Jason Ward uses Windows phone (for now) and asks why do you?

[Jason Ward]

Why Windows phone? I've always loved the idea of having a PC in my pocket, and the evolution of Windows on phone, from Windows Mobile, to Windows Phone to Windows 10 Mobile has embodied that for me to varying degrees over the years.

Beginning in 2006 with the Cingular 2125 running Windows Mobile 5.0 (my first smartphone), my Windows phone journey has ridden the spectacular crests and frustrating valleys that have defined the platform. In fact, what may surprise many who follow my work is that Iinitially rejected Windows Phone 7 as an oversimplified UI and a backward step to Windows Mobile, the powerful, flexible and open mobile OS I loved.

Windows on phone, with its unique approach, is now a fading shadow of what it could've been. Still, Microsoft's enduring Windows on mobile strategy,via the rumored Andromeda device reflects the inspiring ambition Microsoft's previous mobile efforts (though poorly executed) exhibited. Will, the synergy of Windows 10 on a folding pocketable device be a winner? I don't know. Will the device even launch? Microsoft could scrap it. Still, Microsoft's pursuit of a vision to put real PC power in our pockets, via context conforming hardware and software on a device coupled with telephony is inspiring.

So as I contemplate my next move, Microsoft's Andromeda device which will likely be too expensive, or an Android phone, I'm enjoying what inspired me years ago, the Live Tile life, on my Lumia's 950 XL(personal) and 1020 (business)!

So what inspired you to embrace Windows phone and why are you still holding on?

 

[nate0]

Hi Jason.
I have many different Nokias, a 950 xl, Idol 4s, Japanese Madosma models etc., and even some broken windows phones still sitting. I got interested in the platform during WP8. Haven't been around as long. Yet I'm a Microsoft fan since from the 90's so it was easy for me to take an interest in the OS alone and how it works.

The OS is secure and to me non-intrusive. The UI and experience is simplified. The way the visual aspect of W10M comes across to me appeals and is easier to look at. I'm not sure quite why exactly. It simply flows together better. For me it is more tolerable than Android because we know they are all flawed in some way or another. The W10M keyboard...I've not used any other handheld vkb like it. When I use Android I yearn to be texting from a W10M UI just because of the mobile kb. For some reason to me Windows 10 mobile is easier to use and maneuver through it while in the hand as a mobile device than Android or iOS. Granted I rarely use Apple's iOS anymore so maybe things have changed for it.. Also I've never been an app person needing very few even when I started out on Android. I'm not into social media either. There's no need for it from my stand point. I can get through life much easier and at times faster with out. In fact I only use a couple of 3rd party apps daily, myTube, mTalk (no longer supported), and sometimes Plex. The rest are core Msft apps built in and that's all I need. I do use Android at times as there are some services that I use locally that don't support Windows mobile, like Offerup. Ironically right now I'm typing this from an S8+, but that's only because I took my sim card out of an idol 4s to use and network unlock the S8+ when I saw your post. I'm not against the other devices or mobile OSes.

I know not all users are like this and there are even apps Microsoft itself severed from support. This too has had an affect on me. So it's obvious Microsoft is not all in on it like a Samsung, a Sony or a Huawei and it shows.

 

[pkcable]

Sup Jason! I just played around with Windows 10 Mobile with a "firesale" 950. I quite liked it, BUT not enough to sway me from Android and iOS. HOWEVER a good friend, to whom I sold my 950, really loves the platform. After he broke mine. (he works as a home builder, and general contractor) I had to help him find another one! He prefers the tile interface as well as the integration with the Microsoft eco system. I tried to tell him the iOS/Mac has this same level integration, but he just wasn't buying it! He KNOWS that Windows Mobile is perhaps a dying platform, but he still loves it!

 

[vEEP pEEP]

I am using my HP Elite x3 and Alcatel Idol 4S. My Nokia 930 had a screen incident it could not recover from. I bought HP in a panic as I had no phone. That is my main phone. Then going on a trip abroad - got the Alcatel new for a cheap price - that was my travel phone. Pretty amazing phones.

I like the OS - tiles. It integrates will with my home computer. Apps - the ones I need are there. Progressive Web Apps are starting to show up.

Many thanks to FB, Instagram, WhatsApp, Uber, Twitter for the updates!

Android and iOS seem clunky in comparison...but yes, you can get used to anything....

It still does what I need it to do. I just like it

 

[Ryujingt3]

Hi @Jason Ward.

Unfortunately, when MS decided to discontinue MS Teams for W10M that was the end for me and I moved to Android. However, the 950XL and my last Windows Phone, the Elite X3, are still too of the best phones I have had. As I have said, the essence of Windows Phone, for me, is that you actually enjoy using them. I was more productive on W10M than I am on Android and the overall user experience on the Android OS is not as engaging as W10M either.

