WhatsApp calling is finally en route to Windows Phone

The beta version of instant-messaging service WhatsApp has just added the in-app calling feature that was recently brought to the corresponding apps for iOS and Android.

Microsoft has remained dedicated in its efforts to push Windows Phone into contention with iOS and Android in the mobile space, but one ever-present stumbling block for the company has been the general lack of developer enthusiasm for its platform. Social media apps, in particular, have struggled to make the jump from the Big Two. The Windows Phone Store does not yet have a Snapchat app, for example, and it took an unholy amount of time for Instagram -- still in beta, by the way -- to finally reach the tiled interface.

Those rocking a Windows Phone device seeking WhatsApp's calling service shouldn't be left sitting on their hands for much longer, though, given that the feature has just rolled out to beta testers. Presumably, those trialling the beta will ensure that any lingering bugs are duly ironed out, and the full-on, not-in-beta WhatsApp for Windows Phone will subsequently reap the benefits.

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Microsoft Updates OneDrive on Windows Phone and Android

Not a lot of meat here, but Microsoft has announced updates to the OneDrive app on Windows Phone and Android. And each adds exactly one interesting new feature. On Windows Phone, that’s Cortana integration.

Windows Phone. The Windows Phone version of OneDrive now integrates with Cortana, the personal digital assistant. This means you can start a Cortana search (by saying “Hey, Cortana,” if you enabled that, or by manually starting Cortana by tapping the hardware Search button) of OneDrive by saying “OneDrive search for … “. So you can say something like “OneDrive search for Puerto Rico photos” and it will search your OneDrive storage for results that match. Microsoft says it also works with a specific word or phrase that is in an Office document or PDF.

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Windows Phone Market Share Will Surpass Android And iOS: Analysis

A recent market analysis conducted by International Data Corp. (IDC) predicts that the market share of the Windows Phone operating system (OS) is likely to surpass that of Apple's iOS and Google's Android by 2019. It reveals that in the coming four years, the market share of Windows Phone -- which is expected to be 3.2 percent in 2015 -- is expected to rise to 5.4 percent in 2019. Shipments are expected to grow twofold, from 46.8 million in 2015 to 103.5 million units in 2019.

According to IDC, at the end of this year, Android will record a market share of 79.4 percent. This year, 1.15 billion Android units are predicted to be shipped and the IDC analysis forecasts that there will be 8.5 percent growth in shipment of Android devices this year.

With 237 million iPhones expected to ship in 2015, the global market share of iOS will reach 16.4 percent. IDC claims that year-over-year growth of iOS will be 23 percent. The report predicts that there will be exponential growth of 34.1 percent for Windows Phone. The Windows Phone OS will be shipped in 46.8 million units this year. This will help Microsoft’s OS to gain a market share of 3.2 percent.

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App makers cool to Microsoft overtures

Bill Rigby

Microsoft's plan to make its new version of Windows a mobile hit by letting it accept tweaked Apple and Android apps has met an obstacle: some of the software developers the company needs to woo just aren't interested.

Windows phones accounted for just 3 percent of global smartphone sales last year, compared with about 81 percent for devices with Google's Android system and 15 percent for Apple and its iOS system, according to research firm IDC. One reason is that Windows doesn't run as many or as attractive apps as its rivals.

To boost sales of its phones and new operating system, Microsoft said last month that it would provide tools to software developers to make it easier to design apps for Windows based on apps that run on Android or Apple. But because so few people use a Windows phone, most developers remain focused on the more popular systems and don't see a need to develop apps for Windows. They also said they doubt how easy the new tools will be to use.

"Windows phone will have to gain a significant share of the market before this becomes something that saves us time and/or money," said Sean Orelli, a director at app development firm Fuzz Productions in New York, which makes apps related to Citibank, the New York Post, and Conde Nast, among others.

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Dropbox for Windows Gets Faster Downloads; Now a Universal App

Dropbox has updated its app for Windows 8.1and Windows Phone 8.1, adding some important features in the process. The big news is that the Dropbox Windows app is now universal, which in this case means that you can download the same app on all Windows devices. Improved download speeds, support for multiple concurrent uploads, and better support for keyboard shortcuts are some of the other improvements in the latest update.

Dropbox for Windows 8.1 users can now create and manage shared folders within the app. The app also has added support for common keyboard shortcuts ctrl+A (select all) and ctrl+F (search). Desktop users of Dropbox should be able to download files faster, as that's another feature added in the latest update.

In comparison, Dropbox for Windows Phone 8.1 has received several more features with the latest update, bringing it closer to the Android and iOS apps. The most important feature is the ability to upload all kinds of files, not just photos. An extension of that feature is the ability to directly download files to your device or its microSD card. You can now select multiple files and upload them concurrently, which is great for those who rely on Dropbox.

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Windows Phone Devs claim Google is trying to strangle platform by cutting advertising

Is Google Inc., trying to strangle the viability of developers creating apps for Microsoft Corp.’s Windows Phone by cutting back their ad returns?

