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Copy files to a Windows Phone 7 device in Windows Explorer

Lee Mathews — Sat, 20 Nov 2010 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Features, Windows Mobile, How-Tos

Don't get me wrong -- I really enjoy using Zune to listen to music on my desktop computer. When all I want to do is quickly drop a couple of songs or video clips onto my Windows Phone 7 device, however, it's a bit overkill. While my humble little Palm Pre has a USB mass storage mode which lets me copy files onto it like it was any other external hard drive, WP7 devices aren't quite as accessible.

Fortunately, there's an easy remedy -- and it only requires spending a minute in your registry. Make sure you've got the Zune desktop app installed before beginning. Now, on with the hacking!

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Copy files to a Windows Phone 7 device in Windows Explorer originally appeared on Download Squad on Sat, 20 Nov 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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IMDb for Windows Phone 7 reviewed, very yellow indeed (video)

Sebastian Anthony — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Video, Windows Mobile

As one of the highest-rated and most-downloaded WP7 apps, IMDb might just be the most popular yellow app in the world. It's a nice yellow, though, a golden, orangey tone. Anyway, I digress: IMDb for Windows Phone 7 is excellent. It provides, with a couple of flicks, everything a film buff might need.

In the video review (after the break), I take a quick stroll through each of IMDb's main features. If you set your location, you can see the movie screening times at local cinemas. Like the IMDb website, the app's prime focus is on exploring the details of movies (and TV shows), and the app certainly doesn't disappoint in that regard; the app might actually be better than the website! You can watch trailers, browse cast photos, check out related news -- it's fast, easy and pretty.

In many ways the app mirrors the website. You can browse the top 250 films, the bottom 100, the winners of the Best Picture Academy Award, this week's top movies and TV shows... and so on. It's so good in fact that, from now on, I'll be using the app instead of the website.

The only flaw with IMDb for WP7 is that you can't book cinema tickets directly. As far as I'm aware, not even Flixster for WP7 -- IMDb's chief rival -- offers this functionality. Needless to say, the first movie app to offer such a feature will decimate the competition.

The video review is after the break.

Continue reading IMDb for Windows Phone 7 reviewed, very yellow indeed (video)

IMDb for Windows Phone 7 reviewed, very yellow indeed (video) originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 18 Nov 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Discover Windows Phone 7 apps with Bing Visual Search

Sebastian Anthony — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: Windows Mobile, Microsoft, Search

You can now browse the Windows Phone 7 Marketplace with Bing's Visual Search tool. According to the announcement, it only works in the US and UK -- but to make it work, after visiting the WP7 Visual Search, I had to change my location (in the top right corner) to "United States - English." Then I had to visit the Visual Search page again. Presumably this will also work if you live elsewhere, too.

The Visual Search itself is beautiful. The app icons slip and slide around the screen, and panels fade in and out with consummate smoothness -- it's powered by Silverlight, of course. Unsurprisingly, it looks and feels a lot like Zune -- and indeed, you can click through from any app to the Zune. From there you can install apps onto your phone.

The thing is, this tool in itself is nothing special -- but look at the competition! Apple's Web presence is alright, but it's hardly a joy to navigate -- it simply functions as a "preview" for those without iTunes. Google... well, take a look at the Web-based Android Market and decide for yourself. Microsoft's WP7 visual search seems positively awesome by comparison.

Discover Windows Phone 7 apps with Bing Visual Search originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 18 Nov 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Browser Plus for Windows Phone 7 has tab support and incognito mode

Vlad Bobleanta — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 18:30:00 EST

Filed under: Windows Mobile, Browsers, Mobile

Browser Plus is a new application for Windows Phone 7 devices that brings tabbed browsing support and an incognito mode to Microsoft's Internet Explorer for WP7. This is not a new browser, mind you -- it uses IE's rendering engine and adds new features to it.

Tabs work exactly as you'd expect, and the tab bar is located between the address bar and the rendered page. Adding or closing a tab is done with the "+" or "X" signs that show up to the right of the tab bar. The incognito mode allows you to hide your browsing history, and there's even quick access to the search bar. A demo video of the app is available after the break, courtesy of WPCentral.

The two possible downsides for this app are that it only works in portrait mode for now, and that it's not free -- it costs $0.99. If neither of those is a dealbreaker for you, then search for Browser Plus in the Windows Phone 7 Marketplace and install it.

