What is the future of Windows Phone?

[psoham777]

this is why people should read articles fully before posting
universal apps doesnt mean that,it means itll be easier for devs to port apps across windows 10(phone,tablet ,pc etc)
the designs etc will change,you cannot honestly expect an app designed for a pc with a keyboard and mouse to be ported to a phone without changes in design

I agree

 

[Vishnu Hs]

The million dollar question is will it support current windows devices ie WP8/8.1 running devices???

 

[hysonmb]

Joe B made it a point to clearly state that this is not the UI that will ship. It's conceptual, but, there's a lot more to be done before it rolls out.
We'll see if they stick to the commitment of taking feedback from the insider program, the suggestions being made in this thread are things they should review.

 

[Karthik Naik]

Joe B made it a point to clearly state that this is not the UI that will ship. It's conceptual, but, there's a lot more to be done before it rolls out.
We'll see if they stick to the commitment of taking feedback from the insider program, the suggestions being made in this thread are things they should review.

hmm i think he probably said that incase people didnt take it well etc like when windows 8 was released
hopefully i think they have gotten the windows ecosystem right this time!!

 

[Zuchit]

Can't wait to try out Windows 10 dev preview!

 

[Stefan Holder]

Guys guys..chill out.. this is only a mock-up render of a "potential" homesceen layout. This is was done "only" to emphasize the one Windows across multiple devices. This is not the final design. Stop getting your underwear in a bunch over this..lol.

 

[Zachary Boddy]

Windows 10: Microsoft begs for forgiveness - Opinion - Trusted Reviews
This made me laugh, I think it's actually pretty true, haha.
I'm really hoping that Windows 10 works infinitely better on a tablet because Windows 8 always had scaling issues. It never looked as good on a small screen, with all the wasted space and such. If Windows 10 is as good as it looks like, I'll definitely invest in a Surface Pro 3 and immediately load Windows 10 onto it.
And as for the phone...I just hope it adds optimization and exclusive features for large screens, like the Nokia Lumia 15xx. And loads of new features that work on a phone. Making a UI universal is a fantastic idea, as long as there are definite and large variations across the board. I want my phone to be a phone, my tablet to be a tablet and my laptop to be a laptop. And since I'd probably use my phone more than anything, I hope they put special effort into making Windows Phones the best they can be. 8.1 was a great step forward, don't trip up now!
And most of all...add new features, make your OS better but don't completely change the platform and give us another Android/iOS bollox with a slightly different interface. I love my Windows phone, can I keep it that way?
Other than that I'm real excited for Windows 10 and will definitely get the preview on my laptop.

 

[Zachary Boddy]

Also I hope that the Nokia Lumia 1530 is the flagship that launches with Windows 10 first, with the 1030 either right before it or right after. I have a long wish list for a 15xx successor, haha.

 

[Taube]

I did an in-depth analysis of this here:
http://forums.windowscentral.com/wi...s10-event-possibly-depicts-new-mobile-os.html
Conclusion:

• 
  This doesn't seem to be a simple mockup as a placeholder graphic for demonstration purposes, but either an internal concept of an early build.

• 
  These images imply that maybe the mobile version of Windows will have a combination of UI elements from WP and from RT, and will run own phones as well as tablets and convertibles.

 

[thrash994]

I love how people can see the future.

Even when each developer preview, even the minors (8.1->8.1.1) are adding features, the people keep so negative.

You totally misunderstood me. I thought that it would be amazing if MS keep on updating the current WP. That's all. And of course I respect what MS has done so far.

 

[fdalbor]

To be honest I am not sure where all this is going. Alot will depend on if the old 8.1 phones can be upgraded to the new 10. Same with computers, I have two 8.1 desktops (one with a touch screen) and wonder how upgrades will be handled with them. If all the old 8.1 devices get left behind I can see alot of resentment to how Microsoft handled the situation. Me and my wife have three Windows phones (all nokia's) but I just went and bought a Moto G lte just in case this whole thing does not work out for Windows phone users. I don't entend to quit WP; but I am learning about Android just in case. For now the Moto G will be my backup. I don't see a phone Microsoft has right now that I want to replace my 820 and my wife's 925 with. The 830 is close; but in my opinion needs a better processor (615/800). So I will wait and see what they come out with this new OS before I get another WP. If things don't go well I might consider Android completely. Don't want too; but I plan on being prepared for which ever way the market dictates we go. 200$ is a small price to pay (cost of Moto G lte) for insurance so we don't get left at the altar. Hope things get better.

 

[Keith Wallace]

I care more about the failures of the hardware selection for the late-2014 release schedule. I'm up for a new device in just over a month, and there's nothing on the market to get.

 

[rodan01]

this is why people should read articles fully before posting
universal apps doesnt mean that,it means itll be easier for devs to port apps across windows 10(phone,tablet ,pc etc)
the designs etc will change,you cannot honestly expect an app designed for a pc with a keyboard and mouse to be ported to a phone without changes in design

I'm not talking about universal apps. If developers mostly ignore the platform don't expect many Universal apps any time soon.

What apps will run in these devices? The merged OS is mostly based on WP, so WP apps should run, but probably they will add support for Store apps because WP apps aren't optimized for tablets. Although, Store Apps won't be at home in WP.

 

[Karthik Naik]

I'm not talking about universal apps. If developers mostly ignore the platform don't expect many Universal apps any time soon.

