Develop Bugs

Is there anything good about WP7

Ok now... we all have heard whats bad, or not so good or what can be improved with WP7.
But on the other hand anyone has good news for all of us to contiune with windows and not jump ship to android or iPhone. At the moment I dont see the why I would want to buy an WP7 yet! maybe in few years when it matures as an OS.

Windows phone 7 gives you a lot of choice in hardware devices, unlike the iPhone, unless you don't mind being stuck with one manufacture (see how that turned bad with the iPhone 4 reception issue). I think this is a big point especially for people who like physical keyboards and different shapes or colours.
Now you are thinking "Android offers a wide range of hardware as well, so what is the difference?" One thing if find bad about the Android ecosystem is OS fragmentation. I know being open source is a big plus, but in this case it backfired because anyone can put the OS on any device, so we ended up with a lot of devices not getting upgraded by their OEMs/carriers rather than let Google handle updating devices.
Microsoft is tackling this problem by putting minimum device requirements so that any update Microsoft releases, it can be easily pushed to all kinds of devices.
So overall, I think Microsoft is approching this market in a balanced manner, they are not extermly closed (think Apple) nor very open (Google). Which is a good thing for developers and end users.
There are a lot of other things, like Windows Live and Xbox integration (if you care about those).

From a developer point of view, it's also the most attractive mobile platform that ever been made. It's amazingly easy to make complex apps and games, and it's a standard way of doing it, opposed to iPhone and Android's "lets reinvent the wheel" technologies.
Plus, it's the only phone development environment that have a visual editor (Expression Blend), which is a big plus for rapid development.
(Not to mention, you don't have to buy a Mac to code for it!)
From a consumer point of view, it's a strong phone, works with all existing services, specially all Microsoft ones, but also all the others. It'll be the first phone with Windows Live Messenger available on, and Zune integration.
Basically you get all the power of Microsofts platforms, in a single device, without the limitations of Apple. Everybody who's used to using Windows will get a greater experience with this phone, than any other phone on the market.
So it's a win/win/win, situation

I'm getting one just for the fact it has Zune on it, this alone makes it worthy of a purchase if you use multimedia heavily.

Also I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of the things the OP consider "bad" is what the majority considers "good"

Windcape said:
So it's a win/win/win, situation
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Hahaha.
Good points.

The biggest thing is the UI. Frankly put; it's innovative, attractive, intuitive, and just works really well. When you get your hands on one and play around with it for a few minutes you'll see.

I'm stoked about Window Phone 7. I know if won't have as much freedom out the door as Windows 6.5 but I've seen the demo's and from what I can see it looks great. Here's my top 10 good list:
1. Actual Xbox Live integration with achievements
2. Finger Friendly
3. Sharp modern UI
4. Hubs that bring in a multitude of information that covers the work of many apps, but all in one place.
5. Good minimum requirements
6. Easy and well thought out development tools.
7. Everything about Zune all in one Hub.
8. Great Social networking integration
9. Multiple exchange accounts, emails and calendars.
10. Great use of Office on mobile.

What draws me to WP7 is really metro. I've tinkered a lot with windows phones over the years leveraging different UIs, skins, themes, etc. But really my favorite UI for my phone thus far has been titanium. I prefer the typography. Being that wp7 is a titanium enhancement, it suites me very well.
darkmurder said:
I'm getting one just for the fact it has Zune on it, this alone makes it worthy of a purchase if you use multimedia heavily.
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You should be able to use Zune with any windows phone. I have zune pass and use my omnia II to play the drm music, so you don't have to wait for wp7 to have a "zune" phone.

WTB Zune Pass in Europe already!

Windcape said:
WTB Zune Pass in Europe already!
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It's great, my only compliant is that you have to backup your mp3s if you purchase them or when you use your credits. It doesn't let you redownload them, probably because of some legal nonsense.
It's not too bad with 25GB from Skydrive, and using the Gladinet client to map your cloud drive to a physical drive.

let's stop being "real" and start being realistic
I have a vague feeling that people on this topic are working for the Microsoft development team...
as a faithful user of the most advanced pocketpc ever built ever since it launched (htc universal or jasjar) I'll just reply to those "strengths"
First ond foremost, the windows mobile had its success because users were able to hack it and expand it BEYOND of what they payed for. if we limited ourselves to what M$ provided, this site wouldn't exist and the HTC would have gone bankrupt.
1. Actual Xbox Live integration with achievements
You have Xbox and yet you are going to be playing on a phone?
2. Finger Friendly
in addition to every single SW company having developed the touch finger application keyboard, there are devices with their own keyboards, which actually work MUCH better then the touch mode ever will because you can feel the keys and you're able to predict where the next one is, at least until they invent the physically morphing touch screen.
3. Sharp modern UI
simplistic doesn't mean modern....ever! there is a FLAT SQUARE and Arial TEXT on it...that's a post-it for retarded. SPB mobile shell for instance gave the smooth design and modern hi-tech look to 6.1 phones. their only limitation was the processor and the memory. but that's how the digital revolution started - microsoft made ever more demanding OSes and Intel made processors to match. If you start spinning in circles around an antiquated graphics and limited applications, why would they innovate?
4. Hubs that bring in a multitude of information that covers the work of many apps, but all in one place.
apps that cannot be made by anyone else without a license by microsoft. and no one is using microsoft products on their pocketpc's because they are inefficient, large and expensive.
5. Good minimum requirements
nokia's s40 phones require even less resources, and offer greater UI, usability and stability. and they are as customizeable as the win 7, and yet people don't seriously consider using them as a PDA capable to integrate with the market's dominant and upcoming applications.
6. Easy and well thought out development tools.
We'll see...
7. Everything about Zune all in one Hub.
Zune is a MUSIC PLAYER! PERIOD! it's function is to play music! what everything?
8. Great Social networking integration
if you're referring to that travesty of facebook integration, I used the Windows Live Messenger Beta and let me tell you how it works: the system makes assumptions that videos and most popular items demand our attention, and they are in big, while the rest is small, so it's not about keeping track of your friends, it's about flashing content to a moron public.
9. Multiple exchange accounts, emails and calendars.
Will we be able to activesync our device over the wi-fi or via internet??
10. Great use of Office on mobile.
I would gladly pay good money to see a microsoft developer use a touch-only phone to create and modify a corporate-standard excel or even word file...

