Well just seen iOS 7 the full feature video, have used and experienced Jellybean 4.1 & 2.. I have to say W8 is SERIOUSLY falling far behind on everything!!! If W8p want to stay in the market, MS really do need to wake-up! MS seem very slow and do seem not-so-bothered about W8phones from my experience on W8 phone. Its the only smartphone I know with no all-in-one Notification, no ability to put apps in Folders (come-on too many Tiles do get confusing that involve a memory test of remembering where you placed the app are on the Homescreen - eps when they only have the logo to go by and use lots of apps). With no quick access to your Bluetooth / Net / Wifi (take a look at android/iOS 7); this esp.annoying as you have to go back out the screen you where inn, then go into the Bluetooth/ Net / Wifi, the back again to where you where originally. For some strange reason MS seems to have no media Mute (No you can't press the volume-key and the screen to silence - this only silence phone calls, not media), and why is there no separate control for media and phone volume. What on earth are MS thinking!...Why oh why do you need the use of Net that costs you the user data and battery, a PC, the SkyDrive app, and a W8 Phone, simply to create Photo Albums! Is MS really being awkward just for the sake of it !! Yet MS still become more awkward by making Music Playlist a multitasking task - and yet once the Playlist is created on the phone, you can't add more tracks to it - Only W8/MS phones make you do this!...Its not just me, but others too, who start of liking the W8 phone then realize its vast limitations and features (expected smartphone features) missing from this so-called Smartphone! Oh MAPS/PLACES - hardly any reviews on places/shops/restaurants..etc, lack any reak info, many small shops/business missing, no real-time alternative route navigation, no alerts on road problems. The more you investigate W8phones - esp when coming from android/apple, you do see how far back MS phones are - no wonder they sit in the back of every shop! MS are to blame!
This is seriously unfair and it seems like you really haven't taken the time to get to know your phone. Let me explain...
1. "MS seem very slow and do seem not-so-bothered about W8phones..." Is this because you want updates every 6 months or because MS is not listening to your complaints and fixing them right away? Remember, this is a company with an OS...it's not an app. App developers are smaller scale and can push updates on the fly. An OS is a bit more complicated and it's not like MS (or Android or Apple) follow forums, make changes, and then push updates every month. And if you think MS is slow...good luck on Android. If you have anything older than a Galaxy Nexus, you are stuck on an older version of Android (Ice Cream Sandwich) and will NOT get updated unless you root it and are lucky enough to find a dev who will build a ROM. Apple? You wait once a year for a major update. Every 6 months or so for small bug fixes. So WP8 is not too far off. And at least WP doesn't suffer fragmentation to the point of Android.
2. "...no all-in-one notification..." Between the lock screen showing you new notifications for emails, texts, calendars, calls, etc and the live tiles, how many places do you need to tell you that you've got new stuff? Turn on your phone and look at your lock screen. Right there it gives you info. Now slide up your lock screen. See those live tiles that say "New Message", unread counts, new posts? THOSE are notifications. Why do you need yet ANOTHER slide out menu to give you this information? They make medication for OCD.
3. "...no ability to put apps in Folders..." So you're saying you want to take your apps, place them on the home screen, and then take those and place them in folders? Why? That's why WP is so awesome - simplicity. If I want all of my camera items readily available, I make the tiles small and group them. That way, I can see what I want instead of having to press a folder icon first. But to each his own I guess. However, this doesn't mean that WP is a shortfall simply because it doesn't have folders. And a Memory Game? Seriously? If you have too many tiles - remove some tiles! Then slide to the left and hit that handy little search button. I'd rather have live tiles that give me useful information than dozens of folders on the iScreen.
4. "...no quick access to your Bluetooth / Net / Wifi. Most battery apps have built-in short cuts. Or, there are short cut apps. So get a short cut app and put it on your home screen. Most allow you to pin a short cut specifically for certain things (say Wifi) to the home screen. Tap shortcut. Toggle off Wifi. Press the back button. What's so complicated and hard about that? Tap. Toggle. Tap. Sure, it's convenient to slide down a menu bar and toggle something; but again, is that really so much of a downfall? Apple's iOS7 is FINALLY getting this.
5. While a separate media/phone volume control would be handy, I still fail to see how this would be a downfall to WP. If you're listening to music: volume, pause. There's your mute. And if you're going to a meeting where you need your phone silent, do you really need notifications muted but phone ringer volume up? Or vice versa?
6. What apps REQUIRE the net that Android and Apple don't? Maps allow you to download separate maps for use offline. Music doesn't require you to be online. And you don't have to backup photos to SkyDrive. Apple has iCloud and Android has Google+. They are all guilty of the same things. If you don't sync to SkyDrive, you can still create a photo album. I don't see how this is relevant or a valid argument against WP.
7. Playlists are about the only thing I agree with...unless there's a different app that would circumvent this.
8. Maps/Places - ever hear of Bing? Or Maluuba? Or...how about Google? All three of those will allow you to search, get information, and even get directions and phone numbers. And I'm sorry, but the virtual overlay of Here City Lens is just awesome. If you don't like the reviews it gives, you have the freedom of searching the web. Neither Android nor Apple give you a real time alternative route. They suggest a route based on the amount of time it takes to get there (which Nokia maps does), you select the route and off you go. And to rebuttal your argument, if you use Here Drive and let it run when you drive even with no route selected, it'll learn your routes and suggest the quickest way. That's under Here Drive +, My Commute.
I came from 6 different Android phones and iPhone 4 and 4S. I've rooted, hacked, tweaked, and messed with ROMs on every phone I had. And here's what I've learned: there will NEVER be a one-stop shop phone. What you miss on Android you'll complain about with an Apple or WP. What you miss on Apple, you'll complain about on Android and WP. Etc, etc. To me, WP is fresh, easy, and it's growing. And once again people, if you're going to buy a new phone (whatever the OS), DO YOUR RESEARCH! I knew exactly what I was getting into with my L928 coming from an iPhone 4S. I watched videos, read articles, and went into the store to mess with it a few times. Don't look at the cover picture and think it's going to magically adapt to YOUR liking. iOS is JUST now getting pull down expanded notification toggles. How long did they have to wait for that? And just wait until Key Lime Pie comes out and you have to 6 months before Samsung and the phone carriers decide your Android phone is worthy of the latest OS...or if they want you to buy a new phone instead. It's all relative.
But please, don't say that WP is "falling far behind on
everything", "very slow", etc simply because it doesn't have what Apple and Android have. It's like going into Burger King and b!tching because they don't have a Big Mac. It's like when I joined the Marine Corps when I was younger and didn't know what I was getting into. My Drill Instructor said, "You know what USMC stands for?
U Signed the
Mothereffing
Contract. Quit b!tching." Point is - know what you're getting into before you start bashing.
/end rant