DISQUS

Zealot · 1 month ago

Hugs him.

"I know that was hard to say, Brother Chris. We all love you here, no matter what.

Glass of punch?

heybhouse · 1 month ago

good article that i can relate to (starting with handspring to compaq to dells, to hp, to htc), though i haven't given in yet to the iphone (though tempted at times, i just don't want 2 years with at&t. my biggest hindrance to enjoying the iphone has been htc. first the touch hd and now the hd2 are enough to keep me happy in windows mobile for a long time to come despite the short comings (that is, if i can afford the hd2).

John Walker · 1 month ago

The truth is the truth. I owned several Pocket PC and Windows Mobile devices. Then I bought the iPhone. No contest. For now. I played with a Palm Pre today and it was beautiful. I'm also looking to Android. I think in the next 2 years that's the iPhone killer, but with the Zune HD I still have hope for Windows Mobile 7. For now, though, the 3GS is the one. Amazing device,

PPCApache · 1 month ago

Chris you’re a legend, keep up the great work, my personal belief is that WinMo may not be dead but it is in a coma, not sure if it is medically induced or part of the overall illness it is facing.

One reason I went for the iPhone, the OS is so much better, I may be tempted to look at the HTC Leo (HD 2) specs are awesome.

Jace

AthenaLod · 1 month ago

Very well said. MS needs to do a little more work to get the OS where it belongs. It is not enough to be powerful, it also needs to be beatiful and easy-to-use.

badersk · 1 month ago

I think you have put into words what most people feel. I too love WM but mostly because it is so customisable. It still has many benefits over its competetors as far as capabilities but falls behind drastically in interface and operation. I hope that WM7 is what everyone wants.

Sam Hobson · 1 month ago

Greatly worded. I agree Windows Mobile, even with the new 6.5 release, is still pretty much windows mobile. When 6.5 was released, I was expecting the one with the big soft keys and the start and end buttons on the bottom, so only the top showed connection, battery info, etc.

I've tried out most of the smartphone platforms (Blackberry, Android, iPhone, WinMo), and of them all, the only one that surpasses WinMo (for the time being) is iPhone.

Also, no one told me we had an iphone.mobilitysite.com. Here I am posting all this stuff on iPhone on the main site.

Chris Leckness · 1 month ago

Sorry about the length of this post. I got carried away last night. :)

jimtravis · 1 month ago

Good luck with the iPhone 3GS Chris. You should be using the phone that best meets your needs, and you enjoy using. For me, that phone is still WM. The iPhone, although a slick device, just doesn't have the features I use daily. I did purchase an iPod touch so I could experience mobile Safari, multi-touch etc. (overrated IMO), but there are too many restrictions including crippled Bluetooth, and no native access to the file system (without jailbreaking). I am also a fan of physical keyboards. Although the Apple app store has a plethora of apps, the WM apps are more suited for my needs. I like having a choice about where I want to purchase apps.

I do keep up with other platforms, and could switch in the future (like I did from Palm OS to WM), but for now, the best for my needs is WM. The current OS, and interface are fine for my needs, and if I want a slicker interface, SPB Mobile Shell is as slick as you get on any platform. Because I use bigger screen devices, I rarely use a stylus even on older VGA stand alone PDA's which i still use daily. My Sprint Touch Pro has been very stable, reliable, and fun to use, but I will be checking out the newer, bigger screen HTC WM models.

I hope MS doesn't focus exclusively on the glitz, and fancy graphics that seem to be in vogue today. As important as those items are, I would like MS to focus on making the OS more robust, faster, and actually deploy updates in between major releases.

Again, congratullations on purchasing the device that best meets you needs. Maybe you will switch back to WM, or switch to Android / WebOS / RIM in the future. I agree that we should be using the device that best meets our needs, and we enjoy using. Buying a product due to some sense of loyaly to a company should never be the prime reason for purchasing a product.

Chris Leckness · 1 month ago

Good points Jim. I might very well find myself back on Wm at some time and I like I said, I still plan to continue testing Wm phones. I think one of the things that really made me cringe is how well Android runs on virtually the same hardware as WM (with the hero) much better. All this time I really thought that the slowness of the devices i've been using was lack of advancement in hardware, but it's really the OS.

I know this has nothing to do with the iPhone, but it was something that made me think about why I was so loyal.

Alfiejr · 1 month ago

Win Mo 6.x is in fact dead. it is still a first gen smartphone. underneath the top levels it still practically needs a stylus. that is today's definition of dead dead dead. it's being dissed mercilessly everyplace except MS fan sites.

