Except it doesn't have the Google Play store or Play Services, so it's not going to appeal to the usual Android user.
As someone who uses Windows Phone, I keep scratching my head wondering why Microsoft even bothers.
As someone who uses Windows Phone, I keep scratching my head wondering why Microsoft even bothers.
China approved the Nokia acquisition only on April 8, what would have happened if they didn't? Without an Android strategy, Nokia would be left without any momentum for atleast a year in a fast moving market. Remember how FTC denied AT&T and Tmobile's merger?
The only interesting thing here is that Microsoft didn't immediately kill the X2 and lay off Nokia's Android team. They could do that anytime or sell that division to some other company. There would be a lot of people at MS calling for its head. The headline, story and most of the comments seem to be implying that it's Microsoft that conceived and implemented this idea which is wrong.
Do you seriously think there would be any other possible outcome for the burning platform memo?
This phone is not aimed at people who a power users. This phone is aimed at emerging economies where people are buying their first smartphones. Nokia X has all the basics (music, free messaging, email, Instagram, Facebook, Whatsapp), all running on some reasonable hardware.
>This phone is not aimed at people who a power users.
This is a market segment which can also easily be filled by Windows Phone - it's probably even better for that. That I also find baffling. Windows Phone doesn't seem to be compatible with the particular SoC used in this device, but that is a problem Microsoft should be able to fix...
My second would be hurting Google by not providing their services as default, while increasing traffic to their own cloud services.
My third guess would be increasing their global smartphone marketshare by entering the Android market and it's massive apps marketplace.
And a fourth guess, if 200.000 app makers enter the Nokia store, they could easily email all of them to consider converting their app to the WP market... With some clever subsidizing in place (eg. 0% cut the first 6 months, instead of the default 30%), it could increase the WP Apps quantity in a very short period.
I realize that's not relevant to the vast majority of the market, but I'm curious.