How big does WP 9 need to be?

[bsayegh]

While many people on here believe that the update to windows phone 8.1 is all they really need to be happy, it hasn't succeeded in attracting new customers. A lot of the features that I can show off to someone are already available on other devices, and have been available for over a year. While it is a huge upgrade for us, it isn't enough to turn heads unless they are impressed by the design of the OS in general. It also doesn't help that getting the update has been a baffling ordeal.

Eventually there is going to be a WP 9 update, and I think it may be the last harrah for the OS. Either it will succeed and the OS will continue, or it will fail and many of us will have to find a new OS to get behind.

Seeing as WP 9 is probably at least a year away, there is plenty of time for MS to get things right. There is also plenty of time for Android and iOS to receive significant updates. There is a good chance that MS will still be playing catch up when they release WP 9, unless they really aim to go over the top.

I guess one of the prevailing theories is that with MS attempting to merge the PC, tablet, and phone experience, WP 9 will be more similar to W9. I am not sure exactly how they would translate that to a phone, but I don't think that will be enough to really draw people in.

I think the next major WP release needs to be huge. I mean HUGE. Things that you don't even know that you want. Things that no other OS has. Things that a loyal user such as myself could show off to someone that makes them jealous. Its hard for me to even imagine what that would be. Phones these days are already capable of so much that it almost seems overboard. For WP 9 to trump what we are already capable of in a truly revolutionary way seems almost impossible.

But it is necessary. MS is battling so many different things. The stigma of being a dull company. Buggy OS updates. Slow release schedules. People hating Windows 8. The lack of apps on WP (there are apps missing. Whether you use them or not, somebody does). These are things that MS needs to overcome. They aren't on the verge of being an unprofitable company (they always seem to make money somehow), but their hardware and OS divisions have been struggling a lot.

Do you think the struggles with WP are more related to the OS/hardware or with MS itself? Can the issues be solved with a drastically improved OS or does Microsoft just need to market themselves better? What would change public opinion for the next mobile OS? Can they survive a failure?

 

[FAHMI BASSEM]

I guess that we will see some of Windows 8.1 on our WP devices, with large screens, probably, such as two apps opened on the screen, huge live.
WP 9 must be more stable and must be announced with a new official exclusive apps and games

 

[WanderingTraveler]

If WP9 can position itself to be an excellent companion to Win9 (the screenshots of Win9 tell us it is taking a markedly WP-esque approach to the Start Menu tiles), then all it needs to do is catch up on enterprise features.

Of course, that's a lot of wishful thinking.

 

[bsayegh]

2 apps snapped to the screen on a phone would be kind of tricky. On a phablet it works, but on a 5 inch screen it would be just a little too small. Totally agree that it needs to be more stable. Stability may not necessarily demo well, but it keeps people on the OS.

Im not really sure how WP 9 and W 9 would compliment each other. With OneDrive, all of your photos, videos, and other stuff are pretty much synced to your PC at all times. You use your phone and your PC for different things (you can do a lot of the same things, but if you are sending an email from your phone when you have access to your laptop, you are wasting your time).

 

[Rixonian]

It needs to have every app customers love. Customers don't like the feeling of being left behind.

 

[bsayegh]

It needs to have every app customers love. Customers don't like the feeling of being left behind.

I guess this is one of the benefits to having all of the devices run the same OS. If they could run the same apps, then there is a much wider market for those apps. Banks would be more likely to make an app for Windows if you could scan a check with the webcam embedded in your laptop.

 

[Arka1412]

As an user I expect some customization as well as privacy..We already have the privacy, stability..Background activity should be there..Suppose I am watching a video then I need to reply to a chat, video should be there on the background...Efficient Multitasking should be there( resuming is so frustrating )..All the apps should have access to video and audio..Then the apps- We need a decent fully functional Facebook app, and also other top apps to perform well which su**s on quality..Microsoft should focus on marketing. They should promote the event of Threshold so much that no one misses it..Everyone should know about Windows phone and its awesomeness. Last of all release a Flagship..

 

[snowmutt]

First off, I think it needs to be said that Windows 9 is way more important to Microsoft's future then Windows Phone 9. Most enterprise users are finally off of Windows XP and on Windows 7, so the next step will be from W7 to a cloud based service in a space of 2-3 years. It is important that W9 is correct.

If Windows 9 is well recieved, deals with a lot of the complaints that made W8 poorly recieved (which I think is because W8 was ahead of the times,not because it was bad) and gets MS some good praise, the release of WP9 will already be ahead.

 

[bsayegh]

I agree, it is very important that they make sure Windows 9 is well received. Generally MS gets it right every other time, so I think it should be a safe enough bet. People will probably adopt it the same way they did W 7. At least I hope they do. Having a unified OS across devices will allow people to get more familiar with WP.

But they also need to realize that a one-size-fits-all approach isn't going to work. For instance, the latest versions of Windows Server still have the Metro Tiles and come with things like Weather and Sports preinstalled. Its a server. It is meant to be a computer that is always on and controls incoming and outgoing web traffic. It is under constant threat of attack, has to worry about bandwidth, memory, and all of the silly problems that any app running on it may cause. Does it really need Weather updates? Do big tiles and colorful backgrounds seem appropriate here? Sure, you can still go to the desktop, but its not easy to navigate. If you are putting out a fire, do you want to have to remember how to get to IIS?

The same can be said of Windows 8. Cool idea, but a PC isn't a tablet. A tablet isn't a phone. A phone isn't a PC. They all have specific uses. There is a time of big tiles that you can tap with your fingers. There is also time for small icons that you can click with a mouse.

Its great that they are going with the unified approach, but they need to make sure its perfect. Will a game written for the PC work on a phone? Is that what developers want? Maybe. Sometimes its easier to write separate apps. I know you can write an app with specific profiles that load different settings based on whether its a phone or a tablet or a PC, but that is still a lot of extra work.

I hope they get W9 right. WP9 certainly depends on it. I really don't want to go to Google (blocking MS from writing a YouTube app was really shady). I don't really like iOS either. MS needs to hit a few consecutive home runs so that this thing can get more traction.