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With the dawn of the superphone, where is Microsoft?
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Over the past two years spawned by Apple's iPhone, a new class of iconic, need-to-have, shiny converged mobile devices (or smartphones) have come on to the scene that have had a profound impact on the smartphone market. The term superphone, coined in the media, speaks to this high-end device class characterized by its "wow factor," a real or perceived buying frenzy, or an otherwise stylish, functional and pretty-to-look-at device. And while selling 1 million devices in the first few days of availability is not a necessary criterion, it is certainly becoming the expectation from the trade press and Wall Street.
Apple's iPhone certainly set the standard with its launch two years ago and continues to reach new heights with its most recent launch of iPhone 3GS, claiming 1 million devices sold in its first weekend in the market. Verizon Wireless in launching RIM's BlackBerry Storm last November sold 1 million in less than three months. Nokia also sold 1 million of its flagship E71 devices last summer in three months. The Palm Pre, debuted last month, certainly fits the bill with its multi-touch capabilities and beautiful interface from a company that has put its stamp on the smartphone. Palm has been trying to keep up with demand as the Pre has been selling out and is on a nice pace, working towards being a million seller.
And even Android is arguably not a hit, yet the G1 (manufactured by HTC) did sell a million units for T-Mobile USA and provided significant improvement in data usage. With Android, the best is yet to come, with tremendous buzz and anticipation from developers as the likes of Samsung, Motorola and LG either launch or are expected to launch devices with this operating system. And the leading Windows Mobile device provider, HTC, currently offers four Android-based devices.
So the question is, where is Microsoft in all of this? With over 50 suppliers (and all of the major suppliers except Nokia), Microsoft has yet to produce the iconic, shiny device that users have coveted. In the past there have been a few devices that have shown some promise. The Motorola Q, Moto's first smartphone with Windows Mobile, had promise, but was known more for its large return rate with Verizon Wireless than anything else. Samsung's BlackJack, BlackJack II and most recently the Jack were all strong devices and flagship WinMo devices for AT&T, but never quite reached rock star status...Continued
Comments
Posted by Tim Heath | July 1, 2009 - 1:13pm
Great article Stephen. Apple seems to have really energized aspects of the smartphone market. Certainly whenever they come out with a new product there is typically a degree of buzz which catapults sales. Google's Android is beginning to do this too. There is less focus on the device, and more on the OS. Products from Open Kernel Labs like OK:Android, OK:Symbian, OK:Linux, and OK:Windows facilitate the integration of one or more OSes into a particular device. The market recognizes the value of a microvisor.
Posted by Anonymous | July 2, 2009 - 10:05am
If you have ever owned a Microsoft Windows Mobile phone, you'll never want to buy another windows mobile phone ever again. It's buggy, crashes all the time, hangs, is a resource hog and requires reboots almost daily. Unless you have a stylus, it isn't going to be fun to use.
Posted by Anonymous | July 8, 2009 - 11:16am
I agree with you. The PC model of managing multiple open apps doesn't port over well onto a mobile phone. I've know alot of folks with a WM device and they are always having to reboot it. It's pretty sad.
Posted by Vinee | July 9, 2009 - 4:06pm
WinMo based phones are probably the worst phone out there. I currently have one (Moto Q) and locked with contract for another 6 months. I am waiting for Verizon to get palm of any other in next 6 months. My next phone will definitely NOT be WinMo phone. I am just sick and tired of if. It hangs and crashes too often.
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