Microsoft - Page 4

Pocketnow reports that Microsoft's engineers chose black backgrounds in Windows Phone 7 because it will be very useful with AMOLEDs (it'll save a lot of energy because OLEDs do not use any power on black pixels). There's also the option for a white background, used to enhance readability.

It's great to hear that Microsoft expects most devices to have AMOLED displays, although this is not really a surprise - back in January we ran a story that Microsoft will advice device makers to use AMOLEDs...

You can now get the Zune HD 32GB version for $249 (down from $290). The 16GB now costs $190 (down from $219). The Zune HD has a 3.3" 480x272 multi-touch OLED display. It also got HD radio and video (720p), Wi-Fi and a web-browser.

Click here to buy the Zune HD over at Amazon.com

There's an interesting story over at MobileCrunch. They say that according to rumors the new Windows Mobile 7 will actually be a copy of the Zune HD kernel. It will only work on one screen size, and will "work best on OLED devices". Hardware makers will have to comply to the H/W specifications. This might mean a very big push for OLEDs if Microsoft says that it's the preferred display technology. There were rumors that the LG Apollo phone will use WinMo 7 and have a WXGA (1280x720) resolution. The Zune HD, meanwhile, has a 480x272 display.

The new OS will not be backward compatible - which means that all applications will need to be rewritten. The user interface looks just like the Zune HD's, it won't have background processing, no threading and no access to system resources for applications. 

Update: the video has been removed from YouTube...

Here's a nice video showing the Zune HD's OLED (3.3", 480x272 multi-touch AMOLED) vs the iPhone's LCD display. The colors come out better on the OLED, and the overall picture and video quality is better (although it's not easy to see this when viewing it on an LCD, of course).

The Zune-HD (with its 3.3", 480x272 multi-touch AMOLED) is listed as 'sold-out' in all major internet outlets, such as Amazon, NewEgg and BestBuy. Amazon is listing a 1-2 month wait for the 16GB model and a 1-3 week wait for the 32GB. It is still available at Microsoft's own store.

Microsoft's Zune HD is shipping today. It's a flash based PMP, with HD radio and video, Wi-Fi and a large multi-touch OLED display (3.3" 16:9 480x272).

The Zune HD costs 290$ for the 32Gb version, and 219$ for the 16Gb.

The team over at Engadget gets to play around with a pre-production Zune HD, and they actually love the device. Here's what they say about the display: "The OLED screen looks absolutely stunning -- even at severe viewing
angles, colors were super bright, edges were crisp, and text looked
beautiful."

Microsoft Zune HD

The Zune HD is set for a fall release.

Confirming last month's rumors, Microsoft has announced the Zune HD. Besides HD radio and video, Wi-fi and integrated browser, it will have a large 3.3" 16:9 480x272 multi-touch OLED.

Zune HD

There are rumors that Microsoft is planning a new Zune player - Zune HD. They say it will feature an OLED display. No info on size, but it will have 16:9 aspect ratio.

The Zune HD?

Other specs include 16/32GB of memory, HDMI slot (thus the HD part of the name). It will also support 3D Xbox games, whatever that means.