Dude you are in the wrong thread.
This is where you should post -> WP7 is complete FAIL
vk2000 said:
I have a vague feeling that people on this topic are working for the Microsoft development team...
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Take of your foilhat.

vk2000 said:
I have a vague feeling that people on this topic are working for the Microsoft development team...
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I'm not, but I'll apply for a position in 2 years time when I'm finished with my second bachelor.
vk2000 said:
if we limited ourselves to what M$ provided, this site wouldn't exist
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Funny, I thought that Windows Mobile development was the original topic of xda-developers. It's not like the name itself says so, no no.
vk2000 said:
1. Actual Xbox Live integration with achievements
You have Xbox and yet you are going to be playing on a phone?
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Yes. Welcome to 2010.
vk2000 said:
3. Sharp modern UI
simplistic doesn't mean modern....ever! there is a FLAT SQUARE and Arial TEXT on it...that's a post-it for retarded. SPB mobile shell for instance gave the smooth design and modern hi-tech look to 6.1 phones. their only limitation was the processor and the memory. but that's how the digital revolution started - microsoft made ever more demanding OSes and Intel made processors to match. If you start spinning in circles around an antiquated graphics and limited applications, why would they innovate?
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I see you have zero experience in usability or design. Go read some Jakob Nielsen, and come back when you find yourself in a suitable position to discuss usability design on phones.
vk2000 said:
4. Hubs that bring in a multitude of information that covers the work of many apps, but all in one place.
apps that cannot be made by anyone else without a license by microsoft. and no one is using microsoft products on their pocketpc's because they are inefficient, large and expensive.
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Clearly you been living in a cave for the last five years. The developer license also grants you the ability to host your applications on the marketplace, and is common practice for all mobile developers. Even Google have it for Android.
vk2000 said:
5. Good minimum requirements
nokia's s40 phones r equire even less resources, and offer greater UI, usability and stability. and they are as customizeable as the win 7, and yet people don't seriously consider using them as a PDA capable to integrate with the market's dominant and upcoming applications.
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See again you completely misunderstood what the customers want. And the minimum requirements is so you don't get ****ty phones like all Android devices from 2009 / early 2010.
vk2000 said:
6. Easy and well thought out development tools.
We'll see...
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No, we already seen. Visual Studio and Expression Blend goes years back, and is popular and known development tools. Microsoft have the largest developer community on earth (MSDN), and they are so far the only who managed to actually create so much community around their technology and tools. Even the Linux community can't follow here.
And most of the developers in MSDN are professionals, so it's used for solving real-life problems. And if you're a consumer, and not a developer, you won't understand the importance of this.
Also XNA available on WP7 means it's the first phone with a gaming framework available from day one.
vk2000 said:
7. Everything about Zune all in one Hub.
Zune is a MUSIC PLAYER! PERIOD! it's function is to play music! what everything?
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No, Zune is a online music-service, a desktop music player ,and a music-player device. And in WP7, the online service and desktop client will work along with the phone. A lot of us like to use our smartphones for music, for example, while biking to work or studies.
vk2000 said:
8. Great Social networking integration
if you're referring to that travesty of facebook integration, I used the Windows Live Messenger Beta and let me tell you how it works: the system makes assumptions that videos and most popular items demand our attention, and they are in big, while the rest is small, so it's not about keeping track of your friends, it's about flashing content to a moron public.
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Microsoft don't make assumptions, they got detailed statistics over the functionality people use in Windows Live Messenger. Just because you don't behave like the other 300 million users, doesn't make it wrong.
It's designed for the average consumer, and they done a very good job with that. More consumers = more people to buy our apps = more money for us.
vk2000 said:
9. Multiple exchange accounts, emails and calendars.
Will we be able to activesync our device over the wi-fi or via internet??
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Both
vk2000 said:
10. Great use of Office on mobile.
I would gladly pay good money to see a microsoft developer use a touch-only phone to create and modify a corporate-standard excel or even word file...
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Click to collapse
Phones are less meant for modify, as for accessing the information in the said data.
It's handy if you're on the road, and want to pull out some data to compare with people you're discussing with or similar.

vk2000
3. Sharp modern UI
simplistic doesn't mean modern....ever! there is a FLAT SQUARE and Arial TEXT on it...that's a post-it for retarded.
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You nail that one!

Actually the font is Segoe WP. And the flat squares will be replaced with images and partially display icons among others.
Which makes it even better than just a bunch of techno-color icons.

clearly you guys are either very young or like to suck up to your (hoped) employer a lot
quoting the only author you know, doesn't make you smart, it makes you a charlatan. you should find a good dictionary if you don't know what that word is, since you clearly don't understand what I am saying anyway.
If you're going to play games on something small, you should buy a PSP
and
I've been following the IT development ever since I was 8 and computers ran on Windows 3.11
I don't require a degree in design to state clearly as a user who is going to pay 300-1000 euros, that a PDA should be
1) USABLE
2) reliable
3) USABLE
4) customizable and upgradeable
the fact that people are buying does not mean that the product is good, they're either poised with offensive marketing, like apple does, or they don't have any better choice! Statistics are meaningless more often then not, and you would know their significance if you studied statistics, 4 different types of sociology, macroeconomics and international financial relations, on your way to your M.Sc., like I did
games on the phone existed since Sun decided to make Java for mobile markets, so... a decade of "nothing new" to you . if windows 7 was able to reach the sophistication of the mobile gaming consoles, it would have been something, otherwise it's a child's toy, not suitable for business!
given you know nothing about the mobile market before you learned to talk and talk-back, I'm not surprised you would be satisfied even with yet another shade of "solitaire"
and as for my design capabilities, my photographic portfolio and web-design are always a winner what do you got to offer besides a big tongue and lack of arguments?

Windcape said:
Actually the font is Segoe WP. And the flat squares will be replaced with images and partially display icons among others.
Which makes it even better than just a bunch of techno-color icons.
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we went from 3d transparent and interactive icons BACK to a SQUARE 1, junior...
you should familiarize yourself with the hard work of so many people on this forum who are trying to change the OS from "default to outstanding" for free and for the benefit of everyone

So you think your personal preferences makes up for the 300 million target users that Microsoft have in the Windows Live and Zune cloud?
You think you can invalidate a business-model just because someone done something similar before? You think the phone sucks because you don't like it, even you haven't got the slightest idea how it works, how to develop for it or how to sell applications for it (or for phones in general).
From a consumer, business and software-engineering point of view, WP7 is damn near perfect.
So how about you let us know how old you actually are, and what you actually study, if you absolutely want to include personal attacks in your qq'ing.

vk2000 said:
we went from 3d transparent and interactive icons BACK to a SQUARE 1, junior...
you should familiarize yourself with the hard work of so many people on this forum who are trying to change the OS from "default to outstanding" for free and for the benefit of everyone
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And do you have any idea why they did this? Have you ever read a usability study of a smartphone? Have you ever done a usability study of any device, or interface at all?
Or could it be that the professionals know more than you do.

[Q] Why is microsoft putting its software on iOS?

Microsoft seem to be putting their software onto apples phone, http://wmpoweruser.com/how-to-alienate-your-customers-101/
whats next microsoft office on iOS if this continues then there will be on reason to get a wp7 device, after all, the iphone has a better gpu, far more memory (i live in the uk so 16gb is the max 8gb is the norm) so why would i want to buy a wp7 device again if MS starts doing this???

Because they're a software company?

davidebanks said:
Microsoft seem to be putting their software onto apples phone, http://wmpoweruser.com/how-to-alienate-your-customers-101/
whats next microsoft office on iOS if this continues then there will be on reason to get a wp7 device, after all, the iphone has a better gpu, far more memory (i live in the uk so 16gb is the max 8gb is the norm) so why would i want to buy a wp7 device again if MS starts doing this???
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why is office on mac os?
why should they not?
WP7 has a different user experience and i like it much more than the android/ios experience....wp7 wouldn`t a good plattform if only the apps are the pros for it.

