This morning, Microsoft officially launched Windows Phone 7. Boy Genius Report live-blogged the entire thing, and as great as their coverage is, I can’t tell you what really happened. I know that HTC launched 5 handsets, LG launched a WP7 QWERTY phone, Samsung unveiled a new phone and AT&T’s U-Verse is bundled with some phones and with the Xbox 360. Additionally, copy and paste is coming “early 2011” and that PC-maker Dell is even in on the action.
It’s a very messy affair, indeed.
Of course, this isn’t too surprising. Microsoft is a messy business, and with their “we build the software, you build the hardware” gig, it’s inevitable that their announcements would get mixed up with hardware manufacturers’ announcements.[1. Of course, Google takes the same approach with Android, but they seem to have much more streamlined keynotes than the boys in Redmond.]
Keynotes reflect the company that is giving them. Apple’s product lines are neat and simple, so their keynotes are neat and simple. Often, the devote an entire event to a single device, especially since they aren’t attending Macworld Expo anymore.[2. Even so, the fact that the Apple TV and the iPhone were announced at Macworld 2007 still seems odd to me.]
The big question is: will Windows Phone 7 do well? That, my friends, is a separate blog post entirely.