News: Microsoft's future in mobile?

[bhaspence]

So much harmful rubbish is being spouted on the internet which surely must have an inpact on future phone sales?

I wish MS would come out and put all of this to bed finally and tell us what direction they are heading. I'm concerned about it and i'm holdingt off upgrading my phone.

 

[xandros9]

So much harmful rubbish is being spouted on the internet which surely must have an inpact on future phone sales?

I doubt most smartphone buyers even see those articles frankly.

 

[Laura Knotek]

If you will notice most of the moderators have moved on to something else also.

Many of the moderator actions are difficult to perform using Edge or IE on Windows 10 Mobile or Windows Phone 8.1.

Firefox, Chrome, or Safari on mobile devices make moderating much easier.

Of course, if we're using desktop/notebook computers, it doesn't matter if we use PC, Mac, or Linux.

 

[DavidinCT]

It's sad to see people still supporting Microsoft's Windows 10 mobile NOW. Microsoft has pretty much given up on it. I am on Android now, I am/was a HUGE fan of Windows Phone, starting WAY back from a HPC 1.0 and every version till they made a phone combo back in PocketPC 5.0...and about 6 different Windows Phone devices. I even still have a HP HX4705 (rated as one of the BEST WM PDA's ever made at a release cost of $699).

Now we see Windows Mobile shares down to 1% on a few reporting sites. What is Microsoft doing about this ? Are we seeing any ads ? Are we seeing ANY major push from Microsoft devs ? Are we seeing NEW apps coming ? How about new phones, even low end phones ?

Sad to say, about the answer to all those questions are Nothing and NO... Also to note, When I talk about Ads or Promotion, when I watch TV, I cant go an hour with out seeing a Android (Samsung, LG, etc) or Apple add....Microsoft ? Maybe a Surface every once and a blue moon but, Windows PHone ? Yea right..

I really love Windows Phone/Windows Mobile, I love the OS, the layout, the feel of the OS even down to the live tiles. When I have been waiting FOREVER to get basics like other phones have, like Tap TO PAY, how about a Bank of America app ? Hmmm...

The love is there but, the time is starting to feel like it's over... I still have my ICON with all color backs that I still swap to time to time.

The wrighting is really starting to show on the wall..

I wish MS would come out and put all of this to bed finally and tell us what direction they are heading. I'm concerned about it and i'm holdingt off upgrading my phone.

They did, they are not focusing on Mobile this year... The head of mobile devices for Microsoft said that...

 

[dlalonde]

The real problem is the have disappointedly so many people, so many times very few have any faith in them at all. I gave up about 2 months and went to Android. Its not like I (and millions of others) did not give them a chance. 820, 925, 520, 635, 640 and a Dell tablet. No more. I still have a 640 in a drawer somewhere. I DO NOT believe it will ever get W10 despite what Microsoft says. Oh yea its coming soon. Went by 3 Cricket stores on the way home yesterday and they all said they cant give away the 650. They have already lowered the price twice. Never again.

I totally get what you're saying. I bought a Lumia 640 in April because I thought W10M would be great... and it's just not. It's good but I'm missing Android which worked lightyears better. It's buggy software and it's unacceptable and frankly amateurish from such a big company like Microsoft. If they want to drop it, just drop it. Stop saying "it's coming, it's coming, soon, not yet, later, this year, next year...". The way they've been acting is just disrespectful. Yes you'll get an update! No you won't! It's coming in the fall, no december, no next year, no you're not getting it, it's finally out, you'll have to get the insider app though... what a bloody mess.

The whole 950/950Xl debacle which is still not up to par with comparable priced phones on other platforms even avec 6 months! They were selling buggy software 6 months ago and now they're selling not so buggy but unfinished software.

The Chevy and the Ford are the same price. Oh but the Chevy looks really nice! The suspension's missing? Mmm, well I can still use it until it arrives. Sometimes it overheats? That's alright, I'll just stop on the side of the road and shut it down and wait for it to cool down. It sometimes slows down when you're driving on the highway? Well that's alright, safety first!

This is how ridiculous we are as fans. We like it so much we're making excuses and we keep throwing money to Microsoft.

If you will notice most of the moderators have moved on to something else also.

I noticed that too.

So much harmful rubbish is being spouted on the internet which surely must have an inpact on future phone sales?

I wish MS would come out and put all of this to bed finally and tell us what direction they are heading. I'm concerned about it and i'm holdingt off upgrading my phone.