And why not give iOS users possibility to like office and maybe consider wp7 for their next phone then?
Well, might never happen, cause most applers stay applers...
Sent from my HTC 7 Mozart using Board Express

Geez. Why should you buy a WP7 rather than iPhone? Because the user experience between the two devices are completely different.
Obviously apps are going to be cross platform, Microsoft is after all a software company. Now, one could argue that they should perhaps do what Google does - and wait with releasing their apps on other platforms until they absolutely have to, but this is the iPhone we are talking about - they have to.

Good Point bro!!!
And because in the futur all softwares will be able to run all platform.

0711 said:
why is office on mac os?
why should they not?
WP7 has a different user experience and i like it much more than the android/ios experience....wp7 wouldn`t a good plattform if only the apps are the pros for it.
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Why is there iTunes Windows? It is slow by the way.
I am sure that companies do this so that user can have options and maybe pick the companies OS next time.

Peew971 said:
Because they're a software company?
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Then why do they not port Halo to PS3 for example? Like you said, they are a software company, and could easily double the revenue. MS are idiots for not porting Xbox games like Halo to other platforms.

Keep in mind that the software developed for the iPhone was a separate team from those working on Wp7.
Also, if iphone users start to use a bunch of microsoft apps, maybe they will think "maybe I should be using a microsoft phone" and then buy a windows phone. Sure it could go the other way as well... but I'm an optimist.

To make money, as what pretty much most if not all paid apps are for.

digger1985 said:
Then why do they not port Halo to PS3 for example? Like you said, they are a software company, and could easily double the revenue. MS are idiots for not porting Xbox games like Halo to other platforms.
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Too much work? Maybe they figured that game exclusivity is what drives the console sales.

canadariot2312 said:
Too much work? Maybe they figured that game exclusivity is what drives the console sales.
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is all about the market share, and profit.

canadariot2312 said:
Too much work? Maybe they figured that game exclusivity is what drives the console sales.
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But porting apps over to iOS is not? How come they can't figure out that app exclusivity also drives phone sales.

digger1985 said:
But porting apps over to iOS is not? How come they can't figure out that app exclusivity also drives phone sales.
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Because console games are complicated and require certain components to work. Every smartphone uses the same SoC set no matter what OS they run whether it would be snapdragon, omap, a4, etc. The consoles are made differently, the 360 with tri-cores and the ps3 uses something really confusing. Than again, Final Fantasy did appear on the Xbox, but Sony didn't exclusive rights to that game.
I would imagine that it is miles easier for porting apps, or maybe they want to do something like having an app on a certain phone will just run better as oppose to something not native.

kabumm said:
And why not give iOS users possibility to like office and maybe consider wp7 for their next phone then?
Well, might never happen, cause most applers stay applers...
Sent from my HTC 7 Mozart using Board Express
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I didn't . Don't get me wrong, I loved my iPhone (until Apple butchered it with iOS 4), but when I went to go snag an iPhone 4 and got to play with it side by side with the Samsung Focus, the choice was clear--Focus is a MUCH nicer device, with a nicer screen and of course, Windows Phone 7 itself--which makes iOS look antiquated and stale.
That said, I also have a 2010 Macbook Pro 13" which I got purely so I can submit apps to the iOS store, but I can't stand Mac OSX, it's a ****in' turd. So I'm glad the laptop runs Windows 7 nicely enough, LOL.

digger1985 said:
Then why do they not port Halo to PS3 for example? Like you said, they are a software company, and could easily double the revenue. MS are idiots for not porting Xbox games like Halo to other platforms.
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MS also makes the hardware for the XBOX. And they sold the hardware at a loss. Their revenue model was dependent on software attach rates being high on the console. People often choose game consoles based on exclusive games. MS could spend millions marketing Halo because they know that the reason people buy XBOX consoles is so that they could play awesome games. Period. Everything else the XBOX does is just gravy.
People buy smartphones for so many different reasons.
MS can't invest millions of dollars into the promotion and marketing of a single app, because a large portion of customers won't care about it.
Bing and One Note are fighting for mindshare. You can't have a killer phone app if nobody even knows what it is.
The only way to market and advertise how good Bing and One Note could be is by putting it the hands of the most people possible. And for now, that's on the iPhone.

Reflexx1 said:
People buy smartphones for so many different reasons.
MS can't invest millions of dollars into the promotion and marketing of a single app, because a large portion of customers won't care about it.
Bing and One Note are fighting for mindshare. You can't have a killer phone app if nobody even knows what it is.
The only way to market and advertise how good Bing and One Note could be is by putting it the hands of the most people possible. And for now, that's on the iPhone.
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If you are using a smartphone for a single app, than you need to rethink.
I heard that you can get Bing on Android devices as well, although not many people actually want it (seeing that it is a Google phone). I think putting Microsoft software on other OS' is not a bad idea. After all, you see Microsoft everywhere.

Reflexx1 said:
MS also makes the hardware for the XBOX. And they sold the hardware at a loss. Their revenue model was dependent on software attach rates being high on the console. People often choose game consoles based on exclusive games. MS could spend millions marketing Halo because they know that the reason people buy XBOX consoles is so that they could play awesome games. Period. Everything else the XBOX does is just gravy.
People buy smartphones for so many different reasons.
MS can't invest millions of dollars into the promotion and marketing of a single app, because a large portion of customers won't care about it.
Bing and One Note are fighting for mindshare. You can't have a killer phone app if nobody even knows what it is.
The only way to market and advertise how good Bing and One Note could be is by putting it the hands of the most people possible. And for now, that's on the iPhone.
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You comment doesn't make any sense. They sell hardware at a loss and make money from games. Keeping Xbox exclusives would make sense if they made money from the hardware. Since they make money from the games, they should be doing everything to port games to other platforms as well.

Thing is, Microsoft is the top player in the console industry - so they don't have to port games to other platforms. The increase in revenue would likely be offset by the increase in development cost to support the PS3 and/or Wii. Not to mention the fact that Microsoft Game Studio titles do drive console sales (I know plenty of people who have bought an Xbox 360 purely because of Halo for example); higher console sales lead to higher revenue (even if they did initially sell hardware at a loss) as people pay for the XBL Gold service, spend money in the Xbox marketplace and purchase Xbox 360 games (for which MS get's a license fee no matter if it's an in-house title or not).
This is pretty much how the printer/ink/toner industry or coffee-pod industry works also. They sell the hardware at little to no profit but you are tied in to buying their ink/toner or coffee-pods for the lifetime of the product. It's actually cheaper for me to purchase a new CLP every so often than it is to buy new toner - when I then sell the old printer online I more or less come out at zero cost.
In the smartphone sector, Apple is the king of the hill and it only makes sense to have their software available. Apps do not drive phone sales; UX (User eXperience) does. Keeping a title exclusive to WP7 makes no sense at all. At the same time, it does not make sense (business wise) to support all possible smartphone platforms out there, only iOS and Android has a valuable marketplace (app wise) so those are the platforms to support - this is why Google hasn't released their apps as official WP7 clients thus far; Windows Phone 7 doesn't have a big enough marketshare that it pays for them to spend development dollars on it. Once the OS gains momentum (if it does) Google will rather quickly release what they have to offer.
All said, I do agree it's painful when "better" software appears for the iPhone rather than their own OS, WP7, but this goes back to the fact Microsoft are so large. There is no single person making decisions, they have COO's and project managers en masse, often trying to out-do eachother or vote other projects down as they step on their own projects toes. Microsoft is filled to the brim with highly competent people, but they operate like a bureaucracy. Ask anyone who's ever worked there and they'll all more or less tell the same story - the layers of hierarchy is killing creative output.
How many times has Microsoft not come out with killer products which has failed miserably in the marketplace because upper management hasn't seen or understood the possibility. Take Media Center for example, it has given the best UX for DVRs for years - still, they never took it to the next level and now it's almost too late. With a lot of luck their embedded Media Center's showcased (in a back-room no less?!) at CES may make a dent in the market, but it's highly unlikely as they missed the boat. GoogleTV, AppleTV, Boxee and a whole lot of other players are now ruling the roost.
That's exactly what they did with the mobile sector also - they had great ideas and were the top players years ago. But they became complacent and stopped innovating. Then other players came along and completely killed them; what was WM's marketshare last year? How much of that was made up of HD2 sales which were re-flashed with Android?

