LumiaFANS

 A new Windows 10 for Phones build 10.0.12531.52 has leaked in screenshots yet again and it is more advanced than the build 12527 reported last by us from WPBench. The screenshots reveal a new and redesigned “Contacts” app, ability to edit Phone’s name on the phone itself (like what we have seen on Windows Phone 8.1 GDR2). There is one more feature that is long-awaited and was confirmed via WinHec PPT. The Windows 10 running devices can work as a host for USB storage devices. So, don’t know whether it will be right to label it as USB OTG, but it works similarly.

  MX Player for Windows Phone has received a major update and adds many great features. Not only now you can choose which folders to check for videos but the video player has become really feature-packed. The update brings Video Zoom, Aspect ratio, Gesture support for volume and seeking position, Screen settings update and much more. Check the full changelog below. If you have been using MX Player then you will really like this update. It now allows adding camera roll videos and the video player has many cool new features, especially the video zoom and aspect ratio features are much likeable. Check the screenshots below. MX Player changelog: 1. Add Video folder other folders 2. Video Zoom – Fit to Screen, Stretch, Crop, 100% 3. Aspect ratio – Default, 1:1, 4:3, 16:9, 16:10, 2.21:1, 2.35:1, 2.39:1, 5:4 4. Screen Settings Update - Screen-screen directions, full-screen viewing, traveling position, the battery / hour, color display, placed at the bottom of the screen rotate button, t

Microsoft has been working very hard with Windows 10, addressing user feedback as part of the Windows Insider Program and making various refinements and improvements to the operating system. Unlike Windows 8.1, Windows 10 will come with out-of-the-box support for additional new media formats. As we already know, Windows 10 will get MKV support. MKV, for those that did not know, is a flexible and open standard video file format that has quickly become the preferred file extension for high definition video. Now those who are on Windows 10 can have MKV support without the need for an additional codec. On top of that, Windows 10 also gets support for High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC). In a tweet by Microsoft's Gabriel Aul, we have learned that Windows 10 will also receive support for Sub Station Alpha (SSA), Advanced Sub Station Alpha (ASS), and the SubRip file format (SRT). For those that didn't know, SSA and ASS is a subtitle file format commonly used by fansubbers, allowing

Good news for those who are unhappy with Adobe Reader or the Microsoft Reader app. Foxit Mobile PDF Reader is now the Windows Phone Store. Foxit Mobile PDF is a free and easy-to-use PDF reader for mobile users to view and work with PDF documents on Windows Phone devices. It delivers high fidelity rendering capabilities, allowing for a quick and clear reading experience on devices with small screens. With a small footprint (only a 4 Mb download) that allows for instant startup and little memory consumption, Foxit Mobile PDF provides easy access to PDF documents whenever on the go. The app features: *.Quickly open PDF documents from SD card and internal memory *.Easily access PDF documents on OneDrive *.View password-protected PDF documents *.Search text to find specific information *.Navigate PDF documents by page or outline *.Flexibly read PDF documents in Single Page mode, Continuous Page mode, or Rotate View mode *.Control the rotate view by using the accelerometer *.Easily zoom in o

Time to update what we learned about Windows 10 imaging features from WinHec PPT (read below) and add some more new features. The latest set of features is based on the official Windows 10 drivers documentation. Digital Video Stabilization: Since not all devices can have OIS, it is a very welcome feature coming with Windows 10. Not only video stabilization is natively present on Windows 10 for Phones, it comes with advanced feature of controlling “amount of stabilization” to be added. Per the document. This is a mandatory capability. When specified, the digital video stabilization is enabled in driver\MFT0 and the default overscan padding setting is up to the driver. This flag is mutually exclusive with the AUTO and OFF flags. This capability is optional. When specified, the driver that supports such capability will determine whether video stabilization should be performed and how much stabilization to be applied based on the scene analysis and the capture scenario. This flag is mu