Continue reading Browser Plus for Windows Phone 7 has tab support and incognito mode

Browser Plus for Windows Phone 7 has tab support and incognito mode originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 16 Nov 2010 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hands-on video review of Office for Windows Phone 7

Sebastian Anthony — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 13:30:00 EST

Filed under: Windows Mobile, Microsoft

If you weren't aware, it's impossible to take screenshots with Windows Phone 7. Perhaps once it's rooted we'll be able to -- but until then, screenshotting apps for reviews is laborious -- you have to take a photo of the screen -- and the quality is inevitably low.

So, looking for an alternative, I decided to do a video review of Office for Windows Phone 7. It's about 10 minutes long, and the video quality is excellent. You should be able to clearly see the text on the screen, and the audio commentary should be informative (and perhaps even funny).

In the video I step through the three key features of Office for WP7: OneNote (and its integration with SkyDrive); Word and Excel (viewing and editing); and SharePoint integration (though I sadly couldn't get it to work). OneNote definitely stands out as one of WP7's killer features, especially when combined with SkyDrive synchronization. Word and Excel, which lack the ability to sync, seem rather useless in comparison -- but still, being able to view Word and Excel documents on the move is surely a good thing.

The video review is after the break.

Continue reading Hands-on video review of Office for Windows Phone 7

Hands-on video review of Office for Windows Phone 7 originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 16 Nov 2010 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Slacker Radio for Windows Phone 7

Lee Mathews — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 11:30:00 EST

Filed under: Audio, Windows Mobile

On my desktop, I'm a Grooveshark user -- but there's no Grooveshark app for Windows Phone 7 yet... so where does one turn for custom-tailored streaming tunes? Why, Slacker Radio, of course!

Search for a band, tap their name (Volbeat, for example), and Slacker begins buffering your first track and looking for other songs it thinks you'll like -- which you can like or ban while they play. Tap the album cover and Slacker loads band information, including a bio, album review, and lyrics from LyricFind. The free version allows you to favorite stations Slacker creates from your searches, while subscribers can also access their custom channels.

One big downside right now is that Slacker Radio doesn't run in the background. Tap the Windows button, and your track quits playing. To add salt to the wound, if you press back to return to the app it actually starts playing the next track in your queue -- even though it says 'resuming,' which I typically assume means a music app is going to pick up where it left off. Even if you tap to share with a friend, Slacker cuts out as soon as Windows Phone 7 loads up the email screen.

Continue reading Slacker Radio for Windows Phone 7

Slacker Radio for Windows Phone 7 originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 16 Nov 2010 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Twitter for Windows Phone 7 reviewed, thoroughly unexciting

Sebastian Anthony — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Windows Mobile, Social Software

Perhaps my expectations were too high as I eagerly unwrapped my HTC Trophy, plugged it into my computer and booted up Zune. Installing apps is so easy! Search, click, blam. In moments I was booting up Twitter, its comforting, peaceful blue emanating from the phone's bright screen.

You're greeted with a 'top tweets' (lower-case is obviously still in), 'trends,' 'suggested,' and 'nearby' panorama. You don't have to log in to use this section, which is nice, as a lot of people use Twitter for the newsy aspect, rather than actually tweeting.

That's where the good news ends.

Twitter for WP7 is slow. Sliding between pages is spluttery and nowhere near as smooth as the main WP7 menus. Scrolling down through tweets is worse; the frame rate drops just enough to create a bit of a 'blinking' effect that will probably cause epileptic seizures amongst sensitive users.

Unfortunately... it gets worse.

Continue reading Twitter for Windows Phone 7 reviewed, thoroughly unexciting

Twitter for Windows Phone 7 reviewed, thoroughly unexciting originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 15 Nov 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The top Windows Phone 7 app -- YouTube -- is just a website shortcut

Sebastian Anthony — Sat, 13 Nov 2010 20:45:00 EST

Filed under: Video, Windows Mobile, Google

Sitting at the top of the Windows Phone 7 Marketplace is the most anticlimactic app of all time: YouTube.

After installing and eagerly clicking the icon I was greeted with... m.youtube.com. Yes, the YouTube app is a shortcut to the built-in Web browser. No more, no less... just a shortcut.

