Did MS drop the ball?

[eric12341]

I think Nokia dropped the ball by having Elop say that they were going to show all of WP8 today. Which now was an unkept promise.

 

[X0LARIUM]

It was a hush-hush job. But that's not going to change the fact that the phones are going to be like this and nothing different. Yes, they had to hurry cause of the BIG i.

But, over all, I think they screwed up.

 

[sinime]

I voted hat they hit it out of the park, but please note... there wasn't an appropriate option for it was OK. They don't hit it out of the park or drop the ball. The event was OK and confirmed previous leaks. They should have had release dates though.

 

[jhoff80]

I'm kind of concerned that maybe WP8 just isn't actually even done yet. I mean, why else would we only be getting an SDK preview at this late stage in the game?

 

[oblivman]

Yes, both Microsoft and Nokia dropped the ball. They announced too soon and unveiled devices that are not impressive. They won't be available for two months, repeating the mistake of the Microsoft Surface announcement.

To top it off Google announces that there are 1.3 million Android devices activated every day. Probably more Android phone activated in a month than Windows Phones sold since 2010:shocked:

You cannot tell me with a straight face that the Surface announcement was a mistake. LOL.

 

[Villain]

Was it a WP8 event or a nokia event? a nokia event showing 2 devices... and they showed enough to impress IMO.

not impressed with not getting a release date or carrier info though

 

[X0LARIUM]

I clicked "What event... "

 

[vp710]

This should have been the event where MS would be like "Here is the killer Windows Phone 8 feature and why you need a Windows Phone 8 device and here is our premier OEM who will show you how they took advantage of it"

Yeah, this is the way the other guys do it. MS is more about the incremental build up rather than the frenzy.

You probably know this already but I think it's worth repeating: one killer WP8 feature? Deep Skype integration and free VOIP built into the OS.

 

[Funtastic Software]

The Lumia 920 seem's like an awesome phone, and i'm definitely getting one as soon as possible. I still feel like they screwed up the event somewhat though, by not coming out with release dates, prices etc.

I got this "I HAVE to get this phone right now" feeling while watching the presentation (Same thing happened with Surface), but now a month later i don't even think about it anymore. Chances are i might get one when it arrives, but if it had been released right away. I'd already have a pre-order in place, just waiting for it to arrive at my doorstep

 

[pjs37]

The Lumia 920 seem's like an awesome phone, and i'm definitely getting one as soon as possible. I still feel like they screwed up the event somewhat though, by not coming out with release dates, prices etc.

I got this "I HAVE to get this phone right now" feeling while watching the presentation (Same thing happened with Surface), but now a month later i don't even think about it anymore. Chances are i might get one when it arrives, but if it had been released right away. I'd already have a pre-order in place, just waiting for it to arrive at my doorstep

That sums up my feelings pretty well actually. I love the devices. I WANT the devices. I want to throw money at them and buy one....but I know in a month it will all be gone from my system and I will be like "Well I waited this long whats a few more months to see what next years new big thing is" Surface may be the exception but that's more because I have so little faith in MS's OEM partners botching up the tablet market for so long.

Yeah, this is the way the other guys do it. MS is more about the incremental build up rather than the frenzy.

You probably know this already but I think it's worth repeating: one killer WP8 feature? Deep Skype integration and free VOIP built into the OS.

Unfortunately I don't think Skype makes people that excited anymore but hey I could totally be wrong. If it is then I wish they would do a better job advertising that fact other than saying "Yeah it will have it" they need to pour information about how it helps us as consumers and why we want it. It is tricky though because the carriers will hate it.

 

[AngryNil]

The announcement was fantastic, the timing was terrible. It seems that Nokia and Microsoft are just caught out with bad timing after bad timing.

Everything about Nokia's strategy recently has stunk - the N9 was released first, lessening the Lumia 800/900's wow factor, then the 808 was released, which is now causing people to declare the 920's camera a sham. What's the point of showing all your cards then making half-arsed moves with them?

On the software side, Microsoft announced Mango way too early, but is now announcing Apollo way too late. Since they haven't said much, what they should have done is schedule a WP8 announcement event after the iPhone's and release the beta SDK, then hold this event with Nokia in October right before the devices shipped.

 

[aubreyq]

The announcement was fantastic, the timing was terrible. It seems that Nokia and Microsoft are just caught out with bad timing after bad timing.

