Are the changes Windows Phone 7 going through good in your eyes? (Updated)

August 31, 2010 | By WenWP

Windows Phone 7 has been seeing many changes, enough that one of our editors had a change of heart (that he should be posting soon Winking smile ) and I am sure many of you have seen a change as well. Pocketnow, app developers, and other sites have brought many videos demoing what seems to be the next great OS. These videos have made me especially happy because now I know Microsoft has not kept me waiting for nothing, more importantly that my next device should rock.

These are the features that I have seen and have loved:

Xbox Live
Zune Music Player(with great design)
App Collection(videos have shown a lot)
Smooth Web browser
Animated Hubs (People, Xbox, etc.)
Limited Specification(which will extinguish the variation problem WM and Android devices are facing)
Focus on social, communication, and improvements.

Those are some things that come to mind when I think of why I will be buying a Windows Phone 7 device on launch date. I am sure many of you can also make a list similar of what you like, or what you do not like and why you will not buy it. There are many positives and negatives to what has become Windows Phone, and I think (for me) I can say there are more positives on my list than negatives.

Make a list and comment below, tell the world what you will be doing come launch date.

Update: As requested here are some of the nagetives that could possible make me miss that change exit and speed of to something else.

HomeScreen (I do like the hub, but I think it looks really boring, like something I would get bored of after a few months)
Side Loading of apps (To be honest I have yet to pay for any apps, I ether get it for review or get it some other way and now I cannot get it on my device)
File Manager (I want to have my secret folder that only I know of and can go to for my stuff… I don’t want my “videos” to be found by anyone that goes to the right hub)
Copy and Paste (This one is nothing big because I cannot remember the last time I actually used it, but I would feel better knowing I can)

Now that is why I said my negatives beat the positives, but my home Screen negative is the worst of them all, and has me thinking. I mean I am bored of Sense UI (I know that is impossible), I am bored of Sense (Android version), I am bored of Titanium (how long could that have lasted), and the only thing I use now is SlideScreen (Android home screen) and No homescreen on my HD2. I would rather have nothing that bores me than something that takes a longer time to load.

About Wen M

Working for WMPU is awesome. Love to write personal articles, and I do it very often. I am the reviewing editor (self appointed), so you will see alot of reviews and giveaways from me. I own quite a few devices not just Windows Phone but Android and others. I live in Minnesota, USA and love traveling to other places.

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Tagged device, Launch, release, windows phone 7, wp7

Tamarai

They can't seem to see the forest through the trees in many regards. I fired up the new Exchange ActiveSync with Hotmail today, moved my personal domain over from Google Apps to give it a try. They >still< don't sync subfolders with Hotmail. Google Apps does, and has for quite some time.

They're trying to implement big stuff and letting what they perceive as minor details fall through the cracks. It all contributes to a messy user experience that'll have people looking elsewhere for their mobility needs.

There's a lot of work that needs doing before they can be a serious competitor in the mobility arena, and WP7 isn't it…

Lennard

what part of "seeing this as a first release" don't you understand? of course the small things won't matter much for now, but overtime as the updates roll in the small stuffs will be covered….."get the parents then the kids will follow", which is saying cover the major things then the smalls things will fall into place.
and if I'm not mistaken WP7 does support Gmail. and WM6.5 does support Gmail.

but what do you mean it doesn't support sub folders? as in nested folders?

Tamarai

Yeah… the OS might be more useable by the time 7.5 rolls around, approximately 2 years after 7 goes out the door :p

l3v5y

MS have a much more aggressive updating schedule for WP7 than they have before. And 6.1 came between 6 and 6.5, and did some things very well (and much better than every other handset at the time)
Michael

what? haahaaa. more useable? you can't use a phone or computer? bwaaahaaa

steve

Actually, yes, the new Hotmail ActiveSync on the iPhone does sync all folders. You select them in the options undr "mail folders to push". if its not available on the Droid…then its a shortfall of the OS, not MS' implementation of ActiveSync for hotmail.

Tamarai

You can't sync folders that are inside of other folders ('subfolders'), folders at the root level sync fine. This has longtime been a shortcoming of Hotmail. Exchange itself, or a Hosted Exchange service, will sync folders and subfolders, as does Gmail.

Win 7 or android

You said there are negatives but only listed the positives. What are the negatives?

l3v5y

Copy and paste is currently lacking?
http://twitter.com/WMPerson @WMPerson

True, I will update the article with some of my negatives.

win7??

If there is no directory programs like file explorer or total commander etc…. i am not going to like it as well as if there is no backward compatibility with windows 6.5x software like coreplayer, tomtom, etc

qmt49

Why do you need a file manager on a phone? Baffles me. And no, there is zero backwards compatibility, because all 6.x apps SUCK.

l3v5y

6.5 apps are functional, WP7 apps are pretty and functional.
http://twitter.com/chmun77 @chmun77

Actually, having a file manager is good and it does not mean that it will be as suck as 6.x. Having file manager allows users to see info like how big is the size of video / picture files, creating subfolders that allow better file management, etc etc…. And MS just have to control the access level of the file manager.
Tom

A file manager is a fundamental part of a true operating system. It simply allows you to see all the files on your phone in ONE place and alter/organize them anyway you like. The iPhone doesn't have one which is why most WM fans call it an app launching dumb phone OS.
qmt49

Why on earth would you want to arrange your files on a phone? A phone is an appliance. It should be designed to serve you. You should not have to perform these ponderous manual operations that should have been left in the 90s. The Windows Phone software is capable of showing you your files in logical categories, dynamically: music can be viewed by artist or album, videos by movie or TV show, and so on. Library-based, not folder-based, computing is the future, and the signs have been there for years. The Libraries feature in Windows 7, and the TOTAL abstraction of the file system from the user in WP7 are just the first steps towards this future.

