Why does everyone hate Windows Mobile so much? Personally I believe it's the only OS currently worth using. Any other OS feels like a gimmicky toy. Sure the Iphone or Android have 100,000 Apps, to bad 99,000 of them are crap like "games" (quoted to emphasize the sarcasm) that simulate a pair of die when you shake it, or some other useless crap like that.
Not a multimedia phone? Really? I have 370 movies on my PC, so I could buy one of the popular "multimedia" phones and spend 6 months converting them to MP4 or I can get Win Mobile and...wait.... I can watch or listen to media that ISN'T in some proprietary DRM-protected format...but I'm sure your all patient enough to wait or it to come to your app store...
...Which brings me to another point; If I bought a PC and the manufacturer told me I could only download applications from their website or play media in their format, I would tell them to go to hell and then I would buy from a new company, yet this practice is not only accepted but ENCOURAGED in cell phones... Why? I can search the web for thousands (and for all I know millions) of apps for win mobile to do anything I need, including stuff google or apple seem to have decided you dont really need....for free. But I guess if you were smart enough to find and install your own cabs you'd already be using Windows Mobile...
I could go on but I suppose thats why I have a pocket *PC* and your a bunch of 12 year olds with a bunch of toys that don't really do anything.
@Caliber68 I actually also love WinMo. It may not be the sexiest, the prettiest, the most popular girl in high school but she is flexible, intelligent and plays well with my other bigger more important girl - my PC.
Like someone said, whatever you need, there is a .cab for that.
@Caliber68 If Windows Mobile, in its current iteration, were the only OS worth using, Microsoft wouldn't be working harder than it ever has to get WinMo 7 out the door.
Windows Mobile is extremely capable of doing what you want it to do, but its presentation layer is awful. Every program you use brings you into a new experience. Hell, I installed Shazaam on my Touch Pro and they actually remade the context menu so it is animated and smooth, while keeping the old Windows Mobile 6.1 look. There is so much disconnect that occurs as you are using the device that it makes you feel like you have used 10 different operating systems as you jump from program to program. Microsoft has done nothing to help developers to make smooth and pleasing experiences. Developers have to "invent" experiences, which leads to the mess it is. And some developers don't bother, and use the included components. Those are the worst programs, since they remind you that you are using WinMo.
Like I said, Windows Mobile is extremely powerful and capable. Its just that its an absolute mess. I expect WinMo 7 to fix that "mess" problem while keeping the power of 6.x.
I see your point, though I personally don't care how it looks as long as it works. And I guess it depends on the person, I LIKE the Windows Mobile look, although HTC does a good job with the Touch Flo 3D on my Touch Pro 2, the stock Windows Mobile look FEELS like a computer, not a gameboy.
Although everyone is so far in denial (there is NO doubt that apple has the BEST marketing; maybe thats why they cant afford to make a real phone) that you cant get them to admit it, it seems aesthetics is used only as a rationalization; "Sure my ___ phone can't do this, this, and that, but at least it looks nice...kind of".
@Caliber68 I used WinMo for 3 years before I got my droid and while I enjoyed being able to do things no one else could, Windows Mobile through 6.5 is a joke to use outside of business related stuff. It has plenty of capabilities but not easy to navigate through.
Android phones can feel like whatever you want them to feel like. You can put all of your important things like word, excel, Gmail, corporate mail and calendar, browser, PDF reader and anything else on one screen with subfolders and all. They can also do media and games and fun stuff.
Thats the great thing about the PC. On a PC, I can listen to music, play games, do work stuff. I can do whatever I want. Google has carried the PC over to the mobile device, something Microsoft has yet to do.
If you think Android is a play thing, you havent used it to its potential.
@Caliber68 Glad someone finally said it. Engadget users are blinded by shiny new toys that have "appstores" -- it's a bunch of shit.
WinMo is still one of the only smartphone OS's that you don't need to ROOT to modify core elements of the OS, and for that I will ALWAYS love windows mobile. Microsoft had the right idea from day one for trusting the user \ consumer to do whatever they want with their devices. Only problem is they let it fester over the years and did not give it the attention it deserved...but it's still one hell of a great OS. Shit, I *LOVE* my Omnia 2...best phone I've ever owned. Way better than the shitty droid or eris.
Android claiming that it is open is a crock of shit. How is a device open that won't allow you to modify certain settings unless you find an exploit and obtain access to the root account? YOU paid for the device, the contract, and the plan, so YOU should get root access to the phone the second you walk out the door with it, credit card receipt in hand. But that's not the way mobile phones are done now is it...carriers and OS developers love to retain control -- "oh people could modify the phone to mount a terrorist attack and take down cell towers!!" -- are you fucking serious...and no I did not make that up, that was a quote directly from Apple when it took on the ETF saying it should be illegal for people to jailbreak their iphones.
