I believe public perception is beginning to favor WP

[freestaterocker]

One of my coworkers went from the HTC One M7 to the M8, and now he has the Samsung Galaxy S6, and he wants Windows on his next phone. He's been asking me about the Lumia 635 and saying he might buy one.

I'm also seeing then in the wild more frequently these days. Anecdotally, I would conclude that MS is gaining some mind share these days.

 

[vicky geth]

just saw someone else at work with a lumia. That's 4 (four!) of us now lol

fantastic....!!

 

[svtfmook]

favor it? no, not at all
accepted it? yes. i think people have given up on trying to coax people from buying windows phones because carrier disinterest, retailer disinterest and global market disinterest have pretty much taken over that job.

 

[Asskickulater]

First off, enhance your calm. Second, this thing is gonna RTM in a couple months, do you really believe they're going to implement any radical design changes this close to release? Sure, they may add a few small feaures and back-end stuff, but the UI is done. What you see is what you'll get.

the thing is, there is no "finished" version, its just a release that hits a checklist of milestones. also, the UI is usually 0one of the last branches to merge with the main branch, so its very possible and likely that there are some UI things that just haven't been merged yet.

 

[Daniel Rubino]

Which is kind of funny, seeing as all of us that have a WP are starting to get fed up with it.

Yeah, that's my feeling too. Kind of funny, actually.

 

[Paolo Ferrazza]

Yeah, that's my feeling too. Kind of funny, actually.

Stolen account?

 

[Tsang Fai]

I think that so few people use WP not because they hate it, but because they just get used to iPhone/Android. They have big reluctance/low motivation to switch platform.

I have quite many friends who even do not know the existence of WP platform. Some think that Lumia phones run Android --_--

It seems that those who hate WP are often some existing WP users... In fact the majority of iPhone/Android users are quite neutral to WP...

I am one of those who got bored with iPhone and suddenly I asked myself, "Why not try WP?" It turned out that WP satisfies my needs since I am not an app guy. There isn't lots of "excitements" of using WP but everytime when I look at my start screen, I feel so enjoyable.

Should Microsoft takes a more active approach to encourage iPhone/Android users to switch to WP? They should target those non-app guys.

 

[AndyCalling]

Uhm, well, because it will be closely connected to and integrated with your PC running Windows 10 ?

Whilst this was true with W8, it seems W10 devices are far less integrated with each other. Assuming we proceed in this direction I guess integration is withering along with hubs. After all, that would make Android/iOS users of MS ecosystem apps feel like second class users, and we know that's an experience reserved for WP customers so that can't be allowed.

 

[Richard Culverhouse]

They have continuum but I think it needs more than that...

Yeah, only for now though. I wonder what apple will call it when THEY invent it...?

 

[Teo Bartulovic]

Yeah, only for now though. I wonder what apple will call it when THEY invent it...?

LOL, good one

 

[agd87]

Yeah, only for now though. I wonder what apple will call it when THEY invent it...?

Haha. So true.

 

[lkbig]

I certainly hope that WM10 gains traction. I like the OS better than either Android or iOS. That being said, our phones are computers that need apps to function. Therefore if it doesn't have the apps you need then that phone is not functional for you. With all of the integration coming with W10 there is huge potential here. However, if the porting features don't manage to lure devs over then I think the platform is in trouble.



Microsoft must solve the app problem. For the devs its not just making new apps, it's supporting them. My biggest frustration is that if the app exists in first party form, then it is usually neutered. There are several apps I use for work that do exist on WM but are not as functional as their Android/iOS counterparts. I decided to try WM and switched from my Nexus last March to Lumia 930. The hardware is beautiful and i like the direction Microsoft is going with WM10. But to be truly honest, Android is still more functional due to the preponderances of higher quality, functional apps. I am sticking with WM for at least a year to give it a fair shake. However I am going to HAVE to switch back after that. Not having those apps as functional is slowing down my workflow.



FYI the apps I am referring to are Buffer, Concur, Latergram, several Google apps , Mailchimp, SwiftKey and a few more. I'm not griping about social apps or games. I know I'll never get the Google Apps and that I can handle. However working in Marketing for a major brand, it takes a lot of effort to adapt my workflow to what everyone else in my department is using. And that's the reality of it. It doesn't matter what we think of the platform, as Microsoft already has us converted. It's everyone else.



Finally, we need to stop thinking about Android as laggy. My Nexus 4 ran very well when temporarily switched back in August for a trade show I attended. And that phone is almost 3 years old. If Windows Mobile were to disappear today I could switch back to my Nexus 4 and still have access to the apps I use for work. I love Windows Mobile and i want it to win out. Just trying to be realistic.

 

[dbam987]

In terms of the design of 3rd party applications, let them choose whatever design pattern they choose. However, where I'd like consistency is in the home screen / launcher areas of these mobile devices. In that regard, I view the WP8/WM10 live tile system the best approach. Its consistent and functional.

My perception of the WP8/WM10 platform is favorable at this time. After picking up the Lumia 735 a week ago, I realized that I was able to do much more with it and felt comfortable with it. Microsoft is very close to catching up feature-wise against the iOS and Android platforms. Microsoft is also super close to unifying the mobile and desktop experiences, much closer than iOS and Android are. This is where me thinks Microsoft is excelling at.