MS is getting really desperate with Apps count...

[JohnC]

http://www.wpcentral.com/microsoft-offe ... 0-new-apps

They are now offering up to $100 per app (up to $2000 max for all of them from a single developer, both for WP8 and W8) if you write one and it gets accepted, just to increase the total number of the apps in their app stores Sooo...You know, if you are resident of USA and want a quick $2k - just write something "useful" like an app with a button which, when clicked, produces some noise... Or just copy and paste some relevant info from some random website (or type up your own) and call your App "tips and tricks" or something... Or make your own "battery meter" app - should be popular since the stock battery indicator likes to "hide" on WP8 The "terms and conditions" say that "all apps must be unique", but I don't believe MS cares about such silly things


...On a more serious note: this really is **** pathetic... Instead of doing something like paying a single large amount of $$$ to official developers of Apps like Instagram or Waze or Pandora (or something equally popular and useful for a large amount of smartphone users) - they are wasting them on an unknown apps with questionable usability, just so they can say "...but we have 200000 apps right now!", even though a lot of the Apps look like this in WP8 store right now (yes, there's no official Facebook app - MS tried to make their own but abandoned it completely and they are too greedy to pay Facebook for an official one):

[danny e.]

Yeah, the whole "app count" thing bothers me with all three. I could not care less about the apple application count or the android application count or the microsoft application count.

No one has time to wade through 275,000 junk applications to find a few good ones.

Quality over quantity. Too bad society is run by morons.

[Chrispy_]

Madness!

I would have thought facebook, twitter and skype support would be mandatory for any phone launch. I didn't realise it was this dire on WP8
Then again, I am not surprised; I'm convinced Microsoft as a corporation has gone completely mad.

[FireGryphon]

I was hoping that Microsoft's ubiquitous desktop and laptop platofrm could extend to phones and tablets for ultimate usefulness. This does not seem to be happening.

[BIF]

This is all because Microsoft thinks it's hip and it's sh#t doesn't stink.

Comeon, just look at anybody in a position of power at Microsoft. Not hip, so why bother trying? Just make it work.

[Sargent Duck]

Yeah, sometimes I wonder about it all.

I have WP7 and absolutely love it. When I first got it 1.5 years ago, I went out and downloaded a whole bunch of years. Over the years, I've slowly started deleting all the apps I never use...which is most of them.

When I'm talking with an Apple guy and he says something along the lines of "iphone is better because it has a bazillion apps", I just respond with "more like a bazillion - 1 fart apps".

I agree with other posters have said. Microsoft needs to put out high quality apps and forget quantity. Quality over quantity. Ever time.

[absurdity]

Quality over quantity.

The app count does matter, however. They need to be able to claim a certain number to be competitive, even if more informed people like us know it's crap. I can't imagine they'd be so silly as to not be working on getting official apps for Facebook, etc. out there either.

[flip-mode]

This is all because Microsoft thinks it's hip and it's sh#t doesn't stink.

Huh? Seems to me the motivation is that MS thinks it isn't hip enough and it's sh#t is kinda stinky.

And what's the big deal with App count. I can't imagine the need for 300,000 apps. On Android and Apple, the fact is that half of those apps are duplicates of each other and none of them are the sliver bullet. I'd rather see 50,000 fantastic apps than 300,000 shoddy apps. That's an oversimplification but there's an underlying truth to it.

[JohnC]

Quality over quantity.

The app count does matter, however.

No, it does not. I have contacted several app developers for my favorite apps which I have used on iOS and asked them if they have plans to develop WP8 versions (or update their very old WP7 apps). Most have told me they have no plans to do so due to smaller (basically meaning "insignificant") user base. Nobody mentioned "number of apps" - developers are smart to not care about useless numbers like this.

I can't imagine they'd be so silly as to not be working on getting official apps for Facebook, etc. out there either.

MS tried to write their own FB app, but the current version is extremely bad (basically it's better to use FB's mobile website) and was last updated on 12/15/2012... And I highly doubt that they would be willing to pay enough $$$ to FB themselves to develop and maintain an official version of this app (the simple fact is, they could've done that long time ago, but they didn't).

