Microsoft Huge Hotmail Updates On The Way

The Hotmail team was hard a work over the summer, releasing a major update to Windows Live Hotmail that included a new design, faster inbox and many other cool features. Even though the update was released two months ago, the Hotmail team announced some more exciting changes, something that might just blow the competition away.

Shipment Tracking

First up on the changes is shipment tracking within your email. Hotmail will automatically detect the shipping tracking number and provide real-time shipping information. Once the update rolls out, users will be able to track USPS and Fedex shipments right from inside their email, without having to visit the shippers website. DHL and UPS are also supported, but will provide links to the shipper’s website for more detailed information.

Facebook Chat

Earlier this month, we posted information that Facebook Chat will soon be coming to Windows Live Hotmail, and now the Hotmail team is ready to roll out this major update. Users can already chat with Facebook friends through Windows Live Essentials 2011 and Windows Live Messenger for the iPhone.
Microsoft also mentioned that they will be making the signout button more noticeable for users to see, based on feedback from some users.

Attachment Upgrade

Windows Live Hotmail became the first email provider to allow up to 10GB of photos in a single email, by creating a new album inside of SkyDrive and connecting it with your email. This allows friends and family to share high resolution photos with one another. Hotmail users share more than 1.5 billion photos a month on Hotmail, and with the ever increasing demand, the Hotmail team is increasing total filesizes to 25MB per email. You’ll now be able to have larger attachments per email.

Dailymotion & Justin.tv

During the summer rollout, Hotmail announced you’ll be able to watch Hulu and YouTube videos right inside of an email. The next update rollout will now support videos from Dailymotion and Justin.tv.

Subfolders

The new Hotmail update will allow you to create subfolders in your inbox, so you can put folders in your folders (yo dawg yo). A great new feature for people wanting to stay organized, but have a massive list of folders in their inbox, now you’ll be able to separate your email using the Hotmail filters but keep a neat and tidy inbox.

Hotmail didn’t give an estimated time for the release, only saying they would be rolling out the update immediately. The process may take a few weeks to reflect on everyone’s account.

IE 9 Doesn't Require 7 SP1

Update: Microsoft reached out to us via email saying that IE9 will run on either Windows 7 RTM or Service Pack 1. It seems like IE9 could come out earlier than next year, and won’t actually require SP1 to work;

I want to follow up to let you know that the TechNet FAQ has been updated to provide further clarification about requirements for Internet Explorer 9.  Internet Explorer 9 will work on Windows 7 RTW and Windows 7 SP1.  When you install Internet Explorer 9 on a system that has Windows 7 RTM installed, additional operating system components are included as part of the installation of Internet Explorer 9.  Those “additional operating system components” will be part of Windows 7 SP1.  Either way, this will be a seamless process for the user.  Just wanted to make sure you had the latest.

Microsoft continues to push that it’s not essential for businesses to wait for SP1 and IE9, but to deploy now and roll out these updates later, when they are released. Microsoft explained on The Windows Blog why users shouldn’t wait for SP1 or IE9 to upgrade.

This gives an estimate of when a final IE9 release is expected, since Windows 7 SP1 isn’t due out until some time in the first half of 2011, but no specific date has been announced. A beta of Service Pack 1 is currently available.

Windows Phone 7 and Android Platform Competition

Encroaching competition
Microsoft (MSFT) has finally unveiled its Windows Phone 7 operating system, bringing another mobile platform to compete with Android. With a powerful 1GHz Snapdragon processor and hi-rez screens, the initial Windows Phone 7 devices will be fairly well equipped to match many features on Android devices. For gaming and entertainment especially, it’s clear that certain standards have been established for smartphones.

Android Market keeping pace
Hardly fazed by Microsoft’s launch today, Android rolled out a Market update for non-Froyo users. You now get tabbed app browsing, bulk updates for apps and auto-updates for apps you select. The changes are important towards improving navigation around the Android Market, making it easier to manage what some deem are the most important features on your device. With the likes of AppBrain making searchable apps for managing your marketplace, Android itself needs to keep pace.

Another entity that is interested in its own front for the Android Market is Best Buy (BBY). The electronics retailer mentioned interest in experimenting with an app store for Android, which would be a great way to interface and market to their customers. Coming off the heels of Amazon’s (AMZN) delve into Android Market storefronts, we’re sure to see a deep and ongoing evolution for Android’s economy.

Superheroes on-the-go
DC Comics is likely to reap the benefits of this marketplace maturation, with plans to release an Android app in the coming weeks. The publishing company has managed to remain relevant throughout the generations, and having a strong mobile front is just another wave of the future. A number of print media publishers have turned to the mobile industry lately, as it’s reached a point of reasonable distribution and montization.