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Paul Thurrott over at Supersite for Windows reports that Microsoft is planning three LTE enabled Windows Phones by the end of 2012 with the first expected to be released March 18, 2012.  The post reports that three LTE devices are expected in 2012 and all are on AT&T.  The first is the Nokia Ace (sometimes referred to as the Lumia 900), the HTC Radiant and the Samsung Mendel.

While this is welcome news, it does bring about a little confusion as it relates to the leaked roadmap I posted on yesterday.

Paul writes…

What’s unclear is whether these LTE based devices will be accompanied by a software update of some kind. You may recall that the rumored “Tango” release, supposedly due in early 2012, is about low-end phones. So it’s unclear how that jives with LTE, which is obviously a high-end feature.

It will be interesting to see how Microsoft, AT&T, Nokia, HTC and Samsung all work this out but this is clearly good news for Windows Phone users.

Source:  Supersite for Windows 

If you have been wanting a Nokia Lumia 800 then you are in luck.  Amazon has dropped the price down to $535.87, 40% off the regular price.  The price is on the 16GB black model.  Here are some of the other specifications:

• GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
• 3G/HSDPA 900 / 1900 / 2100
• HSDPA 14.4 Mbps, HSUPA 5.76 Mbps.
• 1.4 GHz Scorpion processor, Adreno 205 GPU, Qualcomm MSM8255 Snapdragon chipset, 3D Graphics HW.
• 8 MP Camera, 3264×2448 pixels, Carl Zeiss optics, autofocus, dual-LED flash

At the time of this posting there were 10 units in stock.

I fully realize that for probably 99% of you this is no big deal given that you do not live in the Dallas area.  However, it does speak to a larger challenge with Windows Phone.  The Dallas-Fort Worth local ABC affiliate WFAA has released an update to their Windows Phone app.  The update has been needed for a long, long, looooong time (until last week it STILL had the Super Bowl tab from last year in it).  Finally it has happened and that along with a slew of other stability updates has made this a nice little app.

Get the WFAA app in the Marketplace

The tidbit for all of you not in the Dallas-Fort Worth area is that this app update speaks to a larger problem.  If you look in the Android Marketplace or the iTunes App Store you will see dozens of local news and information apps for virtually any major metro area.  Windows Phone?  Not so much.  In fact for Dallas, there is only one local news station app (WFAA).  In searching other metro areas, the story is similar.  These are the types of apps that need to be developed for Windows Phone to gain success.

What can you do?  Follow your local news station on Twitter (almost all of them have them) and ask them to develop a Windows Phone app.  If enough people ask, they will do it.

WMPoweruser has got their hands on the proposed roadmap of Windows Phone and it looks pretty interesting.  The roadmap image starts with the original Windows Phone GA (General Availability) and goes through 2012 with the release of the codenamed product Apollo.

Leaked Windows Phone Roadmap (Courtesy of WMPowerUser)

Mid 2012 we can expect Tango which seems to be focusing on bringing Windows Phone to the masses with lower cost products from manufactures.  This is a good move in my book.  I’ve talked to a lot of friends and family about Windows Phone and they like it…. but can’t get past the $199 for a new phone.  If they can get the price point down to $49.99 or the like (as T-Mobile has done this holiday season with the HTC Radar and Lumia 710) then they will get it into the hands of the masses.

The next big update is slated for late next year and is codenamed Apollo.  This update appears to be really driving for mass adoption and to increase the overall sales volume of the platform and to point out competitive differentiators.  They also appear to be focusing on more advanced hardware (perhaps dual core processors?) and the needs of businesses (perhaps better encryption support?).

As with any roadmap it is subject to change and shifting but the information obtained by WMPowerUser seems to fit with other rumors that have been floating about over the past few weeks.  Taken at face value, it is clear that Microsoft plans to make a significant push on Windows Phone next year.  Couple that with the push Nokia is having on the platform with their Lumia lineup and that 6.2% marketshare by the end of next year isn’t a pipe dream.  It could really happen.

Source:  WMPowerUser