Sadly the app gap killed it for me. Normally that wouldn't have mattered, but this was MS giving up on it's own product so I had no other choice. At least now, on Android, I get all the MS apps I got on Windows Phone. The downside is that my phone is now, simply, just a phone. So now, instead of actually enjoying using my phone and being productive, I am just like everyone else.

 

[TechFreak1]

For me personally for awhile it was the integration with Microsoft services, whilst in College all I had to do is add my college email under email + accounts and I could use all the services off my phone.

The only cumbersome part of it is that it would default to that every time I went into outlook.com, I have several emails and use nothing but outlook.

Another draw for me is the perfect balance between the closed garden of ios and openness of android. I can side load apps if I wanted to without having to root the device via "the for developers" settings.



Then there is that beautiful UX, w

hich I can change to whatever suits my needs instead of relying on pre-designed widgets, set layouts. I am so accustomed to glancing at my phone that no grid of static icons will ever do.​

I have everything I need on my start screen and use daily, currently I'm listening through the Expeditionary force series (again) despite my audible sub ran out awhile ago.

If I need to pin more tiles, I can use show more tiles and reduce the display scaling to the lowest setting.

I have to use Gmail for work..... nothing I can do about that.



The other plus is still office.

@Ryujingt3

You can still download Microsoft Teams from the store. I was able to sign in with my college email hence why it says "student".

 

[Ryujingt3]

For me personally for awhile it was the integration with Microsoft services, whilst in College all I had to do is add my college email under email + accounts and I could use all the services off my phone.

The only cumbersome part of it is that it would default to that every time I went into outlook.com, I have several emails and use nothing but outlook.

Another draw for me is the perfect balance between the closed garden of ios and openness of android. I can side load apps if I wanted to without having to root the device via "the for developers" settings.

View attachment 139494

Then there is that beautiful UX, w

hich I can change to whatever suits my needs instead of relying on pre-designed widgets, set layouts. I am so accustomed to glancing at my phone that no grid of static icons will ever do.​

I have everything I need on my start screen and use daily, currently I'm listening through the Expeditionary force series (again) despite my audible sub ran out awhile ago.

If I need to pin more tiles, I can use show more tiles and reduce the display scaling to the lowest setting.

I have to use Gmail for work..... nothing I can do about that.

View attachment 139500

The other plus is still office.

@Ryujingt3

You can still download Microsoft Teams from the store. I was able to sign in with my college email hence why it says "student".
View attachment 139495View attachment 139496View attachment 139497View attachment 139498View attachment 139499

Sadly, @TechFreak1, I believe MS Teams will no longer work on W10M after October. So I had to switch to Android.

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4230833/windows-phone-app-for-microsoft-teams-is-retiring

 

[TechFreak1]

@Ryujingt3 Well, that sucks.

 

[Ryujingt3]

@Ryujingt3 Well, that sucks.

Unfortunately it does, yes. That's why I don't seem to blindly follow and believe in MS as much as I used to. They backtrack on their promises and usually sacrifice their own consumers or fans over the bottom line.

 

[RobbieRobski]

I'm still using it because switching to android would be too big of a pain right now. Pretty much wholly due to my use of the Microsoft Authenticator app. I have more than a dozen accounts setup with TFA and I dread the process of removing TFA on all of those accounts and then having to add it all over again on a different device.

I guess the main reason I can get away from this is all I really care about on my phone is messaging, youtube, and calendar. I do have an android device I use at home but mainly just for twitch chat when I'm streaming because I don't have dual monitors.

I kind of wish that I would have spent more for the HP Elite X3 instead of the Alcatel Idol 4s, because my experience with that phone on ATT has been really bad. And hardly a day goes by when I wonder how many problems I have are network related vs windows 10 mobile issues.

 

[Laura Knotek]

I'm still using it because switching to android would be too big of a pain right now. Pretty much wholly due to my use of the Microsoft Authenticator app. I have more than a dozen accounts setup with TFA and I dread the process of removing TFA on all of those accounts and then having to add it all over again on a different device.

I guess the main reason I can get away from this is all I really care about on my phone is messaging, youtube, and calendar. I do have an android device I use at home but mainly just for twitch chat when I'm streaming because I don't have dual monitors.

I kind of wish that I would have spent more for the HP Elite X3 instead of the Alcatel Idol 4s, because my experience with that phone on ATT has been really bad. And hardly a day goes by when I wonder how many problems I have are network related vs windows 10 mobile issues.

There is a Microsoft Authenticator app for Android.

 

[tgp]

There is a Microsoft Authenticator app for Android.

I use it. It works great!

 

[Laura Knotek]

I use it. It works great!

I use it as well, and I've never had any problems with it.

 

[Ryujingt3]

I'm still using it because switching to android would be too big of a pain right now. Pretty much wholly due to my use of the Microsoft Authenticator app. I have more than a dozen accounts setup with TFA and I dread the process of removing TFA on all of those accounts and then having to add it all over again on a different device.

