Ian Too
New member
Well, I still have my copy of Outlook, so I could go back to Windows Mobile...
Seriously, anyone who knows about Microsoft's three screen strategy knows Windows Phone is here to stay. It's a keystone and with WP taking off with the success of the 520 and its adoption by the enterprise market, now is the time to push it harder than ever.
There is a need in the market for a third OS because both iOS and Android have problems which make them unsuitable.
With the release of the 5c, Apple were critised for not producing a low-end handset and their response was that they have no interest in that sector of the market. Thus did they abandon the VAST majority of smart phone users to Google and its partners.
Apple have always been an arrogant and charmless company, hypocritical and hypersensitive. These are the only devices you can hold the wrong way, smash in normal use, have to encase in an accessory battery pack in order to go a full day and still be called great design. With Apple there is no choice of screen size and rather than accommodate 3rd party services they tie you more and more tightly into their own; you comply or fall beneath consideration.
Android has critical problems which rule it out for any unbiased rational person. The plethora of handsets are a disaster; OEMs are cramming the OS into hardware which simply isn't powerful enough to run it. The consequence is users who are disappointed and confused by their device's inability to run Whatsapp and Viber because they get a low memory warning - I speak from personal experience here, folks. I am the guy people come to and I have seen so many Samsungs and HTCs where I have to explain why their device won't do what they want, because they don't have enough memory or because they have a Buick body with a Toyota engine. Yes, Android runs acceptably at the high end, but elsewhere it is storing up trouble for the future in terms of users who are ready to walk.
Android fanboys also have to realise that Android is just a cheap rip-off of iOS 3. Google have done nothing innovative with the OS, just bolted stuff on until the result is a gludge and a mess which will only run well on high-end devices. On top of that, companies like Samsung add so much bloatware that there is no consistency and the user has no choice but to buy extra memory to make the device usable.
Android's biggest problem however is one which cannot be removed: Google.
Although a big fan of Google when it first appeared, this company has become increasingly invasive of it's users' personal privacy and not for their users' benefit either. Google uses your Android device to track your position and keep tabs on what you search for. They use software to scan your personal and business email for keywords. When you use Google services, they are gathering information on you, your friends and clients. Whats more, Android is worming its tentacles into all sorts of devices, including fridges and washing machines, all apparently 'free' to OEMs.
You cannot make your goal influencing peoples' decisions and have proper respect for their right of self determination - these two things are diametrically opposed. Google earns its money by selling advertising and gain traction over their competitors by having unprecedented reach and in unprecedented detail. This allows them to target advertising with unprecedented power. Basically, Samsung, HTC, Sony and the rest are colluding with Google to sell your personal information to interested parties. They all have a vested interest in invading your privacy, which is why when you go into your local phone shop they will push the latest Android device into your hands. Android's popularity has more to do with OEM's and Google's self interest than merit. With Google you are just part of the background, your information is like oil to be sucked out of the ground. Google have no agreement with you and get no money from you. You just consume their services without paying for them. Why should Google care about you?
I'll go back to a dumb phone before I get an Android device.
Against this tide comes aunty Microsoft, late to the party as usual, and the people who brought us Millenium and Vista. Hardly a record which inspires confidence. And aren't they a private company which needs to make a profit just like Google? Why should we trust them any more?
Well, oh happy day, someone at Microsoft got their act together and realised that an OS needs to be small and economical. First with Zune, then Windows Phone and now with Windows itself, the operating system drains less from the hardware it runs than it used to - evidenced by the fact that Windows 8.1 will run on hardware designed for Windows XP - ten year old computers. With Staya Nadella at the helm, there is no reason to expect this trend not to continue, not because he's Indian, but because he's an ENGINEER!
As for the trust issue, although they do sell advertising through Bing, their main business is by selling goods and services to us, their customers. We have an agreement with this company so they have a vested interest in safeguarding our information, because if it leaked they'd lose their customers and their income.
There is a lot to be said for the older business model where the user is a customer rather than a consumer and a lot of reason to favour Microsoft over Google, because despite their penchant for making mistakes, the relationship with Microsoft is a healthier one for its users.
