[Stinger]

I find it funny that the officially sanctioned apps are causing all these problems but the unofficial apps on my jailbroken touch work just fine.

[Stinger]

I find it funny that the officially sanctioned apps are causing all these problems but the unofficial apps on my jailbroken touch work just fine.

[bacchus_3]

I would have to agree that Apple made a mistake here. Probably with making sure the quality of firmware 2.0 is as solid as 1.x firmwares. I stopped using WinMo over 2 years ago at WinMo 5 - the experience when I don't restart my phone daily, agonizingly SLOW! I do experience OS reboot in the iPhone but that is due to AppStore purchases and app updates. I've read a couple of findings off the web (e.g. iPhone Dev, et al) that there is a problem with Apple's software distribution system that is causing this.

The one good thing I can think of is Apple can fix this as soon as they can figure it out - hopefully, a real fix to these bugs by firmware 2.0 and 2.0.1.

[Dyvim]

I have the 2.0.1 firmware running on an original iPhone. It's definitely slower and has weird lag issues compared to the almost rock solid 1.1.4 firmware (which took several months for Apple to arrive at). I've had some App Store apps lock up on me, but Apple fortunately includes a way to "end task" on hung apps (hold down the Home button for several seconds) and that almost always does the trick. While I have had to soft reset a couple times, it wasn't from 3rd party apps but rather using the built-in apps. I've not had to hard reset. The bright side of this is that I fully expect Apple to release progressively better firmware versions over the next several months that will address the stability issues (as they did with v1 firmware). Apple's firmware update system simply blows the WinMo experience away- first just by having it in the first place, second by making it a seamless user experience (you don't lose a single setting- not even your browser history). I've done multiple firmware updates on my iPhone (and my wife's as well): something like 1.1.1, 1.1.2, 1.1.3, 1.1.4, 2.0 pre-release (for iPhone 3G- oops!), 2.0, and 2.0.1 and retained all my settings and info every time.

For me the push work email through Exchange and the push Calendar and Contacts via MobileMe (the email sucks for me but it's keeping my Contacts and Calendars in sync for me between a PC, a Mac, and 2 iPhones) of my desktop (non-Exchange) Outlook PIM info is worth the lag. I'm also digging the App Store. Nothing really earth-shattering but I've got several apps that I enjoy playing around with.

My Toshiba e830 was very stable (as was my e800), but then again it was WM 2003 and not a phone. My eTen M500, M600, and HTC Advantage x7501 phones all have been horribly unstable, rendering them useless as phones for all practical purposes. The Advantage is by far the worst of the lot- it is unstable out of the box with no 3rd party apps (other than what HTC builds into the ROM). Now that was an $850 disappointment of the highest order. (And people think the iPhone is overpriced!)

[subzerohf]

The iPhone is definitely going through some teething pain, just like WinMo did a few years back. The major difference between the two is the update mechanism. In less than one month since the release of 2.0, firmware 2.0.1 is released and distributed to most iPhone users. With Apple, there is hope (for the next update). With WinMo, you are stuck - better luck with your next purchase, man!

[acharn]

I made the jump to the iPhone the day 3G was released and haven't looked back. As far as WM being for business and iPhone for consumer, I disagree. I use the iPhone for my business. I don't use exchange, but Gmail IMAP works well. I also sync my calendar wirelessly using Nuevasync. All of this is free.
As far as it locking up, yes, it does, occasionally. But, not any more than my Blackjack.
The iPhone, as you know, is a completely different user experience than WM. The thing I appreciate the most is that I don't have to install a bunch of 3rd party apps to make the device usable for what I need. It just works, and the user experience is just delightful on the iPhone. Prior to this, I was a WM guy for 5 years, and people would ooh and aah over what I could do with it compared to a simple cell phone. All it took for me, though, was to experience the Safari browser and multitouch interface and I was hooked.

[alcedes78]

When it comes to the stability of Windows Mobile it is difficult if not impossible to speak about the stability of Windows Mobile as a whole. As some have pointed out in other iPhone vs. Windows Mobile comparisons, you are essentially comparing a phone with only two hardware configurations (for now let's ignore the memory capacity) against a class of phones with dozens of variations.

Each one of those Windows Mobile Phones may provide a different experience than the others and may have different levels of stability. When an unstable one is found then whose fault is it? Is it the OEM's fault for using an unstable driver? Is the instability the cause of something in code that Microsoft wrote? When a crash occurs in a Windows Mobile phone it is hard to say that the fault is defenitivly owned by Microsoft, the OEM, or other third party without knowing why the crash occured.

I am inclined to think that a problem that occurs across all Windows Mobile Phones that have the same AKU is from faults owned by Microsoft and problems that occur on a specific phone model are from faults owned by the OEM.

[txa1265]

Let us all remember that while the iPhone platform is just over 1 year old, Windows CE is more than *12* years old ... and the overwhelming majority of that time has been spent mired with loads of basic problems, many of which it has failed to shake.

That said, I noticed instantly that my battery life using WiFi dropped drastically when I upgraded my iPod Touch to 2.0.

[Rocco Augusto]

Originally Posted by subzerohf

With WinMo, you are stuck - better luck with your next purchase, man!

Windows Mobile phones can be updated and when there are problems most carriers are good about releasing updates for the device (e.g. Cingular 2125 radio problem)

[Dyvim]

Originally Posted by Rocco Augusto

when there are problems most carriers are good about releasing updates for the device

That's a joke, right? Good one!

Ok, snarky comment aside, while I concede that if there is a specific concrete known and fixable issue, then carriers may choose to rollout updates, when have they ever rolled out updates because the device in general is slow and buggy?

Also, I never bought a carrier-branded WM phone, I always bought unlocked devices. Where would I look to for updates then? The OEM? Microsoft? (Ok, eTen was pretty good about ROM upgrades although the upgrade process was painful - hard reset every time.)

Although my iPhone is locked to AT&T, I don't look to AT&T for updates, I know to look to Apple for them, and so far they have been providing regular updates even though my device model is over a year old.

[acharn]

Although my iPhone is locked to AT&T, I don't look to AT&T for updates, I know to look to Apple for them, and so far they have been providing regular updates even though my device model is over a year old.

Exactly. I have had my first upgrade from Apple in less than a month. For WM it is up to the carrier. How many days of bickering and complaining about the lack of the "official release" of WM 6.x do I have to endure on the AT&T forum? Heck, I'd even PAY apple as long as they keep the updates rolling, on schedule.

You are not going to get the kind of customer service for any WM products due to their lack of a single source for updates. It's like trying to govern the independent states of the former Soviet Republic!

Apple, keep giving me updates, keep offering me cool applications which AMAZE and DAZZLE me every time I open a new one, and I will stay loyal to you.

WM, Microsoft-- if you are still trying to convince us that the 4-color game Simon is the rage, then you need to watch Close Encounters of the Third Kind again. The real innovations took place in the space ship after they took off. Apple is currently delivering on that.