Zune Phone -- Engadget Mobile

zune phone posts

Microsoft's "Pink" smartphone to be Microsoft-branded?

by Nilay Patel posted Jul 1st 2009 @ 3:03PM

Ready for even more rumors about Windows Mobile 7 and Microsoft's mysterious "Pink" smartphone project? Good, cause we've got a few -- and the first is potentially huge. ZDNet's Mary Jo Foley says her best understanding of "Pink" is now that it's a Microsoft-branded phone running a custom UI on top of Windows Mobile 7, developed by what's left of the Danger team and targeted at the Sidekick market. Yep, Microsoft-branded -- as in, the exact thing Microsoft has been denying for ages now. What's more, Redmond wouldn't be letting third parties use this new UI -- Pink would be manufactured only by Sharp or Motorola, who've made Sidekicks in the past. It all makes sense, even if it does feel a bit like MS is knifing its partners in the back -- companies like HTC and Samsung have been equally aggressive in layering their own UIs like TouchFLO 3D and TouchWiz on top of WinMo, but it's another thing entirely to compete against Microsoft itself, especially now that AdWeek says Microsoft's selected an agency to develop a Pink ad campaign. Yeah, things are starting to get a little wild -- we haven't even mentioned the open questions of whether the Zune HD is running Tegra because it's based on Windows Mobile 7 Chassis 1, or whether Pink will launch on Verizon, or whether Zune will appear on other phones, or... you get the idea. Hey Microsoft -- you want to clear any of this up by shipping some products?

Read - ZDNet
Read - AdWeek

Microsoft's "Pink" smartphone could rival iPhone on Verizon

by Darren Murph posted Apr 28th 2009 @ 1:37PM

It's crazy, we know. Just hours after hearing shockingly believable whispers that Apple's white-hot iPhone 3G could be sashaying over to Verizon Wireless, in flies a Wall Street Journal report asserting that the suits in Redmond are (also?) in talks with America's largest carrier. 'Course, we've heard rumors that Microsoft was banging out a smartphone behind closed doors for centuries now, but much to our chagrin, there's no mention of "Zune" in "Project Pink." Instead, we're told that said handset is a touchscreen-based multimedia phone that will aim to extend the Windows Mobile OS while "adding new software capabilities." Not surprisingly, the article also mentions that Windows Marketplace would be front and center on the phone, and potentially most interesting is this tidbit: "a third-party is expected to make the device." Hey HTC -- seen any strange calls originating from the 425?

[Via Boy Genius Report]

Zune rumors heat up, MS getting ready to launch Zune software on phones?

by Nilay Patel posted Apr 14th 2009 @ 6:31PM

Yeah, something is definitely up in Zuneland. Not only did images of the Zune HD leak out late last week, today AdWeek says that Microsoft's auditioning three major ad agencies for the launch of a new mobile service called "Pink" -- which is the project codename for Zune software on mobile phones. No, this doesn't mean any of those Tegra-powered Zunephone rumors are coming true -- it's far more likely that Microsoft is finally gearing up to re-launch Zune as the preferred media software and service for Windows Mobile, a plan Steve Ballmer's been hinting at for ages now. Remember, Microsoft has to keep its large stable of Windows Mobile hardware manufacturers happy, and launching a hyped new phone of its own with a Zune-based OS would basically be perceived as stabbing a billion-dollar business in the back -- not something you want to do when most of your partners are also deep in the Android game. On the other hand, you don't audition three huge ad agencies just to launch a Zune app on busted ol' WinMo, so there could be something big cooking -- if you forced us to throw caution to the wind and just guess, what we'd want to see is that $500m Danger acquisition pay off in the form of a reskinned consumer-oriented edition of Windows Mobile that integrates Zune services, running not only on a touchscreen Zune HD, but a variety of phones from third-party partners. Wishful thinking? You bet -- probably even crazy thinking -- but it would certainly shake things up, and that's never a bad thing. We'll see how it plays out -- care to share your dream Zune strategy in the meantime?

