Right now, Windows Phone 7 Series is "designed for life in motion," but I doubt it will be long before Steve Ballmer starts calling it "magical and revolutionary." It sure seems as if Ballmer has been frequenting the same unicorn farm as Steve Jobs lately, based on what we've been hearing about WP7S at MIX10.
Yesterday we reported that the new Windows Phone Marketplace would be the only way to get apps on WP7S, much like the App Store is the only way to get apps for the iPhone. In a conference at MIX10, Microsoft's Charlie Kindel said that WP7S phones will not be capable of multitasking when they launch later in the year. "We focused on getting a set of experiences right where we didn't have to support [multitasking,] but we will over time," said Kindel, claiming that as of now, multitasking creates too many inconsistencies in responsiveness and battery power that they are not yet ready to address.
Kindel also said that removable memory cards will not be part of the WP7S gameplan. According to PCMag, "Microsoft will work with OEMs to make sure that phones have enough storage for media and 3D games, but there will be no MicroSD cards for your music." This is starting to sound all too familiar. I fully understand that much of Apple's success comes from the fact that they conceived of and maintained a product with absolute control from day one. However, I also believe that Apple's iron fist has left many feeling estranged.
I'm still rooting for WP7S; the OS looks slick, and the strict requirements should be beneficial to the consumer. I just hope that in the case of Apple, they're just reading the cliffs notes and not the whole handbook! Share your thoughts in the comments!
Via PhoneScoop, PCMag
