My goodness, what did I start? Very interesting about Microsoft and Google. I bought a Chromebook a few months back. I don't mind that it is a web browser machine. I do mind their file management system. Its clumsey and awkward. Photos get saved to Google+, moving files around is not pretty and Google Hangouts is just too complicated. That's why I am going to replace it with a Surface and keyboard combo. Then, my laptop, phone and tablet will all be Win-based. This is coming from a guy who has been a true blue Mac user sine 1988. Its just that Microsoft really nailed it with Win 8.1. Its elegant, sophisticated and easy to use. In other words, it's for grown-ups! To think my motto used to be: "Friends don't let friends do Windows." funny how things can change. BTW, i am really digging the 928 that I don't think an Icon is in the cards. The 928 will suit my needs for the next two years and who knows what Win phones there will be in 2016.
I'm one who went to Apple back in 2002 after bad experiences with Windows 2000. Never went to XP, but bought an iBook, got an iPod in 2003, and was a huge fab. Later bought an iMac and two more iPods over time, but then the iMac went bad after 15 months due to bad Chinese capacitors - a problem in the industry at the time. AppleCare could not be sold in my state (Florida) due to law, though when I attempted to buy it for my iBook, Apple refunded me my money for the plan due to the law and COMPED me AppleCare. Was a great thing for them to do, but fast forward to a time when they had conquered the world with the iPod and the iPhone was really rolling and everything changed. Dell, Gateway, HP, and everyone on the PC side fixed the computers with the cap problems, warranty or no. Apple refused and told me I needed to just buy a new iMac from them. Built a new PC instead with quad-core and good specs for less and went with Vista, which was okay. Got the Windows 7 Beta and I was impressed. I then got a Zune HD and left the Apple ecosystem behind. Not to knock the iPods of old, but that Zune HD is STILL a heck of a music player. Had it for 4.5 years and still can't just set it aside for a phone instead. Still have Music Pass too with the ten tracks included per month.
All that said, Apple does at least offer their customers product and experience inside their ecosystem. They've pushed things forward in UI in some areas just as Microsoft has in others. MS really got me hooked with Windows Phone. I had resisted smartphones for a time, but WP was such a radical difference. It wasn't just grids of icons. Microsoft had come up with something new - and it'd been fun seeing them refine it and respond fairly quickly to user feedback. That's the part that really blows my mind - a company that was so set in its ways just shifting to fairly frequent updates in such a small space of time. The definitely have no intention of becoming IBM if they can help it.
I actually think we may see Apple and MS snuggle up a bit more in the near future. I think both of them actually DESPISE Google. They are big partners on the Rockstar patent holding company that bought out the Nortel patents and is suing Google, Samsung, HTC, etc. Android is likely to keep getting more and more expense on the patent coverage front.
That is an OS I don't get. My brother plans on moving to WP from Android in the future, but not yet. So I went looking at Android phones with him after we stopped by the Microsoft Store over the weekend. It was amazing how different KitKat was in function from the S5 to the One M8 to the Xperia and then compared to older versions on the Nexus 5 and other phones. Buttons didn't always do the same thing. It left me amazed that people would actually WANT to buy these things when even the functions between the S4 and S5 have some pretty big differences. At least iOS and Windows Phone offer predictability across devices.
As for the 928, I get digging it. It's a nice phone. Heck, a year ago it probably had the best camera available on a phone before the 1020 hit. It's not as good now in comparison, but it's still quite good. The audio recording is some of the best on any phone - really staggering. I've heard soundboard quality stuff recorded in concerts from the audience on these things - and the Icon improves it even further. Nice, vibrant screen. The build is pretty good to me, though I've seen some complaints. I know four others that have them and all of them LOVE the 928 - and they all came over from Android or the iPhone. I've also gotten a lot of attention over the past few days of having it. The matte black version looks VERY sharp and the curved glass screen stands out. My contract is up at the end of the year, so I'll see what happens then. I think we're going to have a lot of options coming from Nokia under MS, but also from Samsung, HTC, LG, and maybe even Lenovo/Moto plus the persistent rumors of Sony announcing Windows Phone over the summer. I think we're on the cusp of some huge growth for Windows Phone and Windows 8.1.
Wait until you get Windows Phone 8.1 on that thing. Fantastic OS. Love asking Cortana to remind me to get something at a store and walking up to the store with my phone alerting me. That's just one of so many cool things. They are really listening to feedback and reacting quickly. It reminds me of how Apple was before they became the behemoth they are today. Back in 2002, they were huge innovators and they had a community of enthusiast developers. Windows Phone has that right now. I just want MS to keep it fresh and exciting.