In what is great news for Windows Phone user in Australia Telstra has just posted that they have approved Mango for release. The process is now over to Microsoft to deliver the update to the phones which in the past has taken about 5 working days.

Just a reminder to anyone that has Mango pre-release on you phone that you need to downgrade back to NODO to get the final version of Mango.

Source: http://www.telstra.com.au/mobile/phones/smartphones.html#tab-spf (via WMPoweruser )

Its right before the live stream event for the Windows Phone “Mango” official launch and they guys are pockernow.com have just leaked a full feature list at http://pocketnow.com/windows-phone/windows-phone-7-mango-features-fully-revealed. The most notable feature is a new linked inbox view (see below).

If you were not already aware TechEd North America 2011 is current on and as such there is a heap of great content being published to the web. What I will be doing over the next few days is picking the Windows Phone 7 related video content and re-posting them on this site for you viewing.

Below is the video of the MIX 2011 Day 2 Keynote where they announced all the developer related updates coming in the next version of Windows Phone 7 codename “Mango”.

Today Telstra announced that the HTC HD7 would be coming to Telstra as an exclusive handset in Australia. This is one of the flagship Windows Phone 7 devices that many people have been holding out to buy due to its large 4.3” screen and kick stand. This phone has been out since October in other countries such as Singapore and T-Mobile USA however they were not capable of the 850mhz NextG frequencies for the Telstra network.

What is not known yet is if this device will come with 8gb or 16gb storage. However the official Twitter accounts did speculate the device will come with 16gb as this is the normal capacity for the device when sold in the Asia region.

The phone will be released on Tuesday 29th March for $768 outright.

Source: http://www.telstra.com.au/abouttelstra/media-centre/announcements/telstra-joins-with-htc-and-microsoft-to-launch-the-htc-hd7-smartphone.xml 

Full Product Specs: http://www.htc.com/www/product/hd7/specification.html

Winrumours has just published some video of add’s from Microsoft that challenge the views to accomplish the same task on their phone. These video’s show how the Windows Phone UI helps users get in and out of the phone to get more accomplished. These video’s show in practice the point of the “Really” launch TV add’s.

Microsoft have just released an update to the Zune software that to sync Windows Phone’s with PC’s. This is the first update to any software related to Windows Phone 7 and is hopefully a sign that long awaited “NoDo” firmware update that will enable the much wanted Copy & Paste feature for the phone.

Update: According to Paul Thurrott and Windows Phone Secrets has found out that this was only a minor update bug fix update.

Below are the instructions for updating the Zune software:

Step 1. Click on “Settings” on the top right

Step 2. Click on the “General” option on the left side then click on the “Check for Updates” button.

Wait a few seconds while it checks for updates to the software….

Step 3. Click on “Update Now”

After the UAC prompt it will now download and install the Zune software… The whole process will only take a few minutes depending on the speed of your internet and computer.

Step 4. Click “Close” and now you are done.

The new software will now be installed…. However note that the version number of the software has not changed and there are no noticeable changes to the UI or options.

I recently bought some covers for my HTC Mozart from Case Mate after they announced a new line of  covers for various Windows Phone 7 handsets. Well a few days later they are here and below is a few photos of the cases they come in and how they look on my phone. I also hope that this is a sign that now that Microsoft have announced they have sold over 2 million copies of WP7 that more manufacturers jumping on board the WP7 train such as Klipsch that are “Working on” headphone with remotes that are WP7 compatible.

Interestingly they seem to be in high demand as originally Case Mate did list cases for the Samsung Focus and Omnia handsets as well…

Barely There

This is the hard cover that clips on easily and almost looks as if it is part of the phone. It probably does not offer as good screen protection as the Safe Skin case however the screen protector should give it fairly good scratch resistance.

Safe Skin

Nice soft rubber case that is still smooth however it has a little more grip so you are probably less likely to drop it using this case. The cover is a little raised above the screen so if put on a flat surface face down it should offer good protection. This rubber version would be much better at protecting the phone from drops however it is also quite obvious you have a cover on the phone due to the extra thickness.

Case Mate also have similar cases for the HTC HD7 and the HTC Trophy if you have one of those handsets instead. As a bonus I was also pleasantly suppressed to see that both covers came with a screen protector for the phone that fitted very well.

So which one should you buy…. ? Well that is up to you but at this stage I am keeping the Barley There cover on as it keeps the look and feel of the device much more authentic plus I think the Safe Skin cover will be more of a magnet for dust and dirt like a similar cover I had for my iPhone 3GS.

P.S. In case you were wondering the Barley There cover is so thin that you can still easily fit the the Safe Skin cover over top to have two cases on at the same time… For those that want EXTRA protection…

More Info: http://www.case-mate.com/Windows-Phone-7-Cases/Windows-Phone-7-Cases.asp

Microsoft have just put up a page outlining all the new features that are coming the the first update to Windows Phone 7 that is due in the next few months.

Below is a of features and improvements for Windows Phone 7:

• Copy and paste
• Faster apps and games
• Better Marketplace search

This is a fairly minor update to begin with however it would seem that we are likely to see two more bigger updates later in the year. See What’s happening with Windows Phone updates in 2011

Sources: http://www.microsoft.com/windowsphone/en-us/features/update-info.aspx