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Bill Gates switches to Android phone

bbc.co.uk

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Re: Bill Gates switches to Android phone

#71

Post by jobu »

Divver wrote: post #42

Before I joined Apple I was at Microsoft and I did use a Windows Phone. It was a Lumia 1520. And honestly the OS was rock solid and worked great (unlike my experience with the Lenovo Windows work laptop I was given which would keep blue-screening after going into hibernate for more than 5 minutes. I ended up switching to a SurfaceBook once that was available and it worked perfectly. Amazing laptop. Like a MacBook Pro…

> Windows Phone was a solid system with a decent easy to use UI it is kind of a pity it didn’t take off.

Agreed. We developed a couple apps way back in Windows Phone 7, and the UI was slick and stylish. The developer tools were fantastic - very fast and easy to create decent apps. Unfortunately we didn't see much ROI for those apps, and then Microsoft decided everyone needed to redo their apps for Windows Phone 8. It was an easy choice to drop support for those apps and stop all development for Windows Phone at that point. The biggest problem people had with Windows Phone was the lack of apps, and it seemed like MS caused that problem themselves.

Re: Bill Gates switches to Android phone

#72

Post by RestlessMind »

BoorishBears wrote: post #32
Jedd wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is there an expectation that most phones won't be able to provide hotspot / tethering for various platforms (not sure if there's some peculiarities with the three precisely branded devices you mention)? Polished OS, build quality, call quality, battery life -- these features are all available (and were pre-Microsoft mobile) in both Android and Apple worlds. Be cautious about assuming that the applications you use are…

>Polished OS,...,battery life I don't agree Android offers that as an OS. Battery life is a little hardware specific, but on average Android provides below par "performance per mWh" compared to the other two.

Comparing "average Android" to WP / iPhone is unfair. Apple is the sole manufacturer of iPhone, while WP mainly refers to Lumia (90% market share by MS/Nokia as per [1]). If you want to compare Android with them, its fair to compare something like Pixel / Galaxy because long tail of other manufacturers just drag the average down.

[1] https://www.windowscentral.com/sites/wpcentral.com/files/sty...

Re: Bill Gates switches to Android phone

#74

Post by Spivak »

netsec_burn wrote: post #10

Long story short: Developers, developers, developers, developers. The same reason why people won't switch from Windows to Linux is why people won't switch from Android to Windows Phone.

Sure, but the difference is that Linux might be small in market share on the desktop but it's carved itself a small but self-sustaining niche for itself. Windows Phone didn't even manage that.

Re: Bill Gates switches to Android phone

#75

Post by RestlessMind »

pweissbrod wrote: post #8
qubex wrote: post #2

The total failure of Windows Phone to gain acceptance in the market is a huge pity. I have a Lumina 950 as a secondary device (for loading with a local SIM while abroad) and it’s a solid performer with a polished OS, refreshingly ’different’ UI, and excellent basics (build quality, call quality, and battery life). The basic, core apps I ’need’ in this role are available (WhatsApp, Facebook/Messenger, Twitter, & ceter…

As an ex-WP user who also switched to android I would argue the android UX is a step backward in some respects. When I open an app in WP I received immediate loading/animation feedback. In android many core actions (such as initiating a phone call) cause temporary freeze while the app loads. Did the phone receive my tap? Do I need to tap again or wait? Coming from a more fluid interface like the WP this is something…

Which Android device are you using?

Re: Bill Gates switches to Android phone

#76

Post by discreditable »

Divver wrote: post #42

Before I joined Apple I was at Microsoft and I did use a Windows Phone. It was a Lumia 1520. And honestly the OS was rock solid and worked great (unlike my experience with the Lenovo Windows work laptop I was given which would keep blue-screening after going into hibernate for more than 5 minutes. I ended up switching to a SurfaceBook once that was available and it worked perfectly. Amazing laptop. Like a MacBook Pro…

> Lenovo Windows work laptop I was given which would keep blue-screening after going into hibernate for more than 5 minutes.

It amazes me that every model Lenovo ThinkPad Yoga I've worked with (four generations now) has some issue along this line. Every refresh requires some driver troubleshooting on my part to find the one that fixes machines that sleep and don't wake up.

Re: Bill Gates switches to Android phone

#77

Post by mobilio »

jobu wrote: post #71
Divver wrote: post #42

Before I joined Apple I was at Microsoft and I did use a Windows Phone. It was a Lumia 1520. And honestly the OS was rock solid and worked great (unlike my experience with the Lenovo Windows work laptop I was given which would keep blue-screening after going into hibernate for more than 5 minutes. I ended up switching to a SurfaceBook once that was available and it worked perfectly. Amazing laptop. Like a MacBook Pro…

> Windows Phone was a solid system with a decent easy to use UI it is kind of a pity it didn’t take off. Agreed. We developed a couple apps way back in Windows Phone 7, and the UI was slick and stylish. The developer tools were fantastic - very fast and easy to create decent apps. Unfortunately we didn't see much ROI for those apps, and then Microsoft decided everyone needed to redo their apps for Windows Phone 8. It…

Yup!

But they do this with version 6.5 then "rewrote apps" for 7, and then "rewrite apps" for 8 and now for 10.

It's easy to understand why devs are pissed-off from that decisions.

PS: I forgot fiasco with 7.5 and upgrade to 7.9 and 8.0

Re: Bill Gates switches to Android phone

#79

Post by baldfat »

jobu wrote: post #71
Divver wrote: post #42

Before I joined Apple I was at Microsoft and I did use a Windows Phone. It was a Lumia 1520. And honestly the OS was rock solid and worked great (unlike my experience with the Lenovo Windows work laptop I was given which would keep blue-screening after going into hibernate for more than 5 minutes. I ended up switching to a SurfaceBook once that was available and it worked perfectly. Amazing laptop. Like a MacBook Pro…

> Windows Phone was a solid system with a decent easy to use UI it is kind of a pity it didn’t take off. Agreed. We developed a couple apps way back in Windows Phone 7, and the UI was slick and stylish. The developer tools were fantastic - very fast and easy to create decent apps. Unfortunately we didn't see much ROI for those apps, and then Microsoft decided everyone needed to redo their apps for Windows Phone 8. It…

Years to late. They could have been a real contender if they came out 3 years earlier.

Re: Bill Gates switches to Android phone

#80

Post by baldfat »

pweissbrod wrote: post #8
qubex wrote: post #2

The total failure of Windows Phone to gain acceptance in the market is a huge pity. I have a Lumina 950 as a secondary device (for loading with a local SIM while abroad) and it’s a solid performer with a polished OS, refreshingly ’different’ UI, and excellent basics (build quality, call quality, and battery life). The basic, core apps I ’need’ in this role are available (WhatsApp, Facebook/Messenger, Twitter, & ceter…

As an ex-WP user who also switched to android I would argue the android UX is a step backward in some respects. When I open an app in WP I received immediate loading/animation feedback. In android many core actions (such as initiating a phone call) cause temporary freeze while the app loads. Did the phone receive my tap? Do I need to tap again or wait? Coming from a more fluid interface like the WP this is something…

Every 24 hours reboot. Fixes that for me. Feels like an old Windows Server.
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