Posted on 07/13/2015 8:03:27 AM PDT by dayglored
With last week’s write down of $7.6 billion, Microsoft has finished the chapter of its corporate career marked ‘Nokia’, and arguably the book titled ’Windows Phone’. With a renewed focus on software the need for a leading phone business has lessened at Microsoft, and the Finnish company’s former devices and services section is surplus to requirements. There is much to learn from this adventure, and anyone looking to make as serious play in mobile hardware and software in the future will find lessons in the story of the third platform.
As CEO Satya Nadella said alongside the announcement, ”We are moving from a strategy to grow a standalone phone business to a strategy to grow and create a vibrant Windows ecosystem including our first-party device family, and bringing users into the Microsoft cloud no matter the platform they are using.”
I’m confident that Microsoft will continue to design, manufacture, and retail smartphones, but it will now be more along the lines of a Google Nexus than a Samsung Galaxy S6. It will show the power and potential of Windows 10 in a smartphone setting, it will likely use high-end components to create the biggest experience possible, and it will likely be available in small numbers. Having a flagship focused on demonstration rather than market share is an issue I discussed last week here on Forbes, and it matches Nadella’s statements for a few days ago when he said “In the near-term, we’ll run a more effective and focused phone portfolio while retaining capability for long-term reinvention in mobility.”
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(Excerpt) Read more at forbes.com ...
Around 3 years ago, I walked into the AT&T store, looking to replace my Blackberry.
The first thing they did is completely dismiss Blackberry....yes, they had one on display, but made it clear that I didn’t want it.
Ok.
Then the sales pitch went something like this: Since you’re using a Blackberry, a Smartphone may be too much for you to handle, so why don’t you try out this Windows phone, which is easier for you to ‘understand’.
I went with Samsung.
But the point is, the AT&T store was portraying the Windows phone as a lesser device, to be used by the less tech savvy. I immediately didn’t want it...and I’m not surprised it hasn’t done well.
I’m the “proud” owner of a windows phone (company issued). Actually I’m on #4. The first one misbehaved so much and so badly that I ran over it with my car. The 2nd one would randomly shut down and finally wouldn’t restart. #3 would randomly shutdown and would also freeze up forcing me to remove the battery in order to reboot. So far #4 is behaving itself (I kept a picture of #1 so #4 would know its fate should it mess with me).
I wonder what sort of Piece~o~Crap they plan on giving us next?
hahahahahahaha. Yup. That's how you deal with recalcitrant hardware.
That's Right!
You have to show these devices who's boss.
The photos of phones that have been shot with a high-powered rifle are good for that too.
There are two angles for selling high tech to the average person who is not tech-savvy:
Microsoft (and some others) chose the second path, which is insulting and false, because phone technology is not, in fact, well-suited for the illiterate. Such lies foster user frustration, exasperation, and ultimately a lost customer.
Linux is how I dealt with recalcitrant OS. Now I have an Android phone, also.
Well it does shiver from time to time and I’m guessing that it’s just thinking about that other guy ;’)
That’s funny, because I ran into a woman who was returning a new Windows phone to the store last week because it was “too complicated”. She was switching back to Android.
Less than 3% MARKET adoption. The ATT sellers were likely reflecting that.
Bought a Windows phone several years back. Bit mistake. Hated it until it bounced down a flight of concrete stairs.
I prefer the videos from “Will It Blend?”
Scared straight doesn’t cover it.
I gotta say Microsoft deserved this. They had a new operating system that was getting a lot of buzz coming out on a premiere Lumia phone and what did they do? Made it exclusive to AT&T. Dumb move.
Yeah! Plus a wry sense of humor with it.
I wanted to change the picture on my Twitter account, but the picture was on my computer. So I copied the picture into the cloud folder and, boom, there it was on my phone.
I own a 920 and a 520. I wish I could afford a 1020.
I’m surprised the salesperson didn’t show you the iPhone first. That is the standard pitch for customers they think aren’t tech-savvy. You probably said something about using windows on a computer during the conversation and that steered the salesperson to showing you the windows phone.
LOL
Been working with computers since....oh, anybody heard of Illiac?
Right after I got my very first terminal, I brought a foot-long hunk of Louisville Slugger (jagged ends all sanded down) to work and set it under the desk.
Never, ever had to smite anything with it, but I’ve made a habit of taking it out from time to time, gently waving it around and engaging in a bit of telepathic counseling with the current occupant(s) of the desk.
All the phones and tablets get to come sit with me now and then as well.
....outside of losing one phone, having youngest g’daughter dump another “down the potty” and the odd motherboard/hard drive failure (two of each over the years) the only drama I’ve had with any of our devices was when Grandma saddled me with a Blackberry.
....called that thing some names I haven’t used since I made E-7, but it still rated as “Pristine” when I traded it at the end of the contract.
Well I did keep asking them which phones were compatible with Outlook. These days its just the matter of downloading an app...as recently as 3 years ago, however, not all phones were enabled to sync with Outlook.
So that may have been why they steered me to the Windows phone. They were very dismissive of my requirement to use Outlook...when I would ask about any particular phone’s ability to work with it, they would say ‘maybe’ and ‘I don’t know’. They had obviously never used Outlook, and couldn’t comprehend why it was so important to me...you know, the silly old fool who wants to use e-mail on his phone. They just wanted to shove a Windows phone at me and get rid of me.
I had to make a second trip, after doing my own research on which phones were enabled. Terrible customer service, IMHO.
But I recently went to the very same store to get Samsung’s newest offering...and I got great customer service.
Yeah, mentioning Outlook would do it. I suspect there is really no formal training given to an AT&T store salesperson. They could be working at the Gap one day and selling phones the next. They probably know best what their commission is on each product. When you actually make the purchase they hand you off to the tech person in the back to set up your sim card and turn the phone on. At least that is what I noticed when I was shopping there.
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