Belfiore also wanted to come clean on the minimum hardware specifications for their Windows Phone 7 Series devices, and it looks like they’ve covered all the bases. As we’ve heard before, all the devices need to have a capacitive touchscreen, with at least four contact points. In the sensors department, all the phones must have a-GPS, Accelerometer, Compass, Light, and Proximity. The cameras need to be at least 5MP, have a flash, and a hardware camera button. Memory has a minimum specification of 256MB RAM, and 8GB Flash. Keep in mind, those are the minimum specifications for their devices. The GPU needs to be DirectX 9, and the CPU needs to be a ARMv7 Cortex/Scorpion or better. Screens need to be at least HVGA, and have a resolution of 480×320. Again, these are the minimum specifications.
That HVGA, and 480×320 resolutions specifications are coming out some time later. At the launch of Windows Phone 7 Series, Microsoft is making sure that all the devices are 800×480. And that’s it. On top of that, all the devices will have the same amount of RAM available, as well as have the same capacitive touchscreen capabilities.
Basically, Microsoft is making sure that their software, Silverlight functionality, and the user experience is always in tip-top shape, and the only way to do that is by mandating the hardware that powers it. Microsoft wants you to love using your phone, and not worry about a process slowing you down. From what we can tell, they’re doing a great job of that.
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