MIX10: No Memory Expansion Slots or Multitasking in Windows Phone 7 Series

Following up on the confirmation of the Marketplace as the only approved method for application distribution, Microsoft Windows Phone representative Charlie Kindel has confirmed that devices running Windows Phone 7 Series will not feature memory card slots, instead opting for high capacity internal Flash memory with the goal to provide enough storage for applications and other files.

Kindel further suggested that some phones may go as far as having microSD cards embedded in them and if they do, will be locked in place and inaccessible by consumers. Microsoft also stated that Windows Phone 7 will not allow for true application multitasking as done in Windows Phone Classic, following the same current track as the iPhone, which was indirectly confirmed in this morning’s announcement of the new Microsoft Notification Service.

Third-party applications will not be able to run in the background and those applications using VoIP protocols will be limited in scope. Kindel went on to state:

“Apps that run arbitrarily in the background create an end user experience where battery life and responsiveness of the system becomes … inconsistent. We focused on getting a set of experiences right where we didn’t have to support [multitasking,] but we will over time.”