Why 2012 is the Year of Windows Phone

[masherro]

Before I get into my thoughts, I want to state unequivocally that I am not a fanboy for any manufacturer/OS. I presently have in use an HTC Radar, Palm Pre, and Nexus S. That being said, here's why I think 2012 will be the year of Windows Phone.

1. Incredibly user friendly A sizable chunk of my smart-phone customers are senior citizens and, as one pointed out, "this may well be the easiest smart-thingy I ever saw." In all seriousness though, the ease of use is the number one reason that customers give me for adopting Windows Phone. Because of what Microsoft has done with the UX, any customer that can use a Windows Laptop should be able to use the WP7 Platform with relative ease.

2. Business In addition to Microsoft Exchange out of the box, Windows Phone is also SharePoint, Lync, and Office 365 capable out of the box. IT Departments should be able to manage Windows Phone without needing any additional training. So,as companies get more and more concerned about cost, we will see more of them looking to Windows Phone.

3. App Ecosystem Continues to Grow There is no question that the Marketplace continues to grow at an amazing pace. (17,000 in 90 days). Sure, we don't have the hundreds of thousands of apps that Android and iOS have, but we also don't have the redundancies in apps either. I surveyed my Android Customers and found that, to a person, this is what they use regularly (at least once per week): Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIN, Radio, email, calendar, weather, e-book app, and navigation. All off these are available here. So the misconception that Windows Phone doesn't have the apps people want is a misnomer that can be easily overcome.

4. Nokia. Need I say more? Their brand recognition, high quality, and aggressive pricing will most definitely bring Windows Phone traction.

5. Most Importantly, the Sales Channel When Windows Phone originally launched, many of us were not exactly stoked about Windows Phone. However, native Mango Devices (Radar in case) are really wowing the sales channel. Several of my colleagues and I have recently adopted these devices not only as our sales floor demo devices but as our day to day devices as well.


I will come back this afternoon and add some more detail to this post and some of the sections. For now I wanted to get the ball rolling on the conversation. This is most definitely the year Windows Phone comes into its own and takes its plce in the top 3.

 

[Reflexx]

While I agree with everything you wrote, I think 2012 will mainly be about Windows Phone really establishing legitimacy as a real player. But not necessarily any big sales success. Well, not until the last quarter.

I think that when Apollo comes out, the industry will not just take notice, but they'll be in awe.

 

[Premium1]

I think MS needs to convince people why WP is better than what they are currently using and why they should switch. Most people do not want to switch and have to learn a new OS which is why they usually stay with a certain OS. If MS can convince people what makes wp so good it could be a good year for them. Also the whole nokia thing may be big world wide, but most people do not know that nokia is still even around when it comes to people here in the US.

 

[Reflexx]

I think MS needs to convince people why WP is better than what they are currently using and why they should switch. Most people do not want to switch and have to learn a new OS which is why they usually stay with a certain OS. If MS can convince people what makes wp so good it could be a good year for them. Also the whole nokia thing may be big world wide, but most people do not know that nokia is still even around when it comes to people here in the US.

In the US, I believe that Nokia still has a good name. But people just don't know where they went. They don't know why Nokia went away. But their memories of Nokia devices are pretty much all positive. It's not like Nokia made a string of sucky phones and had to leave the US market because customers hated them.

So, I think that anyone over age 33 or so will look at Nokia with curiosity. They'll have good thoughts about Nokia, and they'll be willing to check out what they have just because of that good reputation. That may not directly translate into sales immediately. But I think it is positive in that people will be willing to look.

 

[aubreyq]

In the US, I believe that Nokia still has a good name. But people just don't know where they went. They don't know why Nokia went away. But their memories of Nokia devices are pretty much all positive. It's not like Nokia made a string of sucky phones and had to leave the US market because customers hated them.

Agreed.

 

[nyc_rock]

WP has made a few errors which I think is slowing its growth.

1) Hardware-while its great the Microsoft mandated minimum spec requirements, I feel the OEM's have all gravitated to those. In order to generate buzz, phones need to first get the early adopters on board. They become the biggest advocates for products. Word of mouth means as much as anything else. All WP are at the low end spec wise. Do they work and work well? Yes. But to be a real player you need to lead on all fronts. And the hardware is all generic and average.
2) More Storage-Cload storage is not a replacement for real on device storage. 16 GB's is not enough. As WP's developer community matures more and more games will start to hit the scene. Those games will be 500 mb's at least. Also, cloud starage takes data, now that capped data is the norm, cloud becomes less practical, especially for video. Finally, cloud storage does nothing when you have no data connection at all. LIke on airplanes. WP needs to either increase its on board storage or offer micro sd expansion. Its rediculous that it doesnt. I will not buy a WP becuase of this. As a matter of fact, I will not buy the Nexus either. No matter what I buy (Currently using an 4S with 64 gb) it will have to give me storage options.

I am a big fan of WP and would really like to join the ranks. But the ho hum hardware and storage limmits keep me from jumping on board. Luckily, microsoft has the deep pockets to keep this puppy going forward. Im hoping that 2012 see's WP correct its shortcommings so that 2013 can really be a growth year.

 

[Premium1]

WP has made a few errors which I think is slowing its growth.

1) Hardware-while its great the Microsoft mandated minimum spec requirements, I feel the OEM's have all gravitated to those. In order to generate buzz, phones need to first get the early adopters on board. They become the biggest advocates for products. Word of mouth means as much as anything else. All WP are at the low end spec wise. Do they work and work well? Yes. But to be a real player you need to lead on all fronts. And the hardware is all generic and average.
2) More Storage-Cload storage is not a replacement for real on device storage. 16 GB's is not enough. As WP's developer community matures more and more games will start to hit the scene. Those games will be 500 mb's at least. Also, cloud starage takes data, now that capped data is the norm, cloud becomes less practical, especially for video. Finally, cloud storage does nothing when you have no data connection at all. LIke on airplanes. WP needs to either increase its on board storage or offer micro sd expansion. Its rediculous that it doesnt. I will not buy a WP becuase of this. As a matter of fact, I will not buy the Nexus either. No matter what I buy (Currently using an 4S with 64 gb) it will have to give me storage options.

I am a big fan of WP and would really like to join the ranks. But the ho hum hardware and storage limmits keep me from jumping on board. Luckily, microsoft has the deep pockets to keep this puppy going forward. Im hoping that 2012 see's WP correct its shortcommings so that 2013 can really be a growth year.

I agree about expandable storage. I mean if it has an sd card I do not understand why they will not make it so you can change or increase the sd card size. Doesn't make sense to limit it to 8 or 16gb since many will not be able to fully utilize the cloud due to capped data.

 

[masherro]

I agree about expandable storage. I mean if it has an sd card I do not understand why they will not make it so you can change or increase the sd card size. Doesn't make sense to limit it to 8 or 16gb since many will not be able to fully utilize the cloud due to capped data.

Let's remember the intended audience for WP. The ideal customer for WP7 has never had a smart-phone before and/or considers them to be too complicated to invest the time. Some phones, the Titan for example, actually do have sixteen. That is great for a power user but for someone just learning, 8GB should be sufficient.

Whichever side of the table you sit on, we should all be able to agree that WP7 is a phenomenal OS and this year we will see amazing things.