Windows Phone 7 will go down in tech history with mixed reviews. While just about everyone loved the tiled, buttery smooth interface that worked just as well across a host of devices from different manufacturers, it failed to gain the kind of traction that its rivals iOS and Android did. Perhaps it was the fact that it initially came on expensive devices, perhaps it was the relative absence of good apps, but it did not really revive the fortunes of Microsoft or Nokia the way many had hoped it would. Which is why both are now betting on the next version of the Windows Phone, Windows Phone 8, which is due to be released shortly.