We reported the full massive list  of supported phones for the next Windows 10 for Phones preview build. Now answering the obvious question of “when” still remains tricky, as Gabe Aul has reiterated the fact that providing a date is not possible, but at the same tine has hinted about need of “at least one more week” for testing on all included devices. Gabe also tells that promise of “faster build” still  holds but we will put that promise to test when next to next build arrives. We still have some work to do to validate individual phones, as well as the builds that we’re flighting through our internal rings. As I said in the post on frequency I cannot guarantee a date for a new build. What I CAN tell you is that we feel great here about the partition stitching code and current builds, but we likely still have at least one more week of engineering to do to ensure we get a great build for the expanded list of devices. Also in the last month we heard feedback on  build frequency, and a

In addition to a massively expanded list of supported devices, the blog post notes that Microsoft is looking to increase the frequency at which Windows 10 builds will be released for phones. The increase in frequency for Windows 10 releases for phones follows a similar path that Microsoft recently  laid out for desktop builds. On the topic of the rollout to more phones, the blog post reiterates that the previous limited rollout was due to a partition size issue: "As I wrote in the accompanying blog post, the reason for this is that we had to select from the set of phones that had sufficient system partition sizes configured by the manufacturer. This was necessary for us to be able to in-place upgrade the phones. I also talked about a feature we were working on called "partition stitching" that would allow us to re-size the system partition dynamically, allowing us to do the upgrade on a larger set of phones." And Microsoft isn't joking about that larger number o

  Windows 10 for phones is available in the form of a technical preview for Windows Insiders albeit on a limited number of devices. Microsoft did confirm the next build for Windows 10 for phones technical preview will bring support for more devices. Unfortunately, we don't know how long will it take at the moment, but judging by the leaks we've seen in the past few days, there's a possibility that Microsoft may release the new build in the near future. Not too long ago, a handful of screenshots, surfacing from Chinese shores, showed off a new build for Windows 10 for phones as well as some of the features it will introduce. Firstly, the leaked screenshots show the Spartan browser for Windows 10 phones. This is not the first time though as we saw some leaked screenshots of the new browser for phones a few days back, as well as official images from Microsoft. Furthermore, it seems users will be able to integrate third-party apps to set up call and SMS filters, and block u

  Spartan, the upcoming web browser from Microsoft has yet to arrive on any Windows 10 preview builds including Desktop and Mobile. But, official and unofficial screenshots (leaks) have kept us informed. Latest in the series of leaks are many screenshots of Spartan on Windows Mobile 10, posted by site WindowsMania.pl. It is not clear which build these screenshots belong to but you can have a look at how the browse looks in portrait and landscape modes, settings and reading list.  The address bar is still on the top in the screenshots.

  Windows  Phone Devices, Windows Phone News Time for some new updates!!!!! Telegram Messenger Beta&OneDrive have received new updates for Windows Phone Devices. There version are  1.8.0.0 and  4.9.0.0 respectively. However, there is no changelog in OneDrive only bug fixes and performance improvements is there. OneDrive Link: https://www.windowsphone.com/en-in/store/app/onedrive/ad543082-80ec-45bb-aa02-ffe7f4182ba8 Telegram Messenger Beta updated with Replies, mentions and hashtags. Changelog: - Reply to specific messages in groups – Mention @usernames in groups to notify multiple users – Add comments when forwarding messages – Use #hashtags for easier search Telegram Messenger Beta Link: https://www.windowsphone.com/en-in/store/app/telegram-messenger-beta/945b96a7-aadc-4dd0-806a-c2d1e0e6ca9a SHAREit for Windows Phone updated on Store SHAREit is a cross-platform file sharing app updated to   1.4.1.0 with numerous changes Change-logs in this version: 1.Change the

