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New Microsoft app brings recipes and grocery lists to your Windows Phone
The Bing Food & Drink app for Windows 8.1 is handy if you need to look up a recipe on your PC, but what if you're searching for ingredients at the store? Never fear, as Microsoft has quietly released a beta Windows Phone version of its culinary software. Much like its desktop counterpart, the mobile port will let you both search for great meals and create grocery lists. Microsoft makes full use of its own platform by syncing selections with the desktop app, putting a Live Tile on the home screen and making it easy to share favorites. Lumia-toting amateur chefs will want to grab the app today from the Windows Store.
Android climbed to 79 percent of smartphone market share in 2013, but its growth has slowed
Android may have quickly reached the top of the smartphone world, but there are signs that this red-hot growth is cooling off... if only just. Strategy Analytics estimates that the platform claimed nearly 79 percent of smartphone market share in 2013. While that's both a record high and a big step up from almost 69 percent in 2012, it also represents Android's slowest annual growth rate since its birth. As the analysts note, Google is facing an increasingly saturated market; there are only so many more customers it can reach. Not that things were rosy for other mobile operating systems last year. Apple shipped more phones in 2013, but not enough to avoid a dip to 15.5 percent market share. Windows Phone grew to 3.6 percent share, although its one-point improvement over 2012 wasn't going to make Apple or Google nervous. And for smaller platforms, 2013 was downright ugly. BlackBerry, Symbian and others fell from a collective 9.1 percent in 2012 to just 2 percent. The smartphone market in 2014 is effectively a three-horse race, and it's doubtful that the rankings will change any time soon.
GTA: San Andreas now available for (some) Windows Phones weeks late
Rockstar Games' promise of an early January launch for Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas on Windows Phone devices may've been a bit off -- the game just arrived on the Windows Phone store today, as spotted by CNET. The game carries a $7 price tag and works on a handful of WP8 devices (the HTC 8XT and Nokia Lumias 1520, 1320, 822, 820 and 810); it's got the same touch-based, contextual controls that the iOS and Android versions employ. Should the Caricature Compton of Carl Johnson's San Andreas entice you, you can snag it right here.
Kantar: Samsung sales stall in China and Europe despite Android's overall growth
Thanks to its latest earnings report, we already knew that Samsung's market share dropped last quarter. But analytics outfit Kantar has now shown us mainly where: the all-important Chinese and European markets. According to its figures, the Korean giant has slipped 2.2 percent in France, the UK, Italy, Spain and Germany over last year while remaining flat in China during the same period. Since Android's overall wedge of the smartphone pie increased 5 percent in China, that means Samsung has lost ground to local companies like Xiaomi, which is now the sales leader in that nation. All that could change soon, of course, as Samsung is due to launch its Galaxy S 5 flagship in the next month or two. While Apple's iOS dropped in most markets over last year, it held strong in key markets like China and the UK, while accounting for 44 percent of holiday handset sales in the US. Cupertino is also king of Japan with 69 percent of total smartphone share, due in large part to Japan's largest operator, NTT Docomo finally carrying Apple handsets. As for the rest of the pack, Windows Phone has picked up significant market share in every region over last year and is even the number two smartphone OS in Italy. That's mostly at the expense of Blackberry, which now holds a miniscule 0.4 percent of the US market and has declined precipitously everywhere else -- to the point that its not a given that it'll appear on any charts soon.
SoundHound's music search app turns its focus to the Grammys with real-time updates and more
Awards nights tend to give rise to slews of app tie-ins, and for this year's Grammys, SoundHound's tossing its hat in the ring. In addition to being able to recognize songs by "listening" to them, the refreshed app comes with a dedicated page for the event that currently lists performers and nominees. Anyone who clicks SoundHound's orange button during the live broadcast on Sunday night, though, will see real-time info, the list of winners and relevant Twitter posts instead. Chances are, music lovers don't exactly need SoundHound to identify "Just Give Me A Reason" and other nominated songs. Those who find these special features useful, however, can download the app from the source links below.
Beats Music to reach Windows Phone listeners on January 24th
Beats Music launched with a lot of fanfare today, but you may have noticed that its promised Windows Phone client is missing. What happened? As it turns out, the app is just fashionably late -- Beats' Ian Rogers says that the Windows Phone edition should be available on January 24th. That's unfortunate for Lumia-toting listeners who wanted to try Beats Music on day one, but there's no shortage of alternative services to use in the meantime.
Better late than never, Path arrives on Windows Phone
Path for Windows Phone has had an unusually long development cycle for a mobile app -- we first saw it at a Nokia event in July, and the rest of 2013 came and went without a release. Still, fans of the smaller-scale social network will be glad to know that a Path beta is at last available in the Windows Phone Store. The software mirrors much of the functionality seen in the Android and iOS versions, including private sharing, although it also takes advantage of Nokia's imaging software and provides 50 unique photo filters. No, Path isn't as exciting as Instagram or Vine, but we doubt that Windows Phone owners will mind getting another well-known app on their platform of choice.