I guess the main reason I can get away from this is all I really care about on my phone is messaging, youtube, and calendar. I do have an android device I use at home but mainly just for twitch chat when I'm streaming because I don't have dual monitors.

I kind of wish that I would have spent more for the HP Elite X3 instead of the Alcatel Idol 4s, because my experience with that phone on ATT has been really bad. And hardly a day goes by when I wonder how many problems I have are network related vs windows 10 mobile issues.

I was in the same boat as you with regards to switching devices and 2FA. Then I found out that Enpass also supports 2FA (OTP) and then I could sync my 2FA across all my devices through Enpass so the worry of switching devices is now eliminated. Give it a try.

 

[MBytes]

Still use mine, and still funny that it still manages to get update while already getting 1 year of actual support on Android is winning the jackpot (ie: You got a Google phone, or it just happened that the phone you bought sold like hot cakes for the manufacture to care, AND you have the carrier that doesn't want you to push you to get a new phone to enjoy the new added security updates and features)

 

[Dan12R]

Quite frankly, even in its broken state, I like it better than the other options. I'll never use a Google product for the most personal piece of tech that we have (Google's business model is that you're what's for sale. Sorry. Not playing that game with my smartphone). I deal with iPhones at work and they're just so old school. They still use static icons. They're always late to the party on new tech (ex. Wireless charging). They keep everything super locked down. There's nothing to get excited about with iPhone. So I'll stick with Windows 10 Mobile for as long as I can (or until Andromeda is released).

 

[Jcmg62]

I still pull my 950 out of the cupboard and fire it up occasionally. I was an extensive continuum user and the 950 was my primary and only computing device for two years.

I actually managed to get to a point where I would only use my actual laptop once or twice a week.

Microsoft was onto a really good thing with Continuum. I truly hope they haven't thrown it in the bin with the demise of W10M.

I like to switch on my 1520 for old times sake, and even take a walk down memory lane with my Lumia 800 on idle days.

It's always interesting to imagine where Windows Mobile would be if Microsoft had just kept grinding away at it. Marketing, branding, embracing carriers on a global scale, bribing devs to bring first-party apps to the store, building a stunning surface handset from the ashes of Nokia, creating one operating system and sticking with it...etc

The multiple OS reboots are the true story behind Windows Mobile failure, and that one is entirely on Microsoft's leadership team).

They lacked a cohesive plan.

 

[garak0410]

Sadly, for me, the writing was on the wall for me in the fall of 2015 when Verizon wouldn't be getting the 950xl. I used to be one of those "I don't need apps" people who used that to defend Windows Phone. But I realized, I do use and need them, especially for work. Teams, SharePoint, PowerApps, Nest, Amplify WiFi, Google WiFi, Google Home, etc. And believe me, I tried to make web sites work as apps on Windows Phone as long as I could and just couldn't.

I truly do miss Windows Phone. It was the best Mobile OS ever.

 

[GlennEdwards]

My wife and I still use WIndows Phone, and both love it. Wouldn't have it any other way. I use a Lumia 950, having used Windows Phone's in sorm form or another since my Samsung Omnia 7 back in Oct 2010. My wife uses a Lumia 950XL, again having used Windows Phone since her Omnia 7 back in Oct 2010 as well.

We both prefer the ease of use of Windows Mobile, the integration into the Microsoft eco-system, the same apps on phone as on PC, Xbox Live mobile games (of which there are over 100 compared to the 2 or 3 on iPhone/Android). The UI is way nicer on Windows Mobile than either iPhone / Android, and Live Times well there's no competition there really is there.

I'm also a Windows 10 UWP developer, for all Win10 platforms, but specifically worked at Microsoft UK developing the official Win 10 Mobile app for a rather large social platform. I continue to work with Windows 10 UWP to this day, hence my bias towards, and love of Windows 10 and Windows 10 Mobile.

My wife and I have all the apps we need on a daily basis, and get frequent enough app updates, with the odd OS update to keep the platform secure.

I've used Android, and in fact have an Android 7.1 tablet that I find incredibly frustrating to use. I bought it purely to set up an alarm system, as I have no need for an Android tablet really. I've got a perfectly functional Windows 10 tablet for my tablet needs.

Android 7.1 is frustrating as the UI is quite boring, and the easy of use compared to Win 10 just isn't there. There's no consistency at all between OS, and apps, in terms of navigation using the back key. I press it expecting to go "back" in an app to a previous app page, and sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't depending on the app. Some apps just quit when the back key is pressed.

AArrggh

Roll on Andromeda!!

 

[ashparnell]

I love Windows Phone in general but I really love logging in to my email and Facebook and have my contacts download to my phone automatically.

I would hate switching to ios or droid because I'd have to redo my entire contact list. That thought is terrifying.