As a developer, the McLaren news is even more chilling.

[Kevin N Smith]

EDIT: As there is obviously sufficient demand at least at this time, I will continue updating apps, such as Atmosphere, which will be getting a major update, and pushing WP forward, more so with my latest project, Lifeline (Read about it here). However, I will be porting all relevant current and future projects to Android in the future. Note that this is not the entire reason behind the creation of this thread - Which was to discuss the future of the platform - and that the discussion may continue.

I am an Application developer who has always had faith in Windows Phone and kept all of my apps exclusive to this platform. I have released apps like Atmosphere, which has been featured here on WPCentral and the Windows Store multiple times and receives over 10,000 downloads every two weeks. In the past, I have released apps that patched holes in WP such as Speech, which was essentially "Cortana before Cortana". The point is, I am extremely loyal to the WP8 platform and have developed for it even during the darkest times when every other developer was porting to android and iOS. The McLaren news, coupled with the latest news about layoffs of software teams, cancellation of feature phones that paved the way for new smartphone users to adopt WP8, among other things, sends one single, chilling message about the future of windows phone - that the future simply does not exist.

Windows Phone is struggling with marketshare now - when people were hyped and excited for features like Cortana, 8.1, and the MCLaren. This is the time when windows phone should be flourishing. But it isn't. Now, following this news, I can't even begin to imagine the fallout. Initial comments are reporting that people are quitting windows phone en masse, people who follow this website, and the ONLY people that follow this website are loyal WP8.1 users.

If people that have been loyal to the platform for years are leaving, imagine regular smartphone users who buy the most heavily advertised item on the market. These WP users will flock to the next generation of phones, such as the iPhone 6 and the next Android phones, not even giving WP a single thought. Why? Because there is nothing competitive on the market for the user to buy. No one wants a one-generation-old "flagship" device. And when the only WP8.1 flagship device is an outdated flagship device, that translates into sales stalling to a halt.

I'm still deciding if I will continue developing for Windows, but I am most certanly not staying with it. Microsoft might as well have comitted suicide with some of these recent news stories, and when MS commits suicide, users and developers leave.

 

[chezm]

I can completely see your prospective here and agree all the latest news, more specifically related to WP, its concerning to say the least. It does look like MS's goal now is to prioritize low end phones possibly for enterprise business models, not particularly made for individual use but administrative, a tool to overtake BB's old clients.

I had a WP7 (Focus), later came back to WP8 with a 920, and finally only 3 months ago came back again to a 1020 extremely surprised by 8.1 (but extremely pissed about the EoL announcement, hopefully this doesnt apply to SW) and excited about the bright future...which looks to be diminishing day by day. My HW upgrade is up Nov 2015, so theres a lot of time for me, but if I was offered a brand new latest phone i would likely chose an Android device. As much as I do love WP I don't have much faith anymore MS is going to invest in it that would benefit me as a single user for everyday personal use.

 

[thelostsoul]

What this really boils down to is that Microsoft really needs to start controlling their leaky rumor mill better. While I'm pretty sure many of the "leaks" were actually authorized, if no one saw McLaren just like no one knows anything about the iPhone until maybe a month or two before launch, no one would be disappointed right now. Plus, because only that leaked, there's still a possibility that they have something better in the works, but no one knows yet. Which without leaking everything, no one knows about and can only feel let down here.

I completely agree with you though. My first reaction was that the 3D Touch thing seemed rather gimmicky, but such a canceled product is a big problem. Time will tell where this goes, but no doubt about it, this is a PR nightmare for them.

 

[twint7787]

I think you are more worried as a developer than anyone here, which I can understand. But people on these comments saying they are leaving means absolutely nothing. They have talked about leaving for the past 2 months lol, and if they leave then it is what it is. Microsoft's position in the mobile space in the United States is insignificant and would have likely been unchanged by this phone. I am all for them killing a product if it isn't going to be a blockbuster and perform correctly. What troubles me more is that we have no information on any other high end phones for this year so I am assuming it is the 930/Icon or bust. Its must be hard when literally no other manufacturer besides Nokia (now MS) is coming out with phones. So how about lets all chill out and remember that you can keep your phone for more than two years lol.

 

[fiveaces01]

Any feeling on what is driving this lack of commitment to the Mobile platform from Windows? I love my phone Nokia 920...and the OS it runs. Yes, there are the occasional quirks, but overall it is a very easy to understand and usable phone. A year and half ago I convinced my 80 year old father to replace his LG flip phone with a Samsung Focus WP7. I did this because he had already been exposed to using windows on his PC and I figured it would be the easiest way for him to convert to a SmartPhone. He has since upgraded to the Nokia 920 and just loves showing his friends the high quality display and pictures he can now take. He is able to easily use Cortana to text me and his grandkids and share pictures. His generation (I am referring to the retired folks) is an untapped market in my opinion that windows should be looking at

 

[meddyrainzo]

If they don't have any high end phone this holiday period, then for sure WP is dead. They have the iPhone 6, note 4 and possibly the so called "S5 prime" to compete against. A lot of people are tired of playing the waiting game just to get screwed over all the time.

They better have some back up plan in (surface kind of phone would be acceptable) the works cause MS just seems like a mess.

To make matters worse, the guy that said something great is coming to WP just got laid off after 15 years with MS. Smh.
I'm beginning to feel like I'm rooting for the wrong team.

 

[tgp]

I'm beginning to feel like I'm rooting for the wrong team.

