IDC Projects Windows Phone to Top iPhone in Market Share by 2015

[MyAccount]

Meanwhile Apple's discontinued their xserve line, consolidated OS X server into OS X, and basically killed off the MacBook, iPod Classic and iPod Nano by making them suck, and removed countless features from iLife and OS X over the years.

Xserve discontinuation: This is the one valid point you have. However, this one discontinuation is nothing compared to what Microsoft has done.

Consolidated OS X Server into OS X: OS X Server still exists as a feature of Mac OS X. This is actually a better approach; if you want an explanation just read up on posts elsewhere on the net from some server users who are also developers and have downloaded and installed the preview of Lion.

Killed off the MacBook: How so? It still has more expandability, processing power, and drive space than the MacBook Air, and the MBA with the same price point is also an 11.6-inch model instead of a larger 13". Not to mention the MacBook's inclusion of Ethernet and other ports that are missing from the MBA. The $200 price premium for the MacBook Pro is quite a bit for many people, especially those harder hit by the recession.

Killed off the iPod Classic: It's what it is. It has a relatively very high capacity and has the classic click wheel -- the same as the old iPods that were simply called "iPod." Someone who needs more than 64 GB will certainly appreciate the iPod Classic.

Killed off the iPod Nano: The new Nano is actually a pretty cool and compact machine. I don't see an explanation of why it sucks.

Removed countless features from iLife and OS X over the years: Can you name any? If they're "countless" and you can count, it shouldn't be too hard. And if you then add the features they've allegedly removed (as a negative number) with the number of features they've added, the answer would likely be positive and very far from zero.

And please don't reply calling me a fanboy -- that simply screams "I'M ANGRY AND DON'T KNOW WHAT TO SAY TO YOU IN RESPONSE!" Also please don't call me ignorant as I used Windows machines and MP3 players from companies other than Apple up until last year and owned an Android smartphone for a couple weeks (I returned it and got an iPhone; prior to my experience with Android I had Samsung and LG "multimedia" phones which were just camera feature phones with email, IM, Opera, and QWERTY, some had resistive touch screens; prior to those multimedia phones I had the not-so-good ol' basic phones).

 

[iliketyla]

Removed countless features from iLife and OS X over the years: Can you name any? If they're "countless" and you can count, it shouldn't be too hard. And if you then add the features they've allegedly removed (as a negative number) with the number of features they've added, the answer would likely be positive and very far from zero.

So would Microsoft's.

 

[infidel69]

Microsoft wins again

 

[Avalontor]

Just out of idle curiosity: is IDC ever right? Ever nearly right?

they sure seem to be right whenever MR posts IDC's reports in Apples favour, right?

 

[McGiord]

I predict that macrumors will evolve into a troll paradise by 2015...wait...it is now in 2011...

 

[ghostlyorb]

I find this hard to believe....

 

[montycat]

I truly miss the days of when MacRumours was about Macs. Although I love my iPhone and reading articles about them, I still miss Apple Computer.

 

[hayesk]

Surely WP7's fastest app market growth means something in terms of developer interest.

If you have the lowest share, it's easiest to make the highest percentage gains. Going from 0.1% to 0.2% means 100% growth, but doesn't really matter in the overall picture.

 

[hayesk]

Your friend must be pressing the button to delete all contacts. Seriously does he not know how to use a smartphone.

The fact that anyone can simply press a button and delete all contents and not even realize it is a testament to the poor interface design on Android, not to the skill level of the user. It shouldn't be so easy to do something so destructive. That's one of the first things you learn when learning UI design.

 

[McGiord]

funny:
http://www.androidcentral.com/tags/android-rumors

 

[iliketyla]

The fact that anyone can simply press a button and delete all contents and not even realize it is a testament to the poor interface design on Android, not to the skill level of the user. It shouldn't be so easy to do something so destructive. That's one of the first things you learn when learning UI design.

Android will most certainly prompt you before doing something that destructive.

User incompetency is not a testament to a poor interface.

 

[hipsheik]

Windows 7 is a much better OS than its predecessors, but to claim it does the "little things" better than SL is so hilarious I don't know how to respond. There is literally no consistency between anything. Just go to the Control Panel, and while clicking dialogs you will be transported between windows that look like they are modern Web Pages (especially the network panels, with blinking computers) and panels that looked like they haven't realized that Windows 95 is obsolete yet.

Yup, I thought it was funniest thing I've read in awhile too. Windows is so scatter-brained, always has been. Sometimes you look for a certain functionality and it's spread over a group of control panels. Don't know why they do that.

 

[notabadname]

And again, we see a comparison of all manufacturer phones that will run the Windows OS versus a single manufacturer of one phone.

Lets compare all trucks made by all other manufacturers to the number one selling, single product line, the F-150. No difference, yet everyone thinks all Google phones or all Windows phones is a fair comparison. How many phones does Microsoft make? Oh, that's right, ZERO.

 

[iliketyla]

And again, we see a comparison of all manufacturer phones that will run the Windows OS versus a single manufacturer of one phone.

Lets compare all trucks made by all other manufacturers to the number one selling, single product line, the F-150. No difference, yet everyone thinks all Google phones or all Windows phones is a fair comparison. How many phones does Microsoft make? Oh, that's right, ZERO.

That is a choice, no one is forcing Apple to make their own hardware. They choose to take control of the entire operation, from conception to the hands of the consumer.

 

[G58]

I think this could very well be true.

