Are You Rooting for Microsoft?

[Jeff Campbell]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.businessinsider.com/heres-why-apple-fans-are-rooting-for-microsoft-in-mobile-2010-10' target='_blank'>http://www.businessinsider.com/here...-mobile-2010-10</a><br /><br /></div><p><em>"We were a bit surprised to hear Apple lover John Gruber say such nice things about Microsoft's forthcoming Windows Phone 7 software, after he had a chance to play around with it last week."</em></p><p><img src="http://images.thoughtsmedia.com/resizer/thumbs/size/600/at/auto/1286511997.usr105634.jpg" style="border: 1px solid #d2d2bb;" /></p><p>But then surprise turned to understanding as Frommer points out that Microsoft is no longer the enemy, and fanboys of Apple no longer have to try and downplay everything coming from the Redmond campus. Who is the enemy? Why Google of course! First it was the Android going after the iPhone, and now it's Google TV trying to push aside the Apple TV. I suppose I can see his logic, saying Microsoft and Google are very similar in the smartphone market in what they bring to the table and their business models (bring software and let someone else make the hardware). Personally, I just like the competition, since that tends to get the consumer more in the end. What are your thoughts?</p>

[The Yaz]

This time I'm gonna say no. I just do not like Microsoft's thought processes for any mobile device these days.

The wanton destruction of the Danger product with the Kin, which did not exist for 60 days. The buildup of the Zune line of media players and the subsequent abandonment of the Zune HD right after they released it. This is an example of a company that cannot follow through a conceptual change.

The minute it does not seem to work, they abandon it and rehash the concept as something else.

Win 7 phones are going to be marginally the same due to the locked specs. Looking at the test devices I feel Microsoft would have done better to have given each device manufacture a segment to design the phone around (tablet, business slider, light texting device, etc.) or even made the first Win 7 phone themselves (Zune Phone) with ver2 devices coming from their partners with improvements based on comments from the first device.

In the end, Microsoft is trapped because two of their competitors can beat them with differing arket strategies (Apple=closed system, Google=open system). We'll have to see if they can find a way to gain significant market share.

Steve

[Menneisyys]

Win 7 phones are going to be marginally the same due to the locked specs. Looking at the test devices I feel Microsoft would have done better to have given each device manufacture a segment to design the phone around (tablet, business slider, light texting device, etc.) or even made the first Win 7 phone themselves (Zune Phone) with ver2 devices coming from their partners with improvements based on comments from the first device.

Well, for two days, I've had the chance of testing a real, final WP7 phone. (Because of the NDA, I may not tell you more, not even its manufacturer.) It's pretty nice and well-made. So is the OS. I'd say WP7 is orders of magnitude better than WM6.5.

As far as locking is concerned, MS did it right. One of the major advantages of the iPhone is the "write once, run anywhere" approach - which simply isn't the case with Android, Symbian or pre-7 Windows Mobile. Even if you do want to test your app on all available models (a iPhone/ iPod Touch model from all generations and the iPad) you won't end up having to pay a fortune for them all, unlike with the past situation of WinMo / present of Android.

MS did it right by telling manufacturers the minimal specs of a device: they can make sure their apps, using the standardized features (that is, nothing like front-side cameras), will run on all phones. The situation was completely different in the pre-WP7 days, with pretty lowish, absolutely gaming-unfriendly devices like the HTC Touch and other ~200 MHz devices.

[Brad Adrian]

I guess I just kinda feel sorry for Microsoft when it comes to their efforts in the Windows Mobile space. I have loved some of the stuff they've done, especially in the early Pocket PC days, BEFORE they tried to integrate things and create a mobile phone platform. For an entire decade now, Microsoft has been struggling to find its proper niche in this market and they keep coming up as a follower and not a leader.

How many OTHER companies can you think of that has had SO many opportunities to "get it right" and keeps coming up short? The Kin, IMO, never should have been launched, for example, but Microsoft has had a luxury no other competitor has had -- the ability to repeatedly fail and still continue to TRY to bring a widely-accepted offering.

I wish them luck with Version 7, but I've not put my current phone up for sale on e-Bay just yet, either.