Seriously, anyone who knows about Microsoft's three screen strategy knows Windows Phone is here to stay. It's a keystone and with WP taking off with the success of the 520 and its adoption by the enterprise market, now is the time to push it harder than ever.
There is a need in the market for a third OS because both iOS and Android have problems which make them unsuitable.
With the release of the 5c, Apple were critised for not producing a low-end handset and their response was that they have no interest in that sector of the market. Thus did they abandon the VAST majority of smart phone users to Google and its partners.
Apple have always been an arrogant and charmless company, hypocritical and hypersensitive. These are the only devices you can hold the wrong way, smash in normal use, have to encase in an accessory battery pack in order to go a full day and still be called great design. With Apple there is no choice of screen size and rather than accommodate 3rd party services they tie you more and more tightly into their own; you comply or fall beneath consideration.
Android has critical problems which rule it out for any unbiased rational person. The plethora of handsets are a disaster; OEMs are cramming the OS into hardware which simply isn't powerful enough to run it. The consequence is users who are disappointed and confused by their device's inability to run Whatsapp and Viber because they get a low memory warning - I speak from personal experience here, folks. I am the guy people come to and I have seen so many Samsungs and HTCs where I have to explain why their device won't do what they want, because they don't have enough memory or because they have a Buick body with a Toyota engine. Yes, Android runs acceptably at the high end, but elsewhere it is storing up trouble for the future in terms of users who are ready to walk.
Android fanboys also have to realise that Android is just a cheap rip-off of iOS 3. Google have done nothing innovative with the OS, just bolted stuff on until the result is a gludge and a mess which will only run well on high-end devices. On top of that, companies like Samsung add so much bloatware that there is no consistency and the user has no choice but to buy extra memory to make the device usable.
Android's biggest problem however is one which cannot be removed: Google.
Although a big fan of Google when it first appeared, this company has become increasingly invasive of it's users' personal privacy and not for their users' benefit either. Google uses your Android device to track your position and keep tabs on what you search for. They use software to scan your personal and business email for keywords. When you use Google services, they are gathering information on you, your friends and clients. Whats more, Android is worming its tentacles into all sorts of devices, including fridges and washing machines, all apparently 'free' to OEMs.
You cannot make your goal influencing peoples' decisions and have proper respect for their right of self determination - these two things are diametrically opposed. Google earns its money by selling advertising and gain traction over their competitors by having unprecedented reach and in unprecedented detail. This allows them to target advertising with unprecedented power. Basically, Samsung, HTC, Sony and the rest are colluding with Google to sell your personal information to interested parties. They all have a vested interest in invading your privacy, which is why when you go into your local phone shop they will push the latest Android device into your hands. Android's popularity has more to do with OEM's and Google's self interest than merit. With Google you are just part of the background, your information is like oil to be sucked out of the ground. Google have no agreement with you and get no money from you. You just consume their services without paying for them. Why should Google care about you?
I'll go back to a dumb phone before I get an Android device.
Against this tide comes aunty Microsoft, late to the party as usual, and the people who brought us Millenium and Vista. Hardly a record which inspires confidence. And aren't they a private company which needs to make a profit just like Google? Why should we trust them any more?
Well, oh happy day, someone at Microsoft got their act together and realised that an OS needs to be small and economical. First with Zune, then Windows Phone and now with Windows itself, the operating system drains less from the hardware it runs than it used to - evidenced by the fact that Windows 8.1 will run on hardware designed for Windows XP - ten year old computers. With Staya Nadella at the helm, there is no reason to expect this trend not to continue, not because he's Indian, but because he's an ENGINEER!
As for the trust issue, although they do sell advertising through Bing, their main business is by selling goods and services to us, their customers. We have an agreement with this company so they have a vested interest in safeguarding our information, because if it leaked they'd lose their customers and their income.
There is a lot to be said for the older business model where the user is a customer rather than a consumer and a lot of reason to favour Microsoft over Google, because despite their penchant for making mistakes, the relationship with Microsoft is a healthier one for its users.