Is there anything unique left in windows phone ?

[CapoFantasma97]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

Still super fond of the Windows Phone style and it's dark themes tbh. Makes the phone a joy to use.

However the white forced on Windows 10...

 

[Pete]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

I believe that Microsoft would be in a better place with mobile devices if it focused exclusively on mobile software and let another independent company handle the hardware.

I, on the other hand, beg to disagree here. Microsoft has a proven pedigree in terms of creating great hardware. I'm really looking forward to seeing what a pure Microsoft phone looks like (as much as I love my 950XL and respect the Nokia influence on it). Microsoft moving away from countless mid/low tier devices and limiting itself to a three tier model line up makes perfect sense to me.

 

[Laura Knotek]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

I, on the other hand, beg to disagree here. Microsoft has a proven pedigree in terms of creating great hardware. I'm really looking forward to seeing what a pure Microsoft phone looks like (as much as I love my 950XL and respect the Nokia influence on it). Microsoft moving away from countless mid/low tier devices and limiting itself to a three tier model line up makes perfect sense to me.

Other than the Surface line, peripheral devices and the Xbox line, what history does Microsoft have in hardware that has been successful? PCs had been built by OEMs, unlike Apple. Legacy Windows Mobile devices were built by Samsung, HTC, Palm. The Zune line was a failure.

 

[Pete]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

The Zune hardware was good - I owned one for a long time. Whatever killed it wasn't the hardware.
While I agree that they've used partners for laptops/computers, the Surface line of tablets/hybrids has gained a lot of critical acclaim. On the back of this success, I would think it would be damaging for Microsoft to pull out of manufacturing the devices, especially considering that Microsoft have already stated their plans for the Lumia line moving forwards.

If Microsoft had stated they were pulling out of creating phones, the effect on Windows 10 Mobile would only be negative ("Microsoft bought Nokia and threw it all away", "No commitment to Mobile", etc.).

 

[Ian_Superfly]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

No, there is nothing unique with WP/W10M since MS gave all the good stuff to the competition.

What we have as "unique" today is:
1. Tiles (nice but...)
2. Continuum (what does it really bring today?)
3. Iris scanner (worse than good finger print readers)

So, there is no sane reason to choose another WP/W10M phone.
The race is over (and MS is not even participating any more).

 

[damonator98]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

The thing I was really looking forward to is Astoria. Is there any possibility it may take off again ? And what about islandwood ? Are there any apps ported yet ? If not, it's even worse. But still, there's always hope

 

[Nogitsune Micah]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

The thing I was really looking forward to is Astoria. Is there any possibility it may take off again ? And what about islandwood ? Are there any apps ported yet ? If not, it's even worse. But still, there's always hope

I am glad astoria ia gone. As proven, android is not something that I wanted on my phone for the simple fact that it apparently was causing performance issues and they disabled it from the os

 

[Nogitsune Micah]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

No, there is nothing unique with WP/W10M since MS gave all the good stuff to the competition.

What we have as "unique" today is:
1. Tiles (nice but...)
2. Continuum (what does it really bring today?)
3. Iris scanner (worse than good finger print readers)

So, there is no sane reason to choose another WP/W10M phone.
The race is over (and MS is not even participating any more).

So we are insane for choosing windows phone? Because I brought a return icon ad within three months probably plan to buy the 950.guess im insane then because all three of those reasons are precisely why I am interested

 

[Nogitsune Micah]

Other than the Surface line, peripheral devices and the Xbox line, what history does Microsoft have in hardware that has been successful? PCs had been built by OEMs, unlike Apple. Legacy Windows Mobile devices were built by Samsung, HTC, Palm. The Zune line was a failure.

He or she never said successful. An excellent made product doesn't necessarily need to be successful for it to be considered a good product. Zune for example.

 

[slivy58]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

No, there is nothing unique with WP/W10M since MS gave all the good stuff to the competition.

What we have as "unique" today is:
1. Tiles (nice but...)
2. Continuum (what does it really bring today?)
3. Iris scanner (worse than good finger print readers)

So, there is no sane reason to choose another WP/W10M phone.
The race is over (and MS is not even participating any more).

I tend to agree, two out of the three points you mentioned don't even pertain to 90% plus of the WPs out there and considering most are on the lower end of the scale, they never will.

My loyalty began to waver after the Denim fiasco and strongly believe the poor initial implementation had little to do with the carriers, looking at how W10M has progressed really put me over the edge as to whether I stay or go, the whole affair in my opinion looks and feels messy with too much confusion as to where we'll end up, in that time a lot WPs uniqueness seems to have vanished.