Overall, after using WP8 device for few months, I got the feeling that MS just doesn't really care about this platform at all and does everything for it to not succeed (same as with WP7)... The fact that WP8 still have a huge number of features missing or not working properly, the fact that MS only cares about "quantity" of garbage apps, the fact that they (as well as Nokia) don't even bother improving their own apps quickly enough (the Skype was recently updated on WP8, BUT it is still in "preview" state and works worse than on any other platform! The Nokia's app like "HERE Drive+" is still in "beta" stage and is still extremely deficient). As much as I actually want to see more competition in mobile OS world, I just don't see "Windows Phone" OS to ever become a significant one...

[Chrispy_]

Cool, so now we've established that Microsoft doesn't care about RT, can we please get a sensible corporate and non-touch interface for all the other PC's on the planet?
kthxbai.

[Sargent Duck]

As much as I actually want to see more competition in mobile OS world, I just don't see "Windows Phone" OS to ever become a significant one...

I am a huge WP7 fan (and I guess, by extension, WP8) and I am forced to agree with you on this. I just don't see Microsoft putting any additional resources (advertising, development support) into this.

[cphite]

Quality over quantity.

The app count does matter, however.

No, it does not. I have contacted several app developers for my favorite apps which I have used on iOS and asked them if they have plans to develop WP8 versions (or update their very old WP7 apps). Most have told me they have no plans to do so due to smaller (basically meaning "insignificant") user base. Nobody mentioned "number of apps" - developers are smart to not care about useless numbers like this.

Exactly.

If I am an app developer (I'm not) I want a large user base first and foremost. I can't imagine an app developer saying "I'd really like those users to have to scroll though more apps by other people just to find mine."

[ericfulmer]

I don't think you can disentangle the number of apps from the user base. More apps mean better advertising and more interest, which can mean more users to attract more developers, which means more apps... ad infinitum, ad nauseum.

Look at WebOS. It was, arguably, a better OS than others in its day, but the low app count was in the talking points every time it was mentioned. And then it died.

[JohnC]

Look at WebOS. It was, arguably, a better OS than others in its day, but the low app count was in the talking points every time it was mentioned. And then it died.

WebOS died because HP didn't really know how to properly market and support it... Just like with all of other hardware/software they currently make Ever since Carly Fiorina became their CEO - everything at HP went completely downhill and the situation never improved (it got even worse after they have selected Apotheker).

[ChronoReverse]

Too bad it's not available to Canadaland. I'd scratch up some apps to see if I couldn't pocket some change.

[ericfulmer]

I think webOS was dead on smartphone before Hp bought it. The Palm pre was always beaten up in reviews because too few apps, even though it had most of the major ones. So many reviewers liked it, but always mentioned it had only 10000 apps when iOS had a couple hundred thousand. Maybe not the only reason, but it is some evidence that the number of apps does matter.

[JohnC]

can we please get a sensible corporate and non-touch interface for all the other PC's on the planet?
kthxbai.

[Captain Ned]

Oh, c'mon. He's much more persuasive when mimicking a babboon.

[Chrispy_]

can we please get a sensible corporate and non-touch interface for all the other PC's on the planet?
kthxbai.

<3 Ballmerfaces.

[Ryhadar]

Why would you want the official facebook app anyway? Last I heard, it was so bad on iOS and Android that Facebook started forcing their employees to use it so it got better. Additionally, the built in facebook viewer for Windows Phone is really, really good. It provides the basics -- for example, you can't view private messages -- but it's all built into the OS so you can share stuff pretty darn easily. Events appear on your calendar. No additional app required.

I don't see anything wrong with this promotion. In fact, I might even take advantage of it myself.

[JohnC]

No additional app required.

If you're satisfied with an awful integration of FB/Twitter into People's Hub - good for you. I'm not, and neither are many other people. So yes, an additional fully-featured app IS actually required. Having a choice is a good thing (even if Microsoft does not believe in it)

[Caldwell]

Yeah, sometimes I wonder about it all.

