[nube_android]

Not to be negative, but is there even room for a NO.3 platform in Mobile or is this like the desktop wars?

[wmgreenjr]

Not to be negative, but is there even room for a NO.3 platform in Mobile or is this like the desktop wars?

If we have to stick to only two then there's definitely room for a new number 1 and new number 2 for those of us that dislike the current ones that fill those spots. Until then, yes there's always room for personal vs group choice and it will always be appreciated.

[mase123987]

Nope. That is why I am selling my 920 right now.....

In all seriousness, of course there is room. There might even be a better argument if you asked it like this: Could another mobile OS become one of the big 2? In the US, it seems like 2 main OS's hits the spot. Just like iOS or Android, why couldn't another OS come from nothing to knock one of those off? With MS backing, WP is as good of a candidate as there is.

[tgp]

In all seriousness, of course there is room. There might even be a better argument if you asked it like this: Could another mobile OS become one of the big 2? In the US, it seems like 2 main OS's hits the spot. Just like iOS or Android, why couldn't another OS come from nothing to knock one of those off? With MS backing, WP is as good of a candidate as there is.

In January 2005, the smartphone market share was pretty evenly divided by four companies: Symbian, Palm, RIM, and WM. Microsoft was in a dominant position, but they lost it. Where did they go wrong? Getting back in the running will be difficult at best. The standards were much lower 8 years ago.

[Laura Knotek]

In January 2005, the smartphone market share was pretty evenly divided by four companies: Symbian, Palm, RIM, and WM. Microsoft was in a dominant position, but they lost it. Where did they go wrong? Getting back in the running will be difficult at best. The standards were much lower 8 years ago.

I believe that the smartphone market was much different in 2005, since smartphones were pretty much only used by businesspeople. Nowadays the majority of smartphone owners are regular consumers, rather than people whose primary use of the smartphone is for work.

[omniusovermind]

Look on the bright side. You could've just been screwed with no warning by a superior stealth release of your phone after you already bought the inferior model like Samsung just pulled on people today...

Sent from my (fill in the blank) phone using (fill in the blank software)

[joe_easton]

There's a shot but WP must provide better marketing to gain interest and then make sure that we offer the same (or more) features and apps. With the 2 year contract scenario, it doesn't take long to move market share because most people upgrade as soon as they can. If we can't see double digit market share by the end of 2013, I fear MS may stop putting money behind WP

[tgp]

I believe that the smartphone market was much different in 2005, since smartphones were pretty much only used by businesspeople. Nowadays the majority of smartphone owners are regular consumers, rather than people whose primary use of the smartphone is for work.

True, but I still have to wonder why Microsoft at one time had +/- 30% smartphone market share, and today we're happy to see it going up from 3%! What happened that MS lost what they had? Why did consumers choose iOS and then Android over WM/WP? Did MS become complacent? I'm not challenging or throwing bones; I'd like to hear thoughts on it.

[a5cent]

If we can't see double digit market share by the end of 2013, I fear MS may stop putting money behind WP

They will never stop investing money into their own mobile OS. The only question is whether those investments are large enough to achieve a relevant market share in the not too distant future.

[tgp]

If we can't see double digit market share by the end of 2013, I fear MS may stop putting money behind WP

I've wondered too how long MS is going to keep throwing cash at WP. So far it seems to be a big money pit. MS makes their money on Office & Windows. Looking down the road, the future is mobile, and I imagine that's why they're in it.

[Laura Knotek]

True, but I still have to wonder why Microsoft at one time had +/- 30% smartphone market share, and today we're happy to see it going up from 3%! What happened that MS lost what they had? Why did consumers choose iOS and then Android over WM/WP? Did MS become complacent? I'm not challenging or throwing bones; I'd like to hear thoughts on it.

I only knew one person who had a WinMo device, and he still uses it nowadays. All of the business users I know had BlackBerry or Palm devices. I do not know anything about WinMo, since I never even played with a WinMo device in a store. I had the impression that WinMo was strictly about business, and it did not offer any apps that would appeal to consumers. I could have been completely wrong, but I don't know the history of WinMo at all, or what its features were like.