 

[Ian_Superfly]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

So we are insane for choosing windows phone? Because I brought a return icon ad within three months probably plan to buy the 950.guess im insane then because all three of those reasons are precisely why I am interested

No, that would not (medical wise) judge you as insane. I blame my “SwEnglish” for the chosen phrase. My bad.
What I mean is that there are no real benefits left in WP/W10M.

Good for MS that you value a slow Iris scanner, a slow Continuum experience and Tiles higher than unique apps and a vibrant eco system.

 

[Zeem Frostmaw]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

However the white forced on Windows 10...

...is barely anywhere in the apps I use. Skype could really benefit from a dark theme (which in a way we actually have in the messaging app, albeit buggy), and while dark would be nice for viewing emails and creating Office documents I absolutely understand why the white backgrounds are there.

 

[Yasharal Shalum]

Revised comment....

The only unique thing that is left is the smoothness of the OS. No you are not being pessimistic. This is getting old with MS and developers that won't show up. If you voice well founded disdain, then someone who could possibly not like your comment because they are very enthusiastic about said product line or OS could take a noted discomfort and thus not like you very much or at least not like what you said about their favorite OS(forum guideline friendly version). The app gap is real, the share direct to another app function on my phone is down to sharing to twitter and the only way to use Google services is through the Edge browser. This reminds me of waiting for BB10 in the RIM days. Somebody, maybe or especially MS, but somebody along the way does not care about finishing this out and making it what it should be. Heck, it looks like MS cares more about other mobile platforms than it's own. Proof? Look at the detail of their apps across platforms. Even with Windows Central, how much are they caring about this news app? Their Android app is better, easier to navigate and is FREE. Windows phone users are being disrespected in a big way. I have the HTC one M8 and absolutely like the speakers and display. Outside of that, the W10 mobile experience is still very much a big question mark. I am not like others with loads of money and can pack up and get phone after to phone. MS needs to step it up.

 

[ROBBIE HALL]

I too am getting a bit tired of windows phone. I remember using my HTC surround and truly enjoying the DIFFERENT experience. The pivot system, the large banners (songs playlist artist for example) it was so different unique and what made me a fan of WP after the symbian debacle. What REALLY upsets me is the fact that MS CORE apps seemingly work better on the other Os's. Here's a great example. I live in the Caribbean. (Barbados) As such, i expect paltry experiences in any device i use. My wife is from Jamaica. She uses an Android device. We both use Cortana. However, i can hardly ever receive local news on my WP using Cortana. That was expected from being in the Caribbean. However its not the same on her Android. She on the other hand, wakes up to prompts and daily news based on Jamaica. ( We're in Barbados now)
As a test, she placed Barbados as one of her interest. What do you know? She gets prompts, news, places to check out nearby....the whole works. I on my WP get nothing/ hardly a thing. This is the MOST upsetting example. Where things work much better on the competition and my experience seems "watered down" on my "Core device".
Apart from that, i got a 1020 in February 2015. New, unlocked. First, i had the "Cortana can't hear me" issue. Then no audio in videos. Then the battery drain ( i got basically 2-3 hours before needing to charge) then the USB connection went (no USB connection to the PC had to use a brilliant app called Easy Transfer) then it basically won't fully charge and charging goes on and off randomly. Figuring the usb port is gone/going. Then finally the screen no longer recognises touch. Its like the phone just disintegrated over time. I stand corrected but if i bought the device in February 2015 even though its a very older device, am i not entitled to a warranty?
I have been on the line about getting the 950xl. Just because im not sure if it will disintegrate as well and be told again by MS i don't have a warranty.
Worse part is, i really don't like either iOS or android. Currently using my n900 and pureview 808. YES YOU READ THAT CORRECTLY!!!

 

[Alex Rodriguez Jr.]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

I'm not reading these paragraphs of posts, so forgive me if this has been said. I switched from WM to an iPhone for app purposes - I needed a few apps for work. Yes, Microsoft Apps are available on the iPhone, Cortana included. However, they aren't even close to being as fluid, integrated, & functional as they are natively to WM. I use OneNote religiously and that might be the only app that is on par. With that being said, the iPhone is a piece of crap phone. Yes, it has apps. But it is nowhere near as intuitive or useful as a WM as a PHONE. The available apps definitely carry this device.

 

[Krystianpants]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

I agree. Maybe the only difference is the OS includes a lot that you use apps for on the other systems. The only reason it is that way is because the apps don't exist in windows. I remember when I switched to windows phone writing a review that the phone really was centered around you and your contacts. It made life easy to communicate across platforms. That and at the time live tiles seemed like a neat way to display information.

Fast forward to now, live tiles look messy as the system lets you use backgrounds. The information is not updated often enough and is often no different than an icon with the number count on it. A shell of the people and photo apps exist with limited functionality that requires opening the respective app. Even great apps like Zune were destroyed over time because of lack of users.

