Tag: windows phone

Got the Lumia updated last night. It was the much talked about and long awaited Portico update. Rather disappointed at how it went. See, when it said Step 1 of 4 I was expecting for there to be steps 2-4 so I planned for a photo collage of the steps and caption it “step by step”. I figured, if step one was data migration, I’d document the process to note what the steps would involve.

Instead, as soon as it hit 100% it got super excited, saying Update complete four times!! I’ve never seen a gadget get so excited about completing an update. But it had lied to me. There were no steps 2-4. It lied. And it was happy. But I was not. – View on Path.

Google and the competition

This morning I found out that Google is removing support for Exchange Active Sync. This essentially cuts off proper Gmail services to Windows Phone. As the creator of Exchange, Microsoft isn’t keen on supporting the open alternatives to Exchange services but without such support, all consumers considering Windows Phone will hear is, “Windows Phone doesn’t do Gmail” or “Gmail sucks on Windows Phone” and then they’ll go running to iPhone or Android.

Google is cutting off Microsoft from its services because it knows that Windows Phone is a potential threat down the line. Cut it off early and Google has a chance to limit or even stunt its growth.

Don’t think you’ll be safe on iOS. By brushing aside Windows Phone, Google will only have iOS to deal with and currently it’s cozying up real tight to it, offering apps and services that work really well on Apple’s platform to get people to use them instead of Apple’s own. Before you know it you’ll be using all of Google’s apps on iOS which will give Google close to total market dominance.

If it can’t get certain people to use Android, it will get them to use as many of its services as possible that make up Android. If the threat is small enough, it will move to shut it down. Let me point you to Acer which wanted to use Alibaba’s Aliyun OS before Google issued a threat to expel Acer from the Android gang if it went ahead.

The only reason Google hasn’t harassed Amazon for its Kindle Fire is because it will face antitrust issues in the US and Europe if it does. Google has refused to acknowledge Kindle Fire as an Android variant despite Amazon having built its OS from Android and at this point, it can’t go further than that.

Once people who don’t use Android predominantly use Google’s services, Google will get them to jump in and switch to Android and when the number is high enough, it will cut off access from the remaining major competing platforms, which at this point may well be iOS only.

This is a real danger time for companies that aren’t immediate Google partners. In five or so years, without a strong competitive landscape, we’ll likely return to the days of Windows dominance over desktop computers with Android playing the Windows role.

First impressions of the HTC Windows Phone 8X

HTC is launching its Windows Phone phones here well before the others and having used the 8X briefly, it’s very hard to resist. It’s slim, incredibly light, and looks very, very attractive. The rubbery enclosure is a godsend for those who tend to drop their phones since it gives a very good grip. The camera on the 8X works really well on its own, pictures come out great and the macro can be really tight, but Nokia just has better camera support.

Sure, it’s thinner and lighter than the Lumia 920 and arguably has better speakers but it doesn’t offer the cool and fancy camera tools that Nokia has, there’s no Nokia Drive, which means no turn by turn navigation, and no CityLens. 8X definitely wins on style but the substance fails to carry it over the line. 920 on the other hand has far more substance, really nice style, but a tad on the bulky side. Let’s hope the bulkiness is due to having a bigger battery. 

I still need iOS for Path, Tumblr, Tweetbot, FaceTime, Google+, WordPress, Flipboard, Instapaper, YouTube, Skitch, and a host of other daily apps that I use. Android would win over Windows Phone in this regard since it has most of the apps above aside from Instapaper, Tweetbot, and FaceTime, but I can’t stand using Android.

YouTube doesn’t seem to have recognized Windows Phone as a viable mobile device. Not just yet. There’s no proper native YouTube app yet to let people watch videos without having to resort to the browser and this stops people from watching certain videos that require the native app for ad display purposes.

The Galaxy S III put me off large screen phones because it’s just so difficult to operate using only one hand and the iPhone 5 is a tiny bit awkward to use due to the height. However, it turns out that these usability issues are strictly tied to the design of the software. The nature of Windows Phone software seems to eliminate this problem almost entirely. Very rarely do you have to reach up to the top quarter of the display to activate particular functions. Most of the controls on Windows Phone apps can be found at the bottom or near the center of the screen.

HTC has a winning chance here with its Windows Phone options but I’d wait for the Lumia 920 or even 820. The 8X is a great phone that’s only let down by the fact that the Lumia phones have much better camera tools and exclusive apps. – Read on Path.

Thought via Path

When mobile phones first became fashionable in the late 90s, people didn’t really care about what those things can do since they all did the same thing and everyone played Snake. And then came the cameras.

At this point, focus was still on how the phones look. The utilitarian devices had become fashion statements and Nokia was the General Motors of its industry, offering all sorts options for all segments.

Then came the all screen iPhone, followed by apps, which destroyed the hardware oriented mobile industry. Now we’ve got everyone making black slabs of glass and metal or plastic, showing squares of all variations.

We’re back to the utilitarian era of mobile industry. How soon will the fashionable era returns? The Lumias are showing the way and HTC is taking the bait. – Read on Path.

parislemon:

thisistheverge:

Microsoft rebrands Windows Phone Marketplace to Windows Phone Store

There is no longer a market, simply a store

At least “Store” may have a shot of fitting on the screen. I’m sure some people will wonder what happened to “rketpla” though. 

Source: theverge.com