Is there anything unique left in windows phone ?

[NeilPeart]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

Somehow I've always been a phone underdog for some reason. I went "all-in" with webOS (Palm Pixi Plus, Palm Pre Plus, Palm Pre 2, Pre 3, Touchpad) and that resulted in a dead-end path with limited apps and eventual abandonment (though the user-supported PreWare apps were a great addition). Then I migrated to Windows Phone 7 with the HTC Trophy and had to force the upgrade to 7.8 with an unofficial tool (SevenEighter). I upgraded to the Lumia 928 & HTC 8X and now the Icon and 640. I had to use Developer Preview to get WP8.1 on the 928 & 8X until official builds were released; now I used Insider Preview to get W10 Mobile.

I have an iPhone 5S through my employer and that runs the latest iOS 9.2 and a Nexus 7 2013 tablet, which now runs Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow. The iPhone and Nexus updates were official updates and they were released promptly, without any effort on my part; for the average user, that is an important fact. At least with W10 Microsoft has isolated the radio stack to allow carrier/manufacturer-free upgrading in the future. Android’s situation is worse, but slightly improving. However, if I were buying an Android I would only look at the Nexus offerings to be 100% sure I had the latest security and feature-set.

Do I still prefer the Windows UI to Android and iOS? For the most part I do, though I miss aspects of 7.8 and 8.1 in Windows 10 Mobile. Hell I still prefer the webOS interface to this day over everything else, but what does that matter anymore. iPhone gets all of the Apple apps and usually the best versions of most apps, including Microsoft apps (the Outlook app is a painful reminder of this fact). The iPhone even gets decent Google apps, something that Windows Mobile may never see. I rarely encounter a bug or issue with the iPhone - the experience is very polished, even on my old 5S (though I agree the interface is boring and too limiting). While I find Android to be the least intuitive, the latest 6.0.1 version runs very well on my old 2013 Nexus 7.

What I like about Android is I get to install different launchers (which can modify a lot of the UI) and even different dialers for enhanced functionality. When Google stops updating the OS officially, CyanogenMOD will have images available for years to come. My Nook Color from 2010 has a KitKat (Android 4.4.4 build) and my HP Touchpad that runs webOS currently dual-boots Android 5.0.1 Lollipop). If you are someone that enjoys tweaking hardware/software and is OK with the 2nd-best app versions then Android may be a good fit.

I’m not giving up on Windows Phone/Mobile, but it’s hard to be satisfied when one gets a taste of the app quality & variety on the other platforms. I think Microsoft is heading in the right direction (with some exceptions) and the ecosystem will improve, but it may be too little, too late in this case. I hope I’m wrong. I’ll continue using all 3 platforms in the meanwhile, because I’m crazy like that.

Bottom Line (TL;DR): You want the best-quality and most variety of apps? Go iOS, but be prepared to feel locked in and not care about too much customization. You want the most customization and tweak-ability, with a decent selection of apps that are usually well-executed? Go with Android, but be prepared for a bit of a learning curve and know that you may not get some apps as quickly as the iPhone (and some apps may be inferior to the iPhone). You want the best UI (in my opinion) and don’t need a variety of apps? Go with Windows, but be prepared for limited apps that are often of poorer-quality than your peers. You can’t customize as much as Android, but it doesn’t feel as restricting as iOS.

 

[Geodude074]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

Active Display is not nearly as useful as glance - ex-Lumia user and current owner of a Galaxy Note 5 and an HTC One A9

Considering neither the Note 5 or A9 have Active Display, how can you judge?

 

[zrneitrajce]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

Maybe "we" don't hate WP/W10M?
Maybe we just hate how Microsoft treat the different systems?

I actually like my WP (not as much as I used to do) but I am very unhappy with Microsoft.

And, while Microsoft gives away "all" (except iris scanner, live tiles and Continuum) the uniqueness of WP to the competition the competition still has their old advantages intact and thus shines in a way they did not do before.

Just checked the Androidcentral forum. A lot of issues there! Well, at least we we don't have any of those...

Plus I don't think you will find many WP owners visiting that forum...

