm sure you have also changed your stand and opinion about some matter as well. So you can your mind while others cannot? Go troll somewhere else.
Firstly, you are wrong! I'm using a 1020. So I know how bad WP is based on my exp coming from Android, which is a much mature platform and smarter. True, I agree WP need to grow. But at such slow rate? Good luck with that. You know, is not just about changing mind about things, is about how they used to mock Android with notification center and tiles are the greatest things every invented. But now? You are telling me that is OK to change mind? That proves on 1 thing. WP fans are following blindly to what MS sells. When people makes constructive comments to the OS, fans just boo them down - like you, living in denial. If talking about trolls, I bet you are the biggest troll ever - no deny about that. Indeed, it is the prospect of growth and development that excites people. Hence only 4% in the entire world are excited about its growth. So, are you going to get excited again when MS announced that WP will have a simple file manger finally? LOL! I really pity you....
Chunky munky why so clunky?
Ok, lemme stop you real quick. WP is further along in damn near every way, from apps to OS development than any other OS was when they were out at the same time. Small minded individuals who live in the moment and are swayed by every shitty blog post they read seem to ignore this and insist on comparing what's been out for three years to what's been out for 5 years.
really can't wait but I already satified with just amber :)
I love my 1520 just the way it is, so everything I read about the upgrade will be just the icing on the cake. I do hope that the OS will be optimized for the higher resolution of the 1520. That would be my only real "want to have"... Oh, and Cortana... Cortana just freaking rocks :)
I haven't read the report yet, but still think this is awesome.
I totally agree, what MS often refers to as special and revolutionary is often nothing more than a big toy. It seems like Google is more on the revolutionary path with its google glass, self driving cars and their new focus on robotics. MS has nothing truly exciting going on. Cortana might me 5 times better than the competition, but even then it will suck because voice recognition and the artificial intelligence behind is just too complicated to be useful now.
LOL! WHO are you agreeing with!?!! You, and your troll friends who are here, are obviously agreeing with each other's troll postings! LOL! On the contrary, Googgle just copies or steals and it's MS that actually innovates.
Oh yah... Google steals, and Windows Phone now get a notifications center + individual volume controls.... Right.... You are so right indeed.... LOL!
Have you ever seen the notification center in action? No! So stfu pls.
Finally they decided to steal from Android! Sweet.
Google is the ultimate thief so yes, I agree with your troll comment - it is sweet!
So denial.... still so denial..... Google is a thief, while MS just copy to be another thief.... Well said there!
Wow. Well said troll well said! *tears of joy* /s
Dude, you really don't know do you...? :-)
I wonder if the people that are signed up for the developer preview of GDR3 will eventually get a preview of 8.1
Won't they make any cosmetic change to the OS as they did with Windows 8.1? The addition of more tile sized maybe....
Cortana, SD card support, separate vol control, it will rock the 2014.. Windows will rock..
release faster! ur customers are not beta testers MS.. its high time u give us a final OS experience.. release 8.1 to evryone by feb 2014
Sorry to say that, but I can assure you, every single person on this planet owning a smartphone currently IS a betatester. You dont really believe, that 6 months is enough to develop a new revision of a device?
Finally notification center! Not that i have a Windows Phone anymore but happy to see MS is making progress with windows phone but i wonder if they'll evey be able to catch up to android... Hope so!
Cortana your next personal assistant
http://youtu.be/ZgfImGrdeBM
Wow... so much trash.
Hey, what about the file manager?? Not that it is required, but didn't MS say that they've completed it??
After seeing this April seems to be more far...
Can't wait!!!
So when my L920 has Cortana, it'll absolutely be a she <3
Any news about entering kids zone without a password, since currently it requires a password the feature has been practically useless for me. Also waiting for the new developer APIs as that would be key to many innovative apps and it can help add missing features
Daniel loves to bring all the awesome stuff!Finally its time to buck up WP ecosystem!Yeah Baby!!!!
No system volume setting for notifications? Once again WP behind the curve when it comes to iOS/Android.
How do you know everything that's in or not in WP8.1 when you obviously are not even an employee of MS, much less part of the development team of WP8.1? How quick you are to judge when you don't have a shred of evidence so obviously you are just here to troll!
