All you’re showing is how young you probably are, and to that end a bit too lazy to do any research. Dude Way before O365 Microsoft had Hotmail which introduced all these features to the web way before many of the other players were even around. True. Microsoft seems to make many mistakes. Also true. You have no idea what you’re saying. Go do some research on how much money Microsoft make from licensing its technologies, it’s mind blowing. So yes they seemingly tend to make popular mistakes, but they’re not in this to make friends, they’re in it to make money, and to that end they’re one of the most successful companies on the planet. Time for you to go back to school a little, no offense.
Bring Back Windows Phone
Before you dismiss this as another useless suggestion, I would like you to read this and think about it. I, like many others, enjoyed using windows phone and would love to see it come back however there undoubtedly were flaws, this suggestion addresses them and suggests ways to economically bring back windows phone
I will start by saying that although windows phone development is dead, the community most certainly is not. a simple TikTok search will reveal that many people still use windows phone devices because they are simply so nice to use. many key aspects of windows phone, like tiles, horizontal swiping, system-wide dark mode, and themes keep people coming back because it looks so nice and it is very easy to use. people liked windows phone as they bought key information together, like in the social center and the People app from the waterdrop sounds when unlocking your phone, or the charging sound, everything about windows phone was so well thought out that people loved it. and keep coming back to it even years later after it was discontinued. if windows phone were to come back, I'm sure people would switch back.
Now its time to address the elephant in the room, app support:
the main factor in WPs demise was the lack of app support; users couldn't download their favorite apps, and developers didn't want to make them, causing a cycle that was bound for failure. there is one solution for this, bring windows phones to android. now I am well aware this is no easy feat, the windows phone kernel and software were built entirely around its hardware and existing windows software. to try to switch windows phone to android would take days of coding but I do believe there really is a market for windows phone and with the right approach, this could really be a success.
Should windows phone return, here are some things that should remain as they were beforehand:
The start screen - one of the main reasons people loved windows phone was the metro UI start screen. it looked beautiful and most people really enjoyed using it, the app launch animations were lovely, and coming back to it every time was a pleasure, although it should be reworked to allow for android gestures.
system design theme - a lot of the system was built on horizontal swiping, which made windows phones remarkably easy to use with one hand, and changing across screens was easy and sleek, not to mention that the dark mode just made everything look so much more beautiful.
sounds - almost every windows phone sound was great to hear, if you moved to android and didn't keep those sounds it would be a mistake.
animations and optimization - what makes windows phone so usable to this day is the optimized system and UI. animations were snappy and beautiful to look at especially launching into Microsoft apps.
keyboard - I hate to say it but the swift key keyboard sucks, most people would rather opt for Samsung's or google's variant to swiftkey, however, the WP keyboard sounded lovely, used swipe typing ahead of its time, and looked great
some aspects of the system should change, like the notification center, which was quite bulky and looked quite harsh, but for its time Windows Phone got a lot of things right, especially compared to IOS and Android which were lacking behind. unfortunately, the one problem with the devices killed them off so there is no hope of having its own platform now.
moving to android would have a lot of benefits for windows phone, like being able to use Microsofts apps on the play store or tying in with other Google services like youtube, not to mention that all android features would automatically be added and accounted for in the windows UI.
To finish off I'm going to say that moving windows phone to android won't only be great for the consumer, but it will also be great for Microsoft, who can start to look at the mobile market again. with the right moves, I am sure that Microsoft will succeed on the Android platform and that this will benefit everyone. i look forward to reading your opinions on this topic and i am sure that atleast someone will agree with me
Windows for home | Other | Apps
Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.
147 answers
Sort by: Newest
-
Anonymous
2024-03-04T11:47:33+00:00 -
Anonymous
2024-03-02T23:29:45+00:00 I would've loved it but looking at how Microsoft is trying to copy iOS and Android i would be more interested in Linux now... Somehow I think Microsoft will just manage to mess it all up yet again. making a pot stew with no distinct flavor. Example .. office 365.. calendar and bookings, essentially exactly the same just a couple of differences .. many applications like that. Office 365 is the backbone of my work and it has a quite a few redundancies, I think only for the sake of being like iOS or Google. No original touch
-
Anonymous
2024-03-02T22:52:22+00:00 I, like others comments, could not agree more with your suggestions. I used WP 7, WP 8, WP 8.1, and WP 10 Mobile and loved its unique approach to the home screen, system wide dark or light mode, animations, etc. Microsofts CEO recently mentioned in a Q&A that one of his greatest pitfalls was the shuttering of WP and I'd completely agree with that.
If/when WP makes a cone back I'll be ready.
-
Anonymous
2024-02-28T11:19:21+00:00 In india Bring back windows phone as same windows operating system. but some changes need to improve for selling like as deals with google apps, some other app like whatsapp, instagram, facebook, . Privacy and security like as before windows id. you should do everything like as i phone.
Those time windows phone not running in market long time because that time internet is too slow like 2g, 3g. almost persons used memory card and other things for media entertaintment. everyone have face issues to sharing data one device to another.
but its time to different. everything is change.
I belive windows phone is running in 2025. and beat android and i phone. but some improvement are nessesary.
-
Anonymous
2024-02-09T09:32:13+00:00 Amen. Windows Phone was awesome! The fact that we had a great OS on a phone made in conjunction with a company that specializes in indestructible phones (Nokia) was a dream come true! We need it back! Apple has only started to make quality hardware, but iOS still stinks. Samsung and LG are slacking off when it comes to durable phones. Google has been making phones, but they're still finding their footing. Not to mention the number of operating issues that Google's latest Android platform has been having. The iron is hot for a new mobile OS and hardware; now is the time for Microsoft to strike! And bring back the Band wearable. That was pretty cool.
The only reason Microsoft got rid of their phones in the first place was because things got off to a slow start. So what if they did? Google didn't quit on their hardware program, and now their Pixel line of devices and accessories is flourishing. They obviously realized that Rome wasn't built in a day. It's time for Microsoft to do the same.