@dondgc:

google does it as a loss leader. they don't care about profits on the platform, because they will try and make it back in ad revenue.

MS' business model currently requires selling the platform to make profit.

ryusen

RIM + Apple + Google = MS Phone Phail.

the_amazing_doug

There is absolutely no excuse for Windows Mobile being as horrendously awful as it is after all these years. Apple hit the mobile-phone UI outta the park on its first attempt. I think Microsoft treats WM like its red-headed stepchild...

justrick

I don't know much about cell phone OS business models, but why would they want to give it away? What's the point in that?

dondgc

Well, if they can just fix the user interface it's not that bad as a platform. Sure, it costs you more than any other platform as all bundled software is rather bad and if you want anything decent, you'll have to pay for it. And plenty of software still relay in that awkward method of installing them through Windows to the mobile device. They sure have done plenty wrong and advanced pretty much nowhere during all the years available, but maybe the competition has finally kicked them into the head enough to wake them up.

ara

Holy crud it's an afternoon low. I can barely keep from passing out on the keyboard. Anyhow, being in a sleepy state, I thought that was a picture of the Bug man alien from Men in Black.

shamoononon has a hebetudinous dog

When I first got my WM phone, I used to wonder why everyone complained about instability, freezing, etc, etc. because mine seemed to run great. Now, the more I use it, the more I realize that those people were correct. It runs horrible. I've had it lock up multiple times while receiving phone calls, when the alarm was supposed to go off, and I just love how for some reason my SMS alert sound keeps turning off. This is after restoring it twice to hope that would fix it...also, this is the same thing after replacing it with another one.

Anywho...needless to say, I won't be buying another WM phone, and I do see by the time WM7 comes out, MS may have to rethink their strategy because RIM is looking better everyday.

Darkest Daze

@MorganRW:

Agreed. If you sit there and say how amazing perfect the iphone is, you obvious don't own one.

I really hope MS actually decides to make their own phone for WM7, potential epic win for them on the horizon if so.

djfoxx64

I think they're used to the monopoly in the desktop/laptop market and that they're guaranteed a certain number of corporate clients who might require WM.

I think they also overestimate the value of "full" exchange support. iPhone and RIM's exchange support is good enough for all but the most hard core exchange-heads.

In the end, I think they'll tread water with market share for a while and then it will slowly erode, even with WM 7.

ARP

I don't think I would say that Apple hit the mobile-phone UI outta the park. Yes it's a beautiful interface that thankfully doesn't require a stylus however it has issues too. 1. Only able to run one program at a time is crippling. Having to quit a program to respond to a text is rediculous. 2. Anyone who thinks the iPhone doesn't crash doesn't own one. 3. Home screen gives no information such as upcoming appts, number of emails, text etc. 4. No voice dialing. 5. No MMS text either send or receive. 6. Jobs pitched this device as enterprise ready... its not. Does not sync tasks with outlook and does not offer full capability for setting up appts (time zones, classifications, etc) from the phone. Yes it syncs Calendar but you have to set them up on the computer to get everything right especially if you travel a lot. Business users know what I am talking about.

MorganRW

@justrick:
I've only used WinMo for a few minutes at a time, but I sort of feel like it suffers from the same problems as all other versions of Windows. Microsoft says you need this minimum hardware to run the OS. The phone maufacturers ship exactly that & no more. Users add apps, which overtax the hardware. The issue here is that it's a lot easier to upgrade the RAM in your notebook than your phone. I think WinMo would be as useable as any other Windows OS if you gave it four times the RAM & twice the processor.
I could however, be totally off-base
-Sent from my iPhone.

rexplex

@Darkest Daze: Windows mobile devices (even 6.1) run great when you try them at first. When I had one, and someone in the office would get a new device, it seemed SO much faster. Then, like clockwork, it would break. And I'd have to fix it. Seeing all the possible things that can go wrong is what pushed me to the iphone.

lpranal

@justrick:
red-heads? Ew...

DarkHavoc99

If you ask me, this is how I see each product models:

iPhone = OSX
WinMo = WinXP
Android = Linux

So what else is new...