Most consumers want devices that are "fun", not just for business. One of the reasons I left BlackBerry and switched to Windows Phone is because Windows Phone has Netflix, but BlackBerry does not. I use Netflix regularly, but I rarely use mobile MS Office. In my case, Windows Phone offered more "fun" apps than BlackBerry, and I chose Windows Phone since I am not a business user.

[1101x10]

That was 30% of a small market so it can't really be compared. I think the gold rush in phones is now over so Microsoft has an even harder task of increasing the market share. They really need to promote (and improve) of why Windows Phone is a better experience than iOS/Android to get people to switch.

[Shouvik Mazumdar]

It does have a future. Rather Windows Phone is doing damn well especially with Nokia's push.

The Microsoft of 1990's was over confident or rather reluctant to change. They were the first to conceptualize the tablet and smartphone but its execution was way off the mark. Apple did a good job with iPad and iPhone. Google didn't spend much energy , but was quick to respond to the market change. Meanwhile Microsoft was still reluctant to embrace the age of internet and mobility. Naturally as the market matured , people moved over to iOS and android.

It was much late to the market , that MS launched its WP and windows 8 tablet. Because it was so late , it enjoys less popularity and slower growth. But the good thing is that MS is changing. It has realized the strength and weakness and trying to work on them. but fortunes doesn't change over night. the growth of WP / Win tablet will take a lot of time and it makes sense to STAY in the market. Its like if you exit from the market now , you wont be existent et all.

Having said this , I would like to see MS a little bit more energetic towards WP. They are cash heavy company so they are not going to run out of cash reserves any time soon , besides they are profitable enough to invest in research , marketing etc.

The biggest drawback of MS marketing is LUMIA as a brand is more famous than Windows Phone. Every one says hey I have a Lumia , but most "android" people say I have an android phone.

Why is the MS marketing so ..... !!

[tgzgeorge]

WP has a chance if it can attract devs and first rate apps, it has a better chance than BlackBerry which even with their new OS and hardware they don't have the ecosystem. Its all about ecosystem that's why ios and android are top dogs. Without it you can't survive.

Its no longer about hardware, it frustrates me that people still think it is. Microsoft needs to really go out and market it just to take on no. 3 away from BlackBerry.

In terms of music, MS has something going for them with Xbox music, movies on the other hand is another story. But its all about ecosystem.

Google really is creating the future with all the stuff they're dreaming of and improvements in their current offerings ie maps, google glass and etc. Both ios and android benefits from that.

MS on the other hand does not have that kind of focus as they're bread and butter is still the desktop, they dump billions in mobile but very little to show for it.

We shall see what happens with windows phone as an alternative but I for one really enjoy the WP8.

[charming_arpit]

It does have a future. Rather Windows Phone is doing damn well especially with Nokia's push.

The Microsoft of 1990's was over confident or rather reluctant to change. They were the first to conceptualize the tablet and smartphone but its execution was way off the mark. Apple did a good job with iPad and iPhone. Google didn't spend much energy , but was quick to respond to the market change. Meanwhile Microsoft was still reluctant to embrace the age of internet and mobility. Naturally as the market matured , people moved over to iOS and android.

It was much late to the market , that MS launched its WP and windows 8 tablet. Because it was so late , it enjoys less popularity and slower growth. But the good thing is that MS is changing. It has realized the strength and weakness and trying to work on them. but fortunes doesn't change over night. the growth of WP / Win tablet will take a lot of time and it makes sense to STAY in the market. Its like if you exit from the market now , you wont be existent et all.

Having said this , I would like to see MS a little bit more energetic towards WP. They are cash heavy company so they are not going to run out of cash reserves any time soon , besides they are profitable enough to invest in research , marketing etc.

The biggest drawback of MS marketing is LUMIA as a brand is more famous than Windows Phone. Every one says hey I have a Lumia , but most "android" people say I have an android phone.

