[fschmeck]

I'm starting to consider a switch away from BB10 for family, and am considering Windows Phone. Would like some opinions from anyone who has made that switch (to version 10) or has at least attempted it.

Some background:

• I have used Windows Phone 7 and 8 a fair bit, and liked it (at the time)
  I am concerned about the app situation. WhatsApp, Facebook, Reebee are key apps. Maybe MyFitnessPal. BBM seems dead on it i think?

Is the app situation for WP that dire? It doesn't look like a lot of apps have been updated in a while, from what i'm seeing in the store.
I have migrated another family member to an Android 6.0 device, and it was somewhat frustrating (they use yahoo exclusively so having to make a gmail account that will go unused, and having to find a solution for their calendar was a pain).

There's also the issue if Microsoft is committed to WP, or if they'll end up on another dead platform in a year, but would love it if anyone share their experiences.

[conite]

Going from a platform with 0.2% market share to one with 0.7% market share may not be the best plan. It's like jumping from one sinking ship to another.

[joeldf]

I agree with Conite.

I considered Windows phone as a possible future alternative almost 2 years ago when I saw how badly things were going with BB10.

Since then, Windows Phone's future started looking just as bad. I'm still on BB10 with my Z10 continuing to hang in there, but since even Microsoft has pretty much abandoned the phone market - preferring to focus on the tablet instead - I figure why should I bother.

Posted via CB10

[eshropshire]

I personally think the Microsoft CEO is much less committed to Windows 10 mobile than Chen is to BB10. Microsoft has lost Billions on Windows mobile. Having worked with and against Microsoft for almost 30 years you can see when they have given up on a product. MS completely ignored Windows mobile at the MS Build conference and I see nothing about it at their upcoming Ignite conference.

I am convinced they are done with Mobile. They will let partners keep going, but I think we have seen the last phone from Microsoft.

Microsoft's mobile strategy is to push their products and services on iOS and Android.

[TgeekB]

I personally think the Microsoft CEO is much less committed to Windows 10 mobile than Chen is to BB10. Microsoft has lost Billions on Windows mobile. Having worked with and against Microsoft for almost 30 years you can see when they have given up on a product. MS completely ignored Windows mobile at the MS Build conference and I see nothing about it at their upcoming Ignite conference.

I am convinced they are done with Mobile. They will let partners keep going, but I think we have seen the last phone from Microsoft.

Microsoft's mobile strategy is to push their products and services on iOS and Android.

Redstone 2 will be all about windows mobile, from what I've read.

[Troy Tiscareno]

Redstone 2 will be all about windows mobile, from what I've read.

They can build it, and they can advertise it, but that doesn't mean that people will buy it. That's been their issue all along.

[TgeekB]

They can build it, and they can advertise it, but that doesn't mean that people will buy it. That's been their issue all along.

That's true, just pointing out they haven't abandoned it.

I think their future strategy is interesting though.

[anon(2313227)]

Yeah how about Windows phone 7 and RT and previous to that. If it was BB, it would be long dead. Too bad BB had no money like MS to keep wasting. BB10 is way better than Windows

[skstrials]

Look on their app store to see if you can have all the apps that you want. If you can, then Windows Mobile is a perfectly fine OS.

For me, I found that the app situation on the Windows side is even worse than on BlackBerry, so I could not even make a move.



Posted via CB10

[Cody Salter]

I really liked my Lumia 920 although it broke and I went to the Z30 after, and now passport. Loved the camera, hardware and the live tiles were great. Fluid UI although when I used it it lacked things like a notification center etc. But it's come a long way now.

Posted via CB10

[MikeX74]

W10 mobile is more likely to get new apps at this point than BB10 is, though it'll be slow going. If apps are what you need most, Android(if you're opposed to Apple/iOS/iPhone) is the way to go.

[eshropshire]

Redstone 2 will be all about windows mobile, from what I've read.

Sorry I don't see that happening for mobile. MS has gone silent for almost the entire year on Mobile. They have written off the value of the mobile group in their last few quarters. More importantly they have let go most of the world wide mobile team. I think Microsoft wants out of mobile just like they got out of RT. If they saw a future in Redstone for mobile, they would have pushed mobile development at the Build Conference.

[TgeekB]

Sorry I don't see that happening for mobile. MS has gone silent for almost the entire year on Mobile. They have written off the value of the mobile group in their last few quarters. More importantly they have let go most of the world wide mobile team. I think Microsoft wants out of mobile just like they got out of RT. If they saw a future in Redstone for mobile, they would have pushed mobile development at the Build Conference.

Have you been part of the builds? Have you followed the latest universal apps coming to the platform? It won't matter whether you are using a PC, a laptop, or a mobile device in the future. All will bring the same experience. They haven't left mobile, they are creating a universal OS for all devices.

Now whether it will succeed or not, we don't know yet.

[PantherBlitz]

I have been using it for a while and have come to appreciate it's strengths. The app situation is better than it is with BB10 if you don't take into account Android apps that still work with the old ART. They still update it regularly and even have a W10 Anniversary Edition for it. As for the future, nobody knows for sure if UWA will keep it a viable platform or not. Take the plunge if it interests you - its not like you have to sign a lease to do it.

I would get a device that supports Convergence because that seems like a cool feature or else get one on the cheap.

[fschmeck]

Thanks for the info.

I checked out the app store. It really does feel like BlackBerry in many ways, though we have the benefit of Art.

MyFitnessPal: No. WhatsApp is there though I don't know how old. BBM I think is gone or dead. Does not seem to be a ton of WP 10 support yet. Having Office is great though, but I question MS' commitment going forward.

