Having been around these forums since the dawn of Windows Phone 7, it's been interesting watching the community grow and evolve. In many ways, the forum has changed far more than Windows Phone has. Some of the things that we complained about back then, we're complaining about now. Unfortunately, the growing user base has made those complaints louder and more frequent.
Now, that isn't to take away from anyone that has a legitimate problem with the platform. Microsoft has definitely given us enough reasons to complain. Xbox Music... The less about that debacle, the better (which is a shame because XM on Windows 8 works fairly well). But there used to be a certain level of sanity to the complaints. Complaints were pointed at the right person for the right reasons. Now it seems like everything is dumped on Microsoft, whether it's their fault or not.
Take Skype for instance. I understand, Skype has serious competition on iOS from FaceTime and numerous other video chat services so there's a legitimate financial reason to focus on iOS first. I even understand that Skype may need certain APIs that aren't available on every WP because some don't have the latest update. But still, Skype should function the same on every platform. If the WP Skype team needs more programmers then get them more. It really does look bad when an independent app is lacking in features.
But, speaking of independent apps, let's talk about Office. People see Office on the iPhone as a sign that Microsoft doesn't care (or cares very little) about their WP Office users. Yet they always forget about the most important part, Office on WP is not an independent app. Office is baked into the OS, much like how Music+Video used to be baked into the OS. Now compare how many Xbox Music updates we get once it was stripped from the core OS. We get a ton, don't we? In fact, Microsoft updates Xbox Music whenever they're ready. Why? Because Xbox Music really needs it, lol! But aside from that, it's because updating parts of the OS involves carrier approval - a process that takes forever. That's not a problem on the iPhone. Microsoft can update Office on the iPhone whenever they want, so they do. And clearly, since WP already has Office, Microsoft has opted to wait until the next major OS update. This wouldn't even be a problem if not for...
...those damn carriers. Us old time AT&T users remember how painfully long it took for AT&T to release any updates for WP7. Or when AT&T would skip updates because... "Because lol we're AT&T, that's why." Yeah, it was bad. Thankfully, AT&T has gotten a lot better but that hasn't stopped carriers from being absolute d-bags with WP updates. I get it, you're upset because Black/Cyan/8.1 is taking forever. Rest assured WP users, you're not alone in this phenomenon. Transverse the internet and you'll see Android users echoing the same complaints. This is when you have to remember that Apple is the exception, not the rule. Yes, a handful of Android phones are getting Lollipop this year. In January, a few more will get Lollipop. And in February, a few more handsets will finally get Lollipop. So on and so on. At least in America, it takes months for carriers to roll out updates. And it seems completely arbitrary why some phones get updated and others don't. Microsoft isn't updating your phone because they hate you. The update is probably sitting on a server somewhere and Verizon is looking at it like, "Not yet..."
And here's another carrier related complaint... Microsoft needs to advertise, advertise, advertise! I don't disagree. Microsoft does need to advertise more, but they also advertise more than people want to give them credit for. I was watching shows on Hulu last night (which already has a ton of Surface ads on there) and I realized how odd it was that I haven't seen an Apple ad in well over a month. Like seriously, Apple does not advertise the iPhone. Apple doesn't have to. I am constantly bombarded with iPhone ads from the carriers themselves. Sprint, T-Mobile, AT&T, Verizon, they're all advertising the iPhone 6 for Apple. So yes, carriers are picking winners and losers. Carriers should be advertising their coverage, their competitive prices (*giggle*), their wide phone selection, their LTE speeds - NOPE! They're all advertising why you need an iPhone. The "get an iPhone" mentality is baked into the U.S. market and that's hard to overcome. So...
...while WP continues to increase it's user base and sell numbers, it's doing so overseas. Microsoft sold 9.3 million Lumias last quarter, and estimates say they sold over 10 million phones in total. It may not be Apple crushing numbers but that is still a lot of phones. That's great news... that immediately sinks to the second page whenever it's posted on the forums. No one wants to focus on the good news. Part of that is because the good news doesn't help with the app gap. Microsoft may have sold 10 million phones but sold barely any in North America. A lot of WC posters are from America. If WP isn't selling in America then American app developers aren't going to waste their time with it. Now we're stuck in this viscous cycle. Microsoft continues to sell more Lumias - Just not in America - So American app/game developers are passing on it - So the (very) vocal American community (i.e. W.Central) continues to be displeased with the platform. And while I'm not trying to say that only N. America has good app developers, I don't think it's unfair to say that a lot of iOS/Android's most sought after apps are from American developers. But people act like Microsoft isn't trying to fix the app gap or that Microsoft doesn't even care.
Microsoft hasn't invested billions into WP to simply not care. But when carriers are saying, "Hey man, just get an iPhone," that's a steep hill to climb. A hill so steep it nearly put BlackBerry out of business. And it did put WebOS/Symbian out of business. So kudos to Microsoft for even getting 10 million a quarter. Still, that doesn't stop me from cringing when I see that Microsoft updated their Android lock screen app. Fix your own live lock screen app first! GEEZ!!!
But ultimately, things aren't falling to pieces. Eventually Windows 10 will hit and WP will have tons of new features. And WP users will brag about all the new stuff. Then iOS9 will hit and WP users will be jealous again. Rinse and repeat. You see, Windows Central, you've become like every other smartphone community. Congratulations! :grin:
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