You're not a Chicago Cubs fan as well, are you? ;-)

 

[theefman]

So an unannounced phone gets cancelled and all of a sudden WP is finished? All the other recent news is about restructuring and focusing on wp as their platform so i don't see how a rumored phone getting cancelled means anything. Coupled with the fact that you don't actually know what Microsoft's plans are I would say your prognosis of failure is premature, because to be honest this would not be the first time WP has been without a flagship device yet its not dead yet. So until its actually dead I'm not sure anyone can call it that.

 

[jjmurphy]

I actually see the recent news as a short term pain, then a long term gain. I would venture a guess that the OS teams dropped a lot of dead weight. The cancelled phone could have been canned due to it being gimmicky, and MS recognizing that.

​I really think that focusing on strengths is the best thing long term.

 

[loofmodnar]

I don't see why people are freaking out. It's not like they cancelled it after it was in production and about to be released. This phone didn't actually exist, it was a prototype. Not to mention mostly unconfirmed rumors.

They were testing a 3D interface apparently didn't like how it was going so canned it. I'm sure they trash/redesign new features all the time. Every company does. Just because this phone isn't being released doesn't mean there won't be a high-end phone. They JUST said they're focusing on high and low end phones earlier this week. I highly doubt they've only got one high-end phone in development.

 

[smoledman]

Nadella is whole-sale cancelling every pet project initiated by Ballmer. He wants to leave his own stamp on the company. Remember that Steve Jobs was doing the same thing back in the mid-1990s before they started to turn it around with the iPod.

 

[salmanahmad]

I haven't read what you've said completely however I wanted to say Atmosphere never worked for me however it had an amazing design and great functionality.

I can only hope to become a dev as good as you one day, I just had one question.

Where did you start learning C# from?
Sent from my RM-914_im_mea3_380 using Tapatalk

 

[jjmurphy]

I haven't read what you've said completely however I wanted to say Atmosphere never worked for me however it had an amazing design and great functionality.

I can only hope to become a dev as good as you one day, I just had one question.

Where did you start learning C# from?
Sent from my RM-914_im_mea3_380 using Tapatalk

​If you haven't done C# for complete beginners on Channel 9, do it today. It's really easy, and a great way to get started even if you don't know the basics.

 

[Abdul Rahman Noor]

I don't see why people are freaking out. It's not like they cancelled it after it was in production and about to be released. This phone didn't actually exist, it was a prototype. Not to mention mostly unconfirmed rumors.

People are freaking out because, in the absence of any true flagship the McLaren was the one thing they were looking forward to.
The forums are ripe with threads where users ask if McLaren will have this or that feature - sure, people can dream, but its not a nice feeling when you're rudely woken up and realise your beautiful dream was nothing more than a figment of your imagination

 

[Kevin N Smith]

I haven't read what you've said completely however I wanted to say Atmosphere never worked for me however it had an amazing design and great functionality.

I can only hope to become a dev as good as you one day, I just had one question.

Where did you start learning C# from?
Sent from my RM-914_im_mea3_380 using Tapatalk

I begun programming with Visual Basic 6.0 and quickly transitioned to C# on Visual Studio. After learning the language by examing source code on stackOverflow, I was making those "bloatware" apps, the kind of junkware people accidentally load on their computers. As I matured and learned more, I began exploring the WP platforms, starting with WP7. At this point, I was still self-taught from online resources and had yet to develop a hit app. This changed a few years later with WP8 , when I released speech. The app is still available to download and is still being maintained at http://www.windowsphone.com/s?appid=e253b925-9f77-49cb-927c-7b64ae375646. Another year passed. Then, I released Atmosphere to coincide with the 8.1 public release, immediately updating it multiple times to fix bugs.

 

[Kevin N Smith]

I haven't read what you've said completely however I wanted to say Atmosphere never worked for me however it had an amazing design and great functionality.

I can only hope to become a dev as good as you one day, I just had one question.

Where did you start learning C# from?
Sent from my RM-914_im_mea3_380 using Tapatalk

Also what is wrong with atmosphere? I fixed the crashes recently.

 

[loofmodnar]

People are freaking out because, in the absence of any true flagship the McLaren was the one thing they were looking forward to.
The forums are ripe with threads where users ask if McLaren will have this or that feature - sure, people can dream, but its not a nice feeling when you're rudely woken up and realise your beautiful dream was nothing more than a figment of your imagination

Dreams are imagination.

 

[chezm]

I love it how with all the NEGATIVE media going on with Microsoft about layoffs and products/complete division's being stopped, people can turn around to the ones whom raised personal concerns to call them right out "immature" (i think premature was the proposed term) or to 'chill out and relax'. Listen, the situation here is we're all WP users (hopefully most of us) and have a right to start this type of discussion without feeling we're jumping AHEAD too quick. Sure, we don't know the future of Microsoft...thats the concern, not that products are getting cancelled prematurely or people just want to rant for no reason. To be honest, we havent known MS's plans for WP in how long now? I want WP to succeed, i agree we dont know whats going on...and its tiring waiting around to find out, MS is full of vague statements, can those defending MS really say they're confident in the future of WP? I cannot. Thats all

 

[tgp]

The stock market seemed to like the news of layoffs yesterday. But then today Microsoft stock is down again. Possibly because they announced that they're dropping Nokia X and McLaren and other things? But when you lay off 14% of your workforce, something in the lineup has to go.

 

[Editguy1900]

The stock market seemed to like the news of layoffs yesterday. But then today Microsoft stock is down again. Possibly because they announced that they're dropping Nokia X and McLaren and other things? But when you lay off 14% of your workforce, something in the lineup has to go.

The stock actually closed at no change. The stock market doesn't determine everything, but obviously investors think MSFT is making the right moves. It wasn't long ago that the stock price was hovering around $26, and now it's $44.53. It's definitely a positive for their financial well-being.