Windows Phone 7 Series will be WVGA only at launch, HVGA later

Microsoft's driving home the point that developers are going to know exactly what kind of hardware they're targeting as they whip up Windows Phone 7 Series apps -- and naturally, a biggie is screen resolution since that affects how UI elements are going to be placed, how cool they can look, and how small they can realistically be. In a session at MIX10, Microsoft's Charlie Kindel has laid down the law that WP7S will be 800 x 480 -- just 800 x 480 -- at launch, a message we heard at MWC last month, but the new tidbit here is that there'll be 480 x 320 in the pipe for an unannounced later date. All devices will have precisely the same amount of available RAM and the same capacitive touch capability, and as we've already know, manufacturers will be able to tack on a keyboard if they like.

[JordanClay Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:36PM]

No complaints here...

[Mister Warmth Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:47PM]

yeah imagine that - microsoft recognizing the value in making their hardware builders stick to a little thing called specs and standards.

much like the fragmented linux world with its countless different versions, this will be android's undoing. and it's already begun -- it you go out and buy an android phone, which version will you end up with? Let's play android roulette - will you be getting v1.8? 1.9? 2.0? 2.1? who knows! will you end up with a phone that the carrier has skinned over and locked down? who knows! "but hey it runs android" right?

[TonyMontana2367 Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:50PM]

@JordanClay

Where's my non-Microsoft Engadget?

[ChazClout Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:51PM]

@Mister Warmth

Android 1.8 & 1.9? From which passage did you spawn these nonexistent builds of Android?

[Pillow Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:58PM]

@TonyMontana2367
http://www.engadget.com/exclude/microsoft/

[Jacinth Posted Mar 15th 2010 6:06PM]

@TonyMontana2367

IS IT THAT HARD?!?!? Throw it on after engadget.com

Non-apple /exclude/apple
Non-microsoft /exclude/microsoft

[MarkAnderson Posted Mar 15th 2010 6:11PM]

@TonyMontana2367

Where's my TonyMontana2367 free Engadget?

Banhammer please.

[ckrames1234 Posted Mar 15th 2010 6:14PM]

@TonyMontana2367 They felt sorry for Microsoft, so they're covering this. I personally prefer UNIX, be it Ubuntu Darwin, etc. Thats why i love my jailbroken iPhone. Its a UNIX machine when jailbroken, complete with APT, SSH, etc. Saurik was a complete genius to port APT to the iPhone

[kvikramg Posted Mar 15th 2010 7:24PM]

@Mister Warmth I disagree, ubuntu pushs out updated linux kernals, kde, gnomes as soon as they are out. I can install gnome3 beta on my ubuntu. Google has a history of putting out unreliable/buggy code without much testing, thats why mauf are apprehensive about rolling out upadtes to the consumers.

I don't feel varying screen sizes is such an issue. Webmasters/designers have got around it without much issue.

[david9944 Posted Mar 17th 2010 10:19PM]

Lord forgive them they not know what they speak!!

[onlysublime Posted Mar 17th 2010 3:33AM]

@JordanClay seriously.. anything below 800x480 is dumb. my dumbphone (LG enV Touch has dual 800x480 screens). lower res is ugly.

[MarkAnderson Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:36PM]

An interesting development. Microsoft are following Apple's successful closed model here in a lot of ways.

[Malcolm Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:39PM]

@MarkAnderson

Seems that way - and it's putting me off getting another Windows phone to be honest.

[MarkAnderson Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:40PM]

@Malcolm

I dunno. If it's what people want - and by the iPhone's sales numbers it is - then I guess that's the root they're going to go down.

On one hand it's a bit crap, on the other I can see why they're doing it.

[Mcke Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:42PM]

@MarkAnderson Like the Apple Phones from LG, Samsung, Asus, ... ?

[MarkAnderson Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:47PM]

@Mcke

A lot of ways, not all of them. This is clever of MS - the one thing the iPhone lacks is variety.

[gonintendo Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:50PM]

@MarkAnderson I like to think of it this way, instead of getting all of the cliqs and g1's, they will only be selling nexus one's and hd2's. as long as the prices are good, I'm happy.

[MKANAMAN Posted Mar 15th 2010 6:03PM]

@Malcolm Really? Even though one 'standard' spec would make ALLL applications made for the platform run equally as well on every device? I think you need to put your thinking cap on :/

[69camaroSS Posted Mar 15th 2010 7:10PM]

@MarkAnderson

Yeah, but silverlight will open up a lot of web development potential that you don't have with Apple.

[williamlau05 Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:38PM]

So the rumoured specs for the LG Apollo/HTC HD3 each having a resolution of 1280 x however much it was were just lies....I ain't complaining, every WP7S Phone at launch will be an HD2 then :-)

[New Reformation Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:50PM]

@williamlau05

They will be able to do versatile multitasking, run thousands of 3rd party apps and feature FULL user-customization and expandability?

I don't think so! The HD2 will be the best phone on the market for a long time to come.

[Mister Warmth Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:38PM]

Mmm... Netflix movies and Xbox games in 800x480.