I doubt most smartphone buyers even see those articles frankly.

Well not the buyers. But the carriers and their employees. If I was a carrier and had to put money in a new smartphone, you can be certain I wouldn't risk W10m devices.

 

[Chintan Gohel]

Re: WP Isn't Dead!

I agree with you.

But people are just fixated on market share and sales figures.

that's the crux of the matter. Sales figures matter to many

 

[theefman]

Anyone who dismisses marketshare is lying to themselves. Just look at the Surface Pro and how it's success has led to others jumping into that sector and now its allegedly the fastest growing PC sector. Microsoft themselves are chasing 1 billion users, why? To attract developers to the store. So phone marketshare is important too as it attracts developers and OEMs, the top ones too not the B listers like Coship.

So yes, marketshare is vitally important to the phone whether you want to deceive yourself otherwise or not b

 

[Guytronic]

If you will notice most of the moderators have moved on to something else also.

Not exactly.
A couple certainly not most.

 

[anon(6078578)]

Went by 3 Cricket stores on the way home yesterday and they all said they cant give away the 650. They have already lowered the price twice. Never again.

That to me there says that as far as the consumer is concerned, Windows Phone/Mobile *is* dead. I went by the one in our mall the other day to check out the 650 and they had no Windows Phone/Mobile on display. Granted it was more of a stand than a store but they used to have at least one Windows Phone on display before. I even remember my wife going into a Cricket Store a while back for her mother and she said they saw her Windows Phone saying that customers would often return them. It will be interesting to see if the Alcatel Windows Phone at T-Mobile is replaced by another Windows Phone when it reaches it EOL.

 

[Kieta]

From 2.5% share in 1st qtr 2015 to .7% share in 1st qtr 2016.

Gartner Says Worldwide Smartphone Sales Grew 3.9 Percent in First Quarter of 2016

 

[DavidinCT]

From 2.5% share in 1st qtr 2015 to .7% share in 1st qtr 2016.

Gartner Says Worldwide Smartphone Sales Grew 3.9 Percent in First Quarter of 2016

Yep, just like my last post in this thread. It's hard not to see that happening, things Microsoft has been saying for years...ITS COMING and years later nothing. They are NOT focusing on Mobile this year...and that is clearly showing...

The problem is, when they actually start "focusing on mobile" again, they will find out it's too late... They had their chance and screwed it up again... just like many other great Microsoft products.

 

[sd4f]

The problem is, when they actually start "focusing on mobile" again, they will find out it's too late... They had their chance and screwed it up again... just like many other great Microsoft products.

I'm really thinking that's the case. By next year, they just won't have anyone to push to. Are they going to rely on bored android or iOS users? or hipsters who want something that no one else is using? So many users have switched already, that they'll launch a product to a market which actively chooses against the platform in favour of its competitors.

I'm really miffed about the whole approach from MS, as there's a lot of stuff that's really good with WP, and they just seem to be so stubborn in their ways, that it seems like as if they want to kill it. I think the thing that really hurt it is the chopping and changing. They haven't been able to choose a direction and stick with it.

The surface phone needs to be nothing short of perfect. It needs to be revolutionary. It needs killer features that no one else has. It needs the app gap sorted too. Currently the strategic problem with apps is, I don't think many people are developing apps for windows platform and turning a significant profit from it. This needs to turn around, because it currently looks like developers are doing MS a favour if they develop for the platform. Obviously, you can't have developers working for free, so it really needs to become profitable to develop for the platform.

 

[N_LaRUE]

From 2.5% share in 1st qtr 2015 to .7% share in 1st qtr 2016.

Gartner Says Worldwide Smartphone Sales Grew 3.9 Percent in First Quarter of 2016

You should remember to put a 0 in front of a decimal point I almost thought that said 7% LOL!

 

[DavidinCT]

I'm really thinking that's the case. By next year, they just won't have anyone to push to. Are they going to rely on bored android or iOS users? or hipsters who want something that no one else is using? So many users have switched already, that they'll launch a product to a market which actively chooses against the platform in favour of its competitors.

I'm really miffed about the whole approach from MS, as there's a lot of stuff that's really good with WP, and they just seem to be so stubborn in their ways, that it seems like as if they want to kill it. I think the thing that really hurt it is the chopping and changing. They haven't been able to choose a direction and stick with it..

