Attending a Nokia/Qualcomm/Microsoft panel. Anyone have suggestions for some questions I could ask?

[schandlich]

I am attending a Nokia/Qualcomm/Microsoft event called "Nokia, Microsoft & Qualcomm: Building a Winning Ecosystem". More info here. The guests include:

Jo Harlow - EVP and Head of Smart Devices Business Unit, Nokia
Heikki Norta - VP & General Manager, Connected Devices, Nokia
Tim McDonough - VP, Marketing, Qualcomm
Bryan Biniak - VP and General Manager, Global Partners & Apps Development, Nokia
David Bryant - VP of Advanced Engineering, Nokia
Todd Brix - General Manager, Windows Phone Apps Team, Microsoft Corporation

They will apparently be taking questions. Anyone have any ideas for a question(s) I could ask in the slim chance that I am able to ask one?

 

[BIGPADDY]

Can you ask them if there planning on using the Snapdragon 600 SoC or skipping ahead to 800.

 

[Microsoftjunkie]

Plz ask them are

-they collaborating on a special "soc(s)" just for Nokia windows phones. Something like , or a tweaked 800 with a dedicated core to the camera?

- What is some new battery optimizations that can be accomplished using Windows Phones and what Nokia intends to do with Qualcomm to address the need of longer battery life?

-How will Nokias/Microsofts/ and Qualcomms relationship evolve going towards WP9? What technologies will be coming out and will there be any "specific" technologies that "only" Windows Phones will showcase?

Thx alot!

 

[LMZR]

Yeah, ask them if they're gonna upgrade their SOC's for the next line up of Lumias.

 

[schandlich]

Thanks for the suggestions!

 

[GraemeT]

I think pushing them on battery life would be good. Whether that be OS optimization or improved battery technology. I'd be very interested to hear their response. Thanks.

 

[psudotechzealot]

When can we expect WP to put 3GB+ of ram in their devices?

 

[a5cent]

When can we expect WP to put 3GB+ of ram in their devices?

or... when can we expect people to stop asking for useless hardware upgrades that the OS has absolutely no use for. ;-)

Sorry, no offence. Just as is is now most of that RAM would sit there, empty and idle.

A better question would be if Microsoft intends to change WP so it can make use of higher RAM configurations, and what the benefits would be.

 

[a5cent]

I think pushing them on battery life would be good. Whether that be OS optimization or improved battery technology. I'd be very interested to hear their response. Thanks.

I like this question, but would like to add a twist:

WP has a few areas where it sacrifices some capabilities to improve battery life (only one app can run at a time, background apps are limited in number and run at most every 30 minutes, some processing available only when plugged in), yet despite these restrictions, WP doesn't offer notably better battery life than comparable Android handsets. Why not? Is WP screwing up elsewhere? Are WP's restrictions not as helpful as expected? At what point will we see a payoff for these restrictions?

Would be great to hear how MS responds. Record answer please! Would be awesome! Thx

 

[psudotechzealot]

or... when can we expect people to stop asking for useless hardware upgrades that the OS has absolutely no use for. ;-)

Sorry, no offence. Just as is is now most of that RAM would sit there, empty and idle.

Never, people(including me) will not stop asking. :grin: Admit it A5cent, you hate me.

A better question would be if Microsoft intends to change WP so it can make use of higher RAM configurations, and what the benefits would be.

This is ok, but I prefer my question.

 

[a5cent]

Never, people(including me) will not stop asking. :grin: Admit it A5cent, you hate me.

This is ok, but I prefer my question.

lol, if I worked for MS and had to answer your question, and another dozen like it, then, maybe...

If you want to learn why that question makes no technical sense for WP, you can read up on WP's memory management over at MSDN. I'm not sure... it might bore you to death (so be careful), but I find it quite interesting

Also, I can already tell you what the answer to to your question will be (if we're lucky):

"With GDR3 the RAM configurations will be raised to X and Y GB, but we have no plans to support 3 GB at this time. WP is a very efficient OS, so it doesn't need it yadda yadda yadda..."

Unfortunately, if they don't want to reveal specifics about future hardware chassis specs, we'll get none-answers no matter what we ask, which I'm somewhat expecting.

 

[a5cent]

Delete me

 

[rmichael75]

Ask them why it is getting so long to get quad core and will it take another 2 years for octacore when their competition is already on octa core.. It is about specs right now and not about how things work.. Andriod over came IOS with specs.. Windows will need to play the same game as the store is so small and they cannot play it.

 

[jgbstetson]

Ask them why it is getting so long to get quad core and will it take another 2 years for octacore when their competition is already on octa core.. It is about specs right now and not about how things work.. Andriod over came IOS with specs.. Windows will need to play the same game as the store is so small and they cannot play it.

I disagree. The spec bubble is bursting or will very shortly. Even Google is focusing on the experience more and the specs less. Exhibit A is Moto X.

More than specs, I think the reason android is beating Apple is simple: choice. Apple makes one phone.