Why is the MS marketing so ..... !!

I don't agree with your Android comment. 95% of the Android phones in the market are Samsung. People show off that they own Samsung Galaxy instead of showing it as another Android phone. For example, Micromax in India is a heavyweight local Android phone manufacturer. They are copying exact designs of Samsung Galaxy series and selling it under Micromax branding at half the price. Now if I am a Galaxy owner who has spent 40k in buying another Android phone and that too under EMI scheme, i will feel ashamed if i call it an Android phone among my friends who own Micromax with almost same look and feel, same Android OS version, a quad core processor with 2 GB RAM and HD Display. All of this offered by Micromax at under 15k. I, as a Galaxy owner would never ever mention my phone as another Android phone. Instead, I will call it Samsung Galaxy just for a sake of it because I personally know that even Micromax is selling better build quality at 15K then what I bought at 40K at 0% EMI.

Yesterday one of my friend who owns Samsung Galaxy Note 2 and bought it in 0% EMI scheme (GOSH... a PHONE in EMI????) was calling Micromax Canvas owners illiterate. However, I see it other way round and I was smiling at his ignorance and also I could smell his jealousy. He was again and again iterating that he owns Samsung Galaxy which is far superior to Micromax Android phone. In my opinion, with same H/W configuration and same OS, he is actually a fool who spent almost thrice the amount to get same user experience. :)

As a Lumia 920 owner, I am always content with whatever I have got with me because I know that even after the launch of 925 and 928, my 920 still retains the same value. There is a clear cut difference in features offered by lower end Lumias and higher end Lumias. I am not jealous of other Windows Phone owners even if they own HTC , for that mater. I proudly say that I own a Lumia 920 which is a Windows Phone 8 device!

[cckgz4]

Didn't some of y'all say that if Microsoft didn't breakout in 2010, they should quit?

[lastword112]

See in terms of hardware, they are miles apart. I mean the Micromax offering and the Note 2. It is intelligent branding done by micromax, but the hardware being offered is weak in question. Please do some research on this.

[WanderingTraveler]

Windows Phone does have a chance to break out. Nokia provided the key to the door. Now, all Microsoft needs to do with that key is unlock each and every lock.
Personally, I think Microsoft is spending way too much effort on third-party apps. That said, a lot of devs hate Microsoft anyway so...

Anyway, I bought WP because I knew what kind of experience I'd have with each and every device. That's the very reason I stay away from OSes like Android, where OEMs can throw top-tier specs at a cheap phone and call it a day. (Example? Micromax. Karbonn. Other generic Android OEMs)

[Simon Tupper]

Didn't some of y'all say that if Microsoft didn't breakout in 2010, they should quit?

in 2010 I didn't even know what WP was. Its only in mid 2011 that I heard about it.

[MacDaMachine]

Microsoft and Apple needs to get things in motion. Every year Google pushes things further. Only thing saving Apple right now is the people buying what they know.

Microsoft needs a big push come the end of this year. Apps and features in WP Blue.

[Still Mostly Harmless]

.....

The biggest drawback of MS marketing is LUMIA as a brand is more famous than Windows Phone. Every one says hey I have a Lumia , but most "android" people say I have an android phone.

Why is the MS marketing so ..... !!

Actually Android has the same problem. A lot of people still refer to Android as "Droids" which was a marketing campaign created by Verizon when they released the original Droid in 2009 (Droid brand still exist).

[tgp]

Actually Android has the same problem. A lot of people still refer to Android as "Droids" which was a marketing campaign created by Verizon when they released the original Droid in 2009 (Droid brand still exist).

I agree. I hear lots of users saying they have a "Droid." THB, I wonder how many Android users wouldn't even be able to tell you that their phone's OS is Android.

[JamesDax]

Yes!

[Amran Nagal]

IDC just released their report.
Windows phone has over taken blackberry to become the number 3 OS :)

[theefman]

IDC just released their report.
Windows phone has over taken blackberry to become the number 3 OS :)

Well thats it then, isn't it? Game over for WP. /s :)