7 ms·

Every time I've used a WP device I've walked away disappointed. Haven't done an extended test just 10-15 minutes on various devices. If I had to point to any on

by jsz0 14y ago

Every time I've used a WP device I've walked away disappointed. Haven't done an extended test just 10-15 minutes on various devices. If I had to point to any one thing that leaves me disappointed it's probably the excessive amount of scrolling and swiping required. Even on the larger display devices the amount of information I can see without scrolling/swiping is a fraction of what I'm used to from iOS/Android. It leaves me with kind of a stuck-in-the-mud feeling that I'm just doing a lot of extra work to access the same amount of information. The same type of problem pops up with apps in a different way. They tend to be fairly basic and lacking features. I guess this is to be expected for a relatively young platform but it's really difficult to step away from these iOS/Android apps that just have so much more functionality. Between the apps and UI style it almost just feels to me more like a glorified feature phone. People said the same thing about the iPhone but it had some really killer features. To get a real web browser I was happy to give up the unified messages system on my BlackBerry. I can't really find the killer features in WP that would justify the trade-offs. Honestly every interaction I've had with WP so far makes me very happy to return to iOS/Android where all my apps pack tons of information on the screen and have just about every feature I need.

danieldk 14y ago
I have used an iPhone for nearly four years. After playing with a Nokia Lumia 710 (WP7) for some weeks, I bought a WP8 last weak, and too be honest, I couldn't be happier. The thing that I really like (besides the Metro interface) compared to iOS is the integration of Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn et al in the People hub. It actually gives me more information density than the iPhone, where I have to switch between various applications to see what happened. If I want to zoom in to specific persons or groups, I just make a tile to get a subset of that information (e.g. I have a 'Family' tile for my parents, brother, etc.). Also, it comes with a lot of functionality out of the box, such as a lightweight versions of Office and OneNote, Skydrive integration, XBox Music Pass support (Spotify with a far larger catalogue), etc. It's true that the number and breadth of applications is relatively small, but the Windows Phone OS is fairly complete, and most applications that I require are available (Whatsapp, Skype, etc.). Between the apps and UI style it almost just feels to me more like a glorified feature phone. To be honest, that's a bit troll-ish, given that WP8 uses the same kernel and user interface as Windows 8 and given the functionality of the pre-installed applications.
- elithrar 14y ago
  > To be honest, that's a bit troll-ish, given that WP8 uses the same kernel and user interface as Windows 8 and given the functionality of the pre-installed applications. I don't see how it's "troll-ish". To an end-user, the fact that WP8 uses the same kernel as Windows 8 means nothing. It might be an exaggeration but given the rest of the comment was relatively constructive, it's forgivable. On the UI side, his major complaint is about information density (a common complaint about WP7/WP8 apps). That's definitely valid; and I say that having used WP8 (briefly) and not minding it so much (a feeling that could change over extended use). As an iOS user, Windows Phone's aesthetics are definitely appealing (and the Twitterrific app on iOS channels some of WP8, I feel), but the lack of stand-out apps and games is the real killer. No Reeder, no Instapaper, no Instagram or VSCO cam, no Byword, Sword & Swocery, etc.
  - j2labs 14y ago
    Similarly, it's interesting to me that Microsoft users will tout things like hardware in their devices. No iphone user mentions hardware because they don't care. Is the device and its ecosystem a great experience or not? That's ALL that matters.
    - recursive 14y ago
      I hear about iphone hardware all the time. You've never heard praise for apple's mythical "build quality"?
      - FuzzyDunlop 14y ago
        Or the Retina display, or the 'more powerful GPU'...
        j2labs 14y ago
        Retina display was something that had never been done. Totally worth talking about. My original point was anecdotal, so continuing on that, I've only heard game developers discuss the GPU. Most reviews of the latest windows tablet discussed the hardware. This processor and that amount of ram... I couldn't care much less.
glass- 14y ago
> the excessive amount of scrolling and swiping required. Even on the larger display devices the amount of information I can see without scrolling/swiping is a fraction of what I'm used to from iOS/Android. It leaves me with kind of a stuck-in-the-mud feeling that I'm just doing a lot of extra work to access the same amount of information. This isn't something that even remotely occurred to me, as someone who moved from an iPhone 4S to a Lumia 920. I never noticed any difference, but now that I think about it and how my workflow has changed since I got the new phone, what you said couldn't be more wrong. Just by unlocking the phone (button press + one swipe, same as iPhone) I can see emails (subjects and sender), text messages (sender and message), calendar events, and notification text (not just a numerical count) for every social network I have an account on. And that's just from the start-screen, without opening any apps or scrolling at all. One additional swipe down and I can see stock live stock information and news feed. Getting all that information on an iPhone would involve individually opening and checking around 7 different apps. And even if you ignore the information from the start screen, just from within apps, I'm not seeing any additional scrolling needed, or where extra effort is required to access information. Especially to a level that makes it so arduous that it disappointed you so much that you were compelled to complain about it on the internet. Can you give specific examples of where all this extra scrolling and swiping that you're talking about is required?
- ebf 14y ago
  Yea, it's a shame that a comment from someone who has barely used WP is at the top of this thread, as opposed to the people who have actually used it and iOS or Android heavily.
  - jsz0 14y ago
    If there was a cheap WP8 device available I would pick one up just to play around with but there's nothing at the price point of say the iPod Touch / Nexus 4. My original post is probably how a lot of people feel about WP at this point. It's just not appealing enough to replace the iOS/Android devices they are currently using. The number of people who are going to switch just for the sake of switching is very very low. Most people are going to need a damn good reason to switch. Microsoft's best bet is with first time SmartPhone buyers who aren't already invested into iOS/Android.