 

[a5cent]

^ Just like jgbstetson, I also disagree. Even more important than choice however, is the fact that most Android devices are dirt cheap. It's not the Galaxy S4's that are responsible for Androids word wide market share, but the $100 devices (off contract).

If WP starts playing the specs game, then it is doomed to become the same fragmented mess that is Android.

 

[rmichael75]

I disagree with the above pple who are disagreeing with me.

Flagship has to be the same specs as your competition or else you are gone.. It is becoming like the laptop market. When I go looking for a laptop, I will not buy a single core laptop. I will buy a cheap dual core laptop. If I want a good laptop I will buy Core I7. If you don't have a core I7 laptop, you cannot compete on the high end.. Company makes money with high end mainly.


So windows is lagging but they need to have top of the line flagship.. or you should have a ecosystem to die for, then you can dictate it.. you don't have a ecosystem (you are one tenth of your competetion), nor can you have specs to fight it out. You will lose.

BTW I am a nokia fan.. and I have 5 to 6 lumia phones in my family. So I am not someone argueing for the sake of it.

 

[a5cent]

When I go looking for a laptop, I will not buy a single core laptop. I will buy a cheap dual core laptop. If I want a good laptop I will buy Core I7. If you don't have a core I7 laptop, you cannot compete on the high end.. Company makes money with high end mainly.

I do not doubt that YOU buy your hardware as described. However, 95% of consumers do not. The specs race in the laptop world has been over for years. Even an i3 easily achieves what most want from their laptops. Most people would rather pay less, than pay for something they have no use for.

In the smartphone space that point isn't here yet, but it's shifting, just like jgbstetson mentioned.

In the mean time, the important thing is education: Should consumers want an octacore CPU that runs smartphone apps slower than the quad core alternative? Probably not. What consumers should want is the fastest CPU. That is where consumers are still screwing up.

 

[rmichael75]

sure.. All I am saying is there are some pple who go with the specs and some sales pple use this as a tool to push the item. I think Windows should not restrict manufactores from using what they want to use and it take a long time for them to provide support. be is quad core or 1080 P... looks like Nokia is the manufacturer who is really pushing windows. Till Nokia, I think nobody (HTC or samsung) pushed MS to get these things ready.. they were pushing android and hence they are leading..

 

[a5cent]

I think Windows should not restrict manufactures from using what they want

If that was possible without negative consequences I would instantly agree with you, but it is not.

Sacrificing CPU and GPU consistency (a.k.a fragmentation) and with it WP's ability to perform superiorly on low end hardware (WP's most important selling point in developing nations BTW), is far too high a price to pay solely for improved specs based marketability (most of which is just lies). Education is admittedly the harder, but still the better path.

The ensuing fragmentation would also quickly stifle WP store growth. WP currently enjoys significantly more developer support than its market share justifies. This is often overlooked, but it is not a coincidence. This is because MS works hard to make it easy to develop apps for WP that work reliably on any device without requiring months of testing. WP's standardized hardware platform is a very important part of that. Remove it, and many developers stop developing apps for WP, as it becomes more like a chor, rather than fun. The app situation is critical enough as it is. This is one of the areas most in need of improvement. We don't need fragmentation worsening it any further.

In theory your idea sounds good, but in practice the negative side effects far outweigh the positives.

This is why MS is sticking with hardware standardization, despite all the calls to sacrifice it.

 

[tgp]

Even more important than choice however, is the fact that most Android devices are dirt cheap. It's not the Galaxy S4's that are responsible for Androids word wide market share, but the $100 devices (off contract).

Actually it's not just the low end. For a quarter or two in 2012 the Galaxy S3 singlehandedly outsold the iPhone 4S. The Note 2 also did well. These phones are not budget phones! Yes, the cheap Androids helped get the OS to 75% market share, but the high end ones are also responsible.

I disagree with the above pple who are disagreeing with me.

Noooo, seriously??? :grin:

Flagship has to be the same specs as your competition or else you are gone.. It is becoming like the laptop market. When I go looking for a laptop, I will not buy a single core laptop. I will buy a cheap dual core laptop. If I want a good laptop I will buy Core I7. If you don't have a core I7 laptop, you cannot compete on the high end.. Company makes money with high end mainly.

So windows is lagging but they need to have top of the line flagship.. or you should have a ecosystem to die for, then you can dictate it.. you don't have a ecosystem (you are one tenth of your competetion), nor can you have specs to fight it out. You will lose.

I agree with you. I sell computers some, and a lot of customers definitely look at specs even though they often don't even know what they mean or know what is sufficient. They prefer a cheap model with a 750GB hard drive and 8GB RAM over a better quality machine with a 320GB hard drive and 4GB RAM, even though they use it primarily for email & Facebook. Remember, those of us on these forums are probably more knowlegable than the average consumer, and we know what's important and what isn't. Others will simply look at the numbers and go with the highest. If higher specs increase sales, then that's what WP needs to provide, whether or not it's necessary for performance.