I have WP7 and absolutely love it. When I first got it 1.5 years ago, I went out and downloaded a whole bunch of years. Over the years, I've slowly started deleting all the tablet apps I never use...which is most of them.

When I'm talking with an Apple guy and he says something along the lines of "iphone is better because it has a bazillion apps", I just respond with "more like a bazillion - 1 fart apps".

I agree with other posters have said. Microsoft needs to put out high quality apps and forget quantity. Quality over quantity. Ever time.

Of course ... you are right.

[NovusBogus]

It's even funnier if you have an MSDN subscription because you get totally schizo emails from Redmond bragging about how well WinRT is doing and then begging/bribing readers to give them some apps. WP8 (and winRT) will fail for the same reason WP7 did, they make it difficult to develop apps by copying the crappy iOS business model but lack the huge number of existing devices to justify the hassle. Like any good protection racket, even if you can stomach the various monthly fees you're going to be on the hook forever because once you're in you cannot get out again without your app taking a bit of a fall onto some bullets. I could go on for a while about why the model sucks and only a team of marginally-trained baboons with marketing titles could possibly take any of it seriously, but instead I'll just refer to an excellent series of blogs in which a Microsoft MVP and major player in .NET business software development utterly demolishes the WP7/WP8/WRT model as it relates to the business and enterprise space (MS's primary customers). Despite the enterprise focus it's pretty easy to see how this would apply to anything more sophisticated than a mickey-mouse fart button or Angry Birds knockoff, though.

http://www.lhotka.net/weblog/CostToEnab ... evice.aspx
http://www.lhotka.net/weblog/Windows8LO ... rsquo.aspx
http://www.lhotka.net/weblog/Perspectiv ... nsing.aspx
http://www.lhotka.net/weblog/Windows8Wi ... pdate.aspx
http://www.lhotka.net/weblog/Windows8Wi ... Ideas.aspx

I personally experimented with WP7 development at my former employer, and while the UI was really pretty good the backend stuff just wasn't conducive to what we would need for a mobile app. I also wasn't even technically supposed to be able to do it since I accidentally a registry editor rather than pay $99/year for the privilege of 'deploying' my own apps to my own device with no intention of any of it ever leaving R&D. Result: a document about my experiences, good and bad, which found its way into the hands of management and probably had a hand in the company's mobile roadmap that--surprise surprise--focuses on Android and iOS. Really a shame, since of all the mobile platforms I've seen WinPhone easily has the best underlying technology.

[moog]

I like WP8, I think it's gotten better over time in terms of speed/smoothness. Particularly the Weave app, a news reader I use when I need to socialize.

Battery life has gotten better on my Nokia Lumia 920, I get through a day and a half without chargins. I usually only check email (100+ emails a day, 100+ checks a day). Sometimes I call my mom, it works even in noisy places because of the background canceling mic.

WP8 actually has most of the apps you might want (in addition to Office, which you might not want). Though I only play Wordament and Monster Island. It was free. No big deal, if you have a pc or xbox, don't waste time on the phone.

I have Skype, but didn't open an account. Maybe some day. OK. I didn't bother with the other messaging apps like Tweeter.

I have SoundHound to identify songs on the radio I plan to pirate. Then I found out the Bing could identify songs too. Swell.

Nokia maps works great, it finds places TomTom can't.

The camera on the 920 is the best. Mostly I take photos of the food I eat in the dark. You'd be surprised how dark it is in all restaurants, it's imperative to get a good camera and the 920 is the best without a doubt. Compared to an iPhone, the 920 never has that awful pasty yellow exposure and is sharper.

What I love the most about my Nokia Lumia 920 is that it's HELLO YELLOW. With HOT PINK tiles. I've had people ask me about my color choice. I was stunned. It was nice. Even if they look at me funny, the attention is nice.

The one knock I have against the 920 is its weight. It's made of polycarbonate so doesn't need a shell, but too weighty. Yet I like it better than the HTC 8X because Nokia's maps, music, and camera are by far better and only available on Nokia. I regret not waiting for the 925 which has the Nokia ecosystem and a lightweight aluminum body (but only silver).

Edit: Wrong thread, ignore.