Thinking about coming back.

[cicero goncalves]

Hey guys, a few couple of months ago I felt like Microsoft wasn't taking Windows 10 Mobile seriously and I decided to jump ship to android. I tried and the LG V10 and wasn't really happy with the phone and then jumped to the S7. Well, long history short, android isn't for me. Something about the whole system just fells heavy and cumbersome. So lately I have been thinking about coming back to W10M. How are the spirits here guys? Do you see Microsoft investing more resourses into the plataform?

 

[Mesbah]

Re: Thining about coming back.

News was MS fired 2000 of its most stupid WP10 programmers & employees or something in that range. Hopefully new ones fix all problems.

 

[Bobvfr]

Re: Thining about coming back.

You will find no end of pessimism around here, not saying everything is perfect, but it's a damned site better than a lot of folks make out.

W10 is improving all the time and I suppose I should also say W10M is also, but as far as I am concerned it's just Windows 10 now whatever device it's running on, we have the Redstone or anniversary release to look forward to with lots of new features, the Universal apps are coming in nicely, apart from a few odd apps, I am almost all universal. The new OneDrive app came out last week or so and it's nice to have it back especially on tablets but again as it's Universal it's the same across on the phones as well.

Lots of new phones from other makers coming through to take up the slack (The space MS deliberately left clear to allow other makers into because MS didn't really want to be in the mass phone market).

I see you have posted in the XL forum so I guess this is a phone you are interested in, I ordered mine at the weekend so still waiting for it, but from what I can see early issues seem to be mainly sorted by OS updates, and from what I have seen MS have always been good at sorting out duff hardware by exchanging so I had no worries ordering.

I have an Android phone for work and really dislike the OS, and not being a teenager I don't need snapchat, I have a good banking app through RBS (I believe BOA is coming back soon), I can control my Lighting and power through Huetro for Hue and Light-wave, Groove has improved (Although I never really had an issues apart from when I first set it up),all Universal apps along with a few more like Netflix, OneNote, Office. Do I need anymore? I don't have them on the Android so why would I want them on a real phone OS.

Not saying to ignore genuine issues, but to be selective as to what is really going on here.


EDIT:

Sorry I forgot to add, Skype is still crap and doing another 180% policy turn, but you asked what was new.......................................................................

 

[aetneerg83]

Hey guys, a few couple of months ago I felt like Microsoft wasn't taking Windows 10 Mobile seriously and I decided to jump ship to android. I tried and the LG V10 and wasn't really happy with the phone and then jumped to the S7. Well, long history short, android isn't for me. Something about the whole system just fells heavy and cumbersome. So lately I have been thinking about coming back to W10M. How are the spirits here guys? Do you see Microsoft investing more resourses into the plataform?

Well:

Xiaomi?s path to the West gets a little easier with Microsoft patent deal | Ars Technica

Xiaomi bought 1,500 patents from Microsoft. I hope we will be able to use any rom we wish to on future phones. It's like having a PC and being able to install Windows and Linux on it or whatever favorite flavor of Linux you want on it. I really do hope Xiaomi phones come to the USA. It would make it very interesting if you can install both Android and Windows Mobile onto those devices with the included much better hardware for a lower price. Maybe then more people will want to use Windows Mobile or at least try it out.

This too:

Why Microsoft needed to make Windows run Linux software | Ars Technica

Makes it a little more exciting when we are not pigeon holed into one phone OS because of an APP gap. But Intel has abandoned the mobile space making it more difficult for Microsoft to make a phone that can run x86 code natively (the rumored Surface phone).

I had a Windows CE phone back in the day. They were too bulky and had clunky GUI's with terrible battery life. It cost me an insane $850 for that phone. I ended up selling it for $700 as I figure Microsoft was not ready for the mobile space.

 

[Ten Four]

W10 is getting better with each update, though I still encounter annoying bugs on my Lumia 640. I agree that Android can feel "heavy" because of all the endless options, apps, and choices. It is not for someone who values clean and simple. Apple stuff might be even more to your liking. It is possible to strip down any operating system to make it less heavy. For example, I do not use anything smaller than the medium square tile (three wide on Lumia 640) on my homescreen on W10. If an app isn't worth a medium square it isn't worth it being on the home screen. Also, I only allow enough apps to be the equivalent of two screens worth of tiles--no long scrolling down hunting for some tiny tile. I removed most of the flipping tiles from the upper part of my screen, in order to avoid having too much busy motion there. The flippy tiles are "below the fold." Another aspect of heaviness is the ability on Android and iOS to get an app to do almost anything, meaning that many apps make life harder and slower, not easier. Skip struggling to do something on an app that can be done much easier by some other method. In my case, I have found that banking on the phone just wasn't worth it so I stopped using a banking app and I haven't missed it. The old ATM card and check book just works better and faster--for me! You don't have to do everything on your phone, which is a philosophy that works with W10 because you can't do everything on your phone!

 

[Paolo Cardelli]

W10M on official channel (10586.318 as I write) is MUCH better now compared to 950s launch.
No more random reboots, no nasty bugs and battery life is almost on par with WP8.1.

Apps have improved a lot too, and a lot of new UWPs was updated/released.

And everything seems to dramatically improve again when official Redstone arrives this summer.

I think that going away from Windows 10 Mobile was a mistake in the first place...

 

[Chintan Gohel]

Re: Thining about coming back.

