Windows Phone Chief Criticizes Android and iPhone 4S
Windows Phone Chief Criticizes Android and iPhone 4S
Posted 10/10/2011 at 8:37am
| by Paul Lilly
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In an interview with The Seattle Times, Andy Lee, president of Microsoft's Windows Phone division, took a few potshots at the competition while talking up his company's Mango platform. Mango, or Windows Phone 7.5, was introduced to some existing Windows Phone users last month and introduces 500 new features. But is it better than the competition?
Lee certainly things so. When asked if he sees Apple's iPhone 4S as a missed opportunity that Microsoft can capitalize on, he said he does.
"Yes I do. I think, from an end user's experience on the software, there's a lot of interesting reviews written comparing us to iOS 5 and the amount that we've got done in 11 months -- some people are making comparisons of pace," Lee said.
One thing in particular Lee is excited about is the number of new features crammed into Mango without the "clutter and confusion" of other platforms. This is something he sees as particularly problematic on Google's Android platform.
"I think Android is heading down this chaotic phase," Lee said. "We want to enable OEMs, we want to enable operators, but we don't want chaos. If you've used some of the Android phones, some of them are great, but some of them are not great. But it's random. And it feels like, with some of them, that you've had several cooks in the kitchen trying to bake different things with the same thing. Whereas we have much more coherency in the totality of what somebody gets when they buy our phone."
You can read the rest of his interview here.
Image Credit: wpcentral.com
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Holly Golightly
October 10, 2011 at 11:49pm
I like Windows Phone 7, but that is not to say Windows has no flaws. Actually they have waaay too many flaws that make Apple and Android look better. Here are my problems with Windows Phone 7:
1. Slow on the updates. It took unnecessarily long to have native Twitter support.
2. Designs. What gives? Every Windows Phone is all bubbly and curvy. This does not match the sharp design of OS. I wanted the Samsung Omnia 7 AKA Omnia i8700.
3. Materials. So many Windows Phones are big on plastic. Some look cheaper than others. I want something with the build quality of an iPhone 4s but with the break-through technology found on a Droid phone.
4. Exclusivity. This one, I will never understand. Almost every phone that comes out from WP7 is exclusive to AT&T. Look, the only thing AT&T has going for itself is the iPhone. Why would somebody in that service want to use anything else from them? It is by far the worst service! This is why they are trying to buy out T-Mobile. To hopefully improve on their garbage service. Why have the best Windows Phone exclusively released for AT&T? Come on, bring Nokia Ace, HTC HD7S, and HTC Titan to ALL networks!
Basically, I expected the best with Windows Phone, and sadly... My network does not get the same equal treatment as AT&T. I am not going to switch networks. I do hope that I can get the Nokia Sea Ray... Hopefully it wont be a crushed hope like the Samsung Omnia 7 was... Microsoft seems to be moving a bit too slow.
big_montana
October 11, 2011 at 11:40am
1) Android took forever to get Twitter support as well
2) MS does not control design, and that is not a part of the OS. There are quite a few Android phones that are downright fugly.
3) See above, and there are quite a few plasticy Android phones.
4) Doubt that is MS doing, more the other carriers taking a wait and see approach toward WP7, but now that WP7.5 is out, production should ramp up, especially with the best phone designed, Nokia, on board with WP7
Your comments had nothing to do with how WP7 functions, but everything to do with esthetics of the phone. Not a very minor concern, as that is why I am still using my Evo, as I cannot go back to a small screen. If Sprint ever gets a WP7.5 phone with at least a 4" screen, I would make the switch in a nano second.