Everything about Nokia's strategy recently has stunk - the N9 was released first, lessening the Lumia 800/900's wow factor, then the 808 was released, which is now causing people to declare the 920's camera a sham. What's the point of showing all your cards then making half-arsed moves with them?

On the software side, Microsoft announced Mango way too early, but is now announcing Apollo way too late. Since they haven't said much, what they should have done is schedule a WP8 announcement event after the iPhone's and release the beta SDK, then hold this event with Nokia in October right before the devices shipped.

I completely agree.

 

[tk-093]

The Nokia/MS and Moto/Google events were both badly timed and just strange. It was an attempt to get in front of the iPhone announcement. No pricing and release dates for the Nokia phones or the RAZR HD phones. Heck the RAZR HD phones won't even come with Jelly Bean at launch.

Motorola might be under the gun more because of one reason.... All iPhone users on Verizon are still under contract. The VZW iPhone 4 launched Feb. 10th, meaning existing iPhone users can't upgrade without paying full price until December 10th. (Obviously without paying full price.)

EDIT: Oops, you can upgrade 4 months in advance, so October 10th, so the iPhone 4 users will start to become eligible a few weeks after the 5 launch. My bad.

This probably means the bulk of iPhone activations at launch might be first time iPhone buyers, which if they are already on Verizon are going to come from Droids and dumbphones. (is there a difference? Haha, I kid, I kid.) this will impact Nokia too obviously, but in the case of yesterday, the Moto event was Verizon only and that's the context I'm speaking to.

 

[pjs37]

The news about the SDK is very disappointing. I have no idea what the heck MS is trying to hide anything for. iOS6 is basically finalized and is being released next week likely. Android 4.1 is done and that's it for Android for a bit I think. All that is left is WP8 and honestly I can't see them doing anything with it that will truly be stolen that quick. Once its released end of October everyone will know anyways. To hamstring your developers like this is suicidal. I feel like they have no idea what they are actually doing in a lot of way.

 

[PG2G]

The news about the SDK is very disappointing. I have no idea what the heck MS is trying to hide anything for.

I don't think they are trying to hide anything in the SDK, it seems more like it and/or the documentation aren't ready for the masses.

 

[jhoff80]

I don't think they are trying to hide anything in the SDK, it seems more like it and/or the documentation aren't ready for the masses.

Yeah, the OS itself isn't even finished yet, how can they be expected to have a finished SDK?

 

[pjs37]

Yeah, the OS itself isn't even finished yet, how can they be expected to have a finished SDK?

Um that in and of itself is horrifying if they don't have the OS finished yet and we are a month and a half away from release....

 

[blehblehbleh]

The news about the SDK is very disappointing. I have no idea what the heck MS is trying to hide anything for. iOS6 is basically finalized and is being released next week likely. Android 4.1 is done and that's it for Android for a bit I think. All that is left is WP8 and honestly I can't see them doing anything with it that will truly be stolen that quick. Once its released end of October everyone will know anyways. To hamstring your developers like this is suicidal. I feel like they have no idea what they are actually doing in a lot of way.

For me, I'm glad MS is trying to hide what they got, especially in this day and age when no one can keep their damn mouth shut, whether there's more to be seen or not. Hopefully more companies will do the same so that there will be a return to major market shifts like in the past, where innovation was spawned because a competitor was so shocked that they got their *** handed to them.

As for app development, I see the point, but the .NET framework is built for quick development. The games might take longer because of the native coding and game engine stuff, but metro apps shouldn't be that tough. While that poses a risk on the apps that drop on release day, there should still be a good enough amount of time provided a big name app is finished through the x-mas season, no?

 

[jhoff80]

Um that in and of itself is horrifying if they don't have the OS finished yet and we are a month and a half away from release....

True. According to The Verge's article about a November 2 release date,

Microsoft is said to be close to finalizing its Windows Phone 8 software, with a Release to Manufacturing (RTM) due next week.

What concerns me (and I've mentioned on another thread here) is if that means it's done, or if that means they're dropping stuff just to be able to get it out the door on time. The latter would be very much a concern, as they'll only get one chance to make a first impression.

 

[pjs37]

I believe the official launch date for Windows Phone 8 by MS is October 29th I believe they even scheduled a launch party that several sources have reported this. November 2nd would line up with that thought process.