by jsz0 14y ago

danieldk 14y ago

I have used an iPhone for nearly four years. After playing with a Nokia Lumia 710 (WP7) for some weeks, I bought a WP8 last weak, and too be honest, I couldn't be happier. The thing that I really like (besides the Metro interface) compared to iOS is the integration of Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn et al in the People hub. It actually gives me more information density than the iPhone, where I have to switch between various applications to see what happened. If I want to zoom in to specific persons or groups, I just make a tile to get a subset of that information (e.g. I have a 'Family' tile for my parents, brother, etc.). Also, it comes with a lot of functionality out of the box, such as a lightweight versions of Office and OneNote, Skydrive integration, XBox Music Pass support (Spotify with a far larger catalogue), etc. It's true that the number and breadth of applications is relatively small, but the Windows Phone OS is fairly complete, and most applications that I require are available (Whatsapp, Skype, etc.). Between the apps and UI style it almost just feels to me more like a glorified feature phone. To be honest, that's a bit troll-ish, given that WP8 uses the same kernel and user interface as Windows 8 and given the functionality of the pre-installed applications.

elithrar 14y ago
> To be honest, that's a bit troll-ish, given that WP8 uses the same kernel and user interface as Windows 8 and given the functionality of the pre-installed applications. I don't see how it's "troll-ish". To an end-user, the fact that WP8 uses the same kernel as Windows 8 means nothing. It might be an exaggeration but given the rest of the comment was relatively constructive, it's forgivable. On the UI side, his major complaint is about information density (a common complaint about WP7/WP8 apps). That's definitely valid; and I say that having used WP8 (briefly) and not minding it so much (a feeling that could change over extended use). As an iOS user, Windows Phone's aesthetics are definitely appealing (and the Twitterrific app on iOS channels some of WP8, I feel), but the lack of stand-out apps and games is the real killer. No Reeder, no Instapaper, no Instagram or VSCO cam, no Byword, Sword & Swocery, etc.
- j2labs 14y ago
  Similarly, it's interesting to me that Microsoft users will tout things like hardware in their devices. No iphone user mentions hardware because they don't care. Is the device and its ecosystem a great experience or not? That's ALL that matters.
  - recursive 14y ago
    I hear about iphone hardware all the time. You've never heard praise for apple's mythical "build quality"?
    - FuzzyDunlop 14y ago
      Or the Retina display, or the 'more powerful GPU'...
      - j2labs 14y ago
        Retina display was something that had never been done. Totally worth talking about. My original point was anecdotal, so continuing on that, I've only heard game developers discuss the GPU. Most reviews of the latest windows tablet discussed the hardware. This processor and that amount of ram... I couldn't care much less.

glass- 14y ago

> the excessive amount of scrolling and swiping required. Even on the larger display devices the amount of information I can see without scrolling/swiping is a fraction of what I'm used to from iOS/Android. It leaves me with kind of a stuck-in-the-mud feeling that I'm just doing a lot of extra work to access the same amount of information. This isn't something that even remotely occurred to me, as someone who moved from an iPhone 4S to a Lumia 920. I never noticed any difference, but now that I think about it and how my workflow has changed since I got the new phone, what you said couldn't be more wrong. Just by unlocking the phone (button press + one swipe, same as iPhone) I can see emails (subjects and sender), text messages (sender and message), calendar events, and notification text (not just a numerical count) for every social network I have an account on. And that's just from the start-screen, without opening any apps or scrolling at all. One additional swipe down and I can see stock live stock information and news feed. Getting all that information on an iPhone would involve individually opening and checking around 7 different apps. And even if you ignore the information from the start screen, just from within apps, I'm not seeing any additional scrolling needed, or where extra effort is required to access information. Especially to a level that makes it so arduous that it disappointed you so much that you were compelled to complain about it on the internet. Can you give specific examples of where all this extra scrolling and swiping that you're talking about is required?

ebf 14y ago
Yea, it's a shame that a comment from someone who has barely used WP is at the top of this thread, as opposed to the people who have actually used it and iOS or Android heavily.
- jsz0 14y ago
  If there was a cheap WP8 device available I would pick one up just to play around with but there's nothing at the price point of say the iPod Touch / Nexus 4. My original post is probably how a lot of people feel about WP at this point. It's just not appealing enough to replace the iOS/Android devices they are currently using. The number of people who are going to switch just for the sake of switching is very very low. Most people are going to need a damn good reason to switch. Microsoft's best bet is with first time SmartPhone buyers who aren't already invested into iOS/Android.