Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 update misses cut and paste

Microsoft is rolling out the first update to Windows Phone 7, but will not be adding the much-anticipated cut and paste feature.

The small update was announced in a blog post, and will be automatically sent to phones and offered in a prompt message.

It is the first of many, according to Michael Stroh, a developer at Microsoft, who explained that the download should be embraced by all users despite its relative lack of appeal.

"This first update for Windows Phone is designed to improve the software update process itself," he said.

"So, while it might not sound exciting, it's still important because it's paving the way for all future goodie-filled updates to your phone, such as copy and paste or improved Marketplace search."

The update is rolling out today and will reach users gradually. Anyone who has not yet received it is advised to be patient because "the goal is to deliver it to you as quickly as possible", Stroh said.

Windows Phone 7 users will have to connect their handset to a PC and update it using the PC or Mac Zune/Windows Phone 7 connector administration application.

The update does not have the copy and paste feature that many users had anticipated, but this is likely to follow shortly.

Other upcoming additions to the mobile operating system include the introduction of Internet Explorer 9, which Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer said will appear some time this year.

Ballmer was speaking at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona when he said that responses to Windows Phone 7 had been good so far, and that this will increase when Microsoft adds new features, including the refreshed IE9 browser.