HISTORY HERE gets Windows Phone 7 travel apps off to a great start

by Scott Carmichael on

Windows Phone 7 may be relatively new, but the platform is already off to a great start when it comes to mobile apps. In the coming weeks, we’ll be reviewing as many of these as we can (along with a hands-on of the new HTC HD7).

One of these new apps comes from HISTORY (of the History Channel). Their HISTORY HERE application is designed to showcase historical points of interest at any given location.

The collection covers over 7000 national monuments, points of interest and roadside attractions. Each entry contains a comprehensive description and many include a variety of multimedia content.

In my own area, I’ve already found a bunch of places I normally would not have discovered, varying from your average national monument to the exact location of the “Home Alone House“.

Locations can be searched manually by city, state or zip, or by using location based searches. Once located, you can save locations to a favorites list.

Like most apps on Windows Phone 7, HISTORY HERE is extremely well designed, with a very consistent interface.

The app is available in the Marketplace and costs just $2.99.

Microsoft launches Windows Phone 7 in the U.S. today

by Scott Carmichael on

Today is the start of a new era for Microsoft – it marks the day Windows Phone 7 becomes available in the U.S, and that people will start forgetting about its mixed mobile past. I’ll admit that I have a warm place in my heart for Windows Mobile.

The mobile operating system powered that vast majority of smartphones I’ve used in the past decade, starting with the Philips Nino back in 1999. Since then, a lot changed in the mobile phone market, and ever since the iPhone and Android phones hit store shelves, Windows Mobile became a niche player, mainly loved by hardcore geeks.

But Microsoft is now back with a vengeance, and their Windows Phone 7 devices look set to change things for good. The mobile operating system is launching today on AT&T and T-Mobile, and by the end of the year, there will be Windows Phone 7 devices on all major carriers.

Later this week, we’ll bring you a full review of one of the first Windows Phone 7 devices with a strong focus on travel – and whether this new operating system really is worthy entrant back into the market. In the meantime, check out the full lineup of Windows Phone 7 reviews at Engadget. To learn more about the various Windows Phone 7devices, head on over to Microsoft.com.