On April 1st we found out about the lack of Marketplace for existing Windows Mobile owners. We also posted the following paragraph…
“Customers are king, old or new. Keep them happy. Over the years I’ve felt that the network operators and Microsoft simply want the new customer – updates rarely arrive on network-locked handsets and new Microsoft software only appears when you throw your phone in the bin and buy a new one in the shop. This is outdated, this is wrong.”
It seems that it’s not just me who thinks this way, as PC World has spotted. A few weeks ago Microsoft decided to ask Windows Mobile users for questions about the platform on Facebook. Perhaps the most telling part of the resulting pages of questions are the constant queries regarding upgrades. Many posts in the Facebook thread relate to the annoyance that a brand new device like the HTC Touch HD or even the fairly recent HTC Touch Pro will be considered out-dated and can’t be upgraded through official channels. The reasons are well known to visitors of coolsmartphone.com and it all relates to network providers tweaking Windows Mobile and the endless versions of handsets that are out there. Even if an upgrade becomes available you’ll usually have to dig around an operator website to find it, plus it’ll zap everything you’ve got stored on the phone memory when you do install it.
Unfortunately the criticisms and fairly subdued responses within the Facebook Q&A will no doubt leave Windows Mobile owners a little worried, but at least your messages are getting through to the Microsoft top brass.
Links – Facebook Thread – PC World