Tris’ Blog

A great article which speaks the truth:

This was originally going to be a piece about how Microsoft had no idea what the consumer wanted, where I would explain what I thought Microsoft needed to do to fix it. Oh, I still discuss the flaws, but while talking to the Windows Mobile team, I learned about the next two versions of the mobile OS. Turns out, Microsoft knows exactly what’s wrong with the WM platform, and it knows what to do to fix it. Trust me: there’s hope on the horizon.

Now, the article is great at spelling out the flaws with Windows Mobile. I have a WM device myself and the UI is certainly very klunky indeed, and just doesn’t flow very well at all. Things which should be gloriously simple (like, errr, making a phone call?) just aren’t. I also suffered horrendous freezing issues when I started playing around with third-party apps (Nowadays, any OS should be bullet-proof no matter what an application is doing - we’ve come a long way from the Amiga’s Guru Meditations).

However, I’m quite cynical (or, dare, I say it, “realistic”) when it comes to companies delivering on their promises. I’ve seen plenty of examples of, “The product WILL do THIS”, and in the end it was just a tale of bitterness and despair.

That said, I hope the next releases do show-case a great new UI. Really, Microsoft should be feeling a little embarrased that Apple’s first mobile phone release was stunning in comparison. Not without its flaws, of course.