Get a sneak peek of Windows Phone 7.8 for the Nokia Lumia 900

When Microsoft broke the news of the current crop of Windows Phone devices not getting Windows Phone 8, it shocked a majority of the WP7 users around the world. In their reasoning, Microsoft stated that Windows Phone 8 was a generation shift in technology and it would not run on existing hardware. That came as a major drawback, but Microsoft immediately mentioned that the company has been planning an update for the existing devices that will give them the Windows Phone 8 start screen and they have named it Windows Phone 7.8. Now, the folks over at the Windows Phone blog have showed a video where a Nokia Lumia 900 has been shown running a very early build of Windows Phone 7.8.

The video showcases the new start screen that they have been talking about and Microsoft has changed the look of their homescreen by making it more personal and customizable. Live Tiles will now come in three different sizes, with different theme colours, all of which are under the control of the user. Live Tiles has been one of the standout features of Windows Phone and something that their current owners really love, so they’ve made it more flexible and unique. Windows Phone Blog’s Ben Rudolph mentioned that ‘it’s pretty awesome; being able to resize tiles to S/M/L gives a whole new dimension – no pun intended – to personalization and customization.’ Here’s the video showing the Lumia 900 running Windows Phone 7.8.

Rudolph further went on to mention that with these customizable tiles, he could make smaller what he did not require and increase the size of the tiles that he would use more often like e-mail, text, web, games and everything else. With the customization bit, it was a big relief to miniaturize the stuff he did not need and get it out of the way. Increasing the size of the tiles shows you more information about a particular tab, which comes in handy for reading an SMS on the move or the subject of an e-mail to classify it as important or not. The blog post also gave a heads up that Microsoft has just set up a new page on WindowsPhone.com that covers all of the awesome stuff that’s coming in 7.8 – like the new start screen with resizable tiles, all of the new apps that are coming to Nokia Lumias, as well as a roundup of all the other app news, like the arrival of Audible, and the so-close-you-can-taste it launches of Words with Friends and Draw Something. 

Windows Phone 7.8 for the Nokia Lumia 900

While all of this sounds extremely nice and interesting, the point out here is how fast can Microsoft get this new update to the masses. With Windows Phone 8 coming soon, it’s only fair that existing users are able to enjoy this update till the new wave of phones eventually make these ones obsolete. So Microsoft, how quick is Windows Phone 7.8 coming?