And why are you so quick to defend? Do you know more than he does? Or can you confirm that he is wrong? Tsk tsk tsk.....
VPN! AND Cortana! Ah yes...I'm loving this! ;) can't wait!!
Will this be released earlier to Dev Preview users? I have a feeling official release is late Q3 2014 or early Q4 2014.
Official release will come with the new models "Goldfinger" and "Moneypenny" which will probably be out in the market around middle Q2 2014. It has always been like that even for the GDRs. And that is the reason why I am now hesitating whether to buy the 1520 now that it's available in my country or wait for "Goldfinger".
Most excited about installing to sd card
Please, MS... don't mess it up, don't make it US only!
Wait, swipe to the left to clear a tile count? Won't that make people miss a lot of notification if they did it accidentally or something? Wouldn't it make more sense if swiping to the left forces a tile to update so that we don't have to wait for it. Or maybe swiping to the left cycles a tile between the count view and detailed view for a large and medium tile if we want to immediately see a preview of a notification, that also makes sense.
Yessssssssssssssssssss, I hope Goldfinger’ and or ‘Moneypenny will have at least a 5.2 screen.
Anything on the customization? Like custom accent colors??
Anything on customization? Like custom accent colors?
video calling when you have the time to insert, plzz, this is a feature that really missing the WP.
I can not call 925 and nokia video call network.
Can I use Skype, Viber and other applications will but video calling is a function that should not be missing, there is a chance, if not I'll have to change the android operating system! Thank you! I'm sorry but I hope you understand what I mean because not master English well. I wonder if someone from WP seeks comments and wishes!
I think my best decision this year was to buy my 920 from a electronics retailer, unlocked, without any carrier contract and with the 2 years warranty. Now I can chose whichever carrier I want, I have no carrier crapware and I have all the updates as soon as they are out. YES!!
Finally????? Thnkx ...Now we can compare WP eiyh others :D
Nnnn
Hope windows phone can do more things and all features available.. It Will be a second then ios will be on third place.
.."being worked on include micro SD card support for installing apps and games." AWESOME !!! :) WP rullzzz!
Lots of good stuff here. Hopefully, they will finally fix the muliplte media file bug where a song is displayed more than once in the music players. Also, would like to see automatic volume reduction when headphones/speakers are either plugged into the auxilliary output, or connected via a Bluetooth connection.
GREAT great news. Finally WP will be more complete. I hope for a file manager too and something new and innovative to differentiate Windows Phone's and others smartphone. I'm reading many news about next projects of Nokia R&D and that will not be part of the deal (and microsoft). I hope Microsoft will be in good terms with future Nokia in order to use such research and see new technology such as wireless power, Wysips display, graphene and more on future Lumia headset...
How do we sub. to these threads so that we're emailed whenever there's a new post? (not just when someone replies directly to our post)
Hi friends ... Can any one tell me wheather my l720 will get this updates.. And when this updates will be coming to india
hi friends . can any one tell me wheather my L720 will get this updates or not.... and when it will be coming to india.
Wow... Waiting for this..
They may retrain the name at least given the popularity
Will WP8.1 allow us to change the background like windows 8.1?
So excited for this :D
Finally! Can't wait to see how everything looks and is put together...
This had got to be the most comments out of all topics.. Lol!
What about file manager?
wow. just bring it already.
I can't wait anymore!! I want it right now!! I hope they release it for developers earlier!
Nice to see wp catching up to what iOS can do..but need newer features to start being competitive properly :)
is 8.1 available for NL520? :) n wen will it be available in Mumbai especially :D
This "Goldfinger", i am going to have this 'Gold in my fingers'!!!!! hoping it would be an upgrade of 920 with 1020 camera (or 1020) with the latest Snapdragon 805, 64GB space, 60fps, etc
I read WPCentral articles more than I read news! Who will punish me???
The GDR3 update is yet to come and they are already talking about Blue what a bunch of losers. I am going back to Android, it has all those features as a standard even in low end devices that windows has been promising for ages now.
