iBall Andi 4L Pulse With Windows Phone 8.1 Reportedly Launched at Rs. 4,899

iBall seems set to launch a Windows Phone handset in India, the iBall Andi 4L Pulse, as the handset is said to be already available at Rs. 4,899 in the Indian market according to an established retailer. The smartphone will be the firm's first Windows Phone handset.
The company has not officially announced the iBall Andi 4L Pulse, but based on the Mumbai-based retailer Mahesh Telecom's track record, iBall will likely announce the smartphone's launch and availability details soon.

The retailer has also posted promotional material of the smartphone on Twitter, including the specifications. The iBall Andi 4L Pulse is said to feature a 1.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 SoC coupled with 1GB of RAM, and run on Windows Phone 8.1.

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Microsoft (MSFT) Scores Windows Phone Win with BMW

Recent reports indicate that German luxury automobile maker BMW, Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (ETR:BMW) has ordered a large quantity of the Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) Lumia branded Windows Phone devices. Information obtained from Germany states that BMW has purchased 57,000 Windows Phone handsets to be used by their employees. This would represent an upgrade for the company, as its employees are currently using older models of Nokia smartphones that run on the Symbian operating system.

Lumia 630, 920, or 930

A large portion of phones ordered by BMW will consist of the Lumia 630 model, which will go to the majority of the company’s employees. However, executives may receive either the Lumia 920 or Lumia 930, which are among Microsoft’s higher-end models in the Lumia lineup. It is expected that the handsets will be delivered and used by BMW’s employees sometime in 2015, although no specific dates have been released as to when the change to the new smartphone line will be finalized.

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Our Favorite Android, iOS, and Windows Phone Apps of the Week

The best thing about smartphones is that they're always improving thanks to developers looking for ways to make our pocket computers even better. This week we have lots of great downloadables for Android, iOS, and Windows Phone. Take a look and see if any strike your fancy.

Android

AirDroid is already a much loved app by Android users and should definitely be installed on your Mac/PC and Android device already, but it case it isn't, the AirDroid team is giving you even more reasons to download this useful utility app. AirDroid 3 brings iOS/Yosemite-like Continuity to Android phones. With Notification Mirror for example, users can quick respond to text messages as well as answer or dismiss phone calls all from a PC. If you have a rooted device running Android 4.0 or 5.0, there's also a neat feature called AirMirror, which perfectly mirrors your Android phone on your computer screen. AirDroid says they're hoping to make this second feature even more widely accessible in the future.

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Windows Phone 8.1 Update 8.10.14219.341 Available Now

Microsoft launched a new Windows Phone 8.1 update for member of the Preview for Developers program on Friday that adds a new cellular data toggle to the Action Center.

Note: This update is for members of the Windows Phone Developer Preview program. If want to become a member, check out our article on how to join the Developer Preview program.

Windows Phone 8.1 Update 8.10.14219.341

On the heels of Microsoft announcing the availability of Cortana (preview) for Windows Phone users in France, Italy, Germany, and Spain, the company also rolled out the a new 8.10.14219.341 update.

As usual, just head to Settings > Phone Updates and grab the latest update. Of course your phone will reboot a couple of times during the update.

The update adds a cellular data toggle to the Action Center shown below which will allow you to easily disable your cellular data connection when you don’t need it.

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Sprint ATIV S Neo Windows Phone 8.1 Update Arrives

The Sprint Samsung ATIV S Neo is finally getting the Windows Phone 8.1 update that’s been rolling out on devices running Microsoft’s mobile operating system since earlier this year.

Sprint Samsung ATIV S Neo owners began getting the Windows Phone 8.1 update this morning, shortly after Sprint, America’s third-largest wireless carrier, updated its website to reflect the new Windows Phone update. Ironically, Sprint says it started rolling out the Windows Phone 8.1 update to ATIV S Neo users on December 1st, roughly three days ago.

Sprint Samsung ATIV S Neo users can download the Windows Phone 8.1 Update from the Settings app on their device. That may or may not immediately have the download since Microsoft rolls out updates to Windows Phones in batches. The Samsung ATIV S Neo will automatically check for updates and ask users to install them when they’re available. It’s a very good idea to connect to Wi-Fi and plug the device in before starting the update.

Make no mistake, Sprint Samsung ATIV S Neo owners and potential buyers should be very excited to get this upgrade. Windows Phone 8.1 is practically responsible for bringing Windows Phone 8 devices into the modern age.

For years, Windows Phone owners have watched jealously as iPhone users were able to control settings and search for information using Siri, the iPhone’s voice assistant. The Windows Phone 8.1 update brings Cortana to the Samsung ATIV S Neo. Cortana has a personality and will answer questions and make jokes when it’s appropriate. She’ll also take notes, change settings, search the web, and ask questions about locations and appointments when that’s necessary. She also reminds users to leave for their appointments on time and alert them of changing flight information.

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Windows Phone: 21 tips and tricks

1. Project your screen to your PC or TV

Projecting your phone to your PC or TV screen is surprisingly simple. Select Settings > System > Project My Screen. Your phone will automatically start searching for any devices near you that can take advantage of wireless screen projection. However, if your TV or PC monitor does not support this, it’s still possible to project your screen via USB on a Windows PC. First, download the Project My Screen app from Microsoft’s official Windows Phone website, install it on your system, restart, open the app, plug your phone into your PC and navigate to Project My Screen as before. This is great for showing off your videos and photos on a much larger screen.