digger1985 said:
Then why do they not port Halo to PS3 for example? Like you said, they are a software company, and could easily double the revenue. MS are idiots for not porting Xbox games like Halo to other platforms.
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This is off topic but why would you want to port Halo to the PS3? Halo is more aimed at muliplayer and as everyone knows Playstation sucks at on-line gaming.

Really? Full House Poker?

I mean I understand that it's to be released on both the Xbox and WP7 at the same time but really? That's it? I am thoroughly disappointed this time. Xbox has dug through mounds of **** just to make a name for itself and what has Windows Phone 7 shown in that department? I mean there's ilomilo and then theres iphone clones. It's so sad to see a first rate OS by a corporate giant turned into a third rate gaming platforms because they'd rather spend a huge budget on advertising what the phone can currently do rather than making that Xbox live tile appeal to a plethora of users who had hope in their hearts when they saw Xbox live integration and watched it be shat on with garbage like... well... half the stuff on the Xbox live WP7 marketplace. It's cool that you're getting the most popular iphone clone and a game I played on my beat up sega dreamcast a decade ago but really, where's the innovation?

I think it might be time to change your siggy...
I don't have an xbox, so I don't care so much about the integration, but I'm finding way more games I like on my phone right now than on android or winmo.
Currently working on twin blades, AC, I dig it, and The Harvest. Also play majong(sp) tiles and a couple rounds of spades as well.

nrfitchett4 said:
I think it might be time to change your siggy...
I don't have an xbox, so I don't care so much about the integration, but I'm finding way more games I like on my phone right now than on android or winmo.
Currently working on twin blades, AC, I dig it, and The Harvest. Also play majong(sp) tiles and a couple rounds of spades as well.
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Ah, R.I.P. Twin Blades. It was a great game unfortunately I've since swapped memory cards coincidentally on the day it vanished from the market and alas I am left without one of the defining games on the platform. I Dig It I havent really visited in some time due to the inability to save (not sure if that's still present), The Harvest has somewhat annoying controls, a virtual joystick makes more sense than a point and click diablo-esque phone game in my opinion, and AC has been on multiple other platforms as well as the other two games though perhaps not the exact same program. The astounding part though is regardless of the faults it's still the best. It's just that they've given us an amazing game or two (The Harvest really is amazing the controls just aren't for me) and then since have lacked innovation greatly. Where I thought they were going to try and stand alone it now looks like they're trying to be a "me too" platform. I did recieve an email from someone regarding a mobile version of Torchlight though and though they couldn't confirm or deny they did tell me it was an option they were exploring. That would be amazing as that game only takes like what? 140 megs on the xbox? Dull it down a bit and it could be a game changer for WP7.

z33dev33l said:
Ah, R.I.P. Twin Blades. It was a great game unfortunately I've since swapped memory cards coincidentally on the day it vanished from the market and alas I am left without one of the defining games on the platform. I Dig It I havent really visited in some time due to the inability to save (not sure if that's still present), The Harvest has somewhat annoying controls, a virtual joystick makes more sense than a point and click diablo-esque phone game in my opinion, and AC has been on multiple other platforms as well as the other two games though perhaps not the exact same program. The astounding part though is regardless of the faults it's still the best. It's just that they've given us an amazing game or two (The Harvest really is amazing the controls just aren't for me) and then since have lacked innovation greatly. Where I thought they were going to try and stand alone it now looks like they're trying to be a "me too" platform. I did recieve an email from someone regarding a mobile version of Torchlight though and though they couldn't confirm or deny they did tell me it was an option they were exploring. That would be amazing as that game only takes like what? 140 megs on the xbox? Dull it down a bit and it could be a game changer for WP7.
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I know there are several big titles slated for first week in april. I agree they could do more, and I think they will. MS, if nothing else, is willing to throw money at devs.

So what's next on your list of complaint...

nrfitchett4 said:
I know there are several big titles slated for first week in april. I agree they could do more, and I think they will. MS, if nothing else, is willing to throw money at devs.
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Click to collapse
yeah and though I'm ok with that theyre throwing money at devs to release iPhone ports. Originality is Microsoft ticket and they've got more capable devs on their rolodex than any other mobile os. They should utilize those resources...

Crimson Lotus said:
So what's next on your list of compliant...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
always such informative and insightful posts. They add a lot to the conversation.

I'm starting to agree with you about all the new releases. Puzzle games have their place (especially on a mobile phone platform), but without more action titles, it makes it seem like XBox live is not really a serious reason for someone to get a WP7 as Microsoft would like people to think.
That said, I have actually really, really enjoyed the XBox Live games. I used WinMo and Android for a long time before WP7 and never really got into gaming on either platform but for some reason, I just started playing games on WP7 a lot. I don't have an XBox so the integration with XBox is not something I really care about. I like the achievements. It gives me something to play for.
The April releases will keep me satisfied for a while, but in my opinion, they need a lot more releases like those in April, not just every now and then.
edit: oh yeah, an afterthought... maybe chill out on the tower defense games. 1 is enough on the entire platform. It seems like every other game on the Marketplace is a freakin tower defense game. Not a big fan.

I guess you guys haven't seen the poker commercial on xbox live then? Its quite stupid.
You can play the game on both your console and phone.
Spoiler alert; its not the way you think it is. Integration my ass.

Crimson Lotus said:
So what's next on your list of compliant...
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Click to collapse
Well I'm not sure, but I believe he's FCC compliant. And he probably adheres to compliance codes for device usage?

sure haven't said:
Well I'm not sure, but I believe he's FCC compliant. And he probably adheres to compliance codes for device usage?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
LOL!!!
Give people a break. Typos are just typos and oftentimes, people use translators and such.

SPORTS GAMES! WTF!
Is there a single sports game on this platform? XBox may not have many either....but some sports games (i.e. one button swing type games) are made for mobile.
WP7 is lacking sports games something fierce.

thesecondsfade said:
LOL!!!
Give people a break. Typos are just typos and oftentimes, people use translators and such.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
lol yeah I'm just being a bugger. Heaven knows I've made my share of typos.

