here is some news to read... follow this link.....
http://www.phonesreview.co.uk/tag/windows-phone-7/

"Microsoft will buy Nokia":

http://www.fabcapo.com/2011/02/why-i...buy-nokia.html

Pure speculation.

MS blatantly copies Apple's mobile strategies:

- Minimum features, but everything should 'just work'
- Strip the OS down to the barebone functions that 'sells', release subsequent features with fanfares as OS upgrades (no copy & paste in first revision)
- Minimize hardware differences as much as possible
- Apple marries iPod ecosystem with iPhone. MS tries to do the same with Zune to WP7.
- etc

So, if there's one thing that Ballmer sees in Nokia in relation to Apple is that Apple has gotten immense advantage by tightly coupling the development of their software platform and their hardware delivery vehicles.

Given the chance, I think MS would give a big 'F*CK YOU' to their (non performing) WP launch partners and try to take over the market themselves through Nokia.

While I can see the similarities to Apple, I think WP7 is an extension of M$'s new image (which was of course influenced by Apple). The marketing for WP7 - at least here in the US - is for the WP7 UX to be as simple and intuitive as possible and for customers to "get in and back to their life" as quickly as possible.

As I mentioned above, this is obviously indirectly influenced by Apple. But the "make my pc simpler" was a brilliant campaign for Windows 7 and extending it to WP7 is the next logical step.

The idea is that Nokia supplies HW, MS supplies software (OS) and together they create an ecosystem. A concept like this makes a lot of sense no matter how you look at it. The ecosystem will be incredible, it will have everything; music, mail, maps, chat, videos, tv, internet, clouds, apps, games. It runs of first class hardware and first class software. I know most of you will disagree on the last one because emotional baggage (or garbage), but it doesn't matter.

People will see the commercials, they will go to the malls and kiosks and try this new device, they will feel the solid build, the quality, the Nokia logo, the fluent and easy going UX that without any effort connects you to everything. And they will think, got to have one of these.

Come on people, this is exciting!! I know for a fact I will get one.

Nokia will be just a plain OEM manufacturer for Microsoft. No different than any other manufacturer which makes WP-devices. The ecosystem, whether it succeeds or not, will not be Nokia's and Nokia won't have any advantage in it compared to other WP-hardware companies.

And Elop said it would be difficult to differentiate in Android-ecosystem. But then again he has also said Nokia's WP-phone won't be different from other WP-phones so the platform wouldn't get fragmented.

I certainly agree, that it makes a compelling sale.

I won't get a Nokia/MS phone, but I have no doubt that it has the potential to be a hot seller! Having played with the WP7 UI, I can attest to it's charm -- even if only to the lay person.

The smartphone market is still growing, and based on Androids rapid adoption, it only takes one or two killer phones (in this case the original droid and galaxy s) to turn the tide.

This would be (somewhat) true, except 95% of WP devices will be Nokia. However, the phones would have to be branded "Microsoft" for this to be correct. The phones will certainly not be branded Microsoft, they will be branded Nokia, maybe with a Windows logo on a button or something.

Objectively it would be more correct to say that MS will be an OEM for Nokia.

But the point is, none of the above will be correct, it is not very relevant in fact. The OS and the HW is together a vessel for the ecosystem. It may come with many different brands, hotmail, Ovi maps, Bing search, Ovi music, streaming music, downloadable music, different providers for Apps and music and so on. It is a complete ecosystem all by itself. It is a big mall for all kinds of things, and MS and Nokia rent out the space.

Not terribly exciting for me, I don't particularly like being under the thumb of some corporation that has a vested interest in controlling how I use my property and denying me paths of use that were previously open to me. All this move does is reduce the number of possible sources of phones for me in the future by one

Initially at least, depending on how well things go I suspect Microsoft will make moves to have their brand be more prominent and Nokia's less so.

I will be shocked if Ovi survives in any fashion or is present at all on WP devices. Microsoft has brands for all of that, and the whole purpose of WP is to push them in the mobile space.

That defeats the point of heavy integration and lock-in. I imagine that anything outside Microsoft brands and sources will be phased out over time.