Samsung tipped to revisit Windows Phone 8 with the 5-inch, 1080p SM-W750V
Much like HTC, Samsung hasn't expended a huge amount of effort on Windows Phone 8, having crafted just a few handsets running the platform before seemingly losing interest. Various clues are now pointing to a renewed curiosity in Microsoft's mobile OS from the company, in the form of the high-end SM-W750V. Shipping documents from before the new year indicate a screen size of 5 inches and provide first mention of the model number, which matches a recent North American approval by the Bluetooth SIG. A user agent profile on Samsung's site is even more fruitful: "Windows Mobile Lab" is named co-conspirator alongside Sammy, Internet Explorer is penned as the default browser, and a couple of specs point to an LTE-capable handset with a screen resolution of 1,920 x 1,080. As these things go, it's probably just a matter of time before pictures of the handset start surfacing, and there is a large mobile conference a little more than a month away. With Nokia rumored to soon enter unfamiliar territory, perhaps Samsung is preparing a undercover agent of its own.
Nokia's Lumia Black update starts rolling out worldwide (update: App Folder download)
Nokia knows how to start a new year properly -- it gave Americans a first shot at the Lumia Black update as 2013 came to a close, and it's starting 2014 by rolling out the software to Lumia owners around the world. The Windows Phone 8 upgrade is reaching the Lumia 925 and 1020 first; other devices should get it in the weeks ahead. The fresh software brings common features like app folders, Bluetooth 4.0 LE support, an updated Glance screen and the unified Nokia Camera app. Some improvements depend on beefier hardware, however. You'll need at least 1GB of RAM to use Beamer transfers or Refocus image processing, and only 1020 owners can shoot RAW photos. Whatever device you're using, you'll want to hit that Phone Update option in the near future -- you may be in for a pleasant surprise. Update: Nokia has posted App Folder as a separate download.
Leak hints at Nokia-made Windows Phone with dual SIMs
Rumors surfaced just days ago of Nokia-built Windows Phone 8.1 devices for the developing world, and you may already be looking at one of them today... or rather, its home screen. Frequent tipster @evleaks has posted what's reportedly a screenshot from the Moneypenny, the all-touch device from those earlier rumors. In addition to showing on-screen navigation keys, the image supports claims that the Moneypenny is the first dual-SIM Windows Phone -- an important gesture toward markets like China and India, where multi-line support is a big selling point. There aren't many other clues in picture, although the "6:30" in the corner may allude to a Lumia 630 name. Whatever Nokia might call the handset, we wouldn't expect it anytime soon; assuming the Moneypenny exists in the first place, we likely won't hear anything official about it until Microsoft reveals Windows Phone 8.1.
Facebook for Windows Phone 8 now lets you pin chats and events to the home screen
Windows Phone-toting Facebook users no longer have to worry about missing an important conversation or party update. A revamped Facebook app for Windows Phone 8 lets socialites pin seemingly any Facebook content to the home screen as a Live Tile, including chats, events, groups, pages and photo albums. The app's redesigned main Live Tile also shows wall updates, and Microsoft has spent time bolstering both the language support and overall performance. Whether or not you need to watch your friend activity like a hawk, there's enough here to justify swinging by the Windows Phone Store for an upgrade.
Aviary pauses Windows 8 and WP8 development, focuses on iOS and Android for now
We hope folks on WP and Windows 8 are A-OK with Aviary's apps and SDKs as they are, because the company is not currently developing its products for the platforms. An Aviary representative has revealed the news in the firm's forums, citing the "lack of general platform traction" as the reason. We reached out to CEO Tobias Peggs who confirmed that his team isn't working on Aviary's Windows tools this quarter. Apparently, the startup has chosen to focus on its iOS and Android products, following a tremendous growth in userbase on those operating systems. Not all hope is lost, however: according to Peggs, Aviary's currently gathering feedback from Windows developers who've incorporated its image editing SDK into their own apps. Their input will be taken into account when the company makes its 2014 roadmap, which means, the CEO says, "[Aviary] may well jump back in."
Got Windows Phone? You have 20GB of bonus SkyDrive space for the next year
If you're a Windows Phone user, check your email -- you're about to get a big holiday treat. Microsoft has followed up its earlier Surface promo by giving Windows Phone owners a free 20GB of extra SkyDrive storage for the next year. The bonus capacity stacks on top of whatever is already present, and customers have until January 31st to claim their additional cloud space. You'll have to wait for an email like the one above before you can take action, but we'd expect these notices to roll out to all registered Windows Phone users in short order.
