windows or Android?

devizes18193

Nokia Lumia

Dreamnine wrote: »

Windows Phone is on death watch with 2.7% of all sales down from 3.4% last year.

May be but in parts of the world its as big as android I believe . I Tried windows for the 1st time on a windows htc 8x , pice if crap it was now have a lumia 630 and its way better both in term of bulid and apps . Lumia phones comes music mix and nokia here drive which covers quite a bit of the gap between the 2 systems . When people compare platforms its not as cut and dryed as both work differently

Dreamnine

Sony M2

devizes18193 wrote: »

May be but in parts of the world its as big as android I believe . I Tried windows for the 1st time on a windows htc 8x , pice if crap it was now have a lumia 630 and its way better both in term of bulid and apps . Lumia phones comes music mix and nokia here drive which covers quite a bit of the gap between the 2 systems . When people compare platforms its not as cut and dryed as both work differently

If Android has 81.6% and Windows Phone 2.7%, (IDC 2014) in which parts of the world is WP as big?

JJ_Egan

One of the reasons its down is Windows 10 due .
That will be the one that may match or better other OS and be a better time to compare.

Dreamnine

Sony M2

JJ_Egan wrote: »

One of the reasons its down is Windows 10 due .
That will be the one that may match or better other OS and be a better time to compare.

They've been saying that for years - every new version of Windows Mobile/Phone was meant to be the one that took off yet their market share has been declining for years.

They're just shoddy, poor devices compared with either iOS or Android, non existant or inferior versions of apps, and stores can barely give them away.

silverwhistle

I've just upgraded my 2.5/3 year old Windows phone: nothing wrong with it but wanted a bigger screen for my eyes and 2 cameras.

There's constant repetition about the system having fewer apps, but I've never found anything missing that I've needed, and all the basics (mapping, radio, office tools) work well.

I've a cheap android tablet to compare it with and it doesn't suffer at all in the comparison.

Aura

I need to keep in touch with immediate friends rather than play games

This is true, I use Facebook, EBay and Amazon.

The_Last_Username

Nokia Lumia

According to these, the UK is actually growing it's share of Windows phones:

http://www.gsmarena.com/kantar_windows_phone_gains_traction_in_europe_at_ios_expense-news-9824.php

http://www.mobilenewscwp.co.uk/2014/08/21/windows-phone-gaining-uk-marketshare/

Of course, it DOES depend upon what you read.

With the recent advent of such cheap Windows phones, the market share can only increase ........... or is someone seriously suggesting that Microsoft have "lost the plot" and don't really know what they are doing?

devizes18193

Nokia Lumia

The_Last_Username wrote: »

According to these, the UK is actually growing it's share of Windows phones:

http://www.gsmarena.com/kantar_windows_phone_gains_traction_in_europe_at_ios_expense-news-9824.php

http://www.mobilenewscwp.co.uk/2014/08/21/windows-phone-gaining-uk-marketshare/

Of course, it DOES depend upon what you read.

With the recent advent of such cheap Windows phones, the market share can only increase ........... or is someone seriously suggesting that Microsoft have "lost the plot" and don't really know what they are doing?

The problem with threads like this is the fan boys come out , The only saving grace is no one has tried comapring the i phone to windows or android .

But still a lot depends on what use use the phone for i reckon .

The_Last_Username

Nokia Lumia

The problem with threads like this is the fan boys come out

Fan boy?
No no no, far from it; I am no more a "lover" of Microsoft and it's ethics than I am of Apple and their ethics!

I have tried different OS's on PC's; tablets AND on mobile phones.
I actually really like (some versions of ) Linux - which Android is based upon.
BUT (and here's the "rub" ) - NONE of these operating systems gives ME (in my circumstances; yours may be different) a user experience which is as trouble-free as Windows.
And especially NOT in-between different devices.
I've tried.

I've used windows on a mobile for three years, and NOT ONCE has it "thrown a wobbly"; or not worked exactly as I expected it to.
The quality of the phone has been enough to last for three years.
Without problems OF ANY SORT.

So, again I hasten to add IN MY EXPERIENCE and despite my dislike of Microsoft as a company, their phones are the best solution FOR ME.

anotheruser

Nokia Lumia

Forget the phones for now and look at the operating systems... think of them as mini computers:

WINDOWS PHONE:
+ Pro: Regular upgrades (also upgradable to the next gen Windows Phone 10).
+ Pro: Works seemlessly with Windows computer
+ Pro: Great to use - everything where you expect it to be
- Con: Lack of apps.

ANDROID:
+ Pro: Wealth of apps
+ Pro: Easy to use
- Con: OS a little clunky and overly complicated (look at settings)
- Con: Updates far and few between
- Con: Phones grow out of date quicker

Look at other websites for other reviews.

The whole "lack of apps" thing is a bit of a red herring in a way. With Windows 10, Microsoft are planning to have a unified store, so anything on the current Windows Store should run on Windows Phone 10, which will be released this year.
But as others have said, all the basics are there and for those without apps, mobile websites are easy to store as a favourite and usually give more functionality than a mobile app (Facebook, for example!).

After you've decided on an operating system then you will be limited by phones, which will make things easier.


Lumia Phones:
The Lumia phones are great. I had the Lumia 920, which had the best camera of any phone I have ever had. Fantastic in low light, easy to use, quick to launch.

Most people will moot Android, the majority of those will automatically think Samsung is the best. Delve under the hype and you'll see the support for updates is patchy at best.


A little Education on Updates:
Updates for Android are released by Google. Buy a pure Google phone (one of their Nexus range) and you'll receive the updates fairly quick.

When the update is released, it has to be signed off by the phone manufacturer. As many phone manufacturers, like Samsung for example, have hundreds of phones, it's not practical for them to test the new software on every handset.

After being signed off by phone manufacturers, the update then goes to carriers (OS, Vodafone, EE) for them to add their software, then test, then release.

In short:
Tesco don't have any carrier carp on their phones, so you don't have to wait for the silly My EE or My Vodafone app that you can't delete. Buying a sim free phone outright means you're not waiting for the carriers to test any update.

Apple's iPhones get around this as they don't allow any carrier rubbish to be added. The trade off is paying about a third more for the handset.



Just as an extra bit of news, a good number of Android phone makers, Samsung included have recently looked at Windows Phone in an attempt to take down the mighty Apple... if you're in love with Samsung that is :P