09-15-2008, 12:00 PM
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Contributing Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 8,228
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RIM Surpasses Windows Mobile Marketshare
JKOnTheRun has an overview of the second quarter for 2008 marketshare numbers, and there is a new number two player. Previously, Windows Mobile held on to the number two slot behind the big kid on the block, Symbian. In the most recent numbers, RIM's Blackberry platform has pushed Windows Mobile into third place.
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09-15-2008, 12:42 PM
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Pupil
Join Date: May 2008
Posts: 24
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Next quarter's (Q3) consensus for Apple is 5 to 7 million units which matches consensus for RIM (6 million). Unless Microsoft sees substantial above-market growth, it could slip to fourth.
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09-15-2008, 01:46 PM
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Pontificator
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 1,202
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Let's hope Microsoft uses this as motivation to get the lead out, so to speak. This 2 year cycle for new releases doesn't cut it when the competition is seemingly releasing something new every 6 months. Let's be realistic, the UI improvements provided in the latest round of WM devices and tacking a 5 year old desktop browser on to the OS really isn't anything more than "lipstick on a pig". 
The funny thing is that all along we heard Microsoft say the real competition was Symbian and RIM, yet as soon as Palm effectively died off, innovation slowed to a crawl for Windows Mobile.
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09-15-2008, 04:13 PM
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Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 15,171
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Quote:
Originally Posted by whydidnt
Let's hope Microsoft uses this as motivation to get the lead out, so to speak. This 2 year cycle for new releases doesn't cut it when the competition is seemingly releasing something new every 6 months.
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That's just part of it -- another major problem is that, since WM isn't tightly coupled to a particular OEM, that the OS release just means another 6-month wait before consumers can get a new device. Compare that to, say, RIM's Storm, which might hit Verizon tomorrow. In fact, if you look at all of the major competitors to WM, you've got Symbian (essentially Nokia), RIM (one vendor), Apple (one vendor), and Linux (generally hardware-vendor-driven) as the major competitors.
The HTC/Microsoft relationship is a start, but Microsoft needs to emphasize fast release and kick it into high gear to keep pace.
--janak
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09-15-2008, 04:26 PM
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Thinker
Join Date: Apr 2004
Posts: 327
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You Eventually Stop All Expectations
Dealing with Microsoft Pocket PC is much like dealing with that one employee or co-worker that you simply end up ignoring because every time you give him and assignment, or tell him where he needs to improve, or are asked to work on a project with her inevitably fails to deliver. Eventually, you simply start looking at other options. The other options may not be better, overall, but the fact that the other options do not incessantly annoy you is a good enough reason to move on.
I was a Palm user, and eventually switched to Pocket PC due to the fact that I could multitask and that the development environment for Pocket PC was progressing. Over the years I dealt with annoyances that I was POSITIVELY SURE would get fixed. I started using Pocket PC in 2000, and 8 years later:
1. I still cannot save or open a Word (or any other) document on my device globally. This is so braindead it leaves me speechless. Whenever anyone asks me why they cannot do this my only answer is "Because Microsoft decided to do it that way." Why, after 8 years of this utter bullcrap I am still dealing with this is beyond me.
2. Windows Media Player is an utter mess. I thought it was better before the "update". The old version allowed you to drop music files in the My Music folder and then open the player and play them. Now you must either use Windows Media Player 11 on the desktop to properly update the library, or manually re-update the library. It also cannot remember playback positions or files last played when closed, and it takes too many button presses to do anything.
3. No native photo contact dialing support. For the love of God, Microsoft, you have photo contact support in the OS IF YOU DECIDE TO OPEN A CONTACT, why not add the ability to natively dial a contact by photo? I still need a third party application to do this.
4. Allowing OEM's to rape the system. I like Windows Live Messenger. It works well. I can have my Hotmail pushed to my device and I can use Windows Messenger IF MY CARRIER DECIDES TO LET ME. I can also find the Internet Sharing applet to tether IF MY CARRIER DECIDES TO LET ME FIND IT. I can even update the system IF MY OEM OR CARRIER DECIDES IT IS OKAY.
