(Official) What WP needs to succeed

[Genghis7777]

What the WP ecosystem needs is further differentiation and to build on the differentiation it has already created. Nokia have done something nice by leaping ahead in photography. The others are catching up. Now they have to work with MS to develop a camera with bigger sensor sizes, variable aperture settings, higher ISO and interchangeable lenses. That is the natural evolutionary path for the 1020.

 

[nc1886]

-Start screen backgrounds and a color picker for theme color. That MS chooses to be stubborn about this, rather than listening to customers and giving the OPTION of customization is frustrating and a huge limitation to the otherwise beautiful WP start screen.
-More rows of live tiles, and more live tile sizes. Also, I'd love to see the SDK expanded to give more customizable live tiles, and so devs can allow users to customize their live tiles more.
-Fix Skype. It's awful on WP.
-Settings menu needs to be overhauled.
-Music app should be better. Playlist creation is atrocious and editing playlists is next to impossible. Optional live tile w/ artists or albums. Smart DJ needs improvement.
-Gapless audio playback.
-Overhaul of the "Windows Phone Store". It's ugly and not user friendly. Their Metro UI panels are not useful. Searching the store is terrible.
-IE 11 needs work. More than 6 tabs. Open new tabs in background, better access to favorites, bezel swipe to go back, etc.
-Make the messaging app more visually customizable. Add a iMessage rival, or integrate Skype messaging deep into the OS. Mass deletion of texts, search button, customizable keyboard. Currently if you add an additional language to the keyboard, the language key steals from the spacebar and makes everything cramped.
-Mail is boring. Get the Outlook team to design it. Windows phone needs to realize it is possible to be minimalist without being boring. Bring sweep from outlook to WP mail.
-The Phone app is lacking and the dialer is terrible.
-File Manager.
-Better Multitasking. The current method is confusing and inefficient. Ability to pin apps to the other side of the multitasking view for quick access.
-Search the whole phone or cloud.
-Ability to reply to texts from within the Action Center.
-Expand Bing outside the US.
-More help when setting up the phone.
-A few more

Stuff that would be cool but is unlikely/possibly a bad idea:

Thoughts? :

-Move the OS to the cloud. Customize/optimize what you want, and then download it to your phone. Keep the OS light and simple if you desire, or give power users better control. A settings wizard that could ask you questions and help design your WP.

-Allow the creation of multiple start screens. Like, you can save several combinations of theme colors and start screen configurations. If you start screen gets boring- select one of your saved ones, and it's there.

-Split the Windows Phone Store app/games store from the music/video options. "Windows Phone Store" merges with the "Windows Store" in Windows 9 when Windows/RT/Windows Phone become unified. One store for all your apps and games.

-Put Bing at the head of entertainment services- rebrand Xbox Music and Video as "Bing Music" and "Bing Video". People purchase entertainment content through Bing.

-Video Pass? Similar to Hulu. Tiered subscription model- minimum price could get unlimited streaming with ads, and some offline downloads for traveling. Microsoft could even invest Hulu and use their service.

-Allow WP to access the HDMI passthrough on Xbox One- watch tv in any room via Miracast, or even remotely over wifi.

-Swipe to the left on start screen brings you to "Bing Live". Basically aggregates the Bing Suite of apps (News, sports, entertainment, health, finance etc), and all your other services to provide proactive, Google Now-esque services. Links with Cortana and other MS services.

-Rather than having to dictate things like Siri, ability to type to Cortana through a input box in the Action Center. She suggests things as you type, learns about you over time (if permitted), and syncs to your other devices. Because no one likes to talk to their phone in public, and everyone hates it when you do.

-Cortana always has things ready based on context. For example, in Action Center, she has a list of things ready based on where I am/what I just did/what I usually do. I.E., if I get in my car, she'll prepare "Drive Home", "Open Maps", "Turn On Driving Mode", "tell __ I'm on my way", "pick up milk", etc.

-With permission, Cortana can have full access to the system and a blazing fast predictive menu. So if I type "text", she suggests people I text most, and if I click on their name, she'll have some likely texts ready, or allow me to type my own message. She can modify settings, and make suggestions. If I type: "Check Stocks", she has my stocks pulled up in a snapshot pane, with all my finance apps, related websites, or bing search just a tap away. Or if I check stocks often, she'll suggest it as soon as I type "ch".

-Just make Cortana better than Siri and Google Now so that she's a flagship feature.

-Tabs in the Store.

-Pressing and hold apps in the app list has an option to open the app in the background of your multitasking view.

-Split screen for larger devices.