And even if Win Mo 7 is a good second gen smartphone, comparable to iPhone and Android now, it will be so late to enter the market next year that it may be just too late to catch up with them. maybe Nokia.

and Apple won't stand still. its 2010 iPhone will certainly be more powerful. it might even introduce a third gen of smartphones ...

Win Mo ain't dead forever. but it's become an also-ran.

Pony99CA · 1 month ago

How do you define "also-ran"? If you define it as "not #1 in marketshare", then everybody but Nokia is an also-ran now -- and in the next few years according to projections.

If being #1 isn't important, iSuppli says WinMo will be #2 (behind Nokia) in marketshare in a few years, and Gartner says WinMo will be #4 (behind Nokia, Android and Apple -- and less than 2% behind Android and Apple).

If you look at the number of apps available, I believe WinMo is #2 behind Apple. If you look at the number of form factors and carriers available, only Nokia might beat Windows Mobile.

So what makes WinMo an "also-ran"?

Steve

GreatDay · 1 month ago

Well I'm a PC. I know how slick the iPhone is---all my friends have one and I get how attractive it is and how it just glides under your fingers. I got it. I want it. But again, I'm a PC. I want my device to look like I want it. I want to move things around, change my screen, generally tweak it the way I want it, AND i want to quickly sync it to Outlook and any other files I want to keep updated. I started with an Axim and Chris and his friends taught me how to use it, so I don't mind a stylus (i've gotten quite good at it and find it a useful alternative tool to Fat Fingers), and I just don't want to switch to something that makes me have to deal daily with Apples and Oranges (pardon the pun). And ya know what else when you make me think of it, unlike Lauren on the tv commercials, I AM cool enough to own an Apple, but I ain't rich enough. Damn their products are expensive, and it would make me nuts to spend that kind of money and then be told I'm not allowed to muck around with it's insides and it's ability to play nice with anything I might want to marry it to. OH, and for now, my only choice of carrier would be AT&T. No. I'm a PC and I'm very happy there. I DO agree and do not understand MS's unwillingness or inability to leap things forward, but they make me functional and give me choices.

breley · 1 month ago

Well Chris, since you won't be needing that Euro TP2 now that you've reached iPhone nirvana... ;-)

I hear what you're saying about the current state of development for Windows Mobile/Windows Phone. There are a lot of cool things users can do with the iPhone, and I'd love to have one to play around with, but for the present I prefer the form factor choices and the customization options of Windows Mobile. Like Jim I also have an iPod Touch so I have become quite familiar with the capacitive interface and iTunes interoperability. Though...one thing about Windows Mobile that I find preferable to the iPhone alternative..my phone can be independent of my PC for the purposes backing up and restoring on the fly. Being able to back up the WinMo phone OS to a memory card can be handy when out on the road.

Ike Pigott · 1 month ago

Chris - objectivity is a great thing.

If you're not honest enough about your own needs to evaluate and use what works for you, then you're compromised as a reviewer.

And if and when WinPho 7 bowls you over and switches you back, you will be able to articulate exactly why, because you will be able to speak the language of those who use iPhones.

Brian · 1 month ago

I had a Dell Axim and then moved to the Cingular 8125 and finally to the HTC Fuze. I've been most pleased with the Fuze and I am running 6.5 on it. While out of the box, I think I would really love an iPhone but despite loading apps on it, it will still be "out of the box" later down the road where I can really play around with my WinMo 6.5 and make it "mine."

Johan · 1 month ago

Hi Chris,

You and Clinton are not the only MVP with an iPhone as well. Your article is my life story with mobile devices as well.

webbahboy · 1 month ago

Facinating analysis, Chris -- and...my wife just got an iPhone, and it is absolutely perfect for her. It is really giving me pause. As others have said, letting go of a physical keyboard is a daunting hurdle, but the iPhone OS is pretty darn slick. And...after the getting through the initial excitement of having a converged device in my Fuze, I have settled down into using it for the same things that the iPhone does really, really well: PDA, phone, and music player.

The iPhone 3GS may well be the next phone that I buy.

Bennyj · 1 month ago

Well, I guess WM is dead. You getting an Iphone confirms your true feelings. It's cool, but don't become obnoxious like CNet. I have stop reading any article about mobile phones because it turns into an Iphone plug. There's a video on there tilted best ATT phones(Plural), it's only the Iphone. Come on Man!!!!

Johnboy · 1 month ago

I been a windows mobile developer since it first came out.

but I dropped it for the iphone when that came out.

I got an android phone recently for research, but the iphone is my fav.

Some people hate it for being so slick and popular, but its great!