Mising Features and is certainly deal breaker for iOS and Android folks : what you guys thinK ? It's certainly good news to hear about the improvements and updates in WP8.1 . I am one of the user who were to jump on to WP since its launch and its good to see growing graduallly :( . I still see, below are missing features and is a big deal breaker for many including myself to switch to galaxy. 1) Downloading PDF from websites ( example downloading a utility bill statement) does not work my 1520. 2)Unable to print from native apps like browser, email ( coupons,etc). ( The work around using cloud print is pain/rather not good) 3) Screen Cast ( audio and video to DLNA devices. ) Thankfully Nokia's playto and beamer apps are work around. 4) Moving already installed apps or installing new apps to a SD Card. ( Lumia 1520 is only 16GB :( and I am already almost left with only 2GB for apps) . Having option of SD card does not serve the purpose fully yet. 5) Missing Wifi tethering option ( for dev.unlocked phones). There is no way to share LTE unlimited data to another smart phone or tablet without paying $$$ to AT&T. ( There is workaround for sharing to PC using Tether-X but is not useful for sharing wtih ipad or andorids) 6) No HDMI. or mini or micro usb . ( MSFT wants us to spend another $$$ to buy xbox) . I voiceed these concerns during msft and NOK events to msft people, but as we know msft is a poor at execution.. Its 4 years since its launched and yet msft is playing cat and mouse catchup story. Hope Daniel can use his WP cental popularity or influence to get this message accross to Joe Belfore :) .
The movement is definitely happening. I've had a WP since an Omnia 7, and now on a 920, and I almost went out and bought a 1520. Then, I read articles about the 929, but i'm in Australia. Then I read this. I'll try and hold off til one of these WP 8.1 handsets, and boy will it be amazing. If only people opened their eyes to Windows Phone. Better UI, Simple, Elegant, Feature Packed. Not to mention, unlike Android, my 920 still feels as fast and snappy as though I bought it yesterday, despite being a year old. Galaxy S3 devices are already slowing down and locking up.... Lastly: The app issue every non WP user complains about is now filled. We now have all of the high-flying, popular apps and games. Lumia and Windows Phone - for the future :D
April 2014, really? My 920 is working on a screen so cracked that it looks like a Kaleidoscope, all my corners a uniformly dented, most of my apps back out randomly and one of my 2 CPU cores gave me its 2 week notice 2 months ago. I've changed the digitizer/screen so many times that all my pictures I take are blurry because of the internal smudge I left on the lens. Contract renewal is in March, was going to go for the rumored 32GB 1520. Don't think the 920 is going to make it till April, if that date holds.
The VPN functionality will likely be either Microsoft's DirectAccess and/or WorkplaceJoin functionality which leverages Server 2012 R2 Web Application Proxy. The reason I say this is because the official blog post about the "Enterprise Feature Pack" states "auto-triggered VPN" which is exactly what DirectAccess does.
Is the Golfinger and Montrpenny going to to call the 007 models. Like Lumia 007 and for Mentepenny Lumia MI5. It you do make sure you put Gold or Silver. Also Specs I would love 5 inch phone with a quad CPU expanadble storage to at least 32 or 64 and the 21 inch phone. Basically a 1520 that you can shove in your pocket thats still bigger and faster than the Iphone 5S and can take pictures way the hell better than all. :)
They better update IE to IE11! It should work like in Windows 8.1, Favourites showing up as tiles when clicking the adress bar, back/forwards through swiping and not with the hardware button, and of course history, bookmarks and password sync!!!!
is it comming for all windows 8 phones?i mean also for low end devices such as 520?
which phone is red cover, and which cover is this?
<p>Proper volume controls...ABOUT FREAKIN TIME! You won't believe how annoying it is when someone is calling and you can't hear it, because you lowered the volume in a video or song.</p>
I want: - profiles (like in old nokia's symbian) - change sounds of alert/email/etc. - built in vcard sending It's not so hard to make features.
Shut up.
Can the Lumia 625 can be updated to windows 8.1 black??????
Waw good newz
Really great to hear that micro sd will support apps and games because i bought one 8 GB but i couldn't install it into it any apps and games for my Nokia 520 really i want that

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