I'm sorry for those spelling errors...

thesecondsfade said:
I'm starting to agree with you about all the new releases. Puzzle games have their place (especially on a mobile phone platform), but without more action titles, it makes it seem like XBox live is not really a serious reason for someone to get a WP7 as Microsoft would like people to think.
That said, I have actually really, really enjoyed the XBox Live games. I used WinMo and Android for a long time before WP7 and never really got into gaming on either platform but for some reason, I just started playing games on WP7 a lot. I don't have an XBox so the integration with XBox is not something I really care about. I like the achievements. It gives me something to play for.
The April releases will keep me satisfied for a while, but in my opinion, they need a lot more releases like those in April, not just every now and then.
edit: oh yeah, an afterthought... maybe chill out on the tower defense games. 1 is enough on the entire platform. It seems like every other game on the Marketplace is a freakin tower defense game. Not a big fan.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree about the tower defense games, but the star wars one is actually quite fun...
We could definitely use some more games, but we are still getting them faster than android!!!

How do y'all like WP7? I'm still on WinMo because Garmin Mobile XT is awesome, particularly where there is no cellular coverage. Also, I do not own a laptop and do a lot of long emails on my phone when I'm not at home with my 70lb desktop and I'm irritated that I can't get a WP7 device with the exact same keyboard as my Rhodium and at least the latest Qualcomm 45nm goodness in it complete with Adreno 205, much less the upcoming dual Cortex A8 with independent clock speed and CPU voltage and Adreno 220. Why in the Sam Hill did M$ decide that only 65nm OG Snapdragon SoC's were going to go into WP7 devices?
I read a few reviews of the Euro-spec 7 Pro and it seems that HTC used a crappy LCD but not as crappy as the HD7's, and they somehow messed up the chassis of the Rhodium and the keyboard. I like that I can get giant batteries for these things and that unibody sh*t jus doesn't float my boat. I guess I'm just pissed that WP7 is locked to 65nm Snapdragon and irritated with HTC for messing with the landscape qwerty slider chassis and keyboard that they perfected with the Rhodium.

sure haven't said:
lol yeah I'm just being a bugger. Heaven knows I've made my share of typos.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I konw. Your comment was funny though.

DeathmonkeyGTX said:
How do y'all like WP7? I'm still on WinMo because Garmin Mobile XT is awesome, particularly where there is no cellular coverage. Also, I do not own a laptop and do a lot of long emails on my phone when I'm not at home with my 70lb desktop and I'm irritated that I can't get a WP7 device with the exact same keyboard as my Rhodium and at least the latest Qualcomm 45nm goodness in it complete with Adreno 205, much less the upcoming dual Cortex A8 with independent clock speed and CPU voltage and Adreno 220. Why in the Sam Hill did M$ decide that only 65nm OG Snapdragon SoC's were going to go into WP7 devices?
I read a few reviews of the Euro-spec 7 Pro and it seems that HTC used a crappy LCD but not as crappy as the HD7's, and they somehow messed up the chassis of the Rhodium and the keyboard. I like that I can get giant batteries for these things and that unibody sh*t jus doesn't float my boat. I guess I'm just pissed that WP7 is locked to 65nm Snapdragon and irritated with HTC for messing with the landscape qwerty slider chassis and keyboard that they perfected with the Rhodium.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
huh. most reviewers have said the 7 pro keyboard is the best keyboard since the tp2. Those tp2's won't last forever.

Microsoft's "Slam-dunk"

News is starting to surface, as I long suspected it would, that Windows 8 is going to support cross-platform silverlight apps, so apps that run on your WP7 device will also run on your PC.
If this means apps you've already purchased for your phone will be downloadable from the Windows 8 marketplace and runnable directly on your PC without further cost, then I say this feature will completely rock, and it will shake up the market. It will, IMHO, really switch people on to both Windows 8 and WP7, and help WP7 slaughter Android and iPhone.
Kudos to Microsoft for this stroke of genius.
It also ties in with Windows 8's enhanced cloud data support, which would be needed if both phone and PC are to share data in their respective apps.
If apps could sync their data to the cloud, then you could literally swap between devices and use the same apps which would have the same state info - You could be running a comic reader (such as Comica) on your phone, which has been set to read only particular comic feeds, be looking at last week's Dilbert, switch to your laptop/tablet, fire up Comica on that and be landed exactly where you left off on your phone, with the app set up to receive exactly the same feeds! It would be the perfect backup for your phone as well :O)
Awesomeness.

They are also bringing Silverlight to the Xbox (finally), so yeah - awesomeness indeed

Microsoft have always had great ideas to be fair. Their big problem is they are always so slow to deliver that eventually they're outdone by someone else by the time things come together.
I don't see that changing unfortunately.

If only we had MS employees with actual power in the company who read XDA and other tech sites regularly to see what the hordes want and implement all reasonable ideas in a reasonably short amount of time...

Peew971 said:
Microsoft have always had great ideas to be fair. Their big problem is they are always so slow to deliver that eventually they're outdone by someone else by the time things come together.
I don't see that changing unfortunately.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
considering windows 8 beta is coming out this year with a massive graphic overhaul and tablet mode, with ability to run appx and exe, I would probably think microsoft may be doing something right.
What really amazes me is that part of windows 8 can be scalable for mobile devices...something intel wants (due to the metro ui nature and easy finger friendly gui)
Again microsoft may be on to something. Heck I hate the ifad and I abhor the android 3.0 so microsoft's tablet offerings should be quite interesting

lekki said:
If only we had MS employees with actual power in the company who read XDA and other tech sites regularly to see what the hordes want and implement all reasonable ideas in a reasonably short amount of time...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
XDA is not really the place to find hordes of people. We are a select few, and a small percentage of the user-base.

Now, we actually need to see a device and prices.

well this would be an interesting change:
m$ making finger ui elements for desktops instead of the other way around.
can't see hords of people getting excited about silverlight though.
the only app (ok not really) I use or can imagine using between both is google maps. contacts, calendar, gmail already sync easily enough. bookmarks in ffox, history, etc, is this really a new idea ?

Jim Coleman said:
News is starting to surface, as I long suspected it would, that Windows 8 is going to support cross-platform silverlight apps, so apps that run on your WP7 device will also run on your PC.
If this means apps you've already purchased for your phone will be downloadable from the Windows 8 marketplace and runnable directly on your PC without further cost, then I say this feature will completely rock, and it will shake up the market. It will, IMHO, really switch people on to both Windows 8 and WP7, and help WP7 slaughter Android and iPhone.
Kudos to Microsoft for this stroke of genius.
It also ties in with Windows 8's enhanced cloud data support, which would be needed if both phone and PC are to share data in their respective apps.
If apps could sync their data to the cloud, then you could literally swap between devices and use the same apps which would have the same state info - You could be running a comic reader (such as Comica) on your phone, which has been set to read only particular comic feeds, be looking at last week's Dilbert, switch to your laptop/tablet, fire up Comica on that and be landed exactly where you left off on your phone, with the app set up to receive exactly the same feeds! It would be the perfect backup for your phone as well :O)
Awesomeness.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think the goal is to be running the exact same app on different platforms. You can't really, the input methods are different and so are the form factors (any good iPad app is likely different from its iPhone equivalent). What we'll see is ~90% code reuse, where developers only need to change user facing parts of their applications.
Anyway, with the inclusion of Windows 8 and Xbox 360, the market for this app platform will be an order of magnitude larger. Developers should come flocking.

