Windows Phone Mango announced

Update: We previously incorrectly stated that Mango had been released. It has only been announced.

Windows has unveiled its new Mango version of the Windows Phone.

Mango will be available free to Windows Phone 7 customers and is scheduled to ship on new phones beginning in the Northern Hemisphere autumn. 

Facts and features: 

Mango organises information around the person or group people want to interact with, not the app being used.

• Threads. Switch between text, Facebook chat and Windows Live Messenger within the same conversation.
• Groups. Group contacts into personalised Live Tiles to see the latest status updates right from the Start Screen and quickly send a text, email or IM to the whole group.
• Deeper social network integration. Twitter and LinkedIn feeds are now integrated into contact cards, and "Mango” includes built-in Facebook check-ins and new face detection software that makes it easier to quickly tag photos and post to the Web
• Linked inbox. See multiple email accounts in one linked inbox. Conversations are organised to make it easy to stay on top of the latest mail.
• Hands-free messaging. Built-in voice-to-text and text-to-voice support enables hands-free texting or chatting.

Apps

• Mango will return apps as part of search results and within Windows Phone Hubs.
• Improved Live Tiles. Get real-time information from apps without having to open them. Live Tiles can be more dynamic and hold more information.
• Multitasking. Quickly switch between apps in use and allow apps to run in the background, helping to preserve battery life and performance.
• Taking the Internet Beyond the Browser

Web browsing, search and localisation

 

• Internet Explorer 9. A browser based on the powerful Internet Explorer 9 and including support for HTML5 and full hardware acceleration.
• Local Scout. Provides hyperlocal search results and recommends nearby restaurants, shopping and activities in an easy-to-use guide.
• Bing on Windows Phone. More ways to search the Web, including Bing Vision, Music Search and Voice so it’s easy to discover and decide.
• Quick Cards. When searching for a product, movie, event or place, see a quick summary of relevant information, including related apps.

A beta release of the free Windows Phone Developer tools is to be posted for public download on Microsoft’s website within 24 hours. More information on Mango for developers can be found here.