Nokia won’t have Windows Phone OS on handsets until at least October

One of the biggest surprises to be unveiled so far this year was the announcement by Nokia CEO Stephen Elop that Nokia would be moving from Symbian to the Windows Phone OS. Notice I didn’t say Windows Phone 7. Apparently, the current Windows Phone 7 won’t be used and the move to the Microsoft mobile OS will be pushed until at least October 2011 to wait for the next update.


Guardian.co.uk reports that Elop has never once said that Nokia would be using WinPo 7 and has steered clear from making that comment. This leads some to believe that the next version of the OS codenamed “Mango” may not be called Windows Phone 7. Elop would presumably know about the coming version and what it is called since he was a Microsoft exec until last fall.
What the Mango update will include is unknown, but speculation is that it might be dubbed Windows Phone 7.5. Another thing that stands out is the fact that never once did Elop or Ballmer mention Zune Music Service, which is rumored to replace the Nokia offering. We have rumors now that the Zune name will be dropped and the service rebranded. Whatever the new Mango OS is called officially, Nokia workers are far from happy about the move from Symbian.

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iPad 2 and iPhone 5 multi-core tipped by iOS benchmark tool

Further evidence to suggest the incoming iPad 2 and iPhone 5 will use a new, multi-core processor has emerged, with iOS benchmarking tool Geekbench 2 [iTunes link] being updated recently with new “support for multi-core processors.” The app, available on iTunes for $0.99, runs performance tests on processor and memory; however, so far all iOS devices have used single-core chips.


This updated version, however, could test iOS devices based on so far unannounced chips. It also tweaks the processor frequency detection on late-model iOS devices, something which could be more important should Apple use a chipset with asymmetric ARM cores that can each be run at different speeds depending on overall load, something which is used to reduce power consumption.
Now, Primate Labs – the developers of Geekbench 2 – might simply be looking to future-proof the app; their desktop version of Geekbench already supports multi-core chips, after all. However, we’re assuming they’ve spent the development and submission time believing it’s worthwhile, and that could well imply a dual-core device – initially, we’re guessing, a dual-core iPad 2 – in the near future

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SG Comics Presents: Survivor Mobile OS

Mobile/tablet OS platforms are duking it out for survival as platform updates, new product launches, dubious alliances and speculations continue to brew. Android OS is increasingly dominating the marketplace, with Apple’s iOS attempting to regain momentum and stirring up the media with plenty of rumors. Microsoft’s Steve Ballmer and Nokia’s Stephen Elop just made a surprise announcement last week to put Windows Phone 7 on future Nokia phones–seemingly a take-over of Nokia and an imminent demise for Symbian and MeeGo–a move that blindsided Intel and slighted Google. And still earlier last week HP/Palm introduced new phones and tablets to push their own webOS platform. The competition’s getting rough. Can all the operating systems at least just allow us to truly multitask our apps for now?

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Off the Burning Platform and into the Holding Pattern? WP7 not Ready

After all of the excitement surrounding Nokia’s move to abandon Symbian (the burning platform) and move to Windows Phone 7, there might be a long wait before it actually appears on Nokia’s phones. Windows Phone 7′s capabilities have some limitations that Nokia will need to deal with, and it may not be easy for them. Nokia had hoped to lower its R&D expenditure by adopting WP7, and maybe they will in the long run, but that doesn’t look likely in the near future. There are some problems that need to be addressed first.


For example:

• Devices with WP7 must have three buttons, not four
• WP7 currently supports just one CPU and one screen size
• Third party applications in WP7 can’t multitask (something that Symbian did very well)

Microsoft has been very rigid about how OEMs can build phones with WP7, but likely they had to loosed those restrictions to make this deal with Nokia. Nevertheless, making the new ecosystem work is going to take time, and if Nokia wants to get WP7 devices out this year, time is short. Meanwhile, the iPhone and Android have set a high standard that WP7 may have trouble living up to.
Nokia developers have been discussing some of the limitations of WP7 here. Also, check out SlashGear’s analysis of Nokia’s choice of WP7.

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webOS 3.0 ENYO SDK Released to Developers

Yesterday was the biggest day HP / Palm have had in a long time, due in no small part to the release of webOS 3.0. This operating system will be working on the several new devices HP announced yesterday including the Palm3, the Veer, and the lovely TouchPad. Today developers for the webOS platform will be able to get their hands on the SDK of the system so they’ll be able to begin testing their apps and whatnot out, and so they’ll be able to begin creating all new ways to modify, manipulate, and use the new system to their advantage.


This webOS 3.0 ENYO SDK will be available to download from what was formerly known as the Palm Early Access channel today. The privilege of downloading this SDK will be reserved for those that email pdc@palm.com and beg and scream and ask nicely if they can have it. And you DO want it, right? ENYO is resolution independent so you can develop for any of the three devices announced yesterday. If you’ve used Palm’s Mojo SDK in the past you’re going to have to change the way you work just bit, but HP has stated that older Mojo-based apps will still function in this new version of the SDK.
Will you be amongst the developers working on webOS 3.0 for these perhaps rather promising new devices? Shoot an email over to pdc@palm.com to request a look at the SDK and try it out. Tell us if it’s the system for you, or if you plan on skipping it while you continue to develop for Android 3.0 Honeycomb, Android 2.4 Ice Cream, and iOS 2.3.

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