10 Reasons Why Windows Phone 7 Series Will Be A Success

Now that Microsoft has taken the wraps off its new Windows Phone 7 Series smartphone operating system, we explain why it’s geared up for success.

It’s been hugely anticipated, much rumoured and, for many, long overdue - now Microsoft’s complete overhaul of its Windows Mobile smartphone platform has been unveiled with the announcement of Windows Phone 7 Series at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.

There’s been much criticism in the past about the user-friendliness of the Windows Mobile touchscreen platform, particularly when held up against the slick experience offered by Apple’s iPhone and certain Android OS-packing smartphones. With the launch of Windows Phone 7 Series Microsoft is aiming to change all that.

Rather than updating its legacy mobile operating system with a tweak here and a re-sknning there, Microsoft has gone back to the drawing board with this version of its smartphone platform. Introducing a completely new user interface that puts social networking high up the agenda, brings the Zune HD player platform to mobiles for the first time and pulls in the Xbox LIVE experience, Windows Phone 7 Series could be the Microsoft paradigm shift most of us have been hoping for.





Here we look at the 10 reasons (in no particular order) why Windows Phone 7 Series should be hit…



1. User friendly touchscreen UI

Windows Phone 7 Series looks like it addresses one of the fundamental weaknesses of Microsoft’s smartphone offerings - a dated and not particularly user friendly UI. Despite a variety of efforts at re-skinning the Windows Phone user interface, under the surface the Microsoft smartphone OS has lor a while looked increasingly unwieldy compared to its more nimble smartphone OS rivals. Despite improvements with Windows Mobile 6.5, finger tapping control often had to be supplemented by stylus-led intervention on tiny menu options in graphically spartan lists that looked more old school desktop PC than iPhone-worrier. Now Apple’s iPhone may experience a little more bother from Microsoft-powered devices.



2. Zune-style user experience

The launch of a ‘Zune phone’ has been the subject of plenty of speculation. Now Microsoft’s Zune HD portable media player has been incorporated into a mobile - but Microsoft’s done more than simply fuse a decent music and video player with a smartphone. While Microsoft isn’t exactly the first company to integrate a successful music player design ethos into a mobile phone, elements of the Zune HD’s user interface have been worked through the new smartphone interface, providing a clean and different take for a mobile phone UI. It’s completely different to what’s gone before - large, clear text and more straightforward navigation options. Naturally, the Zune music player experience means you get a great tune and video player set-up in the package too - something previously lacking in many Windows Phone devices.



3. Well integrated social networking apps

The ‘live tiles’ based homescreen set-up on Windows Phone 7 Series means users can customise their device to get regular automatic updates from favourite social networking sites and online services. These are well integrated with the phone’s contacts, providing a user-friendly way of getting updates, managing and using services. There’s plenty of user customisation options to keep it relevant and personal.



4. Xbox LIVE gaming support

Now that gamers have a mobile phone platform that supports Xbox LIVE, Microsoft could find its smartphone platform reaching out to a new market. With over 23 million active Xbox LIVE members currently around the world, Windows Phone 7 Series devices could be on to a winner.



5. Multi-tasking support

You’ll be able to operate multiple applications at the same time on a Windows Phone 7 Series device. Although nothing new for some smartphone platforms, we’re pleased to see Microsoft’s rvamped OS continuing to support this way of running a smartphone OS.



6. Tighter control over hardware and UI

As Apple’s experience has shown, a consistent smartphone look and user experience works very well for consumers. So, although Microsoft isn’t going to be manufacturing its own Windows Phone 7 Series handsets, it will be specifying certain handset hardware requirements and restricting the re-skinning by manufacturers of the ‘live tile’ user interface. Among the hardware requirements, Microsoft will be specifying a four-point multi-touch capacitive displays, processor, screen ratio, memory, plus a regular button configuration (including a dedicated one for Bing search). While the spec has the flexibility for additional elements such as Qwerty keyboards, the basic requirements should create a more consistent Windows Phone experience for consumers.



7. Support from key manufacturers

Getting large volumes of devices on the market is key to getting momentum for a new operating system, and Microsoft has got plenty of partners onboard to try to achieve that. While it will still have to deal with whatever Apple, Android, Symbian and others deliver before Windows Phone 7 Series launches towards the end of the year, the major manufacturers it has working with it to launch products include Dell, Garmin-Asus, HTC Corp., HP, LG, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, Toshiba and Qualcomm Inc. That should provide plenty of consumer choice for handsets when the platform launches.



8. Business demand

There are still plenty of corporate buyers and IT departments who’ll opt for a Microsoft-based smartphone solution. Windows Mobile’s market share may have declined significantly over the last year, but there is still a hard core of residual support that could be captalised upon if the hardware delivers. And although Microsoft may appear to be emphasising the consumer experience of its new smartphone OS, the business side of the smartphone business is also prominent in the spec list.



9. Application developer support

Although the Windows Phone 7 Series operating system is a completely new, Microsoft can expect plenty of support from application developers to ramp up the apps market for its OS. It’s no clear yet whether legacy applications will run on Windows Phone 7 Series device, but with strong support from manufacturers and mobile network operators, and keen attention from Microsoft itself, we expect the applications ecosystem should be pretty healthy soon after launch.



10. It’s Christmas!

Or rather, it will be shortly after Windows Phone 7 Series devices launch. Scheduled to be in stores ‘by holiday 2010′, we can expect some serious marketing effort to get hot new devices onto must-have present lists for gadget lovers. It good be a good Christmas for Microsoft if key models hit the stores with a positive buzz about them.

Tags: Microsoft, Mobile, Windows