I think WinMo just fails on a lot of points because it's really just WinCE in its core. WinMo wasn't really designed with a smartphone in mind; they just took an existing OS and add layers to it to work with a phone. Both iPhone/OSX and Android was designed from scratch with the phone in mind.

ripfire

@justrick: Uh, not exactly their first try. Anyone remember the stillborn Motorola ROKR? That steaming turd taught Apple a LOT about making a mobile device (as did the Newton), and when you consider that it makes their "Nazi" attitude to the iphone/itunes/apps environment so much more understandable.

Matthew_Maurice

I composed music for a WinMobile ad once...on a Mac. :)

[www.johnnyrandom.com]

johnnyabnormal

@Dancing Milkcarton: There / their / close eye on. Fucking laggy firefox box. Hey Gawker Net - put an edit button these things, will ya?

Dancing Milkcarton

@TendoMentis:
The other end of the corporate equation is that for many companies, it's just easier to pay Microsoft to provide an all-in-one solution (from an Exchange 2007 sever right down to the handset), than to field a host of in-house technicians to manage an opensource system. Sure Android -could- be better in many technical aspects, but it just wouldn't be cost effective, which is why MS doesn't really need to change its WM business model.

terebakashi

@TendoMentis: Right, but what about BlackBerry passing Windows Mobile in marketshare? It's too bad RIM's awesome new phones are coming after the implosion of the financial markets, otherwise I think it would drive WM shares down more, despite all of the highly desirable pieces of hardware HTC is putting out.

Moreover, Microsoft pushing Windows 7 to almost a year away simply does not bode well for the platform while most other smartphone mobile OSes crushe WM6 in usability.

matt buchanan

@TendoMentis: No offense, Tendo - but you don't know what you're talking about. The iPhone has made surprisingly big progress in Fortune 10 companies.

I'll also say that they are keeping a close on on Android as well.

Large corporate IT is smarter than you think. There direction is swayed by leadership, and leadership loves the iPhone and hates WM. End of story.

Dancing Milkcarton

The largest problem with Windows Mobile is that it is not expressly marketed to the masses like Android and Iphone is.

Windows Mobile is targeting corporate types, who actually want/need options like full exchange support and encryptable voice communications. I know many medium to large size businesses in my area that use Windows Mobile almost exclusively.

The right people in the corporate world know what works better for their business, and for those companies where Windwos Mobile is an asset, it is already favored without a lot of mind-numbing advertising needed.

Bottom line, playthings like Android and Iphone are for the "average" demographics. RIM and Windows Mobile are intended for business.

TendoMentis

@shamoononon has a hebetudinous dog: good call!

frigg

@TendoMentis: Windwos Mobile is an asset, it is already favored without a lot of mind-numbing advertising needed.
Have you walked through an airport in the last year? Acres of vast green WinMo Start screen everywhere (now I know why the screen background is called "wallpaper"). Aggghhh my eyes!

skierpage

@matt buchanan:
MS delaying WM7 is a separate (albeit relevant) issue. MS would not fare any better if it released WM7 prematurely even with a new business model. Besides, how long until iPhone 3.0, Android 2.0, etc? MS is just playing defensively, and has plenty of resources to take the hits in the meantime.

I also think you're losing the finer point. With Apple, RIM, WM, and now Android, there are all sorts of mobile OS ecosystems: top-down, bottom-up, 3rd-party, etc. Devs will still code for the iPhone despite Apple's heavy-handedness on the App Store. Likewise, just because MS is sticking to its current business model doesn't mean the entire WM ecosystem is going to collapse.

Yes, WM now has an uphill battle, but tell me which platforms currently don't. This is what the face of competition looks like.

@Dancing Milkcarton:
Maybe it's just me, but if corporate IT loves the iPhone without reservation and hates WM while willfully ignoring its strengths, I wouldn't consider them all that smart. Both platforms have their pros and cons, and there's no clear winner.

terebakashi

WinMo is a dead platform. WinMo 7 being pushed back so far has pretty much confirmed this in my mind.

Expect to see Android claiming the #3 spot in smartphone marketshare in the next two to three quarters.

Slack3r78

@ripfire:

Both OSX??? and Android/Linux?? were designed with phone use in mind??

surur

That picture of Balmer actually made me chuckle aloud. Well done, Giz.