Then the final nail in the coffin for me was instability to the point I couldn't use it because of reboots and problems with the dual Sim variant and voicemail.

When everything became so bad that I switched to Android, I realized all the false things I let myself believe. I honestly believe that practically the cameras are no better on Lumia. Even the 1020, because of lag takes blurred pictures unless you are absolutely still. It makes the quick camera of the iPhone defeat it hands down in my opinion for daily use. The 950 series speeds that up, but it just brings the camera up to the level of the competition, not beyond. My LG phone feels smoother and faster than my 950xl did. I never had to hard reset it. I have many more apps. It is easier to use for normal functions. For example I used my Walgreen's card today on my phone. The process to load it used to take 15-30s. Now I can pull it up in 2-3s. It seems like a lot bigger difference in like. Apps don't crash or fail to load correctly nearly as much if at all. I hate in windows phone switching apps in the middle of typing something because often when it finishes resuming when switching back, all of my typing is gone. Same problem with downloads which disappear when switching apps.

I think every windows phone user owes it to himself to research the competition and try out one of the others for a week before committing to this OS any further. Sure each of us has spent a lot of time drinking this KoolAid and if users don't stay the OS will die, but I don't see how that is any of our problems. None of us are paid to beta test the hardware and software. Instead we are asked for our time and money. Microsoft isn't running a kick starter. They need to get over themselves.

Posted via the Windows Central App for Android

Let me stop you there. The tiles in windows 10 are the best iteration . You don't need to set a background, it's a choice and customization is what makes it great. Also if you're artistic you can arrange things to work for your background. Look at the start screen thread in 950xl forum. It's what makes windows better than the rest. It's what keeps me on windows. If this wasn't here I would stick with ios. And while some have issues a lot of people don't. And that comes with the territory of a new os. Ios didn't get where it is with 0 bugs. In fact ios 9.2 is causing issues on my friends ipad air 2 where her screen will just go nuts and the ui will fly around screen. She has to do a software reset to fix. It doesn't happen all the time but something triggers it.

Android May work great for you but others complain of issues constantly. So there's always people having issues in any os.
I smacked down good money for the 950xl because this os rocks and it it's already getting more and more awesome apps. I can't wait for the final rollout and what great apps it will bring. I love the universal apps that are out and continuum may even be able to run w32 apps in Redstone it rumors are true. You have the right to have an opinion but don't think every one else has to follow your guide for what's good or not.

 

[Pete]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

So there's always people having issues in any os.

There's truth right there. There's so many people hating on WP and saying how Android and iOS are perfect. But they're not, there's just as many haters for those systems as well.

 

[Ian_Superfly]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

There's truth right there. There's so many people hating on WP and saying how Android and iOS are perfect. But they're not, there's just as many haters for those systems as well.

Maybe "we" don't hate WP/W10M?
Maybe we just hate how Microsoft treat the different systems?

I actually like my WP (not as much as I used to do) but I am very unhappy with Microsoft.

And, while Microsoft gives away "all" (except iris scanner, live tiles and Continuum) the uniqueness of WP to the competition the competition still has their old advantages intact and thus shines in a way they did not do before.

 

[damonator98]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

The truth is no os is perfect and after playing with cyanogen, I can strongly agree that stock, or in this case moded (but not in a bad way like touchwiz) android is as fluid as windows and in my case more fluid than my lumia 920 (I'm now back to 8.1, did the hard reset few times, but it had little effect), of course I'm not talking about cheap Samsung phones which don't represent android. As for ios, it will never be my choice because it simply isn't my type of os. Every time i get my hands on iPhone everything looks kind of childish for me and some settings (like internet sharing) are deeply hidden (when we wanted to turn on internet sharing on my friends iPhone 6 we literally had to google for tutorial). Also it's not really customizable apart lock screen (I didn't have much time with it so forgive me if I missed something). Finally iPhones are REALLY overpriced. However I have to admit that I've never seen IOS lagging (even the old iPhone 4), it also just seems simple and "just working when you need it". Therefore if I jump ship I'd only go to android

 

[Evil_MrM]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

Have you tried an iPhone/iPad? They trade ease of use for forced decisions on usage. You can't get rid of the calendar, appointments app, and scads of other apps, which are simply bloatware if you don't want to use them. Worse, you can't even take them off the main menu; you can only abandon them to an unused page at the end.

Do you really want to know the uniqueness of Windows Phone? It straddles the line between protection (iOS) and choice (Android). It's nearly a perfect balance of both, and neither offers the depth that live tiles provides. As far as apps go, I'm okay with MS providing apps to iOS and Android; it'll make the transition for users that much more smooth if Windows Phone gains traction.

Microsoft's Job One at present is to release a reliable and fast Windows 10 Mobile; once that happens, users can become evangelists again.