How Microsoft blew it with Windows Mobile - Page 2

**x10guy** · #11 (**permalink**) 11-20-2009, 02:31 PM

I don't see the Palm Pre as a serious contender simply because they are bit late and they are currenly only on Sprint which is still bleeding customers. (I can't remember the time when Sprint was actually gaining customers). Palm is also too small.

I say Android simple because of 3 reasons.
1. Across all carriers
2. Google is behind it
3. Open source
It is arriving a bit late but I think by next year, it'll be past WinMo and beyond.

I say the iPhone simple because it is already there, despite being only on ATT. I probably would also add BB (blackberry) to the mix too.

Winmo won't go away simple because Microsoft is behind it. But it has already lost the lead and baring any breakthrough miracle, probably will never get it back.

thejacer · #12 (**permalink**) 11-20-2009, 08:01 PM

here we go, lets do this. instead of talking about how wm crashed and burned lets thank MS for what it did right. innovation (oh no! someone referring to innovation and not talking about iphones **barely** finger friendly grid of square icons?!). thanks MS for giving us a persistant, CONSISTENT, dependable medium for communicating all of our important business material while on the go. thanks for inspiring all of this competition.

but MS wasnt the first. and apple actually only came into the game 2 years later. but apple died out in 98. they couldnt compete. and 98 isnt so far back...its recent enough to make this iphone craze apples second coming. so lets look at who REALLY dropped the ball. MS hasnt had to give up yet. MS gave the consumers what they wanted/needed when it mattered and stayed consistent. who would have guessed that their client base would ditch funcionality for mediocrity and fart machines.

**x10guy** · #13 (**permalink**) 11-20-2009, 11:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thejacer

here we go, lets do this. instead of talking about how wm crashed and burned lets thank MS for what it did right. innovation (oh no! someone referring to innovation and not talking about iphones **barely** finger friendly grid of square icons?!). thanks MS for giving us a persistant, CONSISTENT, dependable medium for communicating all of our important business material while on the go. thanks for inspiring all of this competition.

but MS wasnt the first. and apple actually only came into the game 2 years later. but apple died out in 98. they couldnt compete. and 98 isnt so far back...its recent enough to make this iphone craze apples second coming. so lets look at who REALLY dropped the ball. MS hasnt had to give up yet. MS gave the consumers what they wanted/needed when it mattered and stayed consistent. who would have guessed that their client base would ditch funcionality for mediocrity and fart machines.

I'm not sure what you are saying. Are you saying that it was the consumer dropped the ball for not supporting Microsoft? Windows Mobile is a nice platform .... like 4 years ago. No one disputes that in general Windows Mobile works fine. It just is too late and too slow in innovation and UI development. What company who controlled the handheld OS market for 7 years, allows one company to leapfrog it in less than 1 year?

WinMo is not going away, but I'll still stick to my prediction that it will be a Android/iPhone/BB world in a year or so.

neuteboomt · #14 (**permalink**) 11-20-2009, 11:51 PM

If it is going to be a android/iPhone/BB world in a year I going to be like the kid dressed in 80's cloth in the 90's. I do not a big fan of any of these platforms. The iPhone was nice when it came out. I loved the screen size and the ability to scroll but now I have that with WM, I am still trying to find out what makes Android so different, and the BB has not changed much since it came out. I guess I am happy with WM and everything I can change with it to the point I am not changing anytime soon.

thejacer · #15 (**permalink**) 11-20-2009, 11:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by x10guy

I'm not sure what you are saying. Are you saying that it was the consumer dropped the ball for not supporting Microsoft? Windows Mobile is a nice platform .... like 4 years ago. No one disputes that in general Windows Mobile works fine. It just is too late and too slow in innovation and UI development. What company who controlled the handheld OS market for 7 years, allows one company to leapfrog it in less than 1 year?

WinMo is not going away, but I'll still stick to my prediction that it will be a Android/iPhone/BB world in a year or so.

just saying it was a market sway. even if microsoft had foreseen consumers would want a toy over a useful phone i don't think they could have seen enterprise users in such large numbers would make that trade. and just wanted to point out: windows mobile isn't the first mobile os to decline sharply. the apple newton was fairly popular but its failure to produce a halfa** workable handwriting program and other things lead to their demise after 6 years of being a top contender in the field. a little sick of reading how wm is failing due to lack of innovation (and ive never read what type of innovation or any type of suggestions for that matter, other than more finger friendly) which is exactly where apple failed at first. maybe MS will do better after they hit rock bottom. but i dont call anything the iphone has to offer innovative OR desirable for that matter.

of course maybe i haven''t spoken to the right person, what iphone features do you all call innovative anyway? and maybe what innovative features would you like to see MS include. i know it must be difficult to innovate without any direction.**and of course ive used an iphone**

**x10guy** · #16 (**permalink**) 11-21-2009, 03:53 AM

I think you guys are misunderstanding my post. I said Winmo is NOT going away. I myself have been a dedicated use since the days it was called Windows CE. So I am actually a bit biased towards it.

But I'm just saying, Microsoft has lost the lead in the handheld market and probably will never get it back. You can hate all the other makers all you want, but that is just reality.

**brownhornet** · #17 (**permalink**) 11-21-2009, 09:16 PM

I said long ago on one of these posts that winmo is falling behind android and the iphone but of course no one listened. Proof is in the pudding since windows mobile sales had record drops in the last quarter.

**x10guy** · #18 (**permalink**) 11-21-2009, 09:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brownhornet

I said long ago on one of these posts that winmo is falling behind android and the iphone but of course no one listened. Proof is in the pudding since windows mobile sales had record drops in the last quarter.

Who said no one listened?
The news is worse when even the manufacturers start to grumble about WinMo too. HTC is definitely not too thrilled with the WinMo OS and is starting to really lean toward Android handets.

kabuk1 · #19 (**permalink**) 11-22-2009, 12:22 PM

I don't care what anyone says about WM, I'd get a sex change before I'd use an iPhone or a Blackberry. It might be possible to sway me toward Android someday if it becomes similar enough to WM that I can do the same stuff with it, and if it becomes the prevalent OS & I don't have much of a choice. But still very doubtful.

The biggest reason people like other OSes better(IMO) is for the shiny factor. "Oooh look it's so pretty! It just has to be the better product!" NOT. I myself am living proof that a homely exterior can belie a powerhouse of intelligence & entertainment. I also suspect that WM is often too hard for the average schmoe to figure out how to use properly so people get frustrated & trade it in for an iPhone. I know people with Touch Pros who have had them for months & still have everything stock because they cannot figure out how to change anything.

Sure, some other OSes might be more stable, but at the cost of customizability. I can deal with a glitch now & then for a highly versatile device which I can truly make my own. I'd much rather have total freedom than be given a list of apps that are "safe" to install.

So I guess I'll be another 80's kid with an "outdated" WM phone that you'll have to pry out of my cold, dead hands.

**x10guy** · #20 (**permalink**) 11-23-2009, 01:50 AM

microsoft is probably glad to have dedicated people like you...
But the majority of smartphone users are not like you. They are on different handets and probably will stay that way. Mainly because the majority of users are really not technical or "geeks" that love to tweak things.

Microsoft WinMo will probably always be there for that "technically inclined" following (ie PPCgeeks) but they have given up too much ground to once again be a leader in handeld devices.