PG2G said:
I don't think the goal is to be running the exact same app on different platforms. You can't really, the input methods are different and so are the form factors (any good iPad app is likely different from its iPhone equivalent). What we'll see is ~90% code reuse, where developers only need to change user facing parts of their applications.
Anyway, with the inclusion of Windows 8 and Xbox 360, the market for this app platform will be an order of magnitude larger. Developers should come flocking.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Customers first, then developers. We need to see a device and price, everything else is just nerd chatter. There was these exact same talks years ago.

PG2G said:
I don't think the goal is to be running the exact same app on different platforms. You can't really, the input methods are different and so are the form factors (any good iPad app is likely different from its iPhone equivalent). What we'll see is ~90% code reuse, where developers only need to change user facing parts of their applications.
Anyway, with the inclusion of Windows 8 and Xbox 360, the market for this app platform will be an order of magnitude larger. Developers should come flocking.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't forget though that Windows 8 will have a touch-optimized GUI, so should be able to handle any app designed purely for touch, such as WP7 apps.
But I'm with you on the fact that they'll have to recompile the code for the two target devices though.

PG2G said:
I don't think the goal is to be running the exact same app on different platforms. You can't really, the input methods are different and so are the form factors (any good iPad app is likely different from its iPhone equivalent). What we'll see is ~90% code reuse, where developers only need to change user facing parts of their applications.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exactly this. As long as MS does this right - by providing the same APIs on every platform - "porting" an app from WP7 to Slate to Desktop to Xbox (i.e. all three screens) will be as easy as designing different UIs for each platform.
vetvito said:
Customers first, then developers. We need to see a device and price, everything else is just nerd chatter. There was these exact same talks years ago.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're wrong though. Developers did flock to WP7. They have flocked to the Xbox. There are droves of them for Windows in general.
While apps does not a platform make, it sure as hell helps and since MS has the best developer tools in the industry ... well, developers will develop for their products.
Not sure what devices and prices you want to see, this thread is about cross platform app support, not slates or tablets or TVs or mobiles.

emigrating said:
You're wrong though. Developers did flock to WP7.
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Click to collapse
Yes, but if those WP7 devices don't sell well they will flock away eventually no matter how great dev tools are.

vangrieg said:
Yes, but if those WP7 devices don't sell well they will flock away eventually no matter how great dev tools are.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But they are selling. Don't know what data you've seen but everything I see indicates WP7 are selling fairly well. Hell, [some] devs make more money on WP7 than they do on Android.
As for devs running away - once the three-screens and a cloud scenario is all ironed out there really is no point in developers leaving. The Xbox is already doing great for games, the PC is doing great for apps - if you are a developer for either of these and you can suddenly release for the other platforms without investing tons of time and money, you will.

Peew971 said:
Microsoft have always had great ideas to be fair. Their big problem is they are always so slow to deliver that eventually they're outdone by someone else by the time things come together.
I don't see that changing unfortunately.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, because we've seen how well OSX has outdone Microsoft feature wise... Microsoft is always the most innovated company, they've just never focused on being 'pretty' until recently... You thrown in a little make-up with the juggernaut ideas they bring to the world and it's hard to argue that they'll snatch back that number one spot in no time, regardless of pricing... The MacBooks are severely overpriced and still sell because they're pretty...

emigrating said:
But they are selling. Don't know what data you've seen but everything I see indicates WP7 are selling fairly well. Hell, [some] devs make more money on WP7 than they do on Android.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have no idea how well they are selling. I'm actually not saying they aren't. I don't know. However, all I've seen so far was that sales are decent given the circumstances - few devices, very limited number of markets, only half the carriers in the US etc. etc. In order for all devs to make a lot of money WP7 will have to sell much more phones than now. If it doesn't happen within a year or so they won't be too happy. I'm not suggesting that it will happen though.
emigrating said:
As for devs running away - once the three-screens and a cloud scenario is all ironed out there really is no point in developers leaving. The Xbox is already doing great for games, the PC is doing great for apps - if you are a developer for either of these and you can suddenly release for the other platforms without investing tons of time and money, you will.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Look, this three screen scenario is awesome. But I'll believe it when I see it. I have a Windows Phone, an XBox, several Windows PCs and a Windows Home Server. Windows Phone has this sync over Wi-Fi capability which is great. But I don't use it because my Windows PC is a notebook with an SSD and I don't have space there to keep all this music. I have it on my WHS, but does Microsoft let me install Zune there? No. I have some other music there, and I can stream it to my XBox. Does XBox use the awesome Zune interface to control playback? No. It shows me some pukeware stuff. And I have to use my PS3 to actually listen to music from my WHS, and XBox to stream Zune Pass stuff. ****, they don't even let me install their weird Media Center on my home server! Can I use my Windows Phone to control XBox playback? No. And so on.
Microsoft has been a horrible performer in terms of making their products work with each other. And sometimes when you think that something will obviously work between their products, you just can't imagine reasons why this shouldn't happen. But it still fails to happen time after time.
So while in principle this cross-platform Silverlight XAML-based awesomeness does sound thrilling, I've learned not to get too excited about opportunities coming from such things, knowing how Microsoft is an expert in screwing up interoperability.

Peew971 said:
Microsoft have always had great ideas to be fair. Their big problem is they are always so slow to deliver that eventually they're outdone by someone else by the time things come together.
I don't see that changing unfortunately.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exactly what is going to happen. By the time MS releases Windows 8 (2012-2013) it will either have already been done (probably by apple) or no one will care anyway as they will have moved on to tablets as their main computing device. And I dont really see what the big draw is, I prefer fully featured programs on my pc rather than phone version with limited functionality due to the target device's shortcomings.

FiyaFleye said:
Yeah, because we've seen how well OSX has outdone Microsoft feature wise... Microsoft is always the most innovated company, they've just never focused on being 'pretty' until recently... You thrown in a little make-up with the juggernaut ideas they bring to the world and it's hard to argue that they'll snatch back that number one spot in no time, regardless of pricing... The MacBooks are severely overpriced and still sell because they're pretty...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
mmm... you are partially right: mac laptops are pretty. that's not why they sell though.
they have nicer keyboards, and the reputation of being used instead of maintained. no virus mess, no reboots, no bsods. the reputation is what sells them. I've never heard any person say "I just love our new Microsoft Windows Seven Professional Edition with Microsoft 9ffice and Internet Explorer 29 AAA"
its always " sigh... I love my mac"
hell macs are usually a step behind on specs and speed, and they still sell like hotcakes. pretty ? indeed !