That what at least some Windows Phone developers believe with reports over the weekend that ads returns from Google’s AdMob mobile advertising service plummeted off a cliff following the announcement at Microsoft’s Build 2015 conference that the Redmond, Washington, based tech giant was going to make it easier to port Android apps to Windows Phone.

Complaints first appeared on a Google Groups support forum May 8 from developers claiming to be seeing massive drops in ad serve rates, and, as a result, huge reductions in the amount of money they were earning.

“The fill rate now is kissing the floor… 99% to 7% in one day” one user wrote, with another claiming “now the AdMob is a waste of time and money. No reply from support, really bad ads/fill rate/rpm…AdMob is only profitable on Android, as iAds is profitable on iOS and pubCenter on WP. Or AdMob is dying (I think no) or trying to kill us.”

The complaints continued, with “One week, no response from AdMob support, the fill rate is 8%,” with another adding “Revenue decreased by 80%. Why this has happened?”

After others contributed, the conspiracy theories arched up, with one writing “Sure, the [sic] google is trying to kill the WP platform (and this huge drop was after the Build 2015, coincidence?), that’s obvious.”

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Microsoft Lumia 940 & Lumia 940 XL Windows 10 phones UK release date, price and specification rumours: When are the Lumia 940 & Lumia 940 coming out?

No longer just a desktop OS, Windows 10 will also run on phones and tablets - and the Microsoft Lumia 940 (codenamed Talkman) and 940 XL (codenamed Cityman) will be among the first Windows Phones to run Windows 10. Here we round up the Microsoft Lumia 940 & 940 XL UK release date, price and specs rumours. When are the Lumia 940 & 940 XL coming out? Also see: Best Windows Phones 2015 and Best smartphones 2015.

Microsoft Lumia 940 & 940 XL UK release date: When are the Lumia 940 & 940 XL coming out?

The fact that the Microsoft Lumia 940 and 940 XL run Windows 10 means we'll be waiting a little while yet for them to arrive. The Lumia 930 went on sale in the UK on 17 July 2014, so it'll be later this summer before the 940 and 940 XL make an appearance.

It's probable that the Lumia 940 and 940 XL will arrive with Windows 10. On 21 January Microsoft held a Windows 10 event, during which it unveiled a Consumer Preview of the OS. Read more about the Windows 10 UK release date, price and new features here.

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LG Lancet With Verizon Branding Spotted; Full Specs Of Windows Phone Device Revealed

Since 2011, South Korean tech company LG has not launched a smartphone running Microsoft's Windows Phone OS as it has been concentrating on rolling out devices for Google's Android. Then LG said last year that it would go back to Windows Phone platform, but even after the announcement it did not reveal any Windows Phone handset.

However, in the last month, LG released an image showing a new Windows Phone with Verizon branding. Windows Central has received an official e-brochure of the LG Lancet. The images show the handset with the Verizon logo. The model number of the device is VW820. Going by the specs of the device, it can be understood that the LG Lancet is not a high-end flagship device but a midrange device with modest specs.

LG Lancet Specifications

The LG Lancet comes with a 4.5-inch display that supports FWVGA resolution of 854 x 480 pixels. The device will be powered by the Snapdragon 410 chipset that features a quad-core processor that clocks at 1.2 GHz. The e-brochure does not contain any details on the amount of RAM for the device. However, Windows Central is of the view that it will come with 1 GB of RAM.

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Windows 10 release date for desktop and laptops coming first, followed by smartphones and tablets

Microsoft is gearing up to release its 'unified interface' Windows 10 platform during the month of May, but according to Joe Belfiore, Windows phones and tablets will not be receiving the update in that particular month. According to The Verge, the executive states:

"Our phone builds have not been as far along as our PC builds. We're adapting the phone experiences later than we're adding the PC experiences. There are devices and features that will come not on launch date, but following it. From the device view, our main focus is to kick off the Windows 10 launch wave with a great launch on the PC. You should expect that the other devices — phone, HoloLens, Xbox, Surface Hub — will be staggered, probably not on the same date as the PC."

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Microsoft launches Office 2016 consumer preview, pushing universal apps to Windows phones 'soon'

The next generation of Office is coming, and you can see it now: Microsoft opened up Office 2016, to public preview on Monday morning. The company also said that its current generation of Office universal apps will go live on Windows phones soon.

Microsoft is still on track to ship the new version of Office 2016 by this fall, company executives said at its Ignite conference in Chicago, as they try to convince an audience of IT professionals to adopt the Microsoft vision.

The Office 2016 preview track will be much like the Windows 10 Insider program. Users can download the new Office 2016 software and will receive new preview updates as Microsoft rolls them out. Microsoft previously launched a developer preview of Office 2016 for IT departments, but this is a more full-featured release. You don't need an existing Office 365 subscription or have Office already installed on your PC, either.

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