I suppose you could say that this is the first smartphone Web app -- but really, it's just laziness. Incidentally, did you know that Windows Phone 7 also lacks a Windows Live Messenger app? Maybe there's a Web-based client that I can use instead..

[via @ryan, and others]

The top Windows Phone 7 app -- YouTube -- is just a website shortcut originally appeared on Download Squad on Sat, 13 Nov 2010 20:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hacker gets native code to run on Windows Phone 7 -- will a jailbreak follow?

Sebastian Anthony — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Windows Mobile, Microsoft

It seems, thanks to one of Samsung's recent additions to the Windows Phone 7 Marketplace, that a jailbreak of Microsoft's latest mobile platform might come a lot sooner than anticipated.

In a high-tech plot twist that even mother could've predicted, it turns out that Windows Phone 7 can run native code! Until today, it was thought that WP7 apps could only be written in Silverlight, an abstracted platform that made jailbreaking all but impossible. If third-party apps can contain native code, it makes jailbreaking all but a foregone conclusion. There still remains the problem of getting such apps onto your phone, though: Microsoft isn't going to approve the addition of a jailbreaking app on the Marketplace!

Microsoft's acceptance of Samsung's native app raises one other important question: why can Samsung submit a native app, but small-time indie developers can't? Samsung's app obviously required some functionality that only native, low-level code could provide -- but why shouldn't all developers get the ability to hook into the underlying operating system?

As Long Zheng says, for a phone's indie and homebrew community to really thrive, unfettered access to the phone's hardware is required. Let's hope this is just the beginning of WP7 hacking!

Hacker gets native code to run on Windows Phone 7 -- will a jailbreak follow? originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 12 Nov 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Windows Phone 7 Marketplace lets you peek at any app's source code

Vlad Bobleanta — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Security, Windows Mobile, Microsoft, Mobile

It has just been discovered that it's possible to download any Windows Phone 7 XAP full application package directly from Microsoft's Marketplace server -- no need to use a Windows Phone 7 device or the Zune application. This is possible because the Zune application uses Atom XML feeds to get the applications' information, so it's fairly easy to grab a direct link to the full app package just by looking at the XML. Once you have the XAP, you can unzip it and get access to all the assets and resources that app uses. And, by using a tool such as Reflector, you may even get to peek at the app's source code. One thing of note is that the XAP can't be installed on a retail WP7 handset, although it can be used in an emulator.

It looks like Microsoft's solution to this for now is asking developers to use code obfuscation tools, such as DotFuscator, before submitting the apps into the Marketplace. Unfortunately that tool has only been out for a few days, so not many app developers have had the possibility to use it yet. Furthermore, the commercial edition of DotFuscator can be pretty expensive for those developing 99-cent apps in their basements.

The easy fix would be to have all the XAPs encrypted, but Microsoft hasn't said anything about when that will become reality -- a fix is coming, though. Until that happens, closed is apparently the new open.

[via MobileTechWorld]

Windows Phone 7 Marketplace lets you peek at any app's source code originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 12 Nov 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC to launch Android and Windows Phone 7 app store?

Samuel Gibbs — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: Windows Mobile, Android

Is an HTC app store on the way? That's what the rumors circulating around the reported recruiting by the Taiwanese manufacturer infer. The store will apparently sell devices, books, magazines, and applications in a curated fashion using "Content Editors." Of course, HTC makes both Android and Windows Phone 7 devices under its own brand, so it's not clear if this supposed store will be multi-platform or just one or the other; it's more likely to be Android-only on the software side.

HTC isn't the only one going with its own app store. Acer recently said that it planned to launch a "next generation" app store, and being the world's second-largest PC maker might just give it enough clout to succeed. As for HTC, a home grown app store would certainly be an attempt to differentiate its handsets further from the plethora of Android devices currently available -- something that's going to become more important as the market becomes more and more saturated. Treat this as pure rumor for now.

[via 9to5Mac]

HTC to launch Android and Windows Phone 7 app store? originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 09 Nov 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google Search app for Windows Phone 7 now available

Vlad Bobleanta — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Windows Mobile, Google, Microsoft, Mobile

Google has released a dedicated search app for Windows Phone 7, on the day that phones powered by Microsoft's new mobile operating system have become available in the United States (and that's clearly not a coincidence). The app lets you search the Web, images, news and perform local searches. Suggestions automatically appear as you type, and your location is used to improve the search results you're shown. Your search history is readily available so you can easily repeat a previous query.