ohgood said:
mmm... you are partially right: mac laptops are pretty. that's not why they sell though.
they have nicer keyboards, and the reputation of being used instead of maintained. no virus mess, no reboots, no bsods. the reputation is what sells them. I've never heard any person say "I just love our new Microsoft Windows Seven Professional Edition with Microsoft 9ffice and Internet Explorer 29 AAA"
its always " sigh... I love my mac"
hell macs are usually a step behind on specs and speed, and they still sell like hotcakes. pretty ? indeed !
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
MacBooks are sold primarily to college students who have zero idea of anything you just mentioned. When was the last massive virus outbreak? BSOD? Needed reboots? I'm not talking about $200 laptops here, I'm talking genuine Windows capable machines... Kids go after Apple products because they're cool & pretty, has zero to do with function or reputation... The iPhone has a reputation of horrid service, bad antenna placement, & overpriced plans... It still sells though... And Mac OSX or whatever they hell it's called now has a reputation for lack of software, incapabilities, and overall hindered use, yet I can tell you the majority of 18-22 year olds at my University want a new, shiny one...
Windows7 went far in taking function, and making it pretty. Windows Phone 7 did the same, took function, and made it smooth and pretty... They've lost some features in the short term, but they've accomplished their goals of making them consumer friendly and hip...
I'm not as pessimistic as a lot of these Microsoft/Windows/WP7 haters on this forum, I see a possitive outlook... Microsoft has never really done anything to make me think differently... I mean, people here have said "Apple will do it first" - how exactly? What 'new' feature has Apple EVER come out with? They take existing technology, make it look shiny, and market it. I give them all the credit in the world for that. But as far as beating Microsoft to something as innovated and incredible as cross device perfection? Nah, won't happen.

vangrieg said:
Look, this three screen scenario is awesome. But I'll believe it when I see it. I have a Windows Phone, an XBox, several Windows PCs and a Windows Home Server. Windows Phone has this sync over Wi-Fi capability which is great. But I don't use it because my Windows PC is a notebook with an SSD and I don't have space there to keep all this music. I have it on my WHS, but does Microsoft let me install Zune there? No. I have some other music there, and I can stream it to my XBox. Does XBox use the awesome Zune interface to control playback? No. It shows me some pukeware stuff. And I have to use my PS3 to actually listen to music from my WHS, and XBox to stream Zune Pass stuff. ****, they don't even let me install their weird Media Center on my home server! Can I use my Windows Phone to control XBox playback? No. And so on.
Microsoft has been a horrible performer in terms of making their products work with each other. And sometimes when you think that something will obviously work between their products, you just can't imagine reasons why this shouldn't happen. But it still fails to happen time after time.
So while in principle this cross-platform Silverlight XAML-based awesomeness does sound thrilling, I've learned not to get too excited about opportunities coming from such things, knowing how Microsoft is an expert in screwing up interoperability.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Finally, someone who feels my frustration. Its like all departments at Microsoft try their best to work against each other. Sometimes they get it right though.

Samsung Galaxy S2 Vs. Omnia 7

Hi,
I am tired of my current WP7, its almost 4 months now and their has been no major development in the APP market scene.. everyone just release initial app and than forget about it with no updates and no improvements.. the Gaming market scene of Xbox is pretty much dead too with no new fun game, I had pretty bad experience with Sonic which is practically unplayable and other boring games which have started coming out recently.. it seems Xbox is releasing games just for the heck of it.. ex: geodefence and tentacles.. boring not worth paying which are like free in android market..
I am really getting inclined to give up my WP7 and switch to Android now and buy Galaxy S2.. its has some plus points and some minus points:
Plus:
I can expand my memory.
Looks better.
Its Smoled 'Plus'.
It might have better battery? I am not sure about this.
Established Android market.
Minus:
Its too big for my pocket.
No ZUNE Pass like service.
I have to give up my Achievements Score and I dont know if they have anything similar to this.
I have never used Android and have never seen one ever before.. its completely new to me and I dont even know where is the settings option, I dont know if I will like it after using WM6.5 and now WP7 for last 7 years. I have seen Iphone before and used it for like a week, but never spend even 20 secs with an Android phone.
With all the hype surround MANGO which I am waiting for, I dont think Microsoft will release any major update after that for a really long time.. If this MANGO dosent work and the APP and GAMES Marketplace dosent become more vibrant than it is right now.. than I am thinking this WP7 could just become a device for people could not afford phones like Iphone and GALAXY S2, like a second option, a second choice market, which I am scared of.. I want to own the best and not the second choice.. and right now it seems GALAXY S2 with its ANDROID thing is the best phone in market.

Hmm. Not sure if I quite get where you're coming from with the apps and games thing. Over the last month, a ton of apps, big names and small, have come to the platform. A ton more coming and updated post-Mango. I mean, the market will most likely hit 30k apps soon. I don't have, nor do I use, 30k apps on my phone, not to mention the 100k+ or 400k+ of android and iphone, respectively.
Also, I'm pretty sure that every installed app, or almost every installed app, on my phone has seen an update... several at that. So, I missed you on the "no updates and no improvements" part. Are there specific apps that YOU are missing, or need that you can't find in the windows marketplace?
Games-wise, well that's a matter of preference. Games you find boring, others may find greatly exciting. For example, one recent game which has come to the platform that I like is Arcane Tower Defense. It's a fantasy version of the classic tower defense genre with some twists.
I also like little games like Vanessa Saint-Pierre Delacroix and her Nightmare. But, after Mango there will be many games including multiplayer fighting games, RPGs, you name it, real time and turn-based.
As to the GS2. I haven't used it personally. I do know you can't get xbox live benefits like achievments, however. I'm sure somebody else here is more informed on the phone than I. I hear it's a killer phone, though. And, there may also be a WP7 version of the phone as well.
But, dig around a bit and check out the apps that have hit the marketplace in the last month or so as well as the games. I think you may be pleasantly surprised. Then again...

Purple11 said:
With all the hype surround MANGO which I am waiting for, I dont think Microsoft will release any major update after that for a really long time..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They are on a yearly cycle for major updates, like pretty much everyone else.

I am finding it increasingly difficult to do business with this phone, its been so long and yet their is no decent Calendar App like Pocket Informant. The built in calendar app is very basic, I want to create recurring appointment on every first Tuesday of a month which was possible on PI8 but not here.
I miss Apps like SPB Diary which let me scroll my entire contacts and entire days appointments right from the front screen, and SPB Pocket Plus which basically was what Android is right now, a choice of multiple home screens with one app, thats what SPB Pocket Plus was.
I want Resco Audio Recorder which auto recorded all my incoming and outgoing calls, not because I want to spy but because if someone tells me large reference number on phone I dont have to tap and write at that moment, I could just say go ahead i am writing it down, and later I would just play back that call and note down what was that number.
I want the missing file explorer which is their present in android right now.
Metratrader 4 app for real time live trading execution in currency and stocks right from your phone, nothing like that exists in WP7, I know we have it for Iphone I dont know about android..
We say we have so many number of apps and things like that, but look at the top 10 PAID apps in each of the categories..
Business:
6 are language learning, 3 are business cards, 2 are time tracker and one to tie knots...
Tools and Productivity:
2 flashlights, 1 night clock, 1 air horn, 1, dog whistle, 1 that saves pic in pdf format and calls itself 'scanner' (very poor scanning my direct camera photo is better than their PDF it include handy scan app too), 2 remote desktop (10 USD each)..
Personal Finance:
7 budget software (all exactly same, just store your spending, nothing else, useless, nothing like SPB Finance), remaninf 4 are market watch apps which all just does the same thing which is stream rates of top 10 cos from yahoo or google.. , no decent wallet app like CODEwallet Pro where we could create nice cards from desktop and sync it to wallet on phone, no actual trading app.. nothing..

Sounds like Android is a better fit for you.

PG2G said:
Sounds like Android is a better fit for you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep. Agreed.