 

[mayconvert]

I have all 3 operating systems. Nokia 1520 and 640, Note 5 and iPhone 6.
If you were to remove the app store from all 3, I honestly think Windows phone is the best by far.
However, I do enjoy have good, quality, functioning apps which makes WP 3rd place for me.
None of the 3 OS's are perfect. All have positives and negatives. Everyone will pick the one they want no matter what we post here.

I for one, even though I work for apple, have absolutely no loyalty to any one brand. I use what I want, when I want.
I love WP for live tiles and the smooth OS.
I love my Note 5 because of the S-Pen and it's Amazing camera and speed.
I love my iPhone because I have a mac and the ecosystem really shines when used together.

By that same token, I do not randomly hate any particular company for ignorant reasons.
I don't hate MS even though I feel like they dropped the ball on WP from beginning to end.
I don't hate google because they are "spying one me" ( I have a tinfoil hat - I am completely immune)
I don't hate Apple even though the are super restrictive with their OS and Siri pretty much Terrible when compared to WP / Google now.

I am currently enjoying my iPhone and Apple watch combo. But I still pick up my WP each day and sigh with disappointment that I can't get my favorite apps on my favorite Operating system.... I really would like to punch ballmer. I place the blame on him and his arrogance.
He ran WP about as well as Blackberry handled blackberry OS/phones. Now, both swirl the toilet, they just haven't been sucked down all the way yet.

One guy says he used android from 2008 to 2012. I will say that was when android was at it's absolute worst.
Android 5.1 and above is a very solid OS and google as stepped up its game dramatically with 5.1+
iOS remains largely the same experience it had in 2007 with some polish and gimmicks added.

All that being said, and my point being: chose what you want, but do yourself a favor and stop being a loyalist to companies that couldn't care less about you. MS isn't writing you a check to support them. Neither will apple or google. But, don't hate other companies for illogical reasons or base you hatred off something you read on the interwebs. Just because it's on the web, does not make it true.

For those getting frustrated with WP10 OS. and are thinking of trying the "others"

go to the google play store and look at Windows phone 8 launchers. That IS one of the great parts about android. If you don't like the "skin" from the manufacturer, you can change it.

watch the video from the developer.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.lx.launcher8

it will make your android device look and feel like WP, while giving you access to a billion apps where 99% of them are better than the WP version.
or, try the iPhone. The OS is fast and smooth on the S model. The apps in some situations are better than android (and of course WP versions)
And the Apple eco system works with windows desktop computers. You can get iTunes and nearly everything apple on your windows machine.

Basically, no one is making a bad choice no matter what you chose. Just don't be so dedicated, that you can see the forest for all the trees.

Enjoy your choice.

 

[esbe118]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

Hard to get a nice Start screen? I beg to differ. E.g. I personally think this looks nicer than most Android or iOS home screens I've seen. Took me a grand 2 minutes or so.

 

[cracgor]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

Hard to get a nice Start screen? I beg to differ. E.g. I personally think this looks nicer than most Android or iOS home screens I've seen. Took me a grand 2 minutes or so.

View attachment 119059

To me these live tiles look too cluttered. I really only like the live tiles which match the background. I wish the live tiles with pictures or texts, didn't just randomly flip over. They seem to do it out of sync too much and end up making me dislike them. I would honestly rather have static icons than what you displayed. I cannot tell if you are joking.

 

[cracgor]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

Because developers can almost forget about creating apps ... for [Windows] phones.

Can I kid that out of context we agree?

 

[Draganta]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

I really struggled this time around with whether to stick with Windows Phone or to bail and go over to iOS (Android just isn't an option, IMHO). I weighed a lot of different options from app availability to OS functionality. I ended up sticking with WP and getting the 950.

My biggest complaints still come in the way of apps, which every WP user feels and is tired of hearing people complain about. In particular, I'm an Amazon Prime member and I can't utilize Amazon Music or Amazon Video on my phone. That's just one of dozens of examples of the lack in the WP store that really should be addressed. Now I understand that Windows has a small percentage of market share and most developers are going to flock to where the money and the users are, but Microsoft should at least be able to have some pull with the big guys like Amazon to deliver some of these apps. Opening up the Windows Store on my phone is, frankly, depressing. With the exception of a few gems here and there, the apps and games all feel like the same ones I've been seeing in there for the last 4 years. I really don't see how MS can expect to do anything worthwhile with this platform until they have a strategy in place to deal with this as it will be the top reason people bail and the top reason people refuse to switch over from another ecosystem.