2. Glance settings

Glance settings allow you to adjust your time and lock screen content when your phone is on standby. Select Settings > Glance Screen to see the full range of options, which are pleasingly extensive. Particularly useful options include glance screen timeout settings. Consider keeping it at “peek” or turned off completely if you’re worried about battery life. An interesting function called Night Mode allows you to set a timeframe – such as 10pm to 6am – during which your phone’s lock screen will change colour to a dark red, green or blue, in order to save your eyes from any intrusive glare that the standard white may cause. The blue is particularly effective.

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Edcon launches dual-sim VERSSED W1 Windows phone for R900

There’s been a lot of noise in the market about sub-R1 000 smartphones in South Africa over the past couple of months. And most of the devices launched in this very important part of the market have one thing in common – they’re powered by Google’s Android operating system.

Up until now, that is.

With the help of Qualcomm, Ingram Micro and, of course, Microsoft, the Edcon group (that’s Edgars Mobile, Jet Cellular, Edgars Active and CNA) has just launched a R900 (well, R899.90) Windows 8.1 handset it calls the ‘VERSSED W1′.

Available on the 15th of December 2015, the VERSSED W1 features dual-SIM capabilities and clever UX enhancements that allow for users to easily see which SIM they’re calling from, receiving calls from and of course using for SMS. It all forms part of Microsoft’s strategy announced at Mobile World Congress in February this year which included dual-SIM phones and a partnership with Qualcomm on their reference design program that has already brought phones like the Steppa 2.

Specs-wise, you shouldn’t expect a whole bunch for R900. That said, it’s by no means shabby.

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Huawei cancels all Windows Phone plans

Huawei has announced it is dropping all plans to make future Windows Phone smartphones. The reason is quite simple - it didn't make any money from manufacturing Windows Phone devices.

Huawei's spokesman went even further, stating that nobody has made any money from the Microsoft's OS. We guess it is referring to Microsoft's newest partners (Blu, Lava, Micromax, Prestigio, Yezz, among others), which opted for the free-of-license Windows Phone recently.

Huawei is a fast growing manufacturer with growing market share and its decision should be a blow to Microsoft's plans or aggressive Windows Phone expansion. Microsoft is trying to expand the WP market reach using massive price drops for the holiday deals and while this might be working, it seems its partners aren't doing as well as they would have hope for.

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Best Windows Phones: Holiday 2014

The end of 2014 is quickly approaching, so this is a great time to look back at the year that was in Windows Phone, and give our recommendation on the best Windows Phones for various price ranges. 2014 saw some change in the Windows Phone market, with the dominant player Nokia being purchased by Microsoft earlier this year. Microsoft also made some changes to the platform to make it easier to build a Windows Phone from scratch with the Qualcomm reference platform, and they changed the hardware requirements of the software to allow device makers to port their Android based smartphones over to Microsoft’s platform.

The former Nokia smartphone division is now Microsoft Mobile, and they have continued to churn out many different devices this year. This new division has focused mainly on the lower cost devices where they have seen the most traction. But the new hardware requirements have allowed a larger array of devices and manufacturers to come on-board in 2014. This has changed the landscape with competitive offerings from many manufacturers over a wide price range.

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Windows Phone 10 new build number 10.0.11345 spotted on WPBench

New builds for Windows 10 version of Windows phone has started appearing, although users will have to wait a little longer for the public release.

Chinese site ITHome has shared a list with the new OS version, which has started showing up on their server logs. The new OS features Windows Phone 8.15 builds, which were previously classified as Windows 10 for phones by former Microsoft employee, Nawzil, reports WMPU.

Nawzil, in a related news, has also revealed through a tweet that the latest Windows 10 phone build is 10.0.xxxxx, and it's no more the previous version 8.15.


Along with the new Windows Phone 8.1 Update 1iterations, Microsoft seems to be testing Windows 10 builds for the phone version. Recently, Windows Phone 10 build with build number 10.0.11345 has been spotted at the WPBench site.

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Huawei’s harsh words about Windows Phone are indicative of the problems plaguing the OS

Here in Japan, you might be forgiven for forgetting Microsoft exists outside the PC industry. The Xbox One has released to a career-ending deadend, a single Windows Phone 7 device was released, and Windows Phone 8 has been ignored entirely.

Elsewhere in the world, Microsoft has tried a bit harder. Primarily thanks to Nokia’s handsets (its mobile division now part of MS), Windows Phone has been steadily maintaining the 3.6% market share it arguably repossessed from Blackberry.

Suffice to say, outside of the Microsoft and Nokia fan communities, general consumer interest in Windows Phone is almost non-existent. Arguably the biggest news that hit the entire year from a non-Nokia OEM was HTC’s rehash of the One M8, this time running WP8. It offered nothing new per se, but was seen as a huge breakthrough for those seeking a premium product in the Microsoft market.

Huawei, no stranger to controversy these days, has just created another, though admittedly this one is less likely to tick off Android users. In a recent interview, Joe Kelly, Head of International Media Affairs, has put forth a rather bold and blistering evaluation of the Microsoft mobile market:

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Lava Iris Win1 Windows Phone arrives at Rs 4,999

A day after Celkon launched the cheapest smartphone running Windows Phone 8.1, Lava launched its Iris Win1 at a price of Rs 4,999. The Lava Iris Win1 will be available exclusively at Flipkart starting December 4.

The Lava Iris Win1 sports a 4-inch WVGA display and runs on a 1.2Ghz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon CPU and 1GB RAM. It comes with 8GB of internal storage that is expandable to 32GB.
The smartphone comes with a 5MP Auto Focus BSI+ sensor back camera with LED flash and 0.3 MP front camera and runs on Windows Phone 8.1 operating system. On the connectivity front, it supports dual SIM (3G+2G), Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, USB connectivity and is powered by a 1950 mAh Li-Ion battery.

This device comes with a Flip Cover and screen guard inside the box along with other standard accessories like charger, earphone and USB cable.

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