I think the best approach is as others said: wait and see. Or maybe the next BB device will be enough.

Posted via CB10

[GreenCopperz]

Christ, I used an upgrade to try android 6.0 and I must say I miss the gestures and the what I now know is flawless bb keyboard

[Invictus0]

Thanks for the info.

I checked out the app store. It really does feel like BlackBerry in many ways, though we have the benefit of Art.

MyFitnessPal: No. WhatsApp is there though I don't know how old. BBM I think is gone or dead. Does not seem to be a ton of WP 10 support yet. Having Office is great though, but I question MS' commitment going forward.

I think the best approach is as others said: wait and see. Or maybe the next BB device will be enough.

Posted via CB10

WhatsApp is updated pretty regularly on Windows Phone. The BBM app was pulled recently but there were quite a few complaints about it even when the app was available and being updated. They still advertise the Windows Phone app on the BBM website so hopefully they bring the app back soon with an update to fix some of the problems users had with it.

[Fool Guy]

#conite is absolutely right.
You can wait what Nokia is bringing or even other mainstream cellphone makers are introducing very good phones now a days.

[Sukhbeer Mangat]

Dont go to windows phone, its on the same phase that blackberry was in 2013, better buy a priv or dtek50, android is much better and you won't miss your favorite apps like bb keyboard and hub.

[magicdesign]

I have a passport and Lumia 950xl. (among other devices).

The blackberry os is much more intuative and smooth. Audio is better on blackberry too. As is battery life. Blackberry email hub cannot be beaten.

Apps on blackberry are limited (as we know). If the apps were good enough, I would never leave.

Camera is better on the Lumia. Facebook and twitter have updated apps. Microsoft apps (office) all work nicely.

Microsoft have led developers to make universal apps which means that they can leverage the demand for apps for the PC market, while at the same time, those apps becoming available for mobile.

Honestly though, w10m is not much of a lift from the blackberry, unless you need Facebook and twitter apps.

Given that blackberry launched the idol 4 as the dtek50, I would speculate that they may also launch the idol 4s as a future higher spec device - and if they did, that would be an excellent device.

[Bonnie Bonzai]

I have been a BlackBerry user since 2008, in April this year I bought a Lumia 950 with W10 OS, big mistake, it needs lots of work and the apps are expensive. Yesterday I put my Sim card back in my Passport. Happy now

Posted via CB10

[william_wirthtorres]

I have a Lumia (Win10), Z10, Z30, and a DTEK50.

I love the BB10 OS and with Cobalt's android 'update' can install all my Android apps. But I wanted a phone with planned and native app installation as well as seemless connection to my other devices, so I tried out a Win10 phone. Loved the OS, loved the UI, loved the device connectivity, but of my 26 mission critical apps, Win10 phone was missing 7! I can NOT have a phone without my bank's app or my streaming music service's app.
Heck, even a bunch of the much touted WIn10 features are NOT even available in Canada with no planned release dates.

I found BB10 has more of the apps I need then Win10 mobile. Of course, Android has even more of the apps I need, so I got the DTEK50 to try out android. Obviously, apps aren't the problem here. My problem now is that I do not find android intuitive to use. BB10 was a breeze to pick up. With android, I'm finding more and more annoyances where the OS gets in the way of completing actions.

Unless the next BB10 phone is keyboardless AND has all of the Play Store's apps available natively, I'll have no choice but to stick with android and deal with a clumsy UI.

[yyz321]

Going from a platform with 0.2% market share to one with 0.7% market share may not be the best plan. It's like jumping from one sinking ship to another.

I really want to try W10 phone but this is probably the main reason why I'd hesitate to switch.

[pgg101]

I really want to try W10 phone but this is probably the main reason why I'd hesitate to switch.

Don't throw good money after bad. Find a dirt cheap used one. After the thrill of a new OS wears off, you are left with the same issues you have with BlackBerry 10.

RedBerry Passport /10.3.2.2876 / Telus

[john_v]

Don't throw good money after bad. Find a dirt cheap used one. After the thrill of a new OS wears off, you are left with the same issues you have with BlackBerry 10.

RedBerry Passport /10.3.2.2876 / Telus

While this is good advice to an extent, keep in mind that most "dirt cheap used" Windows phones may not be getting Windows 10 Mobile. So while I would also encourage buying used for a trial run, do your homework. No point in buying something that runs WP8 and won't be getting 10. I'm currently using a Lumia 735 with Windows 10 Mobile on Verizon and I have mixed feelings about it. I'm not a big social media user so wahtsapp, snapchat, all that, doesn't really affect me. Small amount of FB use to keep in touch with family around the world, but for that the browser does a better job than the FB app. Chase doesn't have a banking app, but again browser works just fine for what I need.

As others have said, the app situation is not dissimilar to BB10. But as always, it boils down to what are you looking to use your phone for. Right now for me, phone calls/email/text/calendar is king, and W10m handles that just fine. Some Office use, but I will say that Office on iOS and Android seems a little more polished. I guess they know that's where the money is at.

Right now the W10m phone is getting the job done for me, because I enjoy not being on contract or having a device payment. But if I had the cash to purchase even a year-old Nexus or Moto device? Probably would, and keep the Lumia just to play with Win10m. Who knows, maybe it will become more polished in the future. But right now, Android and iOS are pretty much your "known quantities", and based on having used Android, iOS, BB10, and W10m in the last 2 years, if I had to invest a large chunk of money over the next couple years on a phone, it would be Android or iOS.