[Via CNET]

"Zune Mobile" gets mentioned, plot thickens for Project Pink

by Chris Ziegler posted Dec 14th 2008 @ 12:40PM

Okay, so he doesn't have a thinner Xbox 360 than the rest of us -- at least, not one that's been captured on camera -- but Paul Thurrott still knows his way around Redmond, so when he utters the phrase "Zune Mobile," the cellphone-using world probably ought to sit up and listen. Rumors of Microsoft's so-called Project Pink have failed to quiet down, but the latest intel seems to suggest that we're looking not at a Microsoft-branded device but an entire software and service platform -- something Danger's pretty good at managing, and something Microsoft had said it liked when it closed the acquisition earlier this year. How does that tie into Zune Mobile, though? It seems that Pink might include Zune support as part of its offering, which could translate into a Zune Mobile software package for Windows Mobile (prior to the mythical version 7, says Thurrott) that would bring far more robust media support than any Microsoft-powered phone before it, and maybe -- just maybe -- a wireless download store. Ballmer's already said Zune support would filter down to Windows Mobile eventually, and for what it's worth, those alleged Windows Mobile 6.5 shots sure look Zune-ish, which would make true Zune support fit right in -- and Danger's in the PMX group alongside the Zune peeps, so that adds some credence to the potential Pink tie-in. Is it enough to resurrect WinMo from the brink of obsolescence in the consumer space? Likely not, but it's a heck of a start, and might just quiet down those endless Zunephone rumors for a wee bit.

Read - Paul Thurrott mentions Zune Mobile
Read - Project Pink includes Zune support?

Steve Ballmer confirms Zune coming to Windows Mobile

by Nilay Patel posted Oct 2nd 2008 @ 4:27PM

Rumors of a Zune phone have floated around forever, but we've always thought it would make more sense for Microsoft to start by simply making a Zune player for Windows Mobile -- a plan Steve Ballmer casually confirmed today in an interview with CIO Magazine. Sure, Ballmer's hinted at Zune on WinMo in the past, but those were just hints -- not like today's pronouncement that "the Zune software will also be ported to and be more important not just with the hardware but on the PC, on Windows Mobile devices, etc." That's a pretty solid declaration of things to come, if you ask us -- too bad he didn't give a time frame. Now, about that 360 integration.

[Via WM Power User]

Nokia / Microsoft working on Zune Marketplace integration?

by Darren Murph posted Aug 4th 2008 @ 7:05PM

First things first: open wide and ingest a mouthful of salt. Put away that bitter beer face and down it, we said! Okay, now that you're adequately skeptical, get a load of this. Word on the street has it that Nokia is currently working with Microsoft in order to integrate the Zune Marketplace into the former firm's handsets. No, there's no talk of a Zune Phone here -- no new hardware at all, actually. Instead, it seems the two could be figuring out a way to offer Zune Marketplace content on Nokia's prolific "non-smartphones." Make no mistake, Nokia sells quite a few low-end handsets, and if the Redmond powerhouse could get its material on 'em... well, we're pretty sure you see where this could go. Oh, and we're totally not buying this until N-Gage pops up on the Xbox 360.

[Via Electronista]

J Allard says no Zune Phone on the horizon, Zune tattoo guy weeps

by Joshua Topolsky posted Oct 3rd 2007 @ 11:21AM

The funkiest and freshest dude in Redmond, J Allard, has once again reached out to the people and dropped straight-up knowledge in regards to Zune Phone rumors. According to the report, during an interview with Reuters Allard shrugged off the chatter, saying that the company was focusing on the new Zunes at the present time. It would have seemed like a total dead-end, but the Microsoft exec then noted that the Zune was built on top of Windows Mobile, and added that the giant has, "The flexibility to take these in a different direction where [sic] our customers, our partners and we are ready." Sure, some new product would be nice, but let's be honest folks -- why would you need to make a phone when everyone is running your software anyway?

Microsoft exec rekindles iPhone rival rumors, gives Zune a B-

by Darren Murph posted Sep 5th 2007 @ 9:28AM

It's probably not shocking to anyone that the Zune hasn't exactly lived up to the high hopes Microsoft had for it, and at the recent Citigroup technology conference in New York, Mindy Mount -- corporate vice president and CFO of the firm's entertainment and device division -- noted that she'd "give it a B-," and also stated that it was a "solid effort for the first year." More intriguing, however, was her comments on the future of the Windows Mobile OS, and while she was tight-lipped in regard to RIM acquisition whispers, she did hint at the possibility of a tweaked system to compete with Apple's iPhone interface. Reportedly, Mount stated that Microsoft "identified [Windows] Mobile being more integrated with photos and music," and concluded by proclaiming that it was "a natural thing to have in its product roadmap." Of course, this corporate speak can't really be regarded as much more than just that at the moment, but feel free to make of it what you will.

[Via Zune-Online]
Read - Microsoft Exec Hints at iPhone Rival
Read - Microsoft exec: Zune gets a B-; Xbox profitability; Windows Mobile's future