When Windows Phone 7 came out, they went ALL out on it, buying Nokia, pushing phones, top ads for a long time (first year or so), I mean every football game there was at LEAST 3-4 ads for Windows Phone. They PAID off the top 10 devs to create apps and after many billions of dollars, they didn't get a major return. After all this major push, it maxed out around 4-4.5% of the GLOBAL marketshare. No promotion for retailers so, it was never pushed (this is where MS should did a lot of focus).

So many dreams came out of Microsoft's mouth for Windows Phone and if everything came to light, it could of been what they wanted and all the dreams WE have for the OS...

Trust me, I feel your pain and agree with you. I was one who was here from the VERY start, I came DIRECTLY from a PocketPC 6.1 device. Microsoft all the way for MANY YEARS (started with a HPC 1.0 all the way up to current)....

The surface phone needs to be nothing short of perfect. It needs to be revolutionary. It needs killer features that no one else has. It needs the app gap sorted too. Currently the strategic problem with apps is, I don't think many people are developing apps for windows platform and turning a significant profit from it. This needs to turn around, because it currently looks like developers are doing MS a favour if they develop for the platform. Obviously, you can't have developers working for free, so it really needs to become profitable to develop for the platform.

It could be made of 18K solid gold and with EVERY feature known to man that could be possable, It's still not going to change much. Microsoft is clearly not interested in promoting it and spending the money to grow marketshare. It could be the PERFECT phone, the fans will buy it but, cant see many iOS or Android users coming over. Just because the phone is perfect, it needs the support path to be PERFECT and Microsoft does not want to invest it.

Riddle me this, If you were not a Windows Phone fan, FIRST time Smartphone buyer, As you look at the options.... Android has about 65%, iOS around 15-20%, and Windows Phone around 1.5% of the market, No local apps, No tap to pay features, outdated other apps. Then you look over your other options, vast hardware support, every app that you can dream of. Would you sign a 2 year contract or pay $500+ on a phone with support like this ?

Personally for me, I dont think I would buy another Windows Phone unless Microsoft shows that they want to grow it and it's sad to say, with cutting 1850 jobs and No promition at all, by the time they change their mind and want to promote it, it will be too late...too far to start over.

The dream is over...it really is..

 

[N_LaRUE]

My take on all this.

If we look at the current mobile market we currently see a dualopoly. Android or iOS. They have everything going for them currently, from apps to hardware to market share.

MS, going by their own words, has decided not to combat the status qua as it stands. That means they obviously have a different take on things. Thing is, will anyone care?

That is the true question.

So they bring out a 'Surface Phone'. It runs x86 apps, uses Contiuum and has UWP. Do the majority of smartphone users really care about this stuff? Would they really want a full computer on a phone?

Can't really answer that question. It was the dream at one point in the past but I think the so called 'Surface Phone' is a starting point, a beginning. It won't be a great selling phone simply because mind shift will take time.

The question will be will the mind shift happen? Will the UWP apps come? Who knows?

It's hard to predict the future and harder for any of us to know MS plans. We can only speculate. Whether what they are doing is going to increase market share or be popular is something they can't even answer.

 

[Roger Rios1]

Microsoft will cotinue to produce phone

Lumia is not dead yet, Microsoft will continue to produce phones but in a smaller range.
Surface phone is a fact and will be available next year.
Source:
Microsoft will ?Scale Back? Lumia and Windows Smartphone Operations - WinBuzzer

 

[Sunil Kumar Swain]

Windows phone is not dead. Microsoft is just focussing on UWP more just for the simple reason that phones are not selling because of lack of apps. If things just work out we may find a well equiped windows store and in the meanwhile may have already achieved a well developed is which is going on at the moment with the Lumia experimenting the os and paving the path for a killer device to be announced later on. All that is required of MS is that they keep up to promises, meet deadlines and thereby keep our hopes running.

 

[Aranya Tantu]

The question is will MS continue to make Lumia branded phones or not ?

 

[Sunil Kumar Swain]

Microsoft will continue to make Lumia for sure. For getting the UWP up and going Microsoft needs to be keeping the mobile phone market up and hence Lumia phones will continue to show up though fewer models, until it does not get other manufacturers making phone on the Windows OS.

 

[fdalbor]

Microsoft has written off the Nokia hardware business, they have sold the feature business and have let go of most of the Nokia people, they have done everything they can to promote their software on Android and IOS over their own OS. Now tell me what have they done to promote their own phones. How blatant can they get about killing off W10 on phones.