500px brings its photo sharing to Windows Phone
Windows Phone users wanting to browse 500px photo galleries have so far had to rely on unofficial apps, but they can now go straight to the source thanks to an official app for Microsoft's platform. As on Android and iOS, this is primarily a passive experience; you can check out friends' activity with the Flow feature and search for interesting snapshots, but direct uploads aren't an option. There are two OS-specific perks, though -- you can introduce 500px photos to both a Live Tile as well as your phone's lock screen. Grab the app from the Windows Phone Store today if you're looking for an alternative to other services like Flickr.
Nokia Black update brings imaging enhancements to Lumia 1020 today
Nokia likes to bundle Microsoft's Windows Phone updates with a set of its own improvements specific to the Lumia line, and the latest such version -- known as the Black update -- is finally making its way to the Lumia 1020 on AT&T. In addition to the standard firmware enhancements that comes as part of the "GDR3" update to Windows Phone 8 (such as screen rotation lock, custom ringtones for specific types of notifications and the ability to close running apps in the app switcher more easily), you can also enjoy some of the same imaging features that were integrated into the Lumia 1520: the Nokia Camera, which combines the Pro Cam and Smart Cam into one fantastic app, and other unspecified performance enhancements. You'll also get the new and improved Glance Screen also seen on the 1520, Bluetooth 4.0 LE support, better battery monitoring and other miscellaneous stability fixes. The download is hitting our devices right now, but as usual, it may take a while to roll out to everyone.
Updated Vine for Windows Phone lets you save clips as drafts
Although Vine launched on Windows Phone with many core features intact, it didn't come with a draft mode -- if you switched tasks, your hard work (six seconds of it, anyway) went out the window. That won't be an issue with the latest version of the app, though. You can now save the video you've recorded to finish it later; interruptions and time-lapse videos won't be major headaches from now on. The Windows Phone client still doesn't have the post-shoot editing of its Android and iOS siblings, but it's clear that the feature gap is narrowing quickly.
Microsoft releases standalone Xbox Music and Xbox Video apps for Windows Phone 8
Microsoft appears to be taking a page from Google's approach to core software updates: It just launched standalone Xbox Music and Xbox Video apps for Windows Phone 8 users. The music app (currently deemed a preview) is largely what we've seen in Microsoft's integrated software, but it also lets you edit playlists and sync radio stations. A completed version is due in 2014, the company says. The video client, meanwhile, resurrects functionality that hasn't been a part of the OS since Windows Phone 7; you can now download or stream Xbox Video content directly from your handset, with playback syncing between phones, PCs and game consoles. There's no certainty that Xbox Music and Xbox Video represent the first steps toward OS-independent media apps in the rumored Windows Phone 8.1 upgrade, but you can at least try them today.
Windows Phone 8.1 reportedly getting a Notification Center and personal assistant
With each new update, Microsoft's Windows Phone platform resolves more and more concerns that we've had ever since its initial launch three years ago. According to Tom Warren at The Verge, Microsoft has a new update in the works -- currently known to us as Windows Phone 8.1 -- that will implement a new Notification Center as well as a personal assistant that will be closer to Google Now and Apple's Siri technology. This new version of Windows Phone will reportedly be revealed at the company's BUILD conference in April. So how exactly will the new Windows Phone Notification Center work? According to Warren's sources, it'll be accessed the same way iOS and Android users are accustomed to: by swiping down from the top of the screen. Not necessarily the most original idea, but if this is true, it would at least be much more familiar (and perhaps more compelling) to anyone looking to switch to Windows Phone from one of its competing platforms. That's not to say it will be identical, however, as a short swipe would bring up Quick Settings, while a long swipe would display your full history of notifications. Also, WP8.1 is where Microsoft's Cortana feature would finally come in handy. This will offer much more interaction and personalization than the current Bing Search, in that it will feature more of a contextual learning experience based on location and other personal data. These new features will help make the new WP assistant more competitive with Google Now and Siri.
Microsoft joins the FIDO Alliance to put an end to passwords
The FIDO Alliance is on a roll: It already has support from heavyweights like Google and Lenovo in its quest to eliminate password-based sign-ins, and it's now bringing Microsoft into the fold. The software pioneer is taking a seat at the Alliance's board of directors, where it will help shape open authentication standards. Microsoft isn't revealing what it would like to do with FIDO at this early stage, but it's easy to see the company improving both its verification methods and Windows' support for biometric readers. There are still gaps in the Alliance's membership -- Apple and Samsung aren't involved, for instance. Still, Redmond's involvement makes it clearer than ever that the group will have a lot of say over our future digital security.
Skype for Windows Phone comes to China with app upgrades in tow
Skype's newest Chinese partnership may not allay fears of government snooping, but it's paying dividends for mobile users -- Skype for Windows Phone has just reached the country for the first time as part of a larger app update. Microsoft's messaging client appears to be the same regardless of region, suggesting that the Chinese aren't losing any features. That's good news, as there's a few noteworthy updates in store. Users can now copy and paste instant messages, and there's a new high contrast mode for those with vision trouble; the app should load faster, too. No matter where you live, you can grab the Skype update today from the Windows Phone Store.
