Bad Weather Betrays Microsoft at Major South African Launch

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa - Heavy rains, a short circuit, and a loud "boom" followed by the shutdown of most equipment were some of the uninvited guests at Microsoft's Windows 7 and Windows Phone launch in a marquee at the Nelson Mandela Square in Sandton, South Africa.

Even though the unexpected struck at the lavish launch in one of Johannesburg's wealthiest areas, Microsoft did not fail to impress the media and its partners present at the company's biggest event of the year. Windows 7 is the latest personal computer operating system to be launched by the software giant, while Windows Phone had already been launched as Windows Mobile 6.5 at the Mobile World Congress earlier this year, but the rebranding is an element needed to improve and change the platform's negative reputation gained from smartphone users.

Demonstrations of the Windows Phone platform at the event confirmed multi-touch support and kinetic scrolling - the two great jewels of touchscreen interfaces, the two that previous versions of Windows Mobile did not support.

The way Windows Mobile was seen will change with Windows Phone; the platform will fit "somewhere between work and play", according to Stuart Simms, director of Mobile Communications Business for Microsoft ME&A, who spoke with PhoneReport.

During our conversation with Simms we were given a demonstration of the fully-fledged Windows Marketplace - an application store for Windows Phones; and of My Phone, a service which allows access and management of photos, apps, and other content on a Windows Phone, from the web. The latter service will also allow restoration of content from a lost phone.

For Simms there are three important aspects of the new platform: the improved usability; the personalization and access to social media and networks (such as Facebook); and the ability to effortlessly find what really matters to the user (be it multimedia content or business files). Besides the integration with Windows computers, the points given by Simms are essential to the success and revival of the mobile OS, now strongly rivalled by open source Google Android, iPhone OS, Symbian, and the upcoming open source Maemo 5.

The new Internet Explorer Mobile is also a highlight of Windows Mobile 6.5. The browser allows synchronization of favourites with the user's PC, it supports flash video and Silverlight, and provides desktop-like browsing on Windows Phones.

Many of the manufacturers which retail products running on Windows systems were present with mini-stands at the marquee, including HTC. The Taiwanese smartphone manufacturer showcased its recently-launched HTC Touch2, which will run on Windows Phone and feature HSPA connectivity, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, a 3.2 megapixel camera, microSD memory card support, a 2.8" touchscreen with 240x320 pixels in resolution, and a zoom bar.