iPhone vs Windows Phone 7

I remember 2008 and a business associate showing off their brand new iPhone. It had a gyroscope and they were demoing a ball-bearing in a labyrinth type game. It was a beautiful device, a large clear screen and NO BUTTONS!

The competition were trying various methods to woo their customers, with many shouting about their music playing capabilities, or the size of their cameras. But the iPhone was a totally new concept.

Music Machines

Building on the success of the iPod, not only would this device play music – but offered a whole host of new services. WAP internet had been available on phones for a few years, but the slow and tedious loading of oversimplified and clunky web pages didn’t really appeal. The iPhone suddenly offered a decent mobile internet experience, showing more beautiful mobile versions and even full websites when requested.

Along also came the app store, and the chance to turn your phone into a gaming device, a musical instrument or something which you could find handy in the office. The possibilities were seemingly endless and the device soon became a sign of status, with anyone who thought they were anyone proudly checking their emails on their new toy.

But I reminisce… That was over 2 years ago and a lot has changed since then. Perhaps not that much if you compare the original with the latest iPhone – the central concept, layout and features are pretty much identical with hardware improvements being the main differentiator, but in the world of the smart phone there have definitely been some busy people.

Windows Mobile to Windows Phone

It was only earlier this year that I encountered an earlier attempt at mobile from Windows, an HTC HD2 running Windows Mobile 6.5. It worked, although did not have the beauty of the iPhone, it was larger and felt clunkier, and displayed websites in a blocky, WAP like way. It was capable of the same functions as the iPhone, but the user experience wasn’t as fluid and intuitive.

The bonus of the Windows Mobile was of course integration – it would work easily with exchange and the mobile Office applications worked much better than the apps available for iPhone. It was immensely popular as a business phone, but didn’t quite cut it for the average user who wanted it more for entertainment.

Hearing about the Windows Phone 7 was for many, much like Android – in that it sounded good enough, but wasn’t destined to make a huge impact in the way that iPhone can attract massive queues on launch day.

A new look

That changed as the images of the Metro UI were leaked and suddenly it was very clear that Microsoft were doing something new here. The home screen was clean and useful. Not just customisable in terms of links to favourite apps, but Hubs displaying useful information – consolidation several apps within one tile.

It was certainly different, and a refreshing change to scrolling through screens of icons. Yet the real sense of how it all came together wouldn’t be apparent until I actually got a device in my hands. The emulator which we used for testing apps was nice and clear, but that it only allowed you to use your apps, and not the phone as a real user would. Having a real Windows Phone 7 device, adding my contacts and information to actually use it as a phone made it all make sense.

Whats New?

The ‘People’ Hub has been criticised for adding all your Facebook, email and Windows Live contacts to the contact list. There is now an option, so you can turn off the auto-adding. But the ‘Whats New’ tab shows all the latest updates from Windows Live, Facebook etc, allowing you to comment directly – WITHOUT having to go to a separate app!

There is also the option, when tapping on a contact, to choose how to contact them – whether to call, text or even contact them on Facebook. The advertising slogan that this phone ‘lets you get back to life’ rings true, as it allows you do things in a logical way – much quicker and simpler than having to work out which app you will need, then finding the contact within the app…

There is also a tile for your emails, which updates with the number of new emails. Unlike other such notification systems on iPhone, it does not keep a tally of the total unread emails, but shows you how many new emails since you last viewed your inbox. So you don’t have to try and remember the number of unread emails to work out if any are new. There is a real logic in place with this phone; a logic which other phone systems had almost made us forget exists.

It looks modern, the square boxes succeed in making the rounded app icons appear dated, and the system is refreshingly different, yet somehow obvious. This phone actually seems to be how phones should be, and really enables you to get back to your life. This phone starts to get under your skin – and alters your philosophy on how you use your phone. After a week using it, the concept of it adding all your Facebook contacts to your contact list wouldn’t leave you heading to the settings page, but to Facebook to remove all those unwanted contacts. Why waste time?