Microsoft needs to make the high-end Windows Phone market

[jomarr]

And the hits keep on coming lol I agree somewhat with you MS should have launched a high-end phone instead of just a few mid-end phones, but I can understand why they decided no to launch any high-end phones (if my theory is correct anyways). It makes a lot more sense to launch high-end phone closer or during the actual launch of w10. I think that's the plan here

Exactly. If they release a flagship this quarter people who bought the phone would complain about how they once again "abandoned" their customers by releasing a flagship 8-10 months away from releasing Windows 10.

While I know there's a reason for the 7-8 transition, some people love complaining and we will definitely see threads like this if this was the case.

 

[N_LaRUE]

Exactly. If they release a flagship this quarter people who bought the phone would complain about how they once again "abandoned" their customers by releasing a flagship 8-10 months away from releasing Windows 10.

While I know there's a reason for the 7-8 transition, some people love complaining and we will definitely see threads like this if this was the case.

They could have easily released a flagship in September with half decent specs that would have suited most people. I don't see this idea of abandonment. People with a L920 would have jumped on it if it was worthwhile. Unfortunately MS has put themselves in a position where many coming off a L920 contract are now looking around at what to get and seeing nothing. Or were ready for the next phone. That's the issue. Some may stick with the L920 and wait, if they can. Some may buy a low end and wait it out. Others will simply leave.

Nothing against the L830 or L930 but those coming off a L920 will find both unappealing. There's a lot of nice spec'd Android phones around at the moment and the new iPhones. That's the competition and they have a good chance of taking people from WP.

There should have been a better WP with the release of WP8.1 or near it. That didn't happen. That's the problem.

The bigger worry here of course is the problem MS has with US carriers. They need to sort that out as well. Flagship or not, they need good support.

 

[tanya shah1]

wrong microsoft needs to aim for the mid range market instead
mid range phones can make or break a platform
the average consumer will not buy a flagship phone because its too expensive,if it gets lost/breaks,all that money spent will be in vain and he will wonder if he can to justice to the extra features etc
as for low range,he will not buy a low range phone because he will not want to miss out on features/compromise etc and by spending a few bucks more,he can get a mid ranger
usually the price gap between mid range and high-end is very high but the spec difference etc isnt that different

 

[N_LaRUE]

wrong microsoft needs to aim for the mid range market instead
mid range phones can make or break a platform
the average consumer will not buy a flagship phone because its too expensive,if it gets lost/breaks,all that money spent will be in vain and he will wonder if he can to justice to the extra features etc
as for low range,he will not buy a low range phone because he will not want to miss out on features/compromise etc and by spending a few bucks more,he can get a mid ranger
usually the price gap between mid range and high-end is very high but the spec difference etc isnt that different

Depends on what market you're referring to. In the US it's all flagships for the most part due to contracts. In the UK it's a mix bag as well as most of the EU.

 

[Da1020Da]

Yup! Lack of option in flagship department make me move to another platform soon...

 

[tanya shah1]

Depends on what market you're referring to. In the US it's all flagships for the most part due to contracts. In the UK it's a mix bag as well as most of the EU.

US isnt the biggest market for phones right now,asian countries like china and india are the largest followed by european countries such as the UK

I do get your points in a way though,a flagship is needed to show off features of the OS but keep in mind that worldwide,most people will concentrate on buying mid rangers

 

[N_LaRUE]

US isnt the biggest market for phones right now,asian countries like china and india are the largest followed by european countries such as the UK

I do get your points in a way though,a flagship is needed to show off features of the OS but keep in mind that worldwide,most people will concentrate on buying mid rangers

You forget that MS is a US based company and wants a very large piece of it. They've set up their services to work best with the US market. I'm in the UK and have none of the perks the US has. I don't think MS had much interest in going to the emerging markets as their OS was not optimized for it. Nokia is who pushed it that way.

There's nothing wrong with providing good mid range phones and good low end phones but to succeed in the higher bracket is where the money is. They want a large share in the US they need a phone to do it. That goes for the UK and other EU markets as well.