5. Inconsistent support for stylus-free use. Some applications allow you to do whatever you like without using a stylus. Others let you do some things without a stylus, and others need a stylus. Try sending an MMS to someone and browsing for a photo without a stylus. Not very easy to do. Some applications allow the easy use of a finger in place of a stylus, and others are nearly impossible.
6. Crappy reminder snooze time choices. I want to be able to decided when I am re-reminded of an event. I do not want to choose 5 minutes before, 1 day, etc. I want to be able to choose to set a custom time like remind me in 11 minutes, or Friday at 8:10 AM, as well as the "canned" reminder times.
7. I frankly do not want to rehash Pocket IE. Suffice it to say that the plethora of other browsers make it look utterly craptacular.
8. I should be able to uninstall anything I damn well want to uninstall. If I do not want Word, Excel, IE, or anything else let me choose to put something else in.
I could go on, but that is definitely enough for now. I have looked at the iPhone, and decided it is not ready for primetime yet. I have far too many needs that are not met by it. But I have to admit, I find it very sexy and long for it (even though I know it is not good for me). I have looked at Blackberry, but it leaves me wanting more in terms of applications and I still like having a touch screen.
Nonetheless, much like that one employee who I decide to ignore, I wait for the chance to give the job to someone else and fire him in all his annoying glory. Sure, the new guy or gal may have their own problems, but at least I will have a chance to dump the old annoyances for the new.
Change can be annoying too, but sometimes a change is as good as a vacation.
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09-15-2008, 05:12 PM
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Pupil
Join Date: Nov 2007
Posts: 12
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I'm surprised that Symbian is so popular - I don't know anyone who uses it. I live in the US, though, and I'm sure this must've been a worldwide survey.
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09-15-2008, 05:32 PM
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Pontificator
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 1,202
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Janak Parekh
That's just part of it -- another major problem is that, since WM isn't tightly coupled to a particular OEM, that the OS release just means another 6-month wait before consumers can get a new device.
--janak
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We all recognize this as an issue. Why hasn't Microsoft? It's time to decouple the OS, UI, and related functionality from the hardware and device drivers - like we see in desktop OS's. That would enable end-users and Microsoft to upgrade without the OEM/carrier obstruction. The issue with the current environment is that there is little to no financial incentive for the OEM or carrier to upgrade the software after initial delivery.
Short of this suggestion, then it would seem Microsoft should place EVEN more emphasis on shortening the development cycle. If you know your partners are going to take 6 months to deliver your software, you can't have a 2 year long upgrade cycle, it needs to be 6 months, so your partners can deliver new device/features at least annually.
I'm quite confident there are talented people on the WM team that could address several of our concerns. However, I have serious doubts that Microsoft invested as many resources as they could or should have over the last ten years to truly advance this platform. They are now paying for that decision and if they want to stay relevant in this space they're going to have do more than they have, and soon.
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09-15-2008, 06:16 PM
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Contributing Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 8,228
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Quote:
Originally Posted by deanhatescoffee
I'm surprised that Symbian is so popular - I don't know anyone who uses it. I live in the US, though, and I'm sure this must've been a worldwide survey.
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Symbian is on virtually every Nokia phone out there, even though most of its users don't use it past basic things, like contacts and SMS.
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09-15-2008, 06:38 PM
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Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 15,171
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Quote:
Originally Posted by whydidnt
We all recognize this as an issue. Why hasn't Microsoft?
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Excellent question. My guess? Entrenched mindset. The WM platform has been around for 15-ish years now, and they've been working with this model all along. It's worked "well enough" for them. It's clearly not good enough now, but it's difficult to reengineer this, from contractual to cooperation to development models.
(In some sense, many MS platforms are suffering from this traditional mindset -- witness how long Vista took to come to market compared to its competitors.)
--janak
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09-16-2008, 12:50 AM
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Contributing Editor
Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 2,503
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Quote:
Originally Posted by deanhatescoffee
I'm surprised that Symbian is so popular - I don't know anyone who uses it. I live in the US, though, and I'm sure this must've been a worldwide survey.
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You know those funky (and fairly popular) N series phones? N7x, n8x, n9x? They use Symbian. Those E series phones? Symbian too. I'd say at least 50% of phones sold by Nokia in developed nations have Symbian.
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Baka. Soku. Zan. - The justice behind the dysORDer.
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