News was MS fired 2000 of its most stupid WP10 programmers & employees or something in that range. Hopefully new ones fix all problems.

hey, reduce the negativity. :wink:We can't assume that the people who were asked to leave were not good enough.

 

[Giddora]

Re: Thining about coming back.

News was MS fired 2000 of its most stupid WP10 programmers & employees or something in that range. Hopefully new ones fix all problems.

You got it all wrong... There aren't many "WP10" programmers since the Mobile branch has been folded into the main Windows-branch. They did, however, get rid of people who were working on producing and manufacturing 30-50 phone models each year since that is not going to be their business model in the future.

 

[anthonyng]

What's coming is intriguing, my put my 930 onto redstone fast ring the other day and I lost 2% overnight just sitting there (no sim, just wifi) Mind blowing! =D I'm sure if it's a more normal phone with apps it will be worse...

I'm just worried to go off production ring on my 950XL, but the background tasks aren't handled very well, lots of battery drain for me.

 

[Beantool]

W10M is indeed becoming a very interesting platform. The excitement of updates and what could be just over the horizon is what keeps my SIM and SD cards firmly placed in my Lumia 1520. That being said, the new builds work so well on the L1520 that I have not seen reason to buy a new Lumia braided by MSFT. I am loyal to the brand, but Nokia is a legacy we have a duty to never let die.

 

[Bobvfr]

Got my 950XL earlier and I am bowled over, makes my old 1520 look like an antique and set up Continuum, anyone doubting MS's commitment hasn't played with this stuff yet, very impressed.

 

[Giddora]

Let it die, Microsoft did lol.

Dude... You registered for Windows Central yesterday and have already made 9 posts about W10 being dead. You should educate yourself and THEN start posting because right now you're just way off.

Microsoft are doing more with all their platforms (entire ecosystem) than the dinosaurs at Google and Apple are doing to their single platform.

 

[cracgor]

Microsoft are doing more with all their platforms (entire ecosystem) than the dinosaurs at Google and Apple are doing to their single platform.

I don't understand Microsoft criticisms or support. If they pull out of the phone market and stop making phones, it is in the consumer's interest to develop something awesome and let 3rd party manufacturers into the market of Windows Phone. If Google makes its apps available on Chrome, they are not unifying their ecosystem as well as Microsoft.

 

[N_LaRUE]

Something about the whole system just fells heavy and cumbersome. So lately I have been thinking about coming back to W10M.

Interesting take on Android. I can sort of get the cumbersome but the heavy part is a bit odd...

I find with Android it takes more time to get it to where you want it. But then I felt the same with the start screen on WP as well.

To each their own though.

How are the spirits here guys?

It's pretty bleak here. There's a mix bag of ultra fanboys and doom and gloomers with constant clashes between the two. It's not pretty.

Do you see Microsoft investing more resourses into the plataform?

MS is investing in the software side. I expect them to release some phones at some point (possibly three) but it's really going to be left to the OEMs though for the hardware.

Lumia is gone. No idea when the new phones from MS will materialise.

The developer side still seems a bit of a mix bag.

If you like Windows Mobile then stick with it. It will be a long ride though if you're keen on certain things that you feel you may be missing. If you want those things then it's best to move to another platform for a bit while MS sorts things out.

It's a personal choice and one you need to ponder.

 

[Pete]

There's a basic summary choice here as far as I see it.

1) If you want an OS and core apps that generally work well, then Windows 10 Mobile is a good choice
2) If your digital life is mainly app guided, or you like a lot of customisation and control, then Android might be a better choice

However, when looking at apps, also look at the official web pages for those apps - people are complaining that the Amazon app has been retired, but the web page is arguably better than the app. It's been my personal view for a while that connected apps should really be replaced by well crafted mobile web pages that are platform agnostic.

 

[Summer_Moon]

There's a basic summary choice here as far as I see it.

1) If you want an OS and core apps that generally work well, then Windows 10 Mobile is a good choice
2) If your digital life is mainly app guided, or you like a lot of customisation and control, then Android might be a better choice

However, when looking at apps, also look at the official web pages for those apps - people are complaining that the Amazon app has been retired, but the web page is arguably better than the app. It's been my personal view for a while that connected apps should really be replaced by well crafted mobile web pages that are platform agnostic.

I would have to agree. A platform agnostic mobile web page is by far the best route for a company to reach the most amount of people. I really don't get the whole, I have to have it as an app or I won't use it mentality. Of course for games that's a little different, but a lot of the apps such as Amazon are way better in browser than the app. I am really curious as to how bots are going to turn out. It could prove very useful and eliminate the need of some apps.

 

[N_LaRUE]

I would have to agree. A platform agnostic mobile web page is by far the best route for a company to reach the most amount of people. I really don't get the whole, I have to have it as an app or I won't use it mentality. Of course for games that's a little different, but a lot of the apps such as Amazon are way better in browser than the app. I am really curious as to how bots are going to turn out. It could prove very useful and eliminate the need of some apps.

There has been lots of talk of web apps being the future for the last few years now. I have little doubt that a lot of apps are web apps but with an 'app' wrapper.

There are some websites that are setup well for mobile and plenty that are still pretty crap. There are some social media apps for example that will always be an app because that's they way they function, for example you cannot upload photos to Instagram from the website.

Doesn't mean this won't change in the future but I agree some sites are great but it doesn't solve all the problems. Apps are still an important part of the ecosystem and in some cases far superior to the website.

I'm not sure what to make of the bot phenomenon myself.