Holly Golightly
November 25, 2011 at 11:46pm
There is no question that Windows Phone 7 OS is the prettiest of them all. I want hardware that complements the OS, not contradicts it. Esthetics do sell... Just look at the flawed launch of the original iPhone 4. I can not lie, the phone looks good... And it does sell. But the iPhone 4 took more away from function and gave it to looks. The iPhone 4S is even worse but many people can not turn down good looks and will go for it no matter what. Outside of the iPhone, they feel a phone that is fairy heavy with good quality materials like glass and metals. Looks sell. Nokia Lumia 800 is an attractive phone, but plastic breaks and is not biodegradeable. All I want are quality devices. If I, the consumer do not get what I want, I will go with "the other guys" and then WP7 loses out on 1 potential customer. It just sickens me how Windows Phones are mostly AT&T exclusive, and they are not technologically advanced like the current Androids are have quality hardware like the iPhone. Still, it blows Blackberry into the dust. I have waited far too long for Windows Phone... I think I have given up. Let's see if this phone even comes out on Verizon.
emzfrendcrisis
October 10, 2011 at 10:12am
I don't see how he gets off talking down Android for not being very monotone from phone to phone and saying that " And it feels like, with some of them, that you've had several cooks in the kitchen trying to bake different things with the same thing. Whereas we have much more coherency in the totality of what somebody gets when they buy our phone."."
Does this mean that he thinks the iPhone is the way to go? I mean, the iPhone is the epitomy of having only one cook in the kitchen, and it is coherent. I wouldn't buy one myself, but kinda dumb to knock one competitor for one thing and not praise another for taking a more extreme position of which you praise.
jowens203
October 10, 2011 at 9:52am
I've pretty much given up on what (X) devices have (X) features; I couldn't care less anymore. Go back and read this article in 6/9 months and see how relevent it is...
bautrey
October 10, 2011 at 9:12pm
u can always install a custom ROM and get even more cool features.
j_j_montez
October 10, 2011 at 9:24am
He's got it right with his criticism of Android. Too many cooks in the kitchen. Last week, my sister's android phone started playing music out of nowhere in the middle of a funeral. She panicked and handed it to my brother, who also has an android phone, and he couldn't navigate it well enough to shut off the music, he had to power down the phone.
kixofmyg0t
October 10, 2011 at 10:25pm
OMG THAT HAPPENED TO ME TOO!
I was just minding my own bussiness when all of the sudden my Droid Bionic started playing music and vibrating and doing all kinds of hoopin' and a hollerin'.....said something about "Incoming Call".
Whatever THAT means.
So I handed it over to my friend who's a iPhone user and he couldn't figure it out either! He said maybe my phone was messed up cuz I had something called "signal" and he showed me cuz it has these little bar things up at the top of the screen. His iPhone never has those.
:/
AETAaAS
October 10, 2011 at 9:39am
You sure she didn't just forget to put her phone on silent or left her alarm on? Its always easy to blame the equipment when operators fail. :p
I understand the point about Android phones being a mixed bag though, I've got a Galaxy S and I love it; smooth as silk and does everything I want, but I also tried a buncha other Android devices from not so reputable manufacturers, some Chinese makers in particular stick in 256mb of RAM and a POS 300+ mHz processor probably without graphics acceleration and it lags like hell.
I walked away as soon as I tested them. But you do pay bottom end prices (literally only tens of dollars) for some 3 inch 'smart' phones which is enough to sway some buyers to tolerate the lag.
In the same way you would prefer to buy brand name goods; stick with Samsung, HTC, Sony, LG, Motorola and other big name players and you should be all right.
big_montana
October 11, 2011 at 11:44am
Those are all good manufacturers for the most part, unless you plan on using your device in the enterprise, than I would avoid Motorolas like the plague, as their UI, motoblur, causes so many sync issues. Forget about calendar and contacts updating properly, if they update at all. Even with Touchdown installed you still experience sync issues. Maybe with Google owning them, they will fix the issues
j_j_montez
October 10, 2011 at 10:24am
I don't know what happened in the end. I do know my sister didn't know what the music was. Funny thing was, for a funeral, it was some theme fitting gothic choir song. I don't doubt she could have prevented it, but the fact that it wasn't easy enough to fix by the owner of the device is my issue with all the OEMs changing android so significantly. I love android, and the major brands that make that awesome hardware for it to run on. I just wish those manufacturers would leave the os as it is. keep it universal, but still customizeable by the user.
Caboose
October 11, 2011 at 9:40am
I know EXACTLY how she could have prevented it.
She could have turned off her freaking phone!
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