New smartphone launches force buyers to bet

I don't give it that much thought. When there is a platform and support in the way of apps sufficient for my purposes, I go with it. In my case it was the iPhone.

I use the analogy of e-books. I use the Kindle. I realize it is the only platform for Amazon e-books, but again I don't think about it too much. I have reading to do.

Another thing is, I don't want to play with keeping my phone running, bloatware, etc. That is another reason I like the iOS over Android. At this stage of my life, I want to get work done, and think productivity tools should be a net positive to my life. You might say is is a Mac versus Windows computer analogy, but I still use Windows because of the greater collection of software ("apps").

Perhaps I should be putting more thought into it. When I bought the iPhone it was really the only game in town for apps. (No pun intended). If Android stabilizes, I could switch. Same with the Microsoft mobile platform.

In your article I would use "operating system" or "platform" and stick with it. I find using the two interchangeably confusing. I think platform may be more foreign to most folks.

I have Windows Mobile 6.1 on my current smartphone.

Saturday, I pick up a Blackberry Torch. I gave MS one shot, not doing it again.

Please point me to all these amazing apps on the Android Market. When I look, all I see is garbage with some of the dumbest names I've ever heard. "Seesmic" Really?

You asked where the apps were, and implied that not having apps would be a detriment. You mentioned Evernote and Dropbox.

Apps fill in gaps that an OS does not perform. So if you want to take notes, iOS does not have that, so you NEED Evernote. If you want to share files, you NEED dropbox, because iOS does not do that. If you want to find directions, you NEED Google Maps.

Part of the beauty of WP7 is that many of those apps are built into the OS.

So, you want to share files, you have MS Sharepoint built in.
So, you want to take notes, you have MS Onenote built in.
So, you want directions, you have Bing Maps built in.

With WP7, you do not need to search for a lot of apps to fill in the missing pieces because the functionality is built in.

I wonder why a wealthy company like Microsoft worries if enough developers will write apps for its platform. Given that MS has too much at stake with WP7 and tens of billions in its coffers, can it not hire a few hundred programmers to create applications on a full-time basis?

And even though Apple and Android boast about 10s of thousands of apps, my feeling is that only a few hundred actually matter, rest don't really appeal to large number of users.

I'm very happy with my HTC Evo 4g, an Android phone with Sprint service.

I'm an Apple guy, with everything else I own being Apple. But I got sick of the Iphone dropping calls, not having turn by turn nav, etc.

The turn by turn nav system is far better than what I had on the iphone. And Sprint coverage is considerably better than ATT, particularly in big cities.

The Android App market is pretty good. The only complaint I have with it is often the descriptions of the Apps are poorly written. Apple seems to require a more complete description of what the app actually is. In the Android app market a lot of developers seem to assume you speak developer language and never get around to actually describing what their product actually does.

Well I have both an ipad and the epic 4g and I like both of them alot. I previously had a palm pre but I did not like the lack of attention the developers spent on the operating system so it was an over priced regular phone. If nobody pays attention to the software then the developers both third party and the main developers will move on to another operating system.

What I like iOS and Android is that the developers are constantly trying to upgrade the software and spend time trying to develop apps for the software.

I hope Windows Phone 7 suceeds because more competition is always better but I've learned to wait a while to see if the operating system catches on with the general public first before spending the money on the phone/operating system otherwise you will be stuck with a phone that is bascially abandoned by the public and you will not be getting your money worth for a smart phone.

To justify the cost of a smart phone its operating system should be in constatnt development with regards to upgrades and apps if it doesnt the cost is not justified and a person might as well have a regular cell phone.

Still waiting for an affordable smartphone without a mandatory service contract. Maybe not in my lifetime? :-)

Windows phones are for teenage girls and born losers.

I agree with Miles; it's not the phone or the apps, it's those combined with the contract and the mandatory plan/rates that make/break the purchase decision. So I sit with my dumb prepaid minutes phone that's running me about 100.00 per YEAR with no taxes/fees etc. until I see some of this shake-out.

I used to have Windows phones. Loved the way they synched up with Outlook.

But with the world of Apps, MS is way out of their league. Even for the 6.1 and 6.5 operating systems, they were pitiful.

I just got a BB Storm 2, and love it. I needed a world access phone, and it was of only 2 that Verizon Wireless had.

I would have loved the Android, but no world phones there yet.

What are the chances of Symbian making a mark on the smartphone world? Is it too late? Is all hope lost? I liked Nokia phones but apps make the smartphone and there are not that many available for Symbian.

If all hope is lost, can we convince Nokia to abandon Symbian and start using Android OS?

@george-king: You made a very insightful post there. I agree completely. Well said.

As for when I invest in a new operating system, it's all based on trust. I trust Microsoft as a whole, so I trust they've done an exceptional job with WP7. I will invest in it. I think Microsoft has really proven their quality lately - with the release of Windows 7. I'm currently the owner of a Mac with Snow Leopard and a laptop with Windows 7. In my opinion, Windows 7 outperforms Snow Leopard.

I also think WP7 will be a strong smart phone competitor right from its launch.

I don't know why these guys are saying that there's no maps or turn-by-turn navi on the iPhone. I just took my new (no apps yet) iPhone4 on a 2000 mile trip and left my atlas at home. Whether it was Chicago's South Side or the back roads of Indiana, I had no problems getting where I was going. I used both map-view and turn-by-turn and never had a doubt about where I was, where I was going or how far I had to go. 4 Stars!

So Windows Phone 7 is “thereby avoiding Palm’s mistake of introducing one phone on one carrier”? That strategy seems to have worked out pretty well for the iPhone. You never know. Though I do agree that HPalm has been inexplicably sitting on their collective hands since Pixi.