Microsoft explains Windows Phone 7 update gaffe

Microsoft has reacted quickly to complaints about its first Windows Phone 7 update, attempting to reassure customers that the problem affects only a small minority of users.

The update was released earlier this week and brought a handful of new features to mobile phones running the Windows OS, but problems began to arise and users turned to the web to voice their complaints.

However, Microsoft developer Michael Stroh said in a blog post that the issues have affected only around 10 per cent of users.

"Contrary to some of the gloomy headlines out there, our preliminary internal data paints a very different picture about update progress," he said.

"Ninety per cent of people who've received an update notification have installed the new software patch successfully. So when your turn to download it arrives, chances are good this will be a non-event."

Stroh suggested that problems with the update were not down to the software itself.

"Of the 10 per cent who did experience a problem, nearly half failed for two basic reasons: a bad internet connection or insufficient computer storage space. Luckily, both are easy to fix," he said.

Stroh added that, although the process had not gone smoothly, this was common for any large-scale software rollouts.

Microsoft will treat this event as a learning experience and will strive to improve the process for future releases before tackling some apparently recurring complaints, Stroh said.

There are issues with "a small number" of Samsung phones, he explained, and Microsoft is working to fix the problem. In the meantime, updates for Samsung handsets have been suspended.

Windows phone 7 users who experienced problems owing to a lack of storage space are advised to check that they have the necessary memory before starting the download.