Its all about taste you know.
Some like the WP UI, some like Android Vanilla, some like HTC Sense, some like Samsung Touchwiz, and I bet even some like Motorola Blur.
That is okay and I dont think it is fair and nice of you to try to tell others what they should think is "good looking". When it comes to design no one has the right answer for everyone.
Fair enough. I think there are some generally agreed upon standards for what is good design and what isn't when it comes to software and interfaces. How clearly information is presented is an important part of this. There are good reasons why the WP7 UI has won multiple design awards from notable organizations outside the industry and Android UI's like have won zero, except for inside the narrow Android or smartphone communities.
But we'll leave that alone for now. I don't have any intention of telling anyone else what is the right answer for them.
And this thread wasnt really about WP vs iPhone/Android and which system is the best.
The question was, why does not WP attract people?
There is already iPhone, the life style phone known for its design, good quality hardware and software "that just works".
And there is Android that attracts many people due to its flexibility, customization, community support and high end hardware.
WP 7 doesnt bring anything new, except it looks. The useful new functions is easy to count and at the same time it lacks functions that 10 year old Nokia smartphones had.
I don't think it's missing features that most people don't use that keeps WP7 from being more popular. It's not as if millions of people are picking up WP7 phones and then saying "Oh, I can't print wirelessly from the phone? Never mind I'll get an iPhone." or "Oh, it doesn't have NFC and Bluetooth file transfer?" Never mind I'll get an Android.
The
average phone buyer doesn't even know what that stuff is and isn't cross-shopping for those features.
The biggest reasons WP7 isn't more popular are:
1.) MOST people are unaware it even exists and is an option. They walk into the store looking for an iPhone or a "Droid" and they don't even want to see a Windows Phone unless someone gives them a good reason to consider it. No one ever has before the Lumia 900 came to AT&T and they actually made an effort.
2.) The phones are tucked in a corner of the store, and until the Lumia came out, they didn't have a single interesting looking phone. People came in and saw 2 or 3 phones that looked 2 generations behind the new stuff in the center of the room and they are running some weird tile OS they've never seen.
3.) MOST average people make phone decisions based on the advice of more informed friends. Most people's friends will tell them to get an iPhone "because they just work" or get an Android "because Apple users are iSheep and Android is soooo powerful and it makes you smarter than an iSheep". Virtually no one's friend is telling them to get a WP7 phone.
4.) MOST average people are insecure about technology choices and are image conscious. They don't want to see old and out of touch by buying a BlackBerry. They aren't going to make a leap to an unknown (Windows Phone) which their friends may think of as nerdy or strange and then feel like they will be in a position of having to defend something they don't understand. Much easier to be compliant and buy the product their friends use and will approve of.
5.) Those first 4 cover about 80% of the customers out there. The other 20% are more informed tech consumers. Most of them don't give Windows Phone a chance based in part on misconceptions (It's like Windows Mobile, or the Windows XP they hate on their work computers) and real concerns (missing apps, features, questions about future of the platform)
6.) Once you boil through all that, you're left with the 2-3% of customers who think for themselves, investigate all the options, and in the end decide that they like Windows Phone more than the others, or like it enough to at least give it a try.
It's been said before, but it's worth saying again. People don't buy Phone OS's. They buy PHONES.
PHONES are what sell the OS.
This is why the Lumia 900 is so important. It's the first Windows Phone out there which is dramatically different enough from everything else to get noticed (not an easy task) and it has a massive ad campaign to boost awareness.
Interesting phones that people are aware of are key. Enhancing the image of the phones to raise them to the level of desirability and "coolness" are key. These things matter more than features when it comes to selling phones to the masses. Just ask Apple.
My wish would be a combination of Android and iPhone, take the best of them and make it a new experience, instead of trying to be something it isnt.
I think that Windows Phone already does offer some of the best of both platforms while being a new experience that doesn't try to be something it isn't. In fact it's totally unique compared to iOS and Android which copy heavily from each other. I expect WP8 will bring even more of the best of the two together in a whole new way.
And not to forget, ones taste does change over time. What I think looks nice today may be boring in a month or even tomorrow when I am in another mood. So the ability to customize is in my opinion a big limitation.
Some customization is good. Some uniformity is good too. I think Apple does not allow enough, but Android offers far too much, which is why it is a mess. Somehwere in between is the sweet spot. Let me change OS themes, but within strict parameters which insure the quality control for how third party apps look and function and follow strict design guidelines for the OS.
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