ChevronWP7 Labs offered a limited jailbreaking tool for phones running Windows Phone 7 for a brief period of time. The tool didn’t give you complete access over your phone’s software the way that rooting an Android phone or jailbreaking an iPhone does. But it did make it possible to install apps that were not downloaded from the official Windows Phone Marketplace. Now the folks behind… Read more »

Microsoft recently announced that it’s easing its hardware restrictions for Windows Phone devices, allowing phone makers to load Windows Phone 7 software on devices with slower processors and less memory. That could get Windows Phone software into more people’s hands… but some apps designed for more powerful phones may not run properly on the new cheaper handsets such as the upcoming Nokia Lumia 610 and… Read more »

There’s a new jailbreak tool for Windows Phone 7 under development. It’s called WindowBreak and right now you can use it on some Samsung smartphones to enable support for apps that aren’t downloaded from the Windows Phone Marketplace. Jaxbot, the developer of the project, hopes to add support for phones from different manufacturers. The tool basically lets you do the same thing you can do… Read more »

If you want to install apps on a smartphone running Windows Phone 7, you have two options: Get your apps from the Windows Phone Marketplace or pay $99 for a developer account. Scratch that… now there are three options. Today the folks at ChevronWP7 have launched a new tool that lets you sign in with your Windows Live ID, pay $9 via PayPal, and get… Read more »

When Microsoft launcher Windows Phone 7 last year, the company basically created a nice big, thick line between newer Windows phones and older models. Windows Phone 7 cannot run any apps developed for Windows Phone 6.5 or earlier — and Microsoft didn’t offer WP7 as a software updated for any phones designed to run earlier Windows Phone or Windows Mobile software. That move didn’t sit well with… Read more »

Following HP’s announcement that it would discontinue all webOS hardware including smartphones and tablets, Microsoft’s Brandon Walsh reached out to webOS developers, promising free phones and other tools if they were interested in developing for Windows Phone 7. So far he’s received over 200 replies. For its part, HP is trying to convince webOS developers not to jump ship. While the company will no longer… Read more »

Up for some good times with your Windows Phone 7-toting friends? Firing up the new We’re In app puts you on the fast track for geolocation-powered fun. Select friends from your phone’s contacts, let “your peeps” (Microsoft’s words, not mine) know what you’re up for, and let the app know how long you’d like to make your location known. We’re In offers built-in group messaging… Read more »

Microsoft will soon begin pushing out Windows Phone 7 Mango as an over-the-air software update for devices currently running Windows Phone 7. But if you’ve got an HTC phone and you’re willing to do a little hacking (and warranty voiding) you don’t have to wait. DarkForcesTeam has put together a custom ROM for most HTC Windows Phone 7 devices. The DFT Freedom ROM is based… Read more »

You know a mobile operating system has arrived when developers start writing classic video game console emulators for it. So it looks like Windows Phone 7 has arrived, because a Gameboy emulator called Wario’s Jewels launched last month. The app features a virtual gamepad, smooth graphics and frame-rates, and a file browser and game information menus that look pretty good on Windows Phone 7. So… Read more »

Nokia will start offering smartphones running Windows Phone 7 in the US and other markets later this year. But for the next year or two the company will continue to offer phones running the Symbian operating system as well as cheaper “feature phones” with web browsing, chat, and other internet apps — it just won’t offer them in the US. All Things D reports that… Read more »