Mobile OS Run Down
I've been thinking on what I would get next in terms of cell phones. Which ultimately got me thinking about the state of all of the major phone/mobile OS's on the market. And I've come to a conclusion. Every single one of them has one or more catastrophic flaw(s). And I wanted to do a quick run down on each. So I'll probably do a summary here and run down each OS in more detail in separete articles.
Blackberry:
Pros: Was revolutionary, great key boards, had focus at one time (was best email/work phones on the market).
Cons: Lost focus, too many phone models and form factors running on an OS that still feels very much like the original OS (ie, bad fit for touch phones, etc...)
Dev notes: Poor toolset, smaller market (not attractive to dev talent).
WP7:
Pros: Clean, fast and refreshing (iOS looks like a proper evolution of BB OS, Android is a sad rip-off of iOS, but WP7 is actually different).
Cons: Too restrictive for users (less customizable than iOS which is already harsh in that area), App selection limited in some areas, too restrictive for carriers and handset manufacturers.
Dev notes: Too restrictive for developers, hence the 2nd point above. MS is again MORE restrictive than Apple which is insane. API which is available to world is not same API MS and certain key partners have access to. Bad form. Also, not even minimal customization available to carriers and handset manufacturers? I think maybe they don't want people selling them. $100 dev fee ok (SDK can be acquired without paying fee).
iOS:
Pros: Like RIM, they paved the way for the next generation of devices. Their time under the sun isn't done yet.
Cons: Their UI is getting old to me fast, and I think they need something revolutionary in the OS department soon before they also end up like RIM.
Dev notes: No garbage collection? Seriously? I'll wager 95% of all App crashes are due to memory leaks. And 90% of those could be solved with garbage collection. $100 dev fee less OK. Obective-C = terrible. But overall... for that $100 you get access to a more stable platform than Android and more accessible API than WP7.
Android:
Pros: Cheap, customizable.
Cons: Everything else. Well not literally but pretty close.
Dev notes: I'll leave this until I blog on it... this one alone could take up pages.
Anyway, my end thoughts are; Mango opened up the API a bit more for WP7 developers and if that trend continues, I think the next biggest barrier would be the customization. If they could fix that WP8, I may stick with Windows Phone. Or, I'll stick with Windows Phone if none of the others get their acts together. I honestly don't ever see myself buying an Android, firstly for moral reasons and then secondly for reasons I'll touch when I go over that OS. If iOS can do something new, maybe my next phone could be my first iPhone. And on the less likely end of the spectrum, if Black Berry EVER gets their act together again, heck my next phone may even be my second BB.
Blackberry:
Pros: Was revolutionary, great key boards, had focus at one time (was best email/work phones on the market).
Cons: Lost focus, too many phone models and form factors running on an OS that still feels very much like the original OS (ie, bad fit for touch phones, etc...)
Dev notes: Poor toolset, smaller market (not attractive to dev talent).
WP7:
Pros: Clean, fast and refreshing (iOS looks like a proper evolution of BB OS, Android is a sad rip-off of iOS, but WP7 is actually different).
Cons: Too restrictive for users (less customizable than iOS which is already harsh in that area), App selection limited in some areas, too restrictive for carriers and handset manufacturers.
Dev notes: Too restrictive for developers, hence the 2nd point above. MS is again MORE restrictive than Apple which is insane. API which is available to world is not same API MS and certain key partners have access to. Bad form. Also, not even minimal customization available to carriers and handset manufacturers? I think maybe they don't want people selling them. $100 dev fee ok (SDK can be acquired without paying fee).
iOS:
Pros: Like RIM, they paved the way for the next generation of devices. Their time under the sun isn't done yet.
Cons: Their UI is getting old to me fast, and I think they need something revolutionary in the OS department soon before they also end up like RIM.
Dev notes: No garbage collection? Seriously? I'll wager 95% of all App crashes are due to memory leaks. And 90% of those could be solved with garbage collection. $100 dev fee less OK. Obective-C = terrible. But overall... for that $100 you get access to a more stable platform than Android and more accessible API than WP7.
Android:
Pros: Cheap, customizable.
Cons: Everything else. Well not literally but pretty close.
Dev notes: I'll leave this until I blog on it... this one alone could take up pages.
Anyway, my end thoughts are; Mango opened up the API a bit more for WP7 developers and if that trend continues, I think the next biggest barrier would be the customization. If they could fix that WP8, I may stick with Windows Phone. Or, I'll stick with Windows Phone if none of the others get their acts together. I honestly don't ever see myself buying an Android, firstly for moral reasons and then secondly for reasons I'll touch when I go over that OS. If iOS can do something new, maybe my next phone could be my first iPhone. And on the less likely end of the spectrum, if Black Berry EVER gets their act together again, heck my next phone may even be my second BB.
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