  Not too long ago, the newly-announced Lumia 640 and 640 XL we spotted on Zauba, an import tracking website in India, showing large quantities of both handsets to make their way to the country. The handsets are expected to launch in India in early April, and it seems we may get to see them hit retail in the next few days considering the supply has already landed. As per the import data, the Lumia 640 carries a ₹4,683 ($74) price tag, but don't get confused, this isn't the retail price of the handset -- it's going to cost a little higher when it hits retail officially in the region. As for the bigger Lumia 640 XL, it costs  ₹6,710 ($107) which again isn't the official retail price. But, we can expect the handset to carry an affordable price tag when it's available in the region, somewhere close to all the entry-level handsets available on sale in the region. Lumia 640 features a 5-inch 720p display a Snapdragon 400 processor, 1GB of RAM, 8GB of internal storage,

VLC Player for Windows Phone just got updated to v2015.325.1341.5186 in Store. The update brings numerous improvements, including a much desired feature – Last.FM scrobbling, which uploads your music listening habits to Last.FM, allowing a Pandora-like personalized play list. Version 1.2.1 of the app will also fix a crash with FLAC and WAV files Developer behind this app has revealed that an upcoming update due at the end of this week will improve the percent of shared XAML code and the app will be faster on low-end phones. VLC media player is a portable, free and open-source, cross-platform media player and streaming media server written by the VideoLAN project. VLC media player supports most audio and video compression formats, files and streaming protocols. To update or download VLC from Windows Phone Store for free follow this link: https://www.windowsphone.com/s?appId=44fa83f7-a98d-4647-b9d4-c35ed729d0c9

  Several Windows Phone apps have been updated recently, and below are three recent ones for some of the platforms big-name apps. Lumia devices are for taking pictures, and those pictures are meant to be shared with friends and family. To do that, we turn to our favorite photo-sharing client 6tag. In the latest version (4.0.6), users will now be able to remove usertags from a picture, which is always a nice option to have when friends tag you in embarrassing photos. You can also fix the automated geolocation when you edit a picture, and there are also improvements to the live tile image generation thanks to the app’s new backend servers. Sister app 6sec has also been updated to version 2.4.3 but unfortunately no change log has been provided. It likely only adds minor under-the-hood improvements or bug fixes. Moving away from the '6Apps', the classic Angry Birds app has also been updated to celebrate the 5th “BirdDay” since the app first launched. It adds a new episode

   As promised at Mobile World Congress, Opera has released an updated to their Windows Phone browser which refreshes the look of the app.  imageGone are the relatively finger-unfriendly icons to be replaced by much larger and bolder designs. The app now also appears to default to a more mobile view of the page rather than a zoomed out desktop view, which again is more appropriate for phone access.  They do however waste some screen space advertising how much data their proxy service is saving.  Version 8.0.0.6730 can be downloaded from the Windows Phone Store here: http://www.windowsphone.com/s?appid=b3bf000a-e004-4ecb-a8fb-9fc817cdab90

   Last week Microsoft sprung the OneDrive for Xbox Music locker on us, which did not in fact need any update to the app.  Today however Microsoft has updated the app to add better support for the feature.  Version 2.6.674.0 of the app brings: •Better explanation of how to get started with OneDrive in the Music App on Windows Phone 8.1, at Music.Xbox.com/OneDrive •When you set a playlist to ‘Keep playlist offline’ it will automatically download all streaming tracks, whether from Music Pass or OneDrive  The updated version of the app can be found in the Windows Phone Store here  Install link: http://www.windowsphone.com/s?appid=d2b6a184-da39-4c9a-9e0a-8b589b03dec0

Great news for Windows Phone owners – WhatsApp’s VoIP calling feature is heading to Windows Phone, according to a translation request by the company. The text (above) also indicate read receipts control will also be heading to our platform. WhatsApp is the biggest IM network in the world, with more than 700 million users, and has always offered good support to Windows Phone.  The addition of this feature relatively soon after Android would be a further welcome development. Source: WMPowerUser

 From developer samples published by Microsoft is appears developers will be able to register their apps to send and receive SMS messages– a powerful feature which means developers can create their own version of a very important built-in app, or more importantly, create a desktop app which lets you send SMS messages on your phone.  There is however a dark side to this new capability. One of the main ways malware make money on Android is by sending premium SMS messages billed to the user’s account.  With Microsoft’s lax supervision of the Windows Phone Store it would be easy for a developer to slip such a feature in.  Source: WMPowerUser

 As Microsoft released Windows 10 developer tools preview today, it included new Windows 10 for phones emulator as well. This new emulator revealed few new features in Windows 10 for phones.  Right now, if you are a Lumia user, you need to install call+SMS filter app to block unwanted calls and messages.  In Windows 10, you have a new app called Block and Filter which allows you to manage blocked calls and messages. Watch the screenshots above.