What apps will run in these devices? The merged OS is mostly based on WP, so WP apps should run, but probably they will add support for Store apps because WP apps aren't optimized for tablets. Although, Store Apps won't be at home in WP.

read my comment again
they will not give the exact same app
you cannot expect the version of an app to run without changes on the other, the universal app thing is an advantage for devs because they wont have to maintain two separate apps,just one app with two UIs,one for pc/tablet ,one for phone
you havent understood the advantage i guess,anyways its more of an advantage for devs,as a consumer you should just know that it means faster updates and releases

ill give you an example to put your doubts at ease

think of an ipad and an iphone ,now imagine say the FB app on both,same code but different UI
even the .ipa is the same usually
so one xap for both,different UI when on installed

 

[Llordy]

Please note that with Windows Phone 8.1, there is now a near 80% overlap of the APIs, meaning most of Windows Phone code is the same as Windows/RT. The remaining code unique to Windows Phone is only the old Silverlight APIs for live tiles and such. Windows Phone 8.1 has been backwards compatible with all the Silverlight code, it is up to developers to shift to the WinRT APIs, which is why Microsoft recommends that in the meanwhile developers should be making more universal apps. So when Windows 10 rolls out most developers can change the remaining Silverlight APIs to WinRT equivalents, though I guess that Windows 10 will be compatible with the Silverlight code, until developers can fully transition.

 

[Llordy]

And this will not hamper Microsoft's current plans for flagship device releases. Take for example the launch of the Lumia 1520 and Icon which were clearly designed with Windows Phone 8.1 in mind.

Keep in mind that we may not see Windows 10 plans for Phones until about this time next year. Since Windows 10 will be released sometime in the second half of 2015, Belfiore implies that the Phone versions will be released later after the full version. Its likely they can release a 1520/1020 successor this year with GDR2 and then those phones will be the first ones to lead the Lumia line-up into the Windows 10 update.
After all, Microsoft intends to attract more manufacturers and OEMs to make Windows smartphones, and it would be hard to convince new OEMs if they need new hardware.

 

[awilliams1701]

Except the Icon will not officially run 8.1 as of yet (thanks Verizon), you have to run it on DP and apparently it has a lot of issues without the Cyan firmware.

And this will not hamper Microsoft's current plans for flagship device releases. Take for example the launch of the Lumia 1520 and Icon which were clearly designed with Windows Phone 8.1 in mind.

Keep in mind that we may not see Windows 10 plans for Phones until about this time next year. Since Windows 10 will be released sometime in the second half of 2015, Belfiore implies that the Phone versions will be released later after the full version. Its likely they can release a 1520/1020 successor this year with GDR2 and then those phones will be the first ones to lead the Lumia line-up into the Windows 10 update.
After all, Microsoft intends to attract more manufacturers and OEMs to make Windows smartphones, and it would be hard to convince new OEMs if they need new hardware.

 

[Im_Q]

Please note that with Windows Phone 8.1, there is now a near 80% overlap of the APIs, meaning most of Windows Phone code is the same as Windows/RT. The remaining code unique to Windows Phone is only the old Silverlight APIs for live tiles and such. Windows Phone 8.1 has been backwards compatible with all the Silverlight code, it is up to developers to shift to the WinRT APIs, which is why Microsoft recommends that in the meanwhile developers should be making more universal apps. So when Windows 10 rolls out most developers can change the remaining Silverlight APIs to WinRT equivalents, though I guess that Windows 10 will be compatible with the Silverlight code, until developers can fully transition.

While I understand/agree with your message in the post, I do have to point out two things.

Silverlight is only available to protect existing coding investments. Most devs don't foresee any further advancements and new efforts should be WinRT. Running existing Silverlight apps is easy enough to do on Win10 but don't expect too many additions to its APIs.

Also yes, there is a lot of overlap of code between Windows and WP but not as much as you think. The 80% figure is for public APIs like you mentioned but they're implemented differently between the two platforms underneath. The OSes are actually still quite different while exposing similar APIs for devs' convenience. Not hugely different but not as closely converged like the public APIs are.

With Win10, this will no longer be the case.

 

[Christian Kallevig]

It's pretty hard to say what we're in for based on a single graphic at an event for a half baked OS that didn't even discuss the phone side of things apart from Joe B saying that small screened devices couldn't possibly try to copy the UI used for tablets and PCs because it simply would not make sense for that screen size or that use case.

So let's look at what we do know for sure about Windows 10 on the phone.

Firstly, we know that the same people who made Windows Phone are working on this OS- along with most of the Windows 8 team. But the key here is that the leadership is that of the Windows Phone team. These guys know the lessons that have been learned on the phone side of things, and probably aren't about to take a big step back, especially hot on the heels of Windows Phone 8.1. If anything, we're more likely to see some ideas from the phone make their way into the tablet/PC side of things.

Secondly, for as much as they like to **** things up, Microsoft would not abandon Windows Phone devs and the three hundred thousand apps in the Windows Phone store. These apps are still going to be essential going forward, especially in the early days. Plus they are just the shot in the arm Windows needs on mini tablets.

Thirdly and finally, we have to remember that anything that might indicate the future of touch Windows is going to be saved for a more consumer-focused event. Yesterday was all about letting businesses know that Windows 10 would be something worth their attention on traditional PCs. Odd are there is a lot going on that we don't know about simply because now is not the time to show it. This stuff just isn't fully baked yet.

 

[Kram Sacul]

View attachment 82993

Other than the lack of of a theme color and the margins on the side of the tiles I would be up for this. The removal of the auto-hiding system tray was a dumb decision in 8.1 so getting that back would be great.