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Windows Phone 7
FAST AND FLUID are two words that immediately come to mind when using the Windows Phone 7 (WP7) mobile operating system and its tile style user interface.
With the tile system, different functions can be reached quickly and music and video files play almost immediately after selected. The 3G service is also rapid for many websites, although some take 20-30 seconds to appear.
All the handsets currently available come with a 1GHz Snapdragon processor and 576MB of RAM. Despite this being the minimum technical specification, WP7 has none of the lethargy witnessed with previous Windows Mobile devices and is fast and fluid.
In Steve Ballmer's speech at the New York launch of WP7 he talked again and again about the experience being "delightful" and how Microsoft wanted users to feel that the phone was theirs. Customisation of the homepage is relatively easy, as is the process of setting up the phone making it easy to personalise the handset. However the lack of a normal tree-like menu structure did make it harder to find certain functions such as SIM contacts.
Over a period of a couple of hours with no manual, this reviewer was able to browse the Internet, use the camera, listen to the radio, create favourite-like "tabs" of certain websites, upload pictures, music and video and SIM contacts from another handset and move tiles around on the homepage to personalise it.
For uploading content it was just a matter of downloading Zune from windowsphone.com and then going through a straightforward drag and drop process to move the music, pictures and a 600MB DVD rip of the James Bond film Quantum of Solace from the desktop to the handset.
There were some niggling problems, though, including a need on one occasion to re-enter the Access Point Name to restart the Internet connection and an inability to download free apps from the WP7 Marketplace. Another odd feature is that video or music can't be stopped - it can only be paused. The phone also restarted itself once when exiting a video after about 20 minuets of playback. But none of these niggles have undermined the overall ease of use that the tile UI has provided. The INQUIRER has been informed that the final version of WP7 was not provided and instead the handset has a "software prototype" version.
This might also explain one issue that would detract from the user experience and that is the apparent lack of Flash support, ensuring online videos can't be watched. Another bone of contention is the fact that use of social networks is limited because you are only able to get new feeds, photos and status updates from, for example, Facebook. This did not seem like an aspect of any prototype software and instead looked like a mature design feature.
Having said all that Windows Phone 7 is a dramatic improvement on what has gone before. Its unique tile menu system makes it stand out from the other OS user interfaces on the market and it is easy to overcome the initial uneasiness with no tree-like menu structure. It is fast and fluid, and the Zune synchronisation software worked well.
WP7 is no Vista, but in the world of Android, Symbian^3 and soon WebOS, it is no Windows 7 either. Microsoft's new mobile effort does not deserve to fail but nor can it assume it will win. Android has succeeded because it is open source and many users like the flexibility that brings, plus the fact that there are new version upgrades periodically. Because of this WP7 is no Android killer and it is going to have to fight for its share of the market against a range of very tough competitors. µ
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Been with Windows on my telephony device for a while now. Jumped in late, my first love was the LG Incite, moved to the LG eXpo back in May. My next upgrade (I have 5 lines) is just after the New Year and at this point it looks like Windows Phone 7 is in my future. http://www.wp7forum.com looks like a good place to discuss about windows phone 7, hopefully you will find it useful.
My Android phone has Copy And Paste and I never use it. It is too clunky with my fingers because the text is less than half the thickness of them. If I want to type something for real, I simply use a keyboard.
Most users are not going to care one way or another.
There are app developers that are actually already loving the WP7 better than droid because it is available on a number of smartphones and it's more rigid. QA testing for Android is difficult because there are no minimum hardware specs and all these nuances. If we get a bug in one, it’s difficult to test, because you have be device specific.
More insight from App developers here:
http://www.mutualmobile.com/2010/mutual-mobile-gearing-up-for-windows-phone-7/
A few are on the fence about what is better. Its a completely mixed review right now.
Also, I do remember seeing that Office has copy & paste but the rest of the phone doesnt. so in your comment Franco about writing a paragrpah, I think you can move it above. its just in txting etc that you cannot. but we have lived with that for years until about 1-2 years ago so why cry now?
Lol, thanks Jason and the other trolls for the comments. You all comment even before its released (3 months of sales) or even tried the thing youselves. Stop the trolling and go back to school (as I've come to the conclusion that the Metro design is for 20yr olds +, not for the kids).
And Jason, before you SCREAM SELL MICROSOFT NOW!!!! why not take a look at the worst case scenario, if WP7 failed and died, Microsoft would lose all mobile revenue, which is currently 1% of the total income. Not exactly enough to do any sort of damage, on the contry they have everything to gain.