Apple and Google turn their users into sheep and do whatever they say \ tell them a phone should do. Should a phone be capable of watching movies and listening to audio encoded with open standard like OGG or MKV? Not in Apple or Google's world.
@Caliber68 It all comes down to the marketing, the look, the hype, the eye-candy, the logo -- the style, not quite the substance.
Let's face it, there aren't many people like you and me -- people who want and recognize tech that actually give real "power" to the user and who are savvy enough to exploit it.
Rather, lots of people like to be spoon-fed their dose of consumer tech; most of them don't want to spend time nor brain power on technology, nor do they want "real power to the user" (much less understand what that is). Ads, general media exposure and brand power do the "research" for them during their buying decision.
Once they have their toy, they spend 10 minutes performing a no-brainer installation of the software on their PC and 20 minutes "figuring out" how to make phone calls, answer calls, add contacts, take pictures and buy games. That's all they wanted out of their toy. After 30 minutes, they have the satisfying feeling that they have mastered all the features and power of the phone and that now they are cool and good taste... like everyone else who owns that toy.
@Caliber68 you have some points but being a linux fan i cant help but like android the only problem i have with it is that android loses a lot of flexibility by not using x11(if you don't know what this is look it up) and makes it much more proprietary which pisses me off because i expected it to be more like winmo being able to just pull .cab files off the internet
@JXCGunrunna it sound like you had a winmo phone for 3 years...but thats its you clearly dont see the potential of a winmo phone...android is decent and its growing fast but its still just a bunch of shortcut and widget you get to place here and there...
and yes i used and android, iphone, Pre, and Winmo...and Winmo is the only open end phone where its up to you to make it how you want it to be...you can make your own UI and cover up stock WinMo and you can use company own UI ala samsung wiz or HTC Touchflo...its up to your imagination and knowledge to achieve what you want...with Iphone and Droid...beside changin colors and icon pictures...theres nothing else to it beside that....you cant change the UI...
and most important you can change WinMo UI to work like an iPhone and WinMo phone can run Linux...meaning you can run android on WinMo phone...Can android run WinMo on it...NOPE
It's not a problem till all the pretentious fanboys (including, it seems, at least some writers here) become so self righteous that they feel the need to criticize everything that isn't what they have.
But at least we can find comfort seeing that apparently no one can think of a counter argument other then "windows mobile=fail".
The whole line-up consists of the $60 Amps in-ears and $100 Tracks on-ear headphones, which both also come in slightly souped-up and pricier HD variations at $100 and $130, respectively.
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Why does everyone hate Windows Mobile so much? Personally I believe it's the only OS currently worth using. Any other OS feels like a gimmicky toy. Sure the Iphone or Android have 100,000 Apps, to bad 99,000 of them are crap like "games" (quoted to emphasize the sarcasm) that simulate a pair of die when you shake it, or some other useless crap like that.
Not a multimedia phone? Really? I have 370 movies on my PC, so I could buy one of the popular "multimedia" phones and spend 6 months converting them to MP4 or I can get Win Mobile and...wait.... I can watch or listen to media that ISN'T in some proprietary DRM-protected format...but I'm sure your all patient enough to wait or it to come to your app store...
...Which brings me to another point; If I bought a PC and the manufacturer told me I could only download applications from their website or play media in their format, I would tell them to go to hell and then I would buy from a new company, yet this practice is not only accepted but ENCOURAGED in cell phones... Why? I can search the web for thousands (and for all I know millions) of apps for win mobile to do anything I need, including stuff google or apple seem to have decided you dont really need....for free. But I guess if you were smart enough to find and install your own cabs you'd already be using Windows Mobile...
I could go on but I suppose thats why I have a pocket *PC* and your a bunch of 12 year olds with a bunch of toys that don't really do anything.
@Caliber68 I actually also love WinMo. It may not be the sexiest, the prettiest, the most popular girl in high school but she is flexible, intelligent and plays well with my other bigger more important girl - my PC.
Like someone said, whatever you need, there is a .cab for that.
@Caliber68 If Windows Mobile, in its current iteration, were the only OS worth using, Microsoft wouldn't be working harder than it ever has to get WinMo 7 out the door.
Windows Mobile is extremely capable of doing what you want it to do, but its presentation layer is awful. Every program you use brings you into a new experience. Hell, I installed Shazaam on my Touch Pro and they actually remade the context menu so it is animated and smooth, while keeping the old Windows Mobile 6.1 look. There is so much disconnect that occurs as you are using the device that it makes you feel like you have used 10 different operating systems as you jump from program to program. Microsoft has done nothing to help developers to make smooth and pleasing experiences. Developers have to "invent" experiences, which leads to the mess it is. And some developers don't bother, and use the included components. Those are the worst programs, since they remind you that you are using WinMo.
Like I said, Windows Mobile is extremely powerful and capable. Its just that its an absolute mess. I expect WinMo 7 to fix that "mess" problem while keeping the power of 6.x.