 

[vk1971]

I'd add (or re-add) OS updates or app downloads with USB+PC.
That's pretty dumb move to reduce users' comfort

 

[Truman82]

Was wondering as Ms owns Skype, why not integrate it with stock messaging app, thus allowing all wp users to mimic the iMessage functionality (free messaging in between wp users). As I have understood it, the iMessage is huge selling point on ios...

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk

 

[bayanii]

Windows is succeeding. The mobile world is like a hobby for MSFT. Its like a side project that they happen to be getting really good at. Big bro is finally stepping in and fixing the college boy like creation OS of android and the software manipulation of apple. Windows has always been business and will succeed because of it. They have so little promotion but they have gained so much without it. I'm not worried, its Microsoft. Come on.

 

[gmocnik]

Call with one tap and do other things (turn on/off flight mode, wifi, ...) with just one tap on live title.

 

[archimess]

I just published ?Why Windows Phone won?t fail?!? on Medium.com. Have a read.

 

[GizmoEV]

I just published “Why Windows Phone won’t fail?!” on Medium.com. Have a read.

And as for the “Google not making Windows (Phone) apps” fiasco, they need to change their mind in the near future, or they will use a lot of current and potential users on their services. Simple as that.

Great editorial. Just might want to fix the statement above to say "or they will lose a lot ..." instead of "use."

 

[mtmjr90]

I haven't had a chance to read through this whole thread, but I'm sure this has been repeated ad nauseum...

In my opinion there is one thing and one thing only that would really get WP to the tipping point (in the US anyway) and that's Google's support. I don't care about anything else. You could make every other improvement listed in this thread and it still probably wouldn't do it without proper Google Apps.

I make do with alternatives & 3rd party apps when available, but for most people who are invested in Google services, it just won't cut it - especially when there's Android & iOS as an alternative. This would bring more people to the platform. More people = more market share = more developer interest. Once there, who knows, maybe people will find they prefer Microsoft's alternatives to Google services.

 

[bingorage]

Hi. First time posting. I had come to the forum to find a way to disable the capacitive search button because of unintended disruptions to other actions. The only way that I have discovered to disable it is through the use of a square of electrical tape, with an insulating layer of paper towel cut to fit inside the tape, placed over the button. As Hunter S. Thompson said: "It is the sort of low-tech solution that nobody is proud of...", but it works and I am not so vain as to not be seen in public with tape on my phone. Black electrical tap is practically invisible anyway.

 

[colinkiama]

Needs a more polished app store, the background should only show a picture from the featured app and not be greyed out.

 

[GizmoEV]

Hi. First time posting. I had come to the forum to find a way to disable the capacitive search button because of unintended disruptions to other actions. The only way that I have discovered to disable it is through the use of a square of electrical tape, with an insulating layer of paper towel cut to fit inside the tape, placed over the button. As Hunter S. Thompson said: "It is the sort of low-tech solution that nobody is proud of...", but it works and I am not so vain as to not be seen in public with tape on my phone. Black electrical tap is practically invisible anyway.

After a while you get used to it and learn not to bump it. I rarely accidentally activate it now, less than once per month, and it is really useful to have when you learn all it can do. By not using it you miss out on some useful functionality.

 

[aniket03]

When will black update come for lumia 620 in india? Why aren't they giving us the update. Now again we will have to wait for 8.1 everytime only waiting is the option. If this continues WP won't succeed.

 

[colinkiama]

When will black update come for lumia 620 in india? Why aren't they giving us the update. Now again we will have to wait for 8.1 everytime only waiting is the option. If this continues WP won't succeed.

jheez, calm down, it's not like the 620 is selling like the 520, then you can complain.

 

[Rickosw]

I think this has been brought out in the earlier posts (there are over 49 pages now!) ...but i hope some official MS WP developers or even Mr Gates is reading this ..

we need aptx (CSR) http://www.aptx.com/howitworks2

all the other major phone OEM (Samsung, Sony, HTC even BB) have this feature on their phones (Not just flagship) ...

Please MS bring this feature in WP 8.1, you still have time to make it happen!

Kindly vote in the below link to show some support

http://windowsphone.uservoice.com/f...suggestions/suggestions/2383754-apt-x-support

 

[colinkiama]

All bing features for countries other than US. Other countries would appreciate it too.

 

[phasar]

FM radio that doesn't require a headphone accessory.

 

[DaT Franchise]

Jailbreak and full boot loader access so we can fix a few problems that MS and Nokia haven't, oh and its free development for them as well ;-)

 

[GizmoEV]

FM radio that doesn't require a headphone accessory.

Wouldn't that require a hardware modification? The only thing that the headphone is used for as far as the radio is concerned is for the wire to act like an antenna. You can even plug in external speakers and get the radio to work.

 

[SamiHanna]

More tile sizes