The Google Search app is a free download from the Windows Phone 7 Marketplace, and works on all current Windows Phone 7 devices. To download it, just search for "Google Search" in the Marketplace.

Google Search app for Windows Phone 7 now available originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 08 Nov 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Windows Phone 7 launches in the United States

Sebastian Anthony — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 10:30:00 EST

Filed under: Windows Mobile, Microsoft, Mobile

As of this morning, Americans, you can now buy a Windows Phone 7 device online from the Microsoft Store, Dell or Amazon, as long as you're happy with either an AT&T or T-Mobile service plan.

The lowest price seems to be $99 for the HTC Surround on Amazon, with an AT&T service plan -- but it looks like it's already on backorder.

Presumably you can also pick up a phone from your local AT&T and T-Mobile retail store, too. There's no sign of SIM-free, network-unlocked phone, alas.

[via Engadget]

Windows Phone 7 launches in the United States originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 08 Nov 2010 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Free Windows Phone 7 apps for LG owners

Sebastian Anthony — Thu, 04 Nov 2010 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Windows Mobile, Microsoft

LG, in cooperation with fellow juggernaut Microsoft, is going to offer 10 free 'popular' Windows Phone 7 applications to its users every 60 days. These 10 apps will always have a combined value of more than $30, and will include social, connectivity, utility and gaming titles.

LG Windows Phone 7 users will have 60 days to download this 'hand-picked' selection of titles, from the on-phone LG Application Store, after which the portfolio will rotate. Apparently the promotion will 'kick off in November', but no exact date is given.

Finally, we leave you with a bit of an ominous, poorly-worded phrase from the press release: "LG's Windows Phone 7 customers can download these applications for free (for a period of 60 days) via LG Application Store" -- does that sound like you only get a 60-day trial of the apps? Or is it merely explaining that, after 60 days, you can no longer download that particular selection of apps?

Free Windows Phone 7 apps for LG owners originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 04 Nov 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Twitter for Windows Phone shows off slick new Metro interface

Jay Hathaway — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Windows Mobile, Social Software, Twitter

Twitter users on Windows Phone 7 now have an official app to play with. Twitter for Windows Phone was created by the Twitter team and Identity Mine -- a development house specializing in Microsoft platforms. The app uses a slick-looking new "Metro" interface, powered by Windows Phone 7's Pivot feature, which lets you navigate by swiping left or right to other pages within the app. In the case of the Twitter app, those pages are your timeline, mentions, direct messages, trending tweets and more.

Twitter's announcement focuses on the Windows Phone app's simplicity and ease of use, but it also appears to include advanced Twitter features, including viewing photos and locations. Developers will be interested to know that the app was created using an open source REST API called Tweet Sharp, and that the developers at Identity Mine improved upon the code and contributed it back to the open source project.

Twitter for Windows Phone shows off slick new Metro interface originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 28 Oct 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Windows Phone 7 Connector sync utility now available for Mac

Jay Hathaway — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 22:00:00 EST

Filed under: Utilities, Macintosh, Windows Mobile, Microsoft

Windows Phone 7 Connector for Mac, the utility that syncs media between your Mac and your Windows Phone 7 device, is now available for download from Microsoft. If you've ever synced files using iTunes, WP7 Connector's interface will be familiar to you. The UI and features are substantially the same, although the Windows Phone 7 Connector has a useful "browse device" view that shows you all the files on your phone at once, rather than having to click through tabs for each type of media.

Like iTunes, Windows Phone 7 Connector launches when you plug in your device. Once it's open, you get a media browser window that lets you select anything you want to sync to your phone, and then sync them with a single click. Meanwhile, any new photos and videos on your device will be synced to your computer, and new photos will automatically be imported into iPhoto.

The most impressive thing about Windows Phone 7 Connector is how Mac-like it feels. Microsoft appears to have followed the letter and spirit of Apple's Human Interface Guidelines, and used standard UI elements that should make Mac users feel right at home trying out a Microsoft phone.