   A few months ago we posted a great suggestion by a reader that Microsoft should add a toggle for a flashlight function in the Action Centre.  Now from a screen shot from a WinHec presentation it appears Microsoft has been listening, and the new Action Centre includes new toggles for both a Flashlight and a Quicknote function.  Now of course we wont take credit for this Smile but we are cheered that Microsoft does appear to be listening to its users, and seems to be adding all the features we have been voting for in Uservoice for so long.

 The much awaited update for Gaana music app is now available for download from Windows Phone Store. Gaana offers you free, unlimited access to all your favourite Songs, Bollywood Music, Radio Mirchi & Music videos. Gaana app now supports all the features that are available in Android and iOS versions including support for Gaana+ subscription.  App Description:  Gaana app offers:  + Access to over 3 million songs  + Thousands of playlists created by Experts and Users  + Save your favorite songs, playlists, albums and artists  + Listen to Non-stop Radio & also 5 Radio Mirchi stations.  + Music updated daily for Hindi, English, Tamil, Telugu, Bhojpuri and other regional languages  + Dedicated sections for Top Songs, Ghazals, Romantic Songs, Bhajans, Dance Songs  + Enjoy Lyrics of your favourite songs  Gaana Plus offers:  + Download songs for offline listening  + Listen to music in high quality audio  + Enjoy Lyrics of your favourite songs  + Ad free interface  Download

More upcoming Windows 10 features here!! We just reported about many new features and abilities like: Activity detection & new sensors, USB-C & Mice / Keyboard support, New imaging capabilities, HEC support for native Tap to Pay and other NFC enhancements revealed in WinHec PPTs.  Now, we take a look at what new features are added in Windows 10 for Phones in terms of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. So, those waiting for Wi-Fi direct, rejoice, as it finally seems to be here with Windows 10.  Win 10 to support Wi-Fi direct Then there is Wi-Fi Hotspot 2.0 making your life easier if you a globe-trotter or roam around a lot in your country due to work or anything else.  While we have reported a lot about HID support for with Windows 10 for Phones and even Windows Phone 8.1 GDR2, both Bluetooth Mouse and Keyboard are officially confirmed in slides.  Windows 10 also brings Bluetooth audio enhancements like Wideband speech and aptX audio codec.  Source: Nokiapoweruser

   Microsoft will update the price tier values for Windows Store during the week of April 13, 2015. Windows Store supports 96 tiers that publishers can use to price paid apps and in-app products. These price tier values are updated periodically to maintain consistency across currencies, accounting for changes in foreign exchange rates, taxes, and other geographic pricing considerations. The information comes through an email Microsoft has sent out to developers, alerting them of the change.  Beginning April 13, the price tier values will be updated and while the US Dollar (USD) price in each tier will remain the same, the prices in all other currencies adjusted relative to the USD price.  For example, if the price for a paid app published in the United States is USD 2.99, the equivalent product price in China is 18 CNY at the moment. After the update next month, while the product price in US will stay the same at USD 2.99, the equivalent price would change to CNY 18.50.  The