The OS seems much more polished than any of the betas I tested, but it's not without it's frustrations. The social media integration into the contacts seems to have taken a step backwards, for one. And don't even get me started on Windows 10 Facebook on my 950 - it's got a lot of issues. Where's my cover photo on my live tile? Why do I have to turn off contacts all together to not see everyone's birthday on my calendar? In general, I notice a lot of live tiles working sporadically and not updating correctly, I still have a lot of app crashes and my camera has some issues with not always capturing photos properly.

Overall, I like Windows Phone. I've been a fan since I switched over from iOS in May of 2011 - they've made a lot of advances but have taken many steps backwards, as well. I can deal with OS bugs, that's life. I'm afraid that if they don't make some significant strides in the app gap, though, it will be difficult to make the same decision at the end of this contract.

I was in the same boat the last few weeks, and I chose the iPhone 6S. Since a week or two, i can't even mobile bank anymore. My bank said: the customers that use Windows Phone are disappearing fast, so we have no plans to make our app compatible with Windows 10 Mobile. That was the last thing that pushed me over the Windows edge, into the pit of iOS. I do not like iOS much, but wow, I can do anything I want now, I finally feel like owning a smartphone since my HTC HD on Windows Mobile 6.1 ! I will keep an eye on WP's development, and hopefully return, if things change.

 

[esbe118]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

To me these live tiles look too cluttered. I really only like the live tiles which match the background. I wish the live tiles with pictures or texts, didn't just randomly flip over. They seem to do it out of sync too much and end up making me dislike them. I would honestly rather have static icons than what you displayed.

...And that's where personal preference comes in. Don't like the opaque tiles? Don't like them live? Do it your own way. I honestly can't understand how on earth people can *like* static icons. (Though you can do static icons on WP like I did on the left side.)

I cannot tell if you are joking.

I cannot tell if you are joking.

 

[Jeddic]

Personally I don't love live tiles. Most of my start screen is made up of transparent tiles with transparency turned all the way up, to make the most of my phones background (W10M preview). But that is one of the nice things about windows. I looked for apps to change the way my Android looked, but none of them could really do it completely. There's always the cartoonish Android look in there to a degree, and past the homescreen most of the 'skin' apps don't change much. Then when you add in the fact that they often cause increased lag and instability, it's just easier to go to WP.

Personally there are so many parts of WP that I prefer over Android. Apps are occasionally a drawback, but there are very few apps I would use on Android that I can't on WP.

 

[scd147]

Live tiles. That might be it. And a close nit community of developers that help us have Google apps, etc. Personally I love the tiles and miss them when I try to use an iPhone or Android device. I can't think of much else that is on the WP platform that isn't elsewhere anymore though.

 

[2tomtom]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

Nah i don't owe it to anything or anyone to test out the competition. I don't care for Android and ios only offers me a solid backup should Microsoft abandon windows but id be settling then.

I personally have had little to nonissue with windows phone except for the browser and in the messaging app for windows 10.
For me, the os offers a solid and cohesive experience within the Microsoft realm,I love live tiles and I find android to be an ugly mess with potential security issues....windows still has a lot of good on it and uniqueness

I totally agree with your sentiment here towards trying out iOS/Android and we will magically become enlightened LOL

I have just broken my 930 and although it generally works, there are problems with double tap to wake etc so I went to the local store and went through the Android and iPhone latest models - quite simply I just hate the static rows of dead icons and pages and pages of widgets.

WP with W10 and live tiles is awesome and so much more efficient and informative. The OS on my 930 and SP3 far exceeds others with integration and ease of use, as well as security.

I get why others prefer the other OS's but I know what I want and each time I try the others it just confirms that W10 on phone and SP3 are what I want. The rest of my family are using iPhones and Galaxy S6 etc so I have good experience but 100% I'm clear why I love Windows.

