The Extremely Trivial Reasons I stay with Windows Phone

smoheath

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I love a lot of things about windows phone since I jumped on board back in November of 2012. In my mind there are definite value propositions (or differentiators) to stay with WP over android or iPhone. Some of these include: MS Office, simple, awesome cameras, more affordable, Cortana, etc. But when I think about it, the reasons I stay with windows phone are completely trivial and almost visceral.

1. Capacitive buttons - whenever I use someone's iPhone or Samsung galaxy phone I get extremely annoyed that I have to put effort into pushing the home button. It is such a stupid reason, especially since it requires almost no effort in pushing these buttons. But when you come from lovely capacitive home, back, and search buttons, a physical button is a deal breaker. Also, on screen capacitive buttons are good, but inferior to the always there capacitive ones.

2. The Back Button - once again, whenever I use a friend's iPhone I have no idea how they get around the interface. There have been a few times when I am doing something and ask, "How do I go back just one page?" and the response is, "Hit the home button." Then I respond, "But that's not what I want to do, I just want to go back to the previous page." I know most apps have internal back buttons, but not all do. I really don't know how the iPhone was ever considered simple; it confuses the heck out of me. I realize that I could probably get used to it after one week of owning an iPhone, but that week sounds terrible.

3. Color - I feel like WP was the first OS to have hardware that was colorful, and not just a black or white slab. Things are obviously changing and more manufacturers are bringing color to their devices, but I love that WP (mostly Nokia) was bold enough to make phones with "punch in face" colors.

4. Home Screen Design - I love that I can make my WP personal and live. The iPhone home screen is stagnant and dull. "So... on your iPhone you can change the background and put some apps in folders?" woop-di-freaking-do. One could say that android has the same customizable and live (with widgets) home screen. But for some reason, in my mind, it just doesn't have the same feel as windows phone does.

And finally, the most important...

I want to be different.

I don't want to be just another shmo with a phone that everyone and their dog has. When I'm on the bus or on campus, all I see is either iPhone's or Galaxy's (to a degree, obviously). I feel like your phone says a lot about you. And owning a windows phone says, "I'm different, and I want to be." I also really like that hardly anyone owns a windows phone. Cuz when I do meet someone with a windows phone while I'm out and about, we have this crazy cool exchange where we discuss how awesome it is owning a windows phone. No joke, this has happened multiple times. Call me a hipster, but there is a part of me that doesn't want WP to get huge market share, just because I like being different.

Just thought I'd throw out a positive thread since there has been so much dribble in these forums of late. Feel free to add other random and trivial reasons you stick with the great underdog that is Windows Phone.
 

matt john2

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Things I really love that I only found in windows phone is the dark screen background, brightness settings and the battery saver. Lowest screen brightness possible is a huge win for me(for night time use of course). Not to mention how clean the interface is.
 

oussama ait

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I love wp because of the metro design language on the UI and the apps like the youtube apps for example ... Everything with metro feels better than the official with the metro UI language ... Hut guess thats bout to change with windows 10
 

raycpl

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On my 920... It's the deep blacks on the screen.... Makes WP minimalism stands out.

....and no plastic protection over the screen. I wear mine naked, fully confident that it wont get scratch...
 

fatclue_98

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it's a mass produced, consumer electronics device.

carry a rock in your pocket, and you'll be different. carrying a phone, not different.

With less than 3% worldwide adoption, I'd say that's different. For all we know the OP is probably in an area where there are few, if any, other users.
 

negative1ne

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To me it's not trivial.

But, having a hardware keyboard is one of the main reasons I stay with Windows Phone 7.8

Also the Zune interface for the music, is the other thing that makes it the most useful to me.

later
-1
 

F3rzz

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Being different for the sake of it is stupid in my books.

I love my Lumia 920 and I think it's gorgeous, I feel gorgeous using it /also when not using it tho/, i like that it's different, but because it's a good type of different, so if the phone was ugly and worked like **** I wouldn't care about different.

Taking about working like ****, the music app gets on my nerves so much, I would buy an iPhone right now if I got the money for it... But as I will probably only be able to change phones by mid year or later, I will know how the music app behaves on Windows 10 and decide.

I repeat, I love Windows phone and Lumia, but i want it to succeed, not be an useless piece of niche crap.
 

matt john2

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Being different for the sake of it is stupid in my books.

I love my Lumia 920 and I think it's gorgeous, I feel gorgeous using it /also when not using it tho/, i like that it's different, but because it's a good type of different, so if the phone was ugly and worked like **** I wouldn't care about different.

Taking about working like ****, the music app gets on my nerves so much, I would buy an iPhone right now if I got the money for it... But as I will probably only be able to change phones by mid year or later, I will know how the music app behaves on Windows 10 and decide.