 Windows 10 for Phones seems to be so much more than Windows Phone 8.1 as we delve into new details. We just reported about many new features and abilities like: Activity detection & new sensors, USB-C & Mice / Keyboard support ,New imaging capabilities revealed in WinHec PPTs. Now a good news about a new NFC capability that will be welcomed by everyone wanting to use NFC enabled Windows Phones for “Tap to Pay”. Windows 10 for Phone will take away the dependency on Carriers and secure chips by bringing HCE (Host Card Emulation) support. This was you can use your NFC enabled device on any supported POS without any restrictions and without need of a specialist app like “Softcard” or without needing a secure Sim from AT&T. As the PPT reveals Microsoft has aligned with VISA, MaterCard and AMEX already for this.  The slides reveal more about NFC enhancements in Windows 10. There is Tap to pair with Wi-Fi direct device. It supports tap to Miracast Dongle.  Settings like

   Since a few years, Twitter has made everybody think-and-tweet in 140 characters. On some occasions though, most of us has had the need to post a long comment on Twitter through multiple tweets.  A new app – Long Tweets – gives us an intuitive way to split our long piece of content across multiple tweets. You can divide the tweets by word, sentence, or characters to make for a sensible breaking point. The multiple tweets will be posted as 1/4, 2/4, 3/4, and 4/4 for example, in case of a four part long tweet.  Interestingly, you can also send your tweet as image, a very useful way to share a long piece of text in a single tweet. You can just send the tweets as text, as an image, or both. The app also saves all the tweets sent for future reference. It's a choice though, and you can mark a tweet to be not saved when posting one.  Long Tweets is a great app if you frequently post long pieces on content on Twitter. It's got a neat, intuitive UI and the vanilla simplici

   MX Player for Windows Phone that was silently debuted on Windows Phone store but with a promise to bring as many features as Android version. It has just received an update and the latest update brings subtitles support and some improvements.  Check the full changelog below.  MX Player changelog:  1. Improvements  a. Modify player function  b. List management practices to improve  c. Intermittent modify the reading of the file.  2. Add the subtitle function  a. MicroDVDSubtitle (.sub)  b. TMPlayerSubtitle (.txt)  c. PowerDivXSubtitle (.psb)  d. WebVTTSubtitleBasic (.srt)  To download or update follow the link: http://www.windowsphone.com/en-in/store/app/mx-player/8ec67eb7-1158-4d34-9898-007fcc49683e

 Windows Mobile had it, and Windows Phone did not, but it seems now that Windows Phone has been renamed to Windows Mobile, we are also getting a great missing feature back.  That feature is of course smart dialling, which makes it quick and easy to make a phone call by only dialling the first few numbers or letters from a contact.  The feature appears to work the same as before, reading both the numbers and T9 values from the keypad.  ItHome also reports that the OS will have a “Yelllow Pages” function which will allow users to look up any public number.  It seems Windows 10 Mobile is just getting better and better.

 Maestro, an email client for Windows Phone is now available for download. Maestro is a beautiful emailing app for Windows Phone which packs a handful of features. The app also packs a couple of customization features, for example, you can add a specific theme for each email account on the app. Maestro also comes with gestures, which helps you keep your inbox clean. Alongside these features, the app comes with support for Gmail, Outlook, and Yahoo Mail. Here is the full feature list: •Account Themes •Gestures (Swipe to Delete, Archive, or Reply) •Favorites •Multiple Accounts with Linked Inbox view •Fast Account Switching •Support for Gmail, Outlook, and Yahoo Mail •Label Support for Gmail  The app is available for the next 24 hours. After that, the app won’t be available for free – so make sure to grab it as quickly as you can!  Here is the link : http://www.windowsphone.com/s?appid=2e130744-3a86-4c3e-bbf5-aab61556743c

   We have seen WinHec event PPTs revealing many new Windows 10 features, upcoming cutting-edge hardware and even faster OS update plans. Now, a slide from one of the WinHec PPT lists the new features coming in Windows 10 imaging and it is an impressive list. The last Windows 10 for Phones preview build came with the “Lumia Camera 5.0” as the default Windows 10 camera but without 4K or Rich capture yet.  But seems Windows 10 camera will ultimately get the 4K capture, Independent Flash control, Zoom during video capture, square aspect ratio and even “Video HDR” feature natively as the list suggests.  New camera features in Windows 10: •4k video capture •Independent flash control •Profile •Extended variable Photo sequence •Face detection •Variable frame rate •Zoom during video capture •Video HDR •Square aspect ratio resolutions  Source: WinHec

