Microsoft to win the mobile ? it never really tryed.

[galbenush]

This is not a rant about how bad Microsoft is. I like it's mobile and desktop O.S. What i dislike is how slow they are to implement basic functions.

The problem with microsoft is that they make so much money out of Android, that they didn't even really tried to gain market O.S. in mobile division.They wanted it, but never fully commited themselves for it. Let me explain why i think this with a quick but revealing example of Microsoft's attitude :

A year ago i bought a Lumia 930. It has a Snapdragon 800 and a 20 mb sensor. Video capabilities at the time of the putchase were 1080p 30fps. Over the time I got upgrades for my phone that allowed me to film in 4k and now, using Insider Preview, i can also do 120 fps in 720p.

It took 1 year Microsoft to fully use the powers of Snapdragon 800 in relation to camera possibilities. Almost all Android phones that used the same processor or the 801 variant got those features from the start, as it was normal.

This is just an example, there are alot more, concerning software and how slow Microsoft was to implement new basic features (that already existed at the time in the competition) in it's Windows Phone 8.1 OS.

I think they are a lazy company that did just enough to keep it in the race, but never invested fully into Mobile. You see, companies like HTC, Samsung and others didn't support Microsoft Mobile anymore because of this very reason. It never evolved fast enough(not even Nokia survived this).

On Windows 10 things are evolving faster right now, with most of the basic features a complete OS in 2016 already there, but they need to keep this rythm for a long time in order to truly compete, invovate and become relevand in the eyes of phone manufacturers.

Microsoft should allow more resources for the development of it's mobile os, hire more devs etc. Not sell cheaper phones or reducing it's profit margines. Make it attractive for manufacturers and consumers at the same time.

 

[theefman]

Microsoft being slow wrt mobile is not news to anyone, sadly..... :eck:

 

[thegamevg]

I agree with you on most points - on Microsoft being slow and taking time to implement features already in rival platforms..

The true barrier to the adoption has been the app gap though .. and the fact that this is the third iteration of their mobile efforts after Windows 7 and 8/8.1.
Fans of the OS are still fans of the OS.. I don't think the lack of optimized video recording , like the example you quoted, has hurt as much as the two points above..

Needs should always come before wants .. and Windows Phone has always lagged behind in that regard sadly..

 

[galbenush]

I agree with you on most points - on Microsoft being slow and taking time to implement features already in rival platforms..

The true barrier to the adoption has been the app gap though .. and the fact that this is the third iteration of their mobile efforts after Windows 7 and 8/8.1.
Fans of the OS are still fans of the OS.. I don't think the lack of optimized video recording , like the example you quoted, has hurt as much as the two points above..

Needs should always come before wants .. and Windows Phone has always lagged behind in that regard sadly..

It's not about the lack of optimized video, that was just an example to ilustrate my point. Another would be for example the chaos in the settings menu that was present for such a long time. It's about the source of this problem, the fact that they never invested enough to even cover the hardware capabilities of a SINGLE device.

In the world we live in today, it should not be the software, but the hardware that sets limits to what we can inovate. That's why you don;t have better graphics in your game, better photos (save them in better form, not jpg for memory handling) etc.

It's also not about the apps, this is a real problem NOW, but not 4-5 years ago (before windows 7), caused by the same source. If Microsoft invested more, earlier, they would have a better and more capable os, wich translates in more manufacturers, leading to more users, leading to more developers on the platform, more apps, more everything. You see, initially almost all major phone manufacturers tried what microsoft would offer, Samsung and HTC are just a few examples. But in time most of them gave up on it because they saw it was a dead end. Android was evolving faster giving them more and more freedom to inovate and diferenciate.

Windows 10 is the first time Microsoft is really investing in mobile, but i still think they are not doing enough to catch up. They are at a point where they must cover all basic functions in competing os's, and start to inovate and set new limits for other to try and catch up. Only then they will have a chance. Users are more likely to stay on the same OS, same manufacturer than move to an alternative, unless that alternative offers them something extra with no or very few compromises. Here comes the app problem, that they created for themselves by not investing more in mobile.

Windows phone 8 or Windows phone 8.1 are nothing but an original and usefull User Interface, with an outdated and incapable software (featurewise). They do a good job but they just don't do enough (versus competition). Let's hope that Windows 10 Mobile fixes that.

 

[thegamevg]

Good points - I still beg to differ on some of them though.

It's really about them being late to the party... and then leaving and coming back again....and now once again, coming back to the same party..
Any positive momentum and publicity they had with Nokia and Windows Phone 7 / 7.5 was snuffed out with Windows Phone 8/8.1 that left those OEMs and developers behind...

It's also not about the apps, this is a real problem NOW, but not 4-5 years ago (before windows 7), caused by the same source. If Microsoft invested more, earlier, they would have a better and more capable os, wich translates in more manufacturers, leading to more users, leading to more developers on the platform

I agree, in part, to the above quote.. the need for a capable OS, and the need for developers.
Apple is the exception to the need for phone manufacturers to get on board though.. And Nokia , who was arguably the most prominent and respected manufacturer in the industry, was practically "all in" with Windows Phone..

Not being able to build upon the OS .. and having to go back to scratch really hurt them.

In the world we live in today, it should not be the software, but the hardware that sets limits to what we can inovate.

I agree .. the key word being "limits". I don't imagine a single game or application on any mobile OS truly utilizing the power of 4/6/8 cores and RAM that puts my old desktop to shame..
I wouldn't look at utilization of hardware as a barrier to adoption of the OS. Nokia always set the bar when it came to hardware features like camera quality, features like OIS , wireless charging, stellar design etc... Its always been the software that never caught up - and that's squarely Microsoft's fault.