"Windows Phones" unveiled, now with Marketplace

Microsoft showed off its latest mobile operating system today, with a new branding effort and confirmed Marketplace to boot.

From now on, call the smartphone offerings from LG, HTC and Orange "Windows Phones," kind of like the "Android Phone" moniker that befalls Google-powered handsets.

Aside from the new user interface of Windows 6.5, these phones will use two new features that Microsoft confirmed today. The Marketplace allows for browsing, searching and purchasing apps, either from the phone or by computer using a Windows Live ID. The existing 20,000 applications that developers have already created for Windows phones will be featured here after a "simple security and compatibility check," a press release says.

The other service is "My Phone," an online backup system for contacts and other personal information that syncs automatically with Windows Phones. Photos and video, taken on the phone, can also be uploaded directly to the My Phone service. Unlike Apple’s very similar MobileMe, which costs $99, this service is free, but with a 200 MB storage limit compared to MobileMe’s 20 GB.

This isn’t exactly earth-shattering stuff, but that doesn’t make it unwelcome news. Easily-browsable app stores are where it’s at these days, and it’ll be nice for Windows Phone users to have a convenient way of storing old pictures and video.

One thing Microsoft is bragging about in today’s press release is a study — which it commissioned — finding that people accomplished 48 percent more assigned tasks on Internet Explorer Mobile than "other browsers and phones studied." It’s not the sexiest marketing point in the world, but that’s never been Microsoft’s strong suit, anyway.