 Angry Birds Star Wars II game for Windows Phone devices just got updated to v1.8.1.0. This new update includes the new chapters and 32 more levels to play. The Force is strong with this one. Get ready for Angry Birds Star Wars II – the epic follow-up to the #1 smash hit game! Based on the Star Wars movie prequels, use the Force for good against the greedy Pork Federation or choose a much darker path. That’s right; for the first time ever you can “Join the Pork Side” and play as the fearsome Darth Maul, Emperor Palpatine and many other favorites!Angry Birds Star Wars 2 Windows Phone QR  What’s new in version 1.8.1.0:  Battle through 32 new levels set on Geonosis and Mustafar in a brand new chapter – Revenge of the Pork! Plus, get ready to take the power into your own hands in 16 new Master Your Destiny levels!  Angry Birds Star Wars II – Every saga has a Pork Side.  Download it here from Windows Phone Store for $0.99: http://www.windowsphone.com/s?appId=5026b325-f461-4a4a-9ff9-4a5de698

 Microsoft has pushed out new updates for Lumia Camera Classic apps for Windows Phone Lumia users today, but there's no changelog for the app. This likely means just bug fixes.  The new version number of the app is 4.9.4.1.  Keep in mind that the Lumia Camera Classic app is made for Lumia devices that don't have the Demim firmware update. This app is also different from the Lumia Camera 5.0 app that's made just for the Lumia 830, Lumia 930, Lumia Icon and Lumia 1520 running on Denim.  If you notice any changes or improvements, let us know in the comments.  Update: An earlier version of this story erroneously reported that Lumia Camera was also updated. However, only Lumia Camera Classic received an update. We apologize for the confusion.  Thanks to everyone for the tips!  Download Lumia Camera Classic from the Windows Phone Store: http://www.windowsphone.com/s?appId=80b4b4a2-f7aa-49f0-b8ab-7b7390ce1014

   Microsoft has just announced the most affordable Lumia yet. Lumia 430 takes Lumia range deeper than even the Lumia 435 and will come with a price tag of USD 70. It packs Dual-Sim support, 1 GB RAM and a FFC for Skype video calls. It looks slightly different to Lumia 435 in design and has a slightly worse battery life with a 1500 mAH battery.  Check the specifications, price and release date below.  Lumia 430 Specifications:  Operating system Widows Phone 8.1 with Lumia Denim  Display 4-inch WVGA (800 x 480, 15:9), 235 PPI  Battery 1500 mAh replaceable  Processor 1.2 GHz dual-core Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 200 processor  Main camera 2 MP, Fixed focus  Front-facing camera VGA 0.3 MP  Memory 8 GB + 30 GB OneDrive***, MicroSD up to 128 GB  Dimensions 120.5 x 63.19 x 10.63 mm  127.9g  Lumia 430 Price & release date:  Color options for the Lumia 430 Dual SIM are bright orange and black, and the device will be available in APAC, IMEA, Russia, Kazakhstan, Ukraine and Belarus f

   Microsoft has added support for the new USB Type-C standard for Windows 10 for phone, which is not only smaller than Type-A but offers more power and functions. Apple – to cheers and jeers – announced that their new MacBook would sport this (and only this) port in lieu of their mag connector or standard USB port.  Now, it is clear that hardware vendors can not only build Windows Phones with USB Type-C but also enable various device class drivers.  In one of the slides in the presentation, a list of USB Host class drivers is given that are supported in the Windows 10 for Mobile SKU. The drivers include:  USB Hubs  Human Interface Device (HID) for keyboard and mice  USB Mass Storage  USB Audio in / out  Additionally, USB Serial Devices, USB Bluetooth, and Generic USB Host Driver are also mentioned. However, it looks like USB driver installation by the user will not be supported.  USB Dual Role is also allowed. This format just means the phone can change between USB Host