Chiper

@terebakashi: You don't think it takes "a host of in-house technicians" for the management of that Microsoft "all-in-one solution"?! I can guarantee you that the guys who keep the Exchange 2007 environment running aren't also troubleshooting the WM devices for end-users in any company bigger than a few people. I've done both, and I'd much rather administer Exchange/BES/BB than Exchange/WinMo.

Matthew_Maurice

@Darkest Daze:

Your sms alerts are being turned of by the Opera Mobile 9.5 beta. Try downloading the latest version.

surur

@johnnyabnormal: nice!

frigg

@surur: Ahhh, thanks.

Darkest Daze

Personally I think MS would have a hit if they combined the functionality of WinMo with the interface look and feel of Zune... A Zune-Phone if you will would just be damn sexy. I know Apple Fans will strike out at this but hey again just my opinion. Anyway if this device ever hits the market I would switch back in a heartbeat. Don't get me wrong. I do still love the iPhone but being an enterprise user, it leaves much more to be desired.

MorganRW

@frigg: The first scene is Mt. Tam in Marin, CA...I bike up there all the time. Good views for 360 video. I think I worked on this almost 2 years ago? I think it ended up on some huge, multi-screen thing in JFK airport on a continuous loop.

johnnyabnormal

Dude, the per-device cost of a WM license is like...$3 per phone. I don't know where they got $8-15, but that's not been the case in my experience.

Brad

@johnnyabnormal: How "Music For Airports" Brian-Eno-esque of you!

frigg

@the_amazing_doug:

No. It is motivation.

Android is a no-op for most Win-mo users total lack of Enterprise support is a killer. It's demo-ware at best. The iPhone is better, and sexier, but you need to kneel before His Holiness, Emo Lord Jobs to get apps on it; which I find repugnant. Add in that Apple not only kills crap apps, but any app that may be better than their minimal bundle-ware and you have a recipe for a locked down stagnant platform.

Google is relying on developers to fill in the blanks in their effort for free. It never amazes me the amount of charity work the open source crowd does. Ooooooo Android is Open Source. That just means the devs are a bunch of chumps for Google.

commentotron

MEATBALL SHORTIE!!!

only time I've ever been to a WAWA I got one of those because of some promo we overheard on the radio

one of the best roadside rations I ever had. Unfortunately, seeing Ballmer in that position has [yet again] made me lose my appetite

discounteggroll

@Darkest Daze: Windows Mobile is godawful, no doubt about it. Inconsistent UI, endemic stability issues, terrible process management... it's just a garbage heap.

The problem is, there are some damn good programs out there for it. I rely on a program that lets me get around Verizon's idiotic tethering fees, and I doubt that there is any such program for a RIM device.

elocanth

@Matthew_Maurice: I think Motorola was responsible for the ROKR design and Apple just created a version of iTunes for it.

dukeoconnor

@dukeoconnor: It was design partnership from the beginning, but yes, Motorola did the hardware and carrier releations. However, the total failure of the device, especailly the hardaware/software integration left Apple the lesson of "keep control of the product, no matter what."

Matthew_Maurice

Windows mobile... lowest cost of ownership for a really smart phone.
Good luck with others.

:)

aec007

Morgan RW said: "...I don't think I would say that Apple hit the mobile-phone UI outta the park...Yes it's a beautiful interface...however, it has issues too...run one program at a time is crippling...crash... Home screen gives no information...no voice dialing...No MMS text...not enterprise ready...sync... Business users know what I am talking about..." Yeah, all those shortcomings (and more) are true, and yet...they have nothing to do with the interface, which Apple did hit out of the park. In my opinion, Apple's iPhone 3G is the best damn handheld computer I've ever used (and the first I've ever stuck with for extended use). On top of all that, it's a fine Cell Phone/GPS/E-Mail/Web Surfing/iPod/Gaming machine. When you factor in the iPhone's endless versatility and the futuristic, groundbreaking user experience, some of the issues cited just aren't that big of a deal. Besides, Apple customers know that Apple (or third party developers) will resolve all of them.

NoletaBullfinch

I love my 200se WM phone.

OtakuboyT