Windows Phone 7 Handsets Now Available to Developers without Carrier Contracts

Developers can now order Windows Phone 7 without having to get a carrier plan.

Microsoft has entered into a partnership with Zones.com for all of our handset OEMs and mobile operator partners to sell phones to developers without requiring a voice or data contract. The phones are still carrier locked (varies by region), but you can purchase a Windows Phone 7 for your development purposes.

Here’s what you need to do:

• Go to our partner’s site:  https://www.zones.com/windowsphonedeveloperpurchase
• Pick the phone you want to use (note: these devices are carrier locked, based on region)
• Go thru the site’s check-out process
• You will have to pay all sales taxes and shipping charges

Get Started with Windows Phone 7

Tools are free. Get started on Windows Phone 7 or XBox at App Hub.

See the free developer training course for Windows Phone 7 on Channel 9

Windows Phone 7 in 7 tutorials on MSDEV. Each short, to-the-point video in this series highlights a feature of Windows Phone 7 in less than 7 minutes. This is a series for developers who want to pick up the basics quickly with brief explanations and hands-on examples. Demonstrations and code samples are based on the beta release of the Windows Phone 7 Developer Tools.

Free Assistance

Join Microsoft Platform Ready for free assistance in developing and marketing your Windows Phone 7 applications.

Bruce D. KyleISV Architect Evangelist | Microsoft Corporation