 

[2tomtom]

Re: Is there something unique left in windows phone ?

That is the same attitude I normally held <unwanted insult removed by Moderator> in contempt for. Sadly I found myself choosing Microsoft products just because they were Microsoft products. I was close-minded. I don't even care if people are happy with WM10 and hate the experience on others, but it is the good consumer that checks out all his options before committing himself to something. For example I'm surprised how many people think the 950 is somehow unique in hardware, aside from the iris scanner, which is really less functional than a fingerprint.

I do appreciate your loyalty to windows and Microsoft, but I fail to see how every thing one company does has to be the best. I do not think <removed by Moderator as paraphrase of redacted insult> is a reasonable way to explain why something is worse. It makes me feel like you don't have much experience outside of WM which is my point. I believe the last remaining WM loyalists either don't know what the other OSes are like and base their decisions of what things were like 5 years ago, are afraid to admit that things haven't gotten any better in the past 7 years, or truly love the OS and will stay with it no matter how dysfunctional it is. Maybe you are really in that last camp, but if you don't use another phone, it is unfair to just label it as crap.

Posted via the Windows Central App for Android

I have tried iOS/Android and really hate the rows and rows of dead icons and pages and pages of widgets.

I have a Lumia 930 and SP3 and this combo is awesome - I get why people choose other OS's and the need for the latest blah social app, which is then dumped for the next new "in" app. But that's just not my needs.

I am surrounded by iPhone/Android users and always keep up to date on how they progress, it's an interest to me and with all this knowledge I CHOOSE Windows because to me it's the BEST.

Sadly, people here are under the illusion that if WP users try iPhone/Android they will magically convert - a conclusion that is simply incorrect!

 

[getalex]

the only true uniqueness i see is the massive catalog of half baked apps due to no official support from most key app publishers. #sorrynotsorry

 

[Ian_Superfly]

Btw, you can now remove "using Office freely over Continuum" from the list of features...
So, it's Live tiles left. ;-)

 

[damonator98]

Btw, you can now remove "using Office freely over Continuum" from the list of features...
So, it's Live tiles left. ;-)

Even less unique

 

[damonator98]

Do you guys think lack of apps will stay as unique wp problem ? Or will the situation improve... Ever ?

 

[cheetahwig1]

My most used app is WP7 News, as almost every time I update it I have more Windows Phone news. And lately there've been story after story about developers making apps for Windows, and since they're universal windows app's, many of them wind up on our phones. Bank of America, one of the main examples of how we're losing app support, just announced that they're making a universal windows app for Win 10, which will work on our phones as well as desktops. I think the universal app strategy is starting to pay off, and I think the continuum ability will be HUGE as soon as they make a remote desktop app. We don't even need our phones to be fully x86 computers (which I think the Surface Phone will be next fall), but with the ability to run our home or work desktop computers through our phone to a monitor will be a game-changer. I've felt bad like many of you with the apps going away or being better on other platforms, but I'm seeing a trend of big names coming to Win10 computers and phones.

 

[ArtificiallyYours]

Is there anything unique with opinions anymore, other than what's the "in" thing to hate on the internet at three o'clock in the morning?

 

[locodice]

Windows phone in my opinion had a unique advantage ,Office(word,excel,powerpoint,office lens) , Cortana , Outlook ,Onedrive which where very usefull to pro's BUT Microsoft choiced to give it away to the other platforms giving no reasons to a potential buyer to choice windows phones.It was lacking apps but i had office and cortana now has nothing special.The most annoying thing is that the competion hasnt released nothing to windows phone platform and MS just gives them more support than ever which is very bad.
On the app gap thing i would agree with some opinions above ,that creators of apps will not release apps and update them to a platform that has little market share so talking about App Gap has no reasone when you dont have market share.Which market share is influensed but the devices a company has which microsoft the past years has released a lot of them with no support from other companys.

So to close the point is as long windows phones dont gain more market share(sell more devices) the app developers will not release apps to the plaform cause it costs them money to keep them running.

All said by a 930 user and windows 10 pc user.