Microsoft releases Mango

Software giant Microsoft has started rolling out its update to Windows Phone.

Mango should be on handsets within two or three weeks which means that Vole will have hit its October deadline for the public release of the software update.

Carriers began testing the final version in July.

The news was announced in a tweet by Brandon Watson, who is in charge of apps and developers on Windows Phone at Microsoft.

"Boom... no more rumours. Mango to start rolling out on Windows Phone in just a week or two", he said.

Mango is important for Redmond. It brings in improvements and significantly expands the number of locations and languages where Windows Phone is available.

Because it comes out in this month, Nokia will be able to start offering its first smartphones based on Windows Phone from next month. The former rubber boot maker is betting the farm on Mango. Its CEO, Stephen Elop killed off Nokia's Symbian platform and to spurn Google's Android as if it were a rabid dog.

Writing from his bog, Eric Hautata, the general manager for customer experience engineering in the Windows Phone division, said that for months, Microsoft and its glorious allies have been laying the groundwork for the Windows Phone 7.5 update and making solid progress.

He warned impatient handset owners against installing unofficial or leaked copies of software claiming to be the update and that they should wait for the proper code to be delivered.

"During the official Windows Phone 7.5 update process, every Windows Phone will also receive software from the handset manufacturer. This matched and paired firmware has been painstakingly tuned so your phone, and apps, work with all the new features of Windows Phone 7.5. Since your phone requires the proper firmware to function as designed, my advice is simple: steer clear of bootleg updates and homebrew tools," he said.

Mango is the great white hope for Vole. Since Windows Phone was released it has failed to make a serious dent on the smartphone market. Despite good reviews it has only managed a 1.2 percent share, while other platforms have trounced it.

However, analysts and a number of carriers have expressed confidence that in time Windows Phone will hold a significant proportion of the market and will eventually over take Apple and Google's lead by 2015.