Nyuck nyuck. Oh, yes, the anagram definitely proves it! As with all the disgruntled Apple workers who did this magical anagram from apple iphone:
Pap phone lie
Which means the "Apple iPhone lacks any real value or substance and is a phone that is frequently lied about" says imaginary disgruntled Apple worker.
Thanks go to the internet anagram server.
You write a paragraph of text. Then a second paragraph of text.
Then you want to move the second paragraph to go above the first paragraph.
Windows Phone 7 says no. You can't do that. The first handsets on the market have no Copy & Paste so you can't move text (Microsoft says it will come in the 2011 version of the software).
You want to tether your connection to your laptop? Windows Phone 7 says no.
You want to change the SD card? Windows Phone 7 will blank itself, do a total reset, after which you have to reinstall the OS. Great.
The phones have a compulsory compass, but Microsoft won't allow any 3rd party apps to access it. Duh!
Windows Phone 7 is an abomination. I would not recommend it to bald people. Only people with hair who want to go bald, quickly.
I have heard that there are a lot of disgruntled, chair-dodging employees at Microsoft.
The name "WINDOWS PHONE SEVEN" seems to prove this point:
If you re-arrange the letters, you get:
WN PHONE NOSEDIVES
Obviously a code from someone on the inside about how this product is expected to perform in the marketplace.
SELL...MICROSOFT...STOCKS...NOW
No one seems to be commenting about the UGLY UI on these Windows phones.
Android has nice customizable wallpaper, multiple desktops, and its beautiful to look at and work with.
Windows has these horrid, ugly "tiles" that are "supposed to be what users want" (according to Microsoft, that is). Along with the condescending "Me" labelled tiles...the only "Me" in these phones is "Me-Ballmer".
But it is good to see some Microsoft features are alive and well:
"The phone also restarted itself once when exiting a video after about 20 minuets of playback". The BSOD feature carried through just fine.
The OS just does not seem to be that close-to-metal as Android seems to be.
WIKIPEDIA: Among the features that are not yet present are cut, copy, and paste[51] full multitasking[52], and Adobe Flash, though Microsoft confirms that Flash will come to the platform some time in the future.[53] Support for removable SD cards is supported, however when the user replaces the SD card, all of the data on the phone is lost and the device defaults back to factory settings, some of the user's data can be retrieved on the phone by using a Windows Live ID.[54][55] Tethering has been left out of the OS.[56] Microsoft claims this to be in the interest of data security for enterprise users.[57] Windows Phone 7 will also not support Silverlight in the web browser[58] or IPsec virtual private network (VPN) security,[59] videocalling,[60] a system-wide file manager,[60] and Bluetooth file transfers.[60]
Windows 8, Singularity, ARM, MS's new logos for Windows, WinMo, bing, xbox, office... all these logos are closed loops. Windows-8, 8 is also a closed loop. Where does all this point to... INFINITY ... where comes infinity come from ARM and SINGULARITY. after Xp, Vista, Seven ... Windows 8 might also be named WINDOWS-INFINITY with 8 laying horizontally forming infinity sign. Windows-8 might be first run anywhere OS or should i say hardware-independent OS. Specially since WinMo-7 is a flop (it seems just a interface patent capturing stunt), the interface is too low IQish like for STUDENTs not corporates. i want to get lost in menus and options and tweaks, i want to talk to underlying metal, love AMD's CTM Close To Metal mantra. thats what coprate and real fun lies. feel of being close to metal. Its also bad of MS to worship and drag too much facebook inside. like there is pharoh of every era, there is mIRC of every say half decade, MIRC, then ICQ, then ORKUT, then MSN, then mySpace then FaceBook. they are all mIRCs... MS shouldnt tarnish image aligning ideology with this crap. Return to WinMo-6 style where user could bask in there shade not knowing how deep and broad this shade is for comfort that somewhere deep down there will be options/addon option that will make my job done latter of not sooner. not like i circle between just 4-5 tiles of xbox, facebook, zune toys. So Windows 8, Singularity, ARM, MS's new logos for Windows, WinMo, bing, xbox, office is possibly a hint to wards abandoning of WinMo7 ideology (think KIN) and Windows-8-Desktop as ARM compatible linking all the dots to form Windows-8-INFINITY.
Rememeber in windows98 Installer !?! their was specific option for laptops called "Portable"
http://www.directron.com/windows98guide.html
"Portable (Windows will be setup with options that are useful for portable computers)".
You have no backbone. Tarnished? Only by your own sight. In the eyes of Inq, what company is NOT tarnished? Rubbish