By Stephen Schenck | June 27, 2011 3:50 PM
Dell could have had something really special with its Windows Phone 7-running Venue Pro. You can’t find hardware like it anywhere else for WP7, and that portrait keyboard might have been just the thing to help Microsoft snag some BlackBerry users. We were soundly impressed with the smartphone when it first arrived, giving it a glowing review last December. That said, after Dell struggled with its efforts to launch the handset, the Venue Pro has been plagued by stability issues and poor WiFi connectivity, somewhat tarnishing its reputation. Half a year later, we’re still waiting for Dell to remedy the phone’s problems with a software fix. Your patience should soon pay off, with Dell tweeting that the update will finally be made available next month.
The company says that it’s preparing a post to formally announce the update, where hopefully it will go into a bit of detail as to how it intends to stabilize the VP. Supposedly, many of the smartphone’s issues stem from problems with its microSD card; swapping out the card has been suggested as a possible fix, at the risk of invalidating your phone’s warranty.
The good news is that the fix really seems to make a big difference. T-Mobile may not be ready to distribute it yet, but Dell’s reportedly putting the code on some DVPs that come in to it for service. With the upgraded firmware in place, users say the smartphone performs better than ever. We’ll be sure to update you once Dell releases more information on the patch, hopefully including just when to expect it next month.
