Microsoft has shed some light on new details about its upcoming Windows Phone 7 platform, and it is incorporating its favorite word across all devices: “Live”
Windows Phone 7 will be able to connect with Xbox Live, Zune media, and other Microsoft features in a package called Windows Live Phone.
The features will be integrated into the various “hubs” that are presented in the main menu interface of the Phone 7 platform. For example, on the “Music + Videos” hub, users will be able to manage all the media content they have already stored on their Zune PC software.
Additionally, on the “Games” hub, there will be functionality with the Xbox 360 that allows users to, among other things, invite friends to an Xbox Live game through their phone instead of the game console. Though if you’re already in an Xbox Live game, the rationale for sending the invite on a phone seems murky.
The “Office” hub will include calendars that are synced with users’ existing Microsoft Outlook information, and the “People and Pictures” hub will bring up photos and contacts that are automatically brought over from other Windows Live services.
It really shows that Microsoft aims to connect Windows Phone 7 to Windows Live the same way Android connects users to their Google accounts.
The new mobile platform, which is a make-it-or-break-it move for Microsoft after Windows Mobile 6 and the recent Kin phones had less than stellar performance, is still due to start heading to phones this holiday season.