@Ruben
I see your point, though I personally don't care how it looks as long as it works. And I guess it depends on the person, I LIKE the Windows Mobile look, although HTC does a good job with the Touch Flo 3D on my Touch Pro 2, the stock Windows Mobile look FEELS like a computer, not a gameboy.
Although everyone is so far in denial (there is NO doubt that apple has the BEST marketing; maybe thats why they cant afford to make a real phone) that you cant get them to admit it, it seems aesthetics is used only as a rationalization; "Sure my ___ phone can't do this, this, and that, but at least it looks nice...kind of".
@Caliber68
I used WinMo for 3 years before I got my droid and while I enjoyed being able to do things no one else could, Windows Mobile through 6.5 is a joke to use outside of business related stuff. It has plenty of capabilities but not easy to navigate through.
Android phones can feel like whatever you want them to feel like. You can put all of your important things like word, excel, Gmail, corporate mail and calendar, browser, PDF reader and anything else on one screen with subfolders and all. They can also do media and games and fun stuff.
Thats the great thing about the PC. On a PC, I can listen to music, play games, do work stuff. I can do whatever I want. Google has carried the PC over to the mobile device, something Microsoft has yet to do.
If you think Android is a play thing, you havent used it to its potential.
@Caliber68
Glad someone finally said it. Engadget users are blinded by shiny new toys that have "appstores" -- it's a bunch of shit.
WinMo is still one of the only smartphone OS's that you don't need to ROOT to modify core elements of the OS, and for that I will ALWAYS love windows mobile. Microsoft had the right idea from day one for trusting the user \ consumer to do whatever they want with their devices. Only problem is they let it fester over the years and did not give it the attention it deserved...but it's still one hell of a great OS. Shit, I *LOVE* my Omnia 2...best phone I've ever owned. Way better than the shitty droid or eris.
Android claiming that it is open is a crock of shit. How is a device open that won't allow you to modify certain settings unless you find an exploit and obtain access to the root account? YOU paid for the device, the contract, and the plan, so YOU should get root access to the phone the second you walk out the door with it, credit card receipt in hand. But that's not the way mobile phones are done now is it...carriers and OS developers love to retain control -- "oh people could modify the phone to mount a terrorist attack and take down cell towers!!" -- are you fucking serious...and no I did not make that up, that was a quote directly from Apple when it took on the ETF saying it should be illegal for people to jailbreak their iphones.
Apple and Google turn their users into sheep and do whatever they say \ tell them a phone should do. Should a phone be capable of watching movies and listening to audio encoded with open standard like OGG or MKV? Not in Apple or Google's world.
@Caliber68 It all comes down to the marketing, the look, the hype, the eye-candy, the logo -- the style, not quite the substance.
Let's face it, there aren't many people like you and me -- people who want and recognize tech that actually give real "power" to the user and who are savvy enough to exploit it.
Rather, lots of people like to be spoon-fed their dose of consumer tech; most of them don't want to spend time nor brain power on technology, nor do they want "real power to the user" (much less understand what that is). Ads, general media exposure and brand power do the "research" for them during their buying decision.
Once they have their toy, they spend 10 minutes performing a no-brainer installation of the software on their PC and 20 minutes "figuring out" how to make phone calls, answer calls, add contacts, take pictures and buy games. That's all they wanted out of their toy. After 30 minutes, they have the satisfying feeling that they have mastered all the features and power of the phone and that now they are cool and good taste... like everyone else who owns that toy.
@Caliber68 you have some points but being a linux fan i cant help but like android the only problem i have with it is that android loses a lot of flexibility by not using x11(if you don't know what this is look it up) and makes it much more proprietary which pisses me off because i expected it to be more like winmo being able to just pull .cab files off the internet
@JXCGunrunna it sound like you had a winmo phone for 3 years...but thats its you clearly dont see the potential of a winmo phone...android is decent and its growing fast but its still just a bunch of shortcut and widget you get to place here and there...
and yes i used and android, iphone, Pre, and Winmo...and Winmo is the only open end phone where its up to you to make it how you want it to be...you can make your own UI and cover up stock WinMo and you can use company own UI ala samsung wiz or HTC Touchflo...its up to your imagination and knowledge to achieve what you want...with Iphone and Droid...beside changin colors and icon pictures...theres nothing else to it beside that....you cant change the UI...
and most important you can change WinMo UI to work like an iPhone and WinMo phone can run Linux...meaning you can run android on WinMo phone...Can android run WinMo on it...NOPE
@WickedEast
Exactly!
It's not a problem till all the pretentious fanboys (including, it seems, at least some writers here) become so self righteous that they feel the need to criticize everything that isn't what they have.
But at least we can find comfort seeing that apparently no one can think of a counter argument other then "windows mobile=fail".