I’ve been reading up a lot on Windows 10 for phones lately. If I had to sum up my feelings on how I felt about Windows Phone lately, I would have to say it’s been a mixed bag of emotions; while I love the way the operating system looks and feels, I hate the way the application portion of this smartphone platform has seemingly been placed on the back burner. It’s also important to note that a lot of features that Windows Phone has at this point were introduced pretty late in the game (such as a drop-down notification center).

However, Windows 10 for phones could fix those problems and potentially bring Windows Phone a very real competitor in this mobile market - maybe. But I think this is the last chance for Microsoft to really bring Windows Phone to light.

I feel the same way about BlackBerry 10. I’m a firm believer in the phrase “It’s not over ‘til it’s over,” so I’m holding out hope for both platforms. But I do think that if BlackBerry 10, and for the sake of this article Windows 10 for phones, ends up failing for whatever reason, that’s the end of that. I don’t think either platform has much wiggle room for any more chances after this if something doesn’t pan out.

I’m not sure where Microsoft’s priority lies, but I don’t think it’s been with mobile thus far. Microsoft has a very strong PC empire, so I’m sure that’s where the main focus has been. However, smartphone usage is at an all-time high. Obviously I can’t speak for everybody, but I feel like every year I use my computer for less and less as I find more ways to use my smartphone. Maybe I have to deal with a smaller screen, but the convenience of whipping out my smartphone as opposed to lugging out my laptop to read the news or browse social media is more important to me right now. I think a lot of people are heading this way, especially given how powerful smartphones are getting anyway. I think Microsoft sees this, which is why making Windows 10 a unified platform would be combining the efforts of all three popular computing gadgets (computer, tablet, smartphone) under one platform is probably a good idea.

I’ve always thought that Windows Phone has had tremendous potential, but it was never fully achieved. If Microsoft can manage to keep all of the good parts that Windows Phone already has (because it does have some really good parts, despite the big impact of its negative aspects) and fix the couple of issues that are the most daunting about the platform, I think that Microsoft will be able to turn things around for Windows Phone. It would appear from leaked screenshots that not a lot is changing with the actual interface of Windows Phone - which is great, in my opinion - so hopefully the major changes are within those key areas that we’ve already addressed.

Microsoft is hyping up Windows 10 for phones quite a bit, and while I try to keep my expectations low, it’s hard for me not to at least hope for the best. We know that Microsoft has the potential to make Windows Phone a very powerful platform; we just have to hope that Microsoft wants to see Windows Phone become that powerful platform. I know that I, for one, would love to seriously consider Windows Phone devices as a viable competitor against Android and iOS devices when it comes time to find a new phone. That isn’t to say that Windows Phone isn’t perfect for some people as it is - I’ve read a lot of testimonies that validate its current state - but I would like for the platform to see better days. Even the most loyal of Windows Phone users can see that it’s currently treading dangerous waters if something great doesn’t happen for the platform sometime soon.

So here’s to hoping that Windows 10 makes that change happen, because I don’t think that Microsoft will get another shot at this.