7phone's dust, you suck it iphone.

[techlord Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:40PM]

All this gonna put psp and ds in to the trash can.

[Extinction Posted Mar 15th 2010 7:21PM]

@techlord not without game controls it's not. Games need buttons

[Bengal34 Posted Mar 15th 2010 8:19PM]

@Extinction
slide out keyboards? you could also have software bottoms on the sides of the screen.

[Bengal34 Posted Mar 15th 2010 8:22PM]

@Bengal34

There really needs to be an edit button.... Should have been "buttons"

[wolverine Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:41PM]

Standardizing it all for the apps development
that seems like a good thing somehow

[Mongooose Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:42PM]

soooo.... all the phones will be the same?

[SmilinGoat Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:48PM]

I'd like to know how likely an OLED screen would be with that resolution. that is a must for my next phone, i think its more important than a higher resolution (well to a point anyway)

[jagowar Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:50PM]

@SmilinGoat agreed.... super amoled will be a requirement in my next phone. Really hoping htc hd3 comes with a super amoled.

[JayQ330 Posted Mar 15th 2010 6:32PM]

@SmilinGoat well if you look at the nexus one then youll know , amoled 800x480, those are the screen spec's for the nexus one screen oh and a 1 millisecond responce time! crazy..

[David V Posted Mar 15th 2010 6:59PM]

@SmilinGoat

Looks like Samsung has one up their sleeve

http://www.wmexperts.com/samsung-joins-windows-phone-party?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+wmexperts+%28WMExperts%29

[TheChaosEngine Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:49PM]

Should make it all the easier to put WP7S onto the HD2. Alright, I'm getting excited now!

[mark29 Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:50PM]

I dont understand why people seem to think they'll be throwing out their 360s cos their phone will be as good?

[hexoDAT64 Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:51PM]

Good. After moving to WVGA with my Droid, Its hard going back to HVGA

[jagowar Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:51PM]

I wonder why they would go down in resolution over time.... seems like the wrong way to go.

[JMars87 Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:53PM]

@jagowar
I dunno, they might be trying to include the folks that want smaller hardware for their unusually tiny hands...like the BK guy

http://blog.mrhacks.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/bk_tinyhands.jpg

[David V Posted Mar 15th 2010 7:00PM]

@jagowar

Blackberry formfactor

[Vexorg Posted Mar 15th 2010 8:14PM]

@jagowar: I'd guess it's because 480x800 would be tough to do on a non-sliding QWERTY form factor without making it excessively narrow.

[JMars87 Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:51PM]

Interesting move MS, interesting indeed

[I was swhite237 I lost my passwo Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:53PM]

That's it, the HD2 won't get an upgrade. : (

[JMars87 Posted Mar 15th 2010 5:53PM]

@I was swhite237 I lost my passwo

root it??

[I was swhite237 I lost my passwo Posted Mar 15th 2010 6:35PM]

@JMars87 Well, not an official upgrade. XNA might be able to do something, but it doesn't look like it will be as smooth as their usual work. I noticed on this slide that the internals will be essentially identical, which means it would be very hard to get the HD2 to run Windows Phone 7. I'm guessing the code checks to see if the required internals are present.

[tolarindr Posted Mar 15th 2010 6:00PM]

Theres lots of benefits of a closed, more controlled platform. The end user experience is much more dependable with a model like this. I've been very happy with my iPhone. I tried jailbreaking it for a while, and could do some cool things, but when it comes down to it a phone should just work. It should work any time i need it to. The more open your platform, the harder it is to guarantee this.

[sandra Posted Mar 15th 2010 6:08PM]

HVGA shouldn't be allowed, ever, if all hardware has to meet a min spec and that min spec can do WVGA just fine then there's no reason to allow use of such a low res.

[kenny goo Posted Mar 15th 2010 6:12PM]

Since when did 5:3 become the standard, industry wide aspect ratio for cell phones? Not everything needs to be 800x480. Did 16:9, the standard aspect ratio for damn near every high definition suddenly stop being good enough? Is 854x480 really that big of a fucking deal?

Eh. As much as I like these chassis specs, they're going a little far with some of the little stuff like this. Like an FM radio. Does every phone need one? No. Hell, if it wasn't for these rigorous specs, the fucking HD2 might be upgradable. Two extra button nonsense...

[jagowar Posted Mar 15th 2010 6:19PM]

@kenny goo especially for a device that is as "media focused" as this one is.... I would say this device is more media focused than web browser focused.

[wtgig Posted Mar 15th 2010 6:14PM]

I like this idea, :-) this means that every wp7s phone will have really great specs, and a nice form factor. No more ugly ducklings with gimped performance. I know a lot of people who owned a g1 and, because of how slow and ugly it turned out to be, will not touch android. One bad first experience, could be the last experience for a lot of consumers.

[barry99705 Posted Mar 15th 2010 6:16PM]

Why the hell even bother with 320X480?

[David V Posted Mar 15th 2010 7:02PM]

@barry99705

To court people who like Blackberry phones.