Windows Phone 7 Connector sync utility now available for Mac originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 25 Oct 2010 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Adobe Flash Player 10.1 will land on Windows Phone 7 and BlackBerry

Jay Hathaway — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 20:00:00 EST

Filed under: Utilities, Windows Mobile, Symbian, Palm, BlackBerry

Adobe has just announced that it will unleash Flash Player 10.1 on a whole list of mobile operating systems, from Windows Phone 7, BlackBerry and WebOS 2.0 on down to the Symbian, MeeGo and LiMo platforms. Timelines are hazy for Flash Player's arrival on these platforms (the press release just says they're "expected" to support Flash Player 10.1) but the WebOS 2.0 version has already started shipping with new Palm handsets in France.

The press release doesn't say much more than, "we'll be on all these platforms someday." Here's the exact wording:

Flash Player 10.1 is available on Android and Google TV today, with BlackBerry platform, HP webOS 2.0, future versions of Windows(R) Phone, LiMo, MeeGo, and Symbian OS also expected to support Flash Player 10.1. For a list of devices supported today, visit Adobe Flash Player 10.1 certified devices.

[via Engadget]

Adobe Flash Player 10.1 will land on Windows Phone 7 and BlackBerry originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 25 Oct 2010 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Official Facebook app for Windows Phone 7 now available

Vlad Bobleanta — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Windows Mobile, Microsoft, Mobile, Facebook

An officially-sanctioned and apparently Microsoft-made Facebook application has showed up in the Windows Phone 7 Marketplace. Microsoft loves to tout WP7's native social integration (especially with Facebook) throughout the OS, so whether this app is useful in any meaningful way remains to be seen. It may just be an effort to silence those who kept crying for a separate Facebook app to be available (and reportedly many people did).

The app has pretty much every feature you'd expect these days -- it lets you "post status updates, check your news feed, review your upcoming events, manage your inbox, upload photos, publish notes, accept friend requests, and look at your friends' photos, walls, and info".

The UI, in a similar fashion to most WP7 apps we've seen so far, makes good use of WP7's trademark 'Metro' UI and fonts. And yes, it's beautiful, as you can see from the screenshot to the right.

The application is now available in the Windows Phone 7 Marketplace (that's accessible on your PC from the Zune software).

Official Facebook app for Windows Phone 7 now available originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 20 Oct 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Windows Phone 7 to get SkyDrive integration?

Samuel Gibbs — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 12:30:00 EST

Filed under: Windows Mobile, Office, Microsoft

Fancy a bit of cloud storage on your future Windows Phone 7 device? Not a corporate drone? Well you might be in luck if the rumors reported by LiveSide hold any truth to them. Apparently the Office Hub, which at the moment just supports corporate based SharePoint Workspace document sync, will get sync support for Windows Live SkyDrive in a January update.

This would allow you to sync any Office supported document from the cloud and back for editing on your WP7 device. Lots of other devices, including WP7's closest competitors, support similar cloud sync services like Dropbox or even Google Docs -- although you have to resort to third-party apps to get something akin to SkyDrive sync support. It would certainly make sense for Microsoft to build native support for SkyDrive into WP7, given that WP7 isn't solely aimed at the corporate market, and its Office Web Apps are already available for use on the cloud storage service. Still, treat this as a rumor until otherwise proven correct.

Windows Phone 7 to get SkyDrive integration? originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 13 Oct 2010 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A gallery of high-res Windows Phone 7 app screenshots

Sebastian Anthony — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 06:17:00 EST

Filed under: Windows Mobile, Microsoft

While I wasn't one of the handful of Chosen Ones to attend the Windows Phone 7 launch in London yesterday, I have been lucky enough to get my hands on some lovely screenshots of WP7 apps.

So far, most major websites have only run photos-of-handsets, complete with skewed angles and glaring reflections. With these images, you can see what the interface of some big-name apps really look like -- and I dare say they look rather sexy.

Ironically, because of the "scrollable landscape," it's quite hard to imagine what it's like to actually use these apps. You can only see a tiny portion of each app in these screenshots. I hope there's a more graceful solution for when we start writing app reviews -- perhaps we can cut and paste a few shots together, to create a big panoramic landscape...

My dry, witty commentary accompanies each of the images in the gallery. Either click an image below to begin, or use this high-res link.

Gallery: A gallery of high-res Windows Phone 7 app screenshots

A gallery of high-res Windows Phone 7 app screenshots originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 12 Oct 2010 06:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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