Tom

Your first few sentences contradict each other. I agree with the third, I should be able to decide what I want it to do. A phone shouldn't be any more of an appliance then a computer is. I use my phone for play and WORK. I'm not saying that the auto-organize feature is bad, I (like many) am saying we want to option to NOT be auto classified as a pic, vid, or music. I carry a lot of files for work that my WM phone didn't recognize, but that didn't matter since I just want to be able to email and transport them were ever I go. You say computing is the future(I agree), but WP7 is the farthest thing from the basic usable functions of a computer since the iPhone. Much like the iPhone is just a iPod touch with a phone attached, WP7 is a Zune with a phone attached. Neither can replace a computer outside of the "play" category.

KCMatt

My mom sent me this text tonight. I think it's hilarious.

Hi kids! Glenn and I got new smart phones. Samsung intercept with unlimited text and data. I'm having so much fun with it! Hope you are both having a good week. Love, Mom.

Me: Really? What's so fun about it?

Her: Adding apps, getting email. Internet. It has GPS. Facebook. Weather. You name it. There are hundreds of apps out there.

Me: Welcome to the 21st Century. It's fun isn't it?

No response.

A little background- my mom is 59 but works as a project manager for a major healthcare software company, so I've always considered her pretty proficient technologically. I just realized this is an android OS. I've been using WinMo qwerty sliders for years, but never really showed her what they can do. Probably because they are a little too complicated. WP7 should blow her away. Or perhaps WP7 will take over the current iphone and android user market and newbies like my mom can move to those phones in the coming years.

Hmmm…

http://twitter.com/WMPerson @WMPerson

Lol, good story

SOMI

You have nervous breakdown for WP7 launch Wen? You been writing lot of similar topic about this already, let the devs go to work and we'll find out in Nov. Cross your finger. And even if they have a few quirkies, you'll still be getting a damn Wp7 phone and you know it!

http://twitter.com/WMPerson @WMPerson

NOVEMBER????? That would suck if I have to wait that long. No worries Ill find out next month.

http://premiumgolfgear.com Michael Vaughn

Looks nice but I would rather go for Android
Shawn

I'm a simpleton and the whole Metro UI reflects that. All photos in one place. Zune comes to a phone. Personally, I don't need the extras like copy&paste or ActiveSync. And, apps that I want or need are already in development. Xbox Live games are just icing on the cake. But, with all that said, I will not buy a Windows Phone if the hardware doesn't look f***in' fantastic. It has to be as thin as possible, no physical keyboard, and minimal in design. I don't like the Apple software but the reason I like the iPhone hardware is because it's simple yet elegant and no branding on the front side. That's why I like the Dell Lightning, it's simple yet elegant and there's no branding on the front. I'm going to wait to see what other OEMs come up with.

Harold

So what are you saying if it has a nice design and crappy software you will buy it….to each is own…design just has to be decent but the software has to work like a champ.

Yevin

Wait for Windows Phone 8.

Windows Phone 7 has so many shortcomings that need fixing. Rather than buying it on a promise that one day it will be fixed, I will wait until it is fixed.

I think a lot of the software will be limited, due to the very rudimentary APIs, but that will be fixed when the APIs mature, or when Microsoft allows native code (maybe that should say "if" Microsoft allows native code).

I want to be able to tether my internet connection to my laptop (I believe WP7 will not be able to do that).

I have multiple email accounts and want to view them together, but WP7 has no universal inbox.

I want Skype, which won't be there (due to no sockets).

I want the compass to work with 3rd party apps, but there is currently no Silverlight compass API. I think compass is vitally important on a handheld, so it reacts when you turn on the spot (GPS requires you to move in a forward direction for some meters/yards before it will register any change in direction. Microsoft, get that compass API finished quick smart!
NuShrike

Nothing really can be said until it's real and after 6 months of picky and fickle users. Gotta fluff it somehow, right?

Meantime, we get pretty and usable apps in HD2 Android to pass the time, so best of worlds until then.
http://twitter.com/chmun77 @chmun77

I think WP7 will require power users to really get used to the crippled side of it. However, as a normal consumer like myself, although I'm a developer too, I will rather to have a phone that allows me to keep close connection with my friends at my finger tips, and applications that provide information access whenever I need, and most important a stable and fast responsive UI.

iPhone 4 indeed fulfilled most of my needs, but the grid icons layout is really messy…. Android is ok, but Google is an evil organisation….
http://twitter.com/WMPerson @WMPerson

I didnt say you have to love it, but your right… But you should see how hard it is to find any development on 6.5. It seems everyone has gone home in anticipation of 7. But I do find anything good…. I usually post it.
Not really our fault. As for ROMs…. Sure, I can also post those if you guys find that important.
clint

On launch day, I will be getting myself a WinPho7 (mmm… I love Pho).

Although at the moment I am desperate for a new phone so I might get an Samsung Galaxy and then sell it when the right Windows Phone 7 device shows up in Canada.

Tom

You won't end up selling it. The Galaxy will kill any of the first gen WP7 phones.

http://twitter.com/WMPerson @WMPerson

Actually it wont kill anything. I was disappointed on how buggy my Galaxy S is… I mean its fast, thin, and nice… but My god. Couldnt they do better with the software and to be honest Android, WM, and iPhone OS just bores me now… like nothing really new or different about them… no more excitement like back in the days when we would see some true innovations.

Tom

Microsoft has left WM fans in the dust. We are seeing a lot of cool hardware coming out now so WM fans will have to make a decision of keeping with outdated phones or giving up all your control(with WP7). I'm switch to android till MS sees the light in about 2-3 years.