 

[tanya shah1]

I don't think MS had much interest in going to the emerging markets as their OS was not optimized for it. Nokia is who pushed it that way

actually they are concentrating on India and China as well now
they just bought a spectrum share in India to provide free internet to all,skype landline calls to USA and canada are free for 3 months now
they are starting official microsoft showrooms in India now,they have already have a retail store on Amazon India

 

[tanya shah1]

They've set up their services to work best with the US market. I'm in the UK and have none of the perks the US has.

not really they have been concentrating on other markets equally,dunno about UK though
only bing rewards is missing now

 

[Evronian]

For all those saying it is good to focus on low and mid range phones only... I remember my first days with android (back to 2.1 eclair) when it wasn't the dominant OS yet. All the media attention was on the flagships and there were heaps of them, of course there were also low and mid end devices (that performed painfully bad), but the flagships drew the attention of the public on the platform. Everybody was talking about the Droid, then the Desire/Nexus and the first Galaxy, the media kept saying how good and capable they were and people started thinking that everything Android was great. So, in my opinion, flagship devices are badly needed for WP to succeed. Waiting for W10 is a logical move but it means that many customers will move to something else in the meantime. My contract is due in June and if there's nothing new on this front I'll have to switch. I just don't want to get a 930 in June (it'll be one year old) and stick with it for 30 months.

 

[N_LaRUE]

For all those saying it is good to focus on low and mid range phones only... I remember my first days with android (back to 2.1 eclair) when it wasn't the dominant OS yet. All the media attention was on the flagships and there were heaps of them, of course there were also low and mid end devices (that performed painfully bad), but the flagships drew the attention of the public on the platform. Everybody was talking about the Droid, then the Desire/Nexus and the first Galaxy, the media kept saying how good and capable they were and people started thinking that everything Android was great. So, in my opinion, flagship devices are badly needed for WP to succeed. Waiting for W10 is a logical move but it means that many customers will move to something else in the meantime. My contract is due in June and if there's nothing new on this front I'll have to switch. I just don't want to get a 930 in June (it'll be one year old) and stick with it for 30 months.

Agreed.

Also, Icon = L930, released Feb 2014, so almost 1 1/2yrs old by then.

 

[fatclue_98]

I don't know how much more of a beating this poor dead horse can take. Somebody call PETA.

 

[N_LaRUE]

I don't know how much more of a beating this poor dead horse can take. Somebody call PETA.

I personally wouldn't call PETA but that's a whole other story.

 

[theefman]

For all those saying it is good to focus on low and mid range phones only... I remember my first days with android (back to 2.1 eclair) when it wasn't the dominant OS yet. All the media attention was on the flagships and there were heaps of them, of course there were also low and mid end devices (that performed painfully bad), but the flagships drew the attention of the public on the platform. Everybody was talking about the Droid, then the Desire/Nexus and the first Galaxy, the media kept saying how good and capable they were and people started thinking that everything Android was great. So, in my opinion, flagship devices are badly needed for WP to succeed.

That's a valid point.

 

[tanya shah1]

For all those saying it is good to focus on low and mid range phones only... I remember my first days with android (back to 2.1 eclair) when it wasn't the dominant OS yet. All the media attention was on the flagships and there were heaps of them, of course there were also low and mid end devices (that performed painfully bad), but the flagships drew the attention of the public on the platform. Everybody was talking about the Droid, then the Desire/Nexus and the first Galaxy, the media kept saying how good and capable they were and people started thinking that everything Android was great. So, in my opinion, flagship devices are badly needed for WP to succeed. Waiting for W10 is a logical move but it means that many customers will move to something else in the meantime. My contract is due in June and if there's nothing new on this front I'll have to switch. I just don't want to get a 930 in June (it'll be one year old) and stick with it for 30 months.

this makes sense!!

 

[fatclue_98]

I personally wouldn't call PETA but that's a whole other story.

PETA, Greenpeace - whoever! Somebody's gotta care about dead horses and not just whales.

 

[faith3935]

Microsoft is probably focused on low end to midrange devices to draw people towards Windows Phone so once people get a taste of it they would be interested in buying a higher end device