I just caught a link to a Wikipedia page about Windows Phone 7 from @brentO that shows some missing features at launch. I figured I would give my take on them here. Please don’t expect too much insight as I am not really “in the know” on Windows Phone 7. I am an MVP still, but I have very little info right now. I am not a developer so I don’t have the insight from that angle either.
Also, keep in mind that I have been using an iPhone as my daily driver since Windows Mobile 6.5 was released. I am still a fan of Windows Mobile even though I don’t use it daily right now. I know this will sound fanboyish, but I am really, really hoping that Windows Phone 7 brings me back. From what I have seen so far, it could. Anyway, on to the list!
Microsoft said that when Windows Phone 7 is initially released, the operating system will not be “feature complete”. Microsoft said that it will complete features and add them through updates when they are complete with a high degree of quality.
Windows Phone 7 will not have backward compatibility with Windows Mobile 6.5 apps.
This is a good thing in my opinion. One of the stigmas that Windows Mobile had was the need to hard reset often. I am not going to say that it’s 100% the fault of 3rd party software, but I am going to say that it’s a large part of the problem. When people stuff their Windows Mobile 6.5 device with software that was designed to run on Pocket PC 2002, you are asking for problems. There was no strict guideline on the quality of applications in the past either. A developer could write an app that could have massive memory leaks and who would be to blame? Microsoft, it’s the fault of the OS. Right. I support this choice wholeheartedly.
Microsoft hardware specifications mandate that all Windows Phone 7 handsets include an electronic compass. However, the compass feature will not be working at release time, as the compass API is not complete, and software programmers will not be able to access it.
This is no good. If this is 100% true, it’s not a good sign.
The networking API does not give access to sockets, preventing Voice over IP applications such as Skype from operating on Windows Phone 7. At MIX10, Microsoft’s Istvan Cseri spoke about 3rd party access to sockets:
“We are offering HTTP and multiple flavours of web client frameworks and APIs for that…in this release, we are not going to have direct socket access…it is going to come at a later time.”
I personally don’t care much, but it could pose a greater issue than Skype down the road. I am sure this will be addressed.
IPsec virtual private network (VPN) security was supported in Windows Mobile, but will not be supported in Windows Phone 7.
Say goodbye to enterprise users? I am not totally up on what Microsoft is going after with WP7, but I am guessing it’s more consumer oriented people and less about business. Rim should be happy.
Microsoft has decided that data access via Removable SD Card and PC Tethering, both of which were supported in Windows Mobile, will not be supported in Windows Phone 7 in the interest of data security which appeals to enterprise users.
This kind of contradicts what I said to the VPN issue. I don’t have any comments on this.
There is no universal in-box to view multiple email accounts.
This is going to suck big time. I hope they have future plans to include multiple boxes/sources. Although I do know you can set up separate apps for checking email. A demo I have seen online showed a Gmail account and an exchange account with separate blocks. I would rather be able to check both accounts in one app though.
Although Windows Mobile 6.5 had full multitasking, Microsoft has decided not to allow 3rd party multitasking in Windows Phone 7 until as it stated they can execute it well enough in a fashion which won’t affect user experience which in this release they deem essential for its success. Windows Phone 7 will only allow one application to run in the foreground at one time, and no 3rd party apps will be allowed to run in the background, but the state of the application is saved so the application does not restart when the user returns to it unless they open more apps that require heavy system resources in which case the app will be notified of its termination and it can save its own state (if its developer implemented that). The lack of multitasking also prevents inter-application communication between third-party apps.
I see this a smart move taken right out of Apple’s playbook. Apple recently allowed limited 3rd party multitasking though. I will say that I do enjoy being able to use twitter and read email while still listening to Pandora on the iPhone, so this will bite a bit. For the stability of the devices running Windows Phone 7, I support the choice.
Windows Phone 7 will not support Microsoft’s Windows Rights Management Services, which controls who can read and edit Office documents.
I don’t know anything about this subject, so no comment.
The browser (based on the desktop version of IE 7) in Windows Phone 7 will not support Flash, Silverlight and HTML5 at launch. Though Flash has been confirmed to be coming to the platform, no such confirmation has been made for Silverlight or HTML5.
Microsoft will be crazy not to support both Flash and their own product. I am disappointed to see that this isn’t going to make it in at launch.
There is no Native Development Kit (NDK), used by software developers to create native apps. Mozilla cited this as the reason it will not bring Firefox for mobile to Windows Phone 7.
If Windows Phone 7′s own browser works well, who needs Firefox anyhow? 
At launch, Windows Phone 7 will not have the ability to cut, copy, and paste. It will recognise telephone numbers and addresses, but Microsoft says the majority of users don’t need ‘cut, copy, and paste’.
This will take a lot of harsh criticism with all that Apple went through on the same subject. I personally don’t care, but I see this being a huge problem for some. I know a few people that were big complainers about the iPhone not having cut and paste that have since told me that they rarely use it now that they can. Yes. Some people cry for features they won’t actually use.
Bottom line, none of these items are deal breakers for me personally. The main ingredient that Microsoft needs to have when they launch is applications. They really have to get the support of the developers again. If they don’t, it’s going to be a hard sell in my opinion. A really good Twitter app, Facebook app, Pandora, email client, and web browser are essential for me. Although with Zune, I might not care so much about Pandora.
Do I heart Windows Phone? We shall see soon enough!
