All the impressions written in this article were born while working with the HTC 7 Surround smartphone.
Compared to Windows Mobile, phones running Windows Phone 7 are a huge step forward. If you compare WP7 with iOS or Android, the results are mixed. There are areas in which the new operating system is better, but there are areas in which it seriously lags behind competitors.
1. Like the "polished" phone - do not like the lack of some functions.
For its first version of WP7, the operating system is surprisingly well represented. Unlike Android, it does not try to repeat the interface of the iPhone, obviously many ideas have been invested in the development. Despite the two-dimensional aspect of the interface tiles, the smooth, subtle animation of its elements is a real treat for the eyes.
Despite all the advantages, this is the first version of WP7 operating system, and it lacks a lot of things. The fact that Microsoft seems to be going to quickly fix flaws is good. The standard Windows “Copy-Paste” mechanism is promised at the beginning of the year (January), and we hope that multitasking will appear soon.
2. I like the look of the main page “in a cage” - I don’t like the fact that its settings are limited.
Cells on the main page update their content and make the interface easy to learn. They can be created for programs, contacts and even for Internet pages. But, if you place too many cells on the main page, then you will have to scroll the screens vertically more than we would like.
Having only two cells in a row at the interface and considering a lot of empty space to the right below the arrow to the right, the number of rows grows very quickly. It would be great to be able to resize the cells and place three in a row. Cells can be swapped, but it would also be great to be able to make some of them twice as large, for example. It would not hurt to be able to change the color of individual cells, since at the moment you can only change the color of the theme.
3. Like microSD support - I do not like that the card cannot be removed / changed.
One of the things that the iPhone / iPad doesn’t like is the lack of support for SD or microSD cards. Availability of this support is like in Android. By simply adding a memory card, you can easily increase the amount of data storage.
The first information about WP7 said that there would be no microSD card connector on phones based on this OS. Then it became clear that some phones still have removable microSD cards. But they still had trouble - it was impossible to remove the cards without losing all the data. Then there was information that microSD cards in WP7 phones are different from others, and if you put a regular card in the slot, the phone will simply burn it.
It is hoped that the manufacturers of memory cards will still begin to produce WP7-compatible cards, thus making it possible to safely change the memory capacity of the phone.
4. I like the breakdown of the screen by columns - I do not like that it can not be applied to all applications.
Many WP7 phones use screen partitioning. This is similar to what Zune users are used to. For example, the Facebook program has separate columns for Most Recent (Latest), Top News (Top News), Photos (Photos), Links (Links) and Videos (Videos). It is easy to switch between columns by touching the corresponding title and filter the content by this.
The only problem is that not all programs have such an approach to work.
5. Like an email client - I don't like that access to accounts is done separately.
Thanks to the column interface, the built-in Outlook client works fine. I really like the ability to filter messages depending on their status and properties: All (All), Unread, Flagged (Flagged) or Urgent (Urgent).
6. Like the on-screen keyboard feedback - I do not like the lack of support for Swype.
On-screen keyboards may not appeal to people who quickly type text on classic ones. Dialing one letter at a time slows down considerably. Despite all this, the on-screen keyboard in WP7 is excellent. The keys have a good and quick response, and less mistakes are made in the work than on the corresponding keyboards on the iPhone or Android.
Unfortunately, WP7 keyboard does not support sliding (Swype), unlike Android smartphones. It is not clear why Microsoft has not included Swype in its OS. This disadvantage may be decisive when choosing a new phone.
7. Like the response of the interface - do not like the load time of some programs.
The WP7 interface responds very quickly to touch, much faster than most Android smartphones and about as fast as the iPhone. This makes navigation easy and fast. Anyone who has the opportunity to work with the phone on OS WP7 will be pleasantly impressed.
The saving of time obtained by the speed of the interface reaction, unfortunately, is lost in anticipation of loading of some applications. This is due to the lack of multitasking support in third-party applications. Very quickly, it bothers to wait for the opening of Facebook or a web browser when clicking on a link.
It’s very bad that Vista / Win7 Mobile Device Center doesn’t work with WP7. This is strange, given that these are products of the same manufacturer. Almost unbelievable that it is impossible to connect a WP7 smartphone to a computer and view its contents in Explorer.
8. Like the convenience of the Marketplace - I do not like what makes buying programs only there .
Windows Phone 7 Marketplace is a very convenient place to purchase applications for your smartphone. Programs are easy to find, downloaded quickly and easily installed.
The bad news is that you will not be able to purchase software outside of the WP7 Marketplace. This Microsoft is similar to Apple, which has a similar approach to buying programs. Unlike the previous ones, Android allows programs to be purchased both from themselves, in the Android Market, and from outside developers.
Interestingly, one development team released the ChevronWP7 program, which allowed installing “untested” programs from their own computer. After talking to Microsoft, these developers refused to continue working on the Chevron project.
9. Like the integration of social networks - do not like the lack of control, what to integrate.
Social networks are a very fashionable trend today. Microsoft also recognizes this by embedding their support in WP7. Integrating your smartphone’s contacts with Facebook, Windows Live, Gmail, Hotmail services is great. The trouble is that you cannot control which information is worth integrating and which is not. Very Microsoft-ovskih, by the way.
It is also bad that there is no connection with services such as Twitter and Linkedin, about which you can not say that they are minor. True, for these services there are separate applications, but their information will not be displayed in the contacts of the phone.
10. I like business programs - I do not like the lack of binding.
Those who use their phones for business will be happy to have mobile versions of applications such as Microsoft Office — Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote, as well as excellent integration into SharePoint. Document editing capabilities are not as full-featured as those of desktop systems, but you still get the ability to check spelling. You can also change the font color, and as soon as support is added to the cut / paste mechanism, you can do a very adequate document editing job.
Unfortunately, the WP7 smartphone will not be able to be used as a “hot spot” for connecting a laptop or tablet to the Internet via a 3G connection of your phone.
Summary
Even for the first version of the operating system, WP7 has more “for” than “against”. However, we expect that only v3 will be the point of the report from which WP7-based phones will be a wonderful solution. Of course, it is assumed that Microsoft will not abandon this operating system.
Source: Techrepublic.com
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