“Microsoft’s new smartphone software, Windows Phone 7 Series, turns a phone into something akin to an electronic butler that tries to anticipate the user’s needs,” Vance reports. “It automatically taps into the carrier’s data network to pick up appointments, photos and messages from friends, and it presents all this information in a slick fashion that resembles a Zune music player more than a personal computer.”
MacDailyNews Take: What’s a “Zune music player?” Do you even know anyone who owns a Zune?
Vance continues, “To build it required a humbling admission by Microsoft, the world’s largest software maker: its clunky Windows Mobile architecture had failed in the marketplace, and the company needed to start over from scratch if it had any hope of competing against Apple and its iPhone. ‘To be entirely candid, the iPhone opened our eyes as to some things that needed to be done that were not in our plan,’ said Terry Myerson, the vice president in charge of Windows Phone engineering. ‘Some execution had really gone astray.'”
“Whether Microsoft’s new software truly challenges Apple or ends up a barely noticed niche player, like the Zune to Apple’s iPod, remains to be seen,” Vance reports. “Windows Phone 7 is still in final development, and the first phones running the software will not be in stores until late this year.”
MacDailyNews Note: Apples’ next-gen iPhone OS, the company’s 4th version, is expected to arrive in June.
Vance continues, “Instead of icons, Microsoft has ’tiles,’ which are actively updated and bigger than normal icons… [Microsoft] also extolled the virtues of ‘hubs,’ which combine similar themed functions in one place… While the tile and hub features give Microsoft’s software a unique feel, they failed to impress some at the Barcelona event. ‘There was no ‘wow’ effect,’ said Bjorn Behrendt, the chief executive of Hiogi, a mobile technology start-up. ‘It didn’t strike me as being innovative.'”
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Microsoft. Way late. As usual.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “James W.” for the heads up.]
Related articles:
Gartner: Apple iPhone OS continues to take market share, blew past Microsoft Windows Mobile in 2009 – February 23, 2010
IDC: Apple iPhone nearly doubles shipments, grabs 16% share of worldwide smartphone market in Q409 – February 09, 2010
comScore: Apple iPhone grabs 25.3% share of U.S. smartphone market – February 09, 2010
Apple’s iPhone grabs 46% share of Japanese smartphone market – December 18, 2009
Gartner: Apple’s iPhone grabbed 17 percent of worldwide smartphone share in Q309 – November 12, 2009
Canalys: Apple iPhone hits new record high, takes 18% share of worldwide smartphone market in Q309 – November 03, 2009
Microsoft-branded Windows Phone 7 Series delayed until 2011 – February 18, 2010
Microsoft shuns Intel for Qualcomm in new ‘Windows Phone 7 Series’ devices – February 17, 2010
Microsoft ‘Windows Phone 7 Series’ video derides Apple iPhone (with video) – February 16, 2010
Microsoft details ‘Windows Phone 7 Series’ effort; based on Zune, contains Zune player – February 15, 2010
Microsoft: Where did you want to go yesterday?
As I’ve said before… what’s the opposite of Snappy? LETHARGIC… that’s how I describe WinMo7…
haha… Im up here in Toronto, Canada and my brother-in-law (exclamation on NOT my blood line) had his father buy him a Zune from the US for some ridiculous sum of $299 or so because you cant even buy the piece of junk in the G.T.A.
Needless to say it is now just a very expensive paper weight that ive never even seen him use and his own sons are dieing to use my iPhone at any chance they get.
Try is all a steer can do.
I heard Microsoft knifed the baby that is the current Windows Mobile by announcing that you can’t upgrade to 7.
How are those sales figures looking for handset makers between now and when 7 comes out?
Hubs, I wonder where they got that idea?
The Name Microsoft Windows Phone 7 Series even said no innovation here. Nothing to see, no wow factor, nothing cool, just Microsoft some old shit software so move on to something much more exciting with some innovation, exciting, less bloated, faster, and with some real sex appeal (some thing Microsoft knows nothing about).
How Lame is your Marketing Department?
It might not be as bad as you think. As your marketing department made such bad blunder’s as Microsoft’s? If not it might not be so bad.
Here are some examples of Microsoft’s marketing department blunders: Allowing such bad product names as Microsoft Windows Phone 7 Series, 360, Zune, Bling, XP, Vista, and Bob. Product feature name that should have been killed by the marketing department before the product was ever done, Squirting. Allowing any commercial or advertisement in which Bill Gates appears that casts him in a position that is less then dignified, Allow any commercial in which Bill Gates wiggles, shakes or even shows his ass covered or not. These types of ads in which a member of the executive team or board member my be portrayed in a comical or humiliating role should be limited to casting Monkey Boy and pit stain President Steve Ballmer.
‘It didn’t strike me as being innovative.’
So… what’s new with MS??
hahaha
OOps Blink would have been a better search engine name then the Bing name they gave it.
MDN, please elaborate on the new iPhone being released in June!! I glad to finally hear that someone has a release date on it. Please post a link to the announcement as well. Whats going to be in it? How much do you know? Seeing you already have some insider information that no one else has yet to confirm.
If anyone knows mobile opeating systems, it is Microsoft – they have been working on Pocket PC/Windows Mobile/Windiws Phone now for the last 15 years.
Can you imagine if that had been your whole career so far? What a soul-destroying waste of time.
I wonder how much money they have spent over that time to get to where they are?
“Some execution had really gone astray.”
Massive understatement of the hallmark of microsoft products.
errr didn’t you mean
Microsoft. Way late and wandering lost?
@macaholic
rofl! that was priceless!
buy the original and best: iPhone….simple, problem solved. Lazy, stupid microsh*t, wouldn’t know an original idea if it jumped up and bit them on Ballmer’s baboon nuts. The right thing for them to do would be try something new rather than emulating what’s already there: it’s called innovation. But that’s not a word in the microsh*t vernacular like say ‘copy’, ‘duplicate’, ‘replicate’ or ‘steal’. The sooner microsh*t disappears the better.
Surely the vomiting woman web ad takes the cake.
“Windows Phone 7 Series” sounds like a moniker created by a lobotomized cretin for whom English is a second language.
I can sum up Microsoft 3 step for introducing new innovative products.
1. Wait for Apple to create a new innovative thing
2. Copy Apple but Windownize it.
3. Lock it into Windows OS and hope for the best.