In this kind of needs and preferences better try Android. WP7 is not really meant for this type of usage. This is what I have found for myself and while WP7 started to be frustrating after few months, Android solved everything for me in every respect.
I also want to see Mango and keep my Optimus 7 however some things are still not in the pipeline, like file explorers, USB docs/email sync and some apps like Opera Mini... And I'm afraid there won't by alternatives for core apps of WP7 either.

I understand your points well. I would also suggest that
Android is the right choise.
Just another way to look at things i would like to mention is, maybe most of the things you miss is just ways you USED to work with your phone? What ever WP is, its a new way to interact with your phone. For a old WM user like me, it was very wierd in the start, and i felt naked. I got used to it thou and currently having a replacment Android phone, while my current device is in for service. And now i miss my WP. It's strange how you miss the cow's afterwards.
Im staying with WP.
Just some thoughts from another side.

um..
I was thinking the same thing about switching to android, but I wont abandon wp all together. I'll give it a good year to mature

We have omnia7 and galaxy s. Of course the galaxy s fits better to my hardcore needs because it has al lot more options and you have a lot of custom roms and so on. BUT sometimes I'm really jealous about Omnia 7 perfect materials. And android is never as perfect designed as wp7. Android and its tons of different launchers is looking like an evolution of symbian and iOS. WP7 is something fresh and easy. Its what a phone is ment to be: a very easy and fast (internet) communication device. Not an overfilled little laptop.
So it's your choice: easy to use and well designed Omnia7 or a powerful plastic (gaming-)device with childish looking interface.
By the way: mango is awesome!

The galaxy s II is one of the finest android phones available. If you're looking for a feature set more similar to the old windows mobile ( and it sounds like you are), then Android is truly your best option.
Microsoft doesn't want a "complicated" phone platform anymore. They want consumer-facing, easy to use, social media and entertainment oriented with the ability to handle corporate e-mail, calendar and document editing if you need it in a pinch.
I doubt we're going to see anything like file managers or similar anytime soon, if at all.
I owned a Galaxy s II before selling it to a friend who needed a new phone, and I would purchase the device again in a heartbeat if I decided I wanted to use android.

Andrmgic said:
I doubt we're going to see anything like file managers or similar anytime soon, if at all.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah I'm pretty sure we won't. Hell, even desktop operating systems may be moving away from file managers.

PG2G said:
Yeah I'm pretty sure we won't. Hell, even desktop operating systems may be moving away from file managers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah maybe in 2050. You must be kidding. For any profi usage these are the basics.

I will give this phone a try till December, if nothing comes up in the APP scene better than what it is at present than I will switch to Android perm for good.. I am not the one who keeps two phones or keep migrating from one to another OS frequently.. I just choose the best and stay with it for a long time..
i desperately need a better calendar app for appointments.. this whole wide calendar tile is just a wasteful eye candy which i have come to realize.. auto call recording which i guess with the absence of file explorer will never come to wp7.. i want to make my phone a USB on the Go like thing, a pen drive... 16 GB of total storage is too small..
I dont know how microsoft thinks they make a 3 horse race with these features missing.. its basically a two horse race, racing in front and a 3rd horse limping behind to catch the bets by people made by error ...

Purple11 said:
I dont know how microsoft thinks they make a 3 horse race with these features missing.. its basically a two horse race, racing in front and a 3rd horse limping behind to catch the bets by people made by error ...
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You have very specific requirements that the average user doesn't care about. Recording phone calls without consent isn't even legal in many states.

PG2G said:
You have very specific requirements that the average user doesn't care about. Recording phone calls without consent isn't even legal in many states.
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Yep. Microsoft isn't gearing this phone toward the likes of the geeks and tech nerds that frequent this forum. The average user makes up the majority of users, thus the demographic Microsoft seeks to lure to WP7.
As far as what you need, you will find that some of these things will come to WP7 like various calendar apps due to the vast number of APIs made available by MS.
You may also find that some of these things may never come or may not come for quite some time. I, for one, hope to never see a file explorer on WP7.
The fact is, this isn't android and that's a good thing. Each has its own role to play and fits in where they fit in. If WP7 had been around back in 2008 as the alternative to ATT and the iphone, android would most likely be a niche device for the above geeks and tech nerds.
That being said, only Android will fully fill your present and perhaps future needs.
Good luck. Whichever direction ya go.

Wyn6 said:
As far as what you need, you will find that some of these things will come to WP7 like various calendar apps due to the vast number of APIs made available by MS.
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That's one of the things that I was thinking about as I read what he wanted to do. Unfortunately, Mango only allows for read-only access to the Contacts and Appointments. The only way to create an app like that (that actually integrates with the existing calendar app) would be to make the changes in the cloud and let the phone sync like normal. I guess you could always have a 100% standalone calendar app though.

I also want to say that the inability to expand memory using SDHC card will restrict many companies to bring their larger good graphics game to WP7... I have 16GB but I know their are people with only 8GB memory and they cannot expand it..
Now checkout this game:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CwSedSzckE&feature=relmfu
It looks a very heavy game by memory wise , if we want games like this on WP7 than 8GB device is a very small handset to have several of this kind of game.. I dont think gameloft can bring such games to WP7 with current restrictions on expandable memory..

****ty textures.. probably fits into the 400-500mb range.
The iphone version weighs in at 511MB..
You should probably get the SGS II and be done with it. You're not likely to find a better android device this year, and android will serve your purposes better than WP7.
It'll play 1080p h264 video in a mkv container without re-encoding.. and supports HDMI out using a MHL adapter.
Even with Mango's new APIs, you're not going to get the same level of functionality that you're looking for.
1. WP7 apps are not written using native code, they use silverlight, XNA or a combination of the two
2. There will never be a file manager or a task manager
3. There is no bluetooth file transfer
4. No Expandable storage
5. Small number of applications (this will be less of an issue as time goes by.. the marketplace is growing fairly rapidly)
6. Limited hardware options
7. No true multitasking (applications don't run constantly in the background until they are exited.. they do on android)
8. No Usb mass storage

I have both devices.
Maybe i can help you a bit.
I do have both devices (+ I have some more). It was part of the benefits of my last job and also part ( almost a requirement) of my actual one.
- If you switch to Android from Wp7 you feel like going back to WinMO a bit. Tons of Rom's,tons of walpapers but milligrams if you need help.
- The greatest benefit of WP7 is the unified platform. Maybe you don't realize it atm, but for 99% of people I've spoken to, it's a deal breaker.
- Not, I repeat, not my solely opinion: everything onscreen with Omnia7 looks better than on SGS2. People always want to tinker with the Omnia7 when I put both phones on the table (sometimes I carry the IPhone 4 with me also).
- SGS2 is literally bloated with redundant crapware. If you guys have ever bought a Sony Vaio in 2008-2010, this is worse.
- SGS2 takes mindblowing photos and FullHD videos (that they don't look like shot through a fishbowl).
-there are some neat tricks bundled on SGS2 but nothing you can't dl from market for free.
-battery is on par.
-voice commands are better on WP7.
-SGS2 feels like under development. 16bit graphics + wake up lag...for amoled+ and dual core? WTF?
- WP7 is more on the legal side, harder to sideload stolen/cracked apps. On android, on the other hand, you get hundreds of forums just for that.
If you have more questions I'd be happy to answer.