Missed the window for mobile
I setup a Motorola’s DroidX today. Granted I’m a bit behind the times with the new Windows Phone 7 (WP7) announced today, but what is the big difference between my Android and the Windows 7 phones?
Tiles vs Menus
Windows 7 phones have a single main front screen where all the phones functions are grouped into hubs.
Apps vs. Functions
The iPhone and Android are app centric devices and revolve around using apps to do things. WP7 pulls similar functions from multiple applications into a single hub.
Google vs Bing
Both Android and WP7 have strong search features built into the operating system. Windows 7 Phones have a dedicated button to take the user to a web search where Android has a Google search that browses the phone and web.
Customizable
WP7 has a fully customizable home screen but did not seem drastically different then the motoBlur layer running on my Android.
At mobile world congress, Steve Balmer said he was “enthusiastic about the direction we [Microsoft] are headed”. I am less than enthusiastic about the Window’s 7 Phones. The platform of WP7 looks great from usability standpoint and reminds me of the Microsoft booth at CES in January 2010 (get a video tour), well designed but lacking substance. In the end, content is king and WP7 lacks the hundreds of thousands of applications on the Android Marketplace and Apple’s App Store
-Christian