Why I thought the Nokia event was amazing

Why I thought the Nokia event was amazing

We’ve had a few personal opinions of the Nokia Lumia launch opinion recently. I thought I should perhaps share my thoughts because I really don’t agree.

I have been using Windows Phone for a while now, along with Android and recently iOS, so I like to feel I have a nice rounded view of things.

My history with Windows Phone started off with the Dell Venue Pro which was mediocre, it didn’t have Mango and it was a bit under powered, I still loved it. The Windows Phone OS easily made up for the lacking hardware and doing normal activities. After this I had a HTC Titan. This ran the Mango version of WP7 and had a better spec. It was amazing, but I still kept hearing anti Windows Phone people saying “there aren’t any apps” in a clichéd, ill-researched kind-of-way.

Then along came my Lumia 800. Yes, it was rather small, but they had created possibly the nicest piece of hardware EVER. Holding a Lumia and an iPhone 4S together, the Lumia looks and feels like a nicer device. Nokia then spent the next few months creating a library of apps like Counters, Camera Extras and City Lens to plug the gaps in the Marketplace. Nokia have got themselves in a good position to move this library across to Windows Phone 8 and offer more than the other OEM’s. Yes overall ceretain big name developers are missing from the Windows Phone Marketplace, but thinks are only going to get better. The supposed lack of apps is seen as too big a compromise for some though and many people decide to go to Android or iOS instead.

Windows Phone had to change. The market was moving to keep up with things like dual core processors, NFC and removeable storage. Microsoft had to make big changes to the kernel. This meant that once again Microsoft had to cut people off and not upgrade them. This was an essential move to continue to compete and they have created the 7.8 update to offer some of the best bits of WP8.

What we saw on Wednesday night was amazing, the new hardware from Nokia is once again the nicest looking on the planet. Some people are going to disagree, some people are going to say the spec isn’t good enough, some people are going to cry about the lack of apps. But me, I’m sold. The sooner I can get a bright yellow Lumia 920, the better.

One negative aspect from Wednesday night is the lack of pricing and availability. I can see a few things going on here that go part of the way to explain this. The first being the new iPhone release, I’m guessing Nokia decided they had to get their new devices into the public eye before Apple got theirs out. Slight problem though. You’ll be able to buy the iPhone probably at the end of September and by the time the Lumias come out Apple will have sold millions of new iPhones. How many of these customers would have bought a Lumia if they were available now? Well, that leads nicely onto the next point. Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8.

Microsoft are going to release Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 in October, so Nokia can’t release their new phones until then. Which makes the event on Wednesday seem more like an attempt to steal the thunder from Apple.

Microsoft have made things difficult for Nokia here and Nokia are just trying their hardest to create a buzz before October.

I now feel like I should look into what was said yesterday on this site. This is only my opinion so try not to get too cross, if you hate Windows Phone stop reading now.

Running with a dual core processor with a 4.3 or 4.5 inch screen, and with a maximum of 32GB onboard storage the two handsets hardly set the world alight. The standout feature is of course the camera with its floating lens but is Nokia really staking its entire future on a super duper camera?

No. They are staking their future on a continued range of amazing hardware and accessories. The integration of devices and accessories is way better than ANY current Android manufacturer offers.

Yes the handsets come loaded with Windows Phone 8 but let’s face it, the competition here is Android (the biggest mobile OS) and Apple (the slickest marketing machine and most dedicated fanbase). Without something spectacular you don’t stand a chance.

I think the hardware speaks for itself, the specs compete with all but the highest top end Android devices. Windows Phone has been growing at a faster rate since Nokia got involved. The release of Windows Phone 8 will only accelerate this growth. Only two Android manufactures actually make devices close to “spectacular” and even then they are plagued by problems (HTC One range).

Unfortunately spectacular is not a word I would use for the latest Nokia offerings, in fact I have seen various descriptions ranging from “distinctly average” to “last years hardware.” The plain fact is that there is nothing that makes them stand out from the crowd.

Bright yellow certainly stands out from the crowd of black, white or blue plastic offerings from Android manufacturers. As regards last years hardware, the S4 chips used are the latest dual core offerings from Qualcomm and combined with this new OS, it’ll out-perform most of the current Android hardware.

With no word on pricing or availability what is going to make anyone wait for a Lumia 920?

Because they are drastically different, some people like to be different. I sit in an office with a sea of people using Galaxy S3’s or One X’s and I for one don’t want to be like them. A bright yellow will certainly do that.

Certainly not apps. One of the biggest complaints around Windows Phone has been the lack of apps. Nokia had a chance to get people drooling and waiting with baited breath for their new handsets to be released. They could have announced that developer x was on board and developer y was actively publishing apps galore, instead we had nothing. Not a dicky bird.

Oh the cliche remark about the lack of apps, they did actually mention quite a few apps a while back, only yesterday PayPal finally came on board and Rovio have made some Lumia specific Angry Birds apps to go with their upcoming Space release. As regards the rest Microsoft have yet to release the SDK for Windows Phone 8. Developers are waiting for this and to see what hardware and manufacturers get behind Windows Phone 8 before they commit. See my previous point about growth as well.

Nokia, it certainly feels like you have had your chance to sit at the top table, its time to step aside and let Blackberry have their turn!

Nokia and Microsoft are both aware of the fact they will never be number one. There doesn’t need to be a number one. Everyone should just be allowed to do their own thing and let the consumer choose what they will buy.Enterprise users are sick of paying for BES when Android, iOS and Windows Phone all offer Exchange support without extra payment. Blackberry are even further behind with apps and developers by miles, even compared to Windows Phone.

So to conclude I can’t wait for all of the new Windows Phone 8 devices. The new Samsung ATIV S looks amazing, the new Lumias look amazing and the rumoured devices from HTC should hopefully be as equally as good.

So people keep an open mind, if you’re after a new device soon, wait patiently for all of the players to reveal their cards and then make a researched and educated decision. You never know, Windows Phone might just be for you.

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