I repeat, I love Windows phone and Lumia, but i want it to succeed, not be an useless piece of niche crap.

I also agree with you at some point, you see I love windows phone but iphone and IOS/Androids are much more user friendly. OS features and support are the main thing in smartphone, WP don't have like what they have yet. Some say WP is like the middle of ios and android but to me, it just not quite there yet. So just like you I might have to leave windows phone for some time until WP can finally compete with IOS and Android with confidence to win, well that might take quite some time.
 

taymur

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The back button is amazing. The keyboard is even more amazing, the way they mixed Swype and type is I think the best.

But people don't see these things, unless they make the switch.
 

ohgood

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With less than 3% worldwide adoption, I'd say that's different. For all we know the OP is probably in an area where there are few, if any, other users.


that's a good point.

you (or he) may need to yell "But mine is different, seeeeeee ???" and show it to people for them to notice. but then being the one guy standing on a table yelling would be different too, so a phone wouldn't be needed to accomplish it.
 

phMoschetta

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The first time I've ever used a WP device was when I bough a Lumia for my mom. She owned an Android device, but she never really learned how to use it, she seemed so confused about it. She also owns an iPad. Windows Phone has definetely the most user-friendly interface of all platforms, specially for those not too familiar with smartphones.

Maybe Android and iOS users don't agree, since both platforms share a very similar interface, while WP introduced a new kind of interface.
 

Zippier

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Best line ever:

"I realize that I could probably get used to it after one week of owning an iPhone, but that week sounds terrible."

Thanks for the post. I agree with you whole-heartedly. Especially about the being different.
 

raycpl

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Two days after leaving her iphone and now using her 720, my 60yr old sister inlaw can't be happier. "Simpler, easier. Great screen" "wow, how technology as advance the keyboard... it's so accurate.. " as she started using wordflow...

Edit: Forgot to add, she was using a iPhone5
 

muneshyne21

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If we are talking extremely trivial...

-I love the little click sound when unlocking my phone. And the click sound when I put it to sleep
-The font used on the apps list
-The sharper corners on my 928
-I love when Cortana "Winks" at me
-The spacing between the tiles is perfect
-The different levels of happiness the messaging icon makes depending on the amount of unread text messages I have.
-The little bounce the tiles have when I open a multiple condensed tile
-The truly sincere and interested tone in someones voice when they ask what kind of phone I have when I'm playing with it. This is followed by extended periods of staring at my screen.

I can probably go on for a while.
 

smoheath

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If we are talking extremely trivial...

-I love the little click sound when unlocking my phone. And the click sound when I put it to sleep
-The font used on the apps list
-The sharper corners on my 928
-I love when Cortana "Winks" at me
-The spacing between the tiles is perfect
-The different levels of happiness the messaging icon makes depending on the amount of unread text messages I have.
-The little bounce the tiles have when I open a multiple condensed tile
-The truly sincere and interested tone in someones voice when they ask what kind of phone I have when I'm playing with it. This is followed by extended periods of staring at my screen.

I can probably go on for a while.


It really is the little things that count... The happiness level on the messaging icon is something I only discovered recently and it is pretty dang cool.
 

TechFreak1

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Great thread!

My trivial reasons are:

1) The three separate buttons, when I pick up an iphone I'm always left fumbling for a minute to or two to get the hang of it again..

2) Dedicated camera button, always find it awkward tapping the screen and often blurring the photo in the process as inevitably I tap it too hard I don't have "dainty" or "delicate" fingers:winktongue: unlike some other guys. I will no longer buy a windows phone without it

3) Micro Usb port - I can use any cable I want and not restricted to the use of a proprietary cable.

4) I guess this is isolated to Lumias? The camera placement I'm now always putting my finger accidentally over the camera lens as they are usually at the top, top left or top right on almost every phone.

5) Being able to pin separate folders as separate tiles on my start screen, it's a small thing but made life soo much easier. I could at a glance see my team's email, email's from specific colleagues, clients and respond to them in the order priority on the day without having to jump in and out of inboxes to see what needs to be attended or scroll through the notification centre or going through widgets spending time which I did not have.

6) I can pin websites directly to my start screen for quick access instead of scrolling through favourites as that list can get reaaaaaallly long over time.

7) The option to switch from dark and light backgrounds for the O/S in general, sometimes when I give my phone to a elderly relative to make a call it is sometimes to dark for them. The light backgrounds is handy (combined with the ease of access settings) for readability.

8) Able to change default camera apps

9) Jump list & search in the application list

It really is the little things that count... The happiness level on the messaging icon is something I only discovered recently and it is pretty dang cool.

Wow, I never noticed that!!!

It has always been the same expression since the day I got it :shocked:
 

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