Thursday 21 October sees the release of HTC’s HD7, the first handset on the Irish market to run Microsoft’s new mobile operating system, Windows Phone 7. After five years of smartphones turning from business productivity tools into must have gadgets, one gets the sense the HD7 (available on O2) cannot come fast enough for the world’s biggest software company.
If everything goes to plan Phone 7 will start well and consistently gain momentum, the goodwill of application developers and a market share growing at a steady, if not explosive, rate. At worst, consumers will see Phone 7 as just another iteration of the dreaded Windows Mobile, shrug their shoulders and buy an iPhone instead.
Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer has made no secret of his intention to target the iPhone, despite his initial scepticism about the potential for the iPhone given its less-than-impressive battery life. That the focus has shifted from outright dismissal to seeing the iPhone as corporate enemy number one is a sign that Microsoft is happy to adopt a niche brand strategy, something unthinkable when it comes to Windows on the PC and Office.
So what’s new with Phone 7 to make us want it? The official line from Microsoft is that Phone 7 represents a complete rebuild, bears no resemblance to Windows as it appears on your desktop, and is as – if not more – easy to navigate as Apple’s iOS. Consider also Microsoft’s long view approach based not on instant domination but on steady progress, quality control, engagement with the developer community, and a renewed focus on user experience.
Partners
There is one point on which Phone 7 trumps iOS straight away: it’s trapped in a specific handset. Microsoft has partnered with three manufacturers, HTC, LG and Samsung – all of which are already in the smartphone space, with varying degrees of success.
Of this first wave of manufacturers, HTC would be regarded as a suitable vanguard. Having made the most of Google’s Android operating system in its Hero, Dream and Desire models, the South Korean company has proven itself to early adopters and business users. When the more populist LG and Samsung arrive with the Optimus 7 and Omnia 7 respectively in time there should be enough demand for more affordable broad appeal devices.
Smartphones have become more popular as they have gotten easier to navigate, and the importance of mobile applications cannot be underestimated as users turn their handsets into talking points based on the number, and ridiculousness, of what’s running on it.
So what does Windows Phone 7 offer? The short answer is “quite a lot”. Phone 7’s tiled user interface is quite different from anything on the market. Its scrolling menu contains as many, or as few, apps as you want. The default home screen has a comprehensive list of phone, text, e-mail, dynamically updated contacts book (so you can see your friends’ Facebook updates as they happen), pictures, Xbox Live, Zune media player, Internet Explorer and Microsoft Office. Should you want more, simply swipe across to the menu page and opt to pin any additional function to the main menu. Similarly, tiles can be removed from the interface with the same ease.
One nice touch is the uniformity across handsets. Of the three released initially to the Irish market each adopts a candy bar shape with a large touch screen. There are only three touch-sensitive buttons on the base represent back, main menu and a search. This emphasis on consistency is there to promote user migration across handsets with no learning curve.
New reality
There are some differences in Phone 7 implementations – the Optimus 7 comes with augmented reality and the HD7 has its own app store – but not so much as with Android, which can looks completely different based on what individual manufacturers want to do. With over 200 devices running the free software it’s hard to pin down exact sales figures and the longevity of each version – a criticism Steve Jobs was quick to lay down when announcing Apple’s impressive fourth quarter financial results.
Will Phone 7 do for Windows smartphone presence that Windows 7 did for the desktop? It has the potential to do so. Does Microsoft have the patience to let it gather momentum? That’s the plan at least. Should you buy one? It’s worth considering.
Until we see some good traffic on the app front that’s as good as it gets.
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