Troy Benedict, Senior Writer

Microsoft to Finally Challenge the iPhone

The rumored Zune Phone is a reality, and if the early buzz has anything to say, Microsoft is well on its way to releasing a very capable product worthy of challenging the mobile monolith that is iPhone.

Thankfully, Microsoft isn't calling their iPhone challenger that. Instead, they've gone with quite a mouthful with the introduction of Windows Phone 7 Series, which was publically previewed during the Mobile World Congress 2010 in Barcelona on February 15.

Believe it or not, but initial impressions of the phone have been positive, with popular gadget site, Gizmodo, claiming that, "it's the most groundbreaking phone since the iPhone."

This new Microsoft phone is going in a completely new direction from existing Windows Mobile phones with a completely new operating system. The phone was built from the ground up with entertainment in mind—with the goal to bring some of the best gaming and community features of Xbox Live to the Windows Mobile platform.

Its hardware and software design resembles the Zune HD. With content being organized around a set of hubs: people, pictures, games, music + video, marketplace, and office.

The phone features a Start screen with tiles that will dynamically update with information like social networking status updates, photos, or weather updates.

For gamers, especially Xbox gamers, the Windows Phone 7 Series games hub will allow you to do multiple Xbox Live-related things, including: Collecting Achievements, viewing Xbox Live leaderboards and your Xbox Live Avatar, accessing spotlight feeds (including the latest tips and tricks, game news, etc.), adding Xbox Live friends to your friends list on the go, and turn-based multiplayer gaming.

The Windows Phone 7 Series won't see retail release until late this year, but it's good to know that Microsoft's ambitious Live Anywhere announcement more than 3 years ago, from E3 2006's keynote, wasn't just a bunch of hot air.

We hope to share more information about what appears to be Microsoft's serious mobile contender as it become available, especially with news about what us gamers can expect from it.