Tech Thirst
Yes, that Woz. He says he prefers Windows Phone over anything else. That’s pretty amazing, and definitely a nod towards Microsoft’s efforts. He finds Android navigation cumbersome and iOS interactions are more awkward. Click the link the title for full the story.
I have to say, kudos to him for being a honest critique. But on my end, I guess I’m just used to Android navigation so much that it seems natural to me. When I’m on iOS, I’m always lost and have no clue what to do. I’m constantly looking for a back button – especially when one app knocks me to another and there’s no way to come back. Really frustrating experience.
That being said, Windows Phone definitely has a great UI and is really, really easy to use. Both my parents own Windows Phones and they caught onto the whole thing incredibly quick. On the flipside, my dad has an Android tablet (Acer Iconia A100) and it took a week of questions for him to finally get comfortable. My mom used to have an iPod touch and I think she still hasn’t figured out how to use the darn thing. I don’t know what it is, but she never got the hang of it. Until she stopped using it, there would be questions nearly on a daily basis.
Of course, these are just my observances. The case for iOS, Android, and/or Windows Phone will greatly differ depending on the user’s background in technology. Both my parents are more tech-savvy than most others, so I guess that may be a reason for their situation.
With Ice Cream Sandwich, it seems that things have improved greatly. The Android interface is not only a lot more beautiful, but also a bit more intuitive. However, the amount of power Google has shoved into Android still makes it a lot more complicated than any other OS, and that’s just a consequence of the robustness of the OS. As Matias and the team focus more on design, I think we’re going to see things get a lot more simpler for the average user, but even at the state of Android right now, there’s a lot for regular users to grasp right away.
Here’s one thing that stuck out to me, though:
He’s so impressed by it, in fact, that he defines the experience of using a Windows Phone as feeling like you’re “with a friend not a tool.
But here’s the thing – I need my phone to be a tool, not just a friend. I need to do things on my phone and get out. Sure, it takes some setting up, but once that’s done I’m in and out of my phone in seconds to check 3 different inboxes, 3 social networks, a calendar, and the latest headlines. There’s no opening apps, just switching between three screens.
Yes, Windows Phone is simple, but simple doesn’t always get the job done. For me – Android just does. Windows Phone and iOS simply don’t have what it takes for me to switch over. It’s not about Google-integration or anything – it’s just how it works is how I need my devices to do things for me. I can go on for hours about why, but the other platforms just don’t cut it, and they’re far from getting there as well.