The new Windows OS is surprisingly well thought out and have a lot of the features I miss in my standard iPhone 4 iOS - and only have because of Jailbreak

I could very well see myself buying a windows based Nokia - if they get the interior in harmony with the exterior - I still think iPhone 4 is the best looking phone I've ever owned - but still think it lacks some basic features in the iOS - like a Lock screen with calendar and weather info, basic features like changing the mail alert tone and being able to use the outer buttons as dual buttons for a shutter button on the volume button for instance (which a camera app did have, but Apple thought their consumers were too stupid and confused to have dual function buttons, so they excluded this app from appstore until they removed the function)

All the features I miss on my iPhone are very basic features, which could easily be fixed with a tiny small software update - since these features don't seem to come on the iPhone, I could see myself getting a HTC with Windows OS maybe in a HTC Desire DeLuxe chassis

What really keeps me true to the iPhone is all the apps

Okay, go the MS Channel 9 website and check out the number of owners complaining about the very late delivery of the latest W7 update, then come back here and tell us how well sorted this thing is.

Of the 112 comments I saw, 12 were positive. 100 ranged from unimpressed to downright furious.

What really keeps the majority true to the iPhone is iOS, the ecosystem and the lack of security issues/worry.

And the Nokia deal will damage MS and kill Nokia. That's MY 2015 prediction.

 

[fourthtunz]

Funny, all of us defending either the number 2 or 3 company in America!
It's also funny to see people defending MS like they are the underdog!
Evidently history is forgotten?
Apple was a tiny company and MS was basically a monopoly that got it's start by improving someone else's product, not by innovation.
Who would ever have thought that Apple would pass MS in market value?
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/27/technology/27apple.html
I'm going with the company that has a history of innovation.
I also think that the one with the most apps wins.

 

[dsnort]

Evidently history is forgotten?

Or not understood.

Apple was a tiny company and MS was basically a monopoly that got it's start by improving someone else's product, not by innovation.

Only if you think making something almost as good but selling it cheaper as "improving".

 

[macdaddykane]

I think they need to learn how to do math. How can you have an 18.8% cumulative annual growth rate when your market share goes down from 15.7% to 15.3%?

Easy, they are predicting huge growth in sales of non iOS phones. Apple's numbers continue to grow, but not as fast all the others combined thus less market share.

 

[*LTD*]

Good for a laugh, I guess.

It's possible if MS floods the market with a lot of junk like they usually do. It would be par for the course and totally in keeping with their business model of whoring out their OS to anyone who can slam together a box. But that's a few years away. MS has to first manage not to suck in this market as well.

So far they're zuning it.

 

[Vegasman]

If you have the lowest share, it's easiest to make the highest percentage gains. Going from 0.1% to 0.2% means 100% growth, but doesn't really matter in the overall picture.

It is the fastest growing by age. That is, it is growing faster on day X than either Android or Apple were growing on their corresponding day X.

 

[ten-oak-druid]

People will naturally try new phones. But ultimately they will come back to the original smart phone: the iphone.

I imagine the people proclaiming the windows phone will take over the market are also the ones who said the xoom would sell in great numbers too.

Honestly, I had to help someone on a windows machine the other day and I couldn't stand it. I can't understand why people would want that OS on more devices.

 

[Vaniferro]

That's just bad statistics. Since the New windows os was released not too long ago, of course the percentage growth is going to be higher than iOS. Using a projection that uses percentage growth early in a product lifetime to figure out how many users you will have 5 years down the road is just dumb. Sales will tail off. Guaranteed.

 

[lilo777]

People will naturally try new phones. But ultimately they will come back to the original smart phone: the iphone.

I imagine the people proclaiming the windows phone will take over the market are also the ones who said the xoom would sell in great numbers too.

Honestly, I had to help someone on a windows machine the other day and I couldn't stand it. I can't understand why people would want that OS on more devices.

Obviously, iPhone is not the original smart phone. Far from it.

 

[yodaxl7]

Why is symbian os limiting? Couldn't they just update like anyone else? Will Android os has a limit? iOS? Google bought android. Will Samsung,Motorola, Htc,LG,etc make as many Wp7 as they do with android phones? How long did it take Nokia to dominate? So, in 3 years, I suspect, iOS growth to accelerate as android to plateau and blackberry to slide slowly and symbian to fall moderately. Wp7 will be idle like it's updates below 10%.

 

[Stella]

Okay, go the MS Channel 9 website and check out the number of owners complaining about the very late delivery of the latest W7 update, then come back here and tell us how well sorted this thing is.

Of the 112 comments I saw, 12 were positive. 100 ranged from unimpressed to downright furious.

What really keeps the majority true to the iPhone is iOS, the ecosystem and the lack of security issues/worry.

And the Nokia deal will damage MS and kill Nokia. That's MY 2015 prediction.

People are more likely to post negative comments if they are unhappy rather than positive. You can't judge consumer satisfaction by reading message boards!

Why is symbian os limiting?

Symbian, at a kernel level is good. Built for small devices, very efficient ( power and memory wise ), mature, and stable.

The issues Symbian has is its GUI and reputation issues. Traditionally, Symbian was a complete bitch to develop for, although this is getting easier - Nokia have introduced Qt - but this is still work in progress, you still have to fall back to Symbian C++ to reach APIs not yet covered by Qt. So, in recent times the development tools have become significantly better.

People spout a lot of crap about Symbian that simply isn't true ( i.e., its too complex ) or isn't a real smartphone os. Its GUI is lagging but in reality it isn't too bad - but Nokia management seem too incompetent for a timely GUI makeover. QIU ( used by SonyEricsson) was significantly better GUI than Nokia. ( QUI and Series60 are GUI layers on top of Symbian kernel ).

At this time, Symbian has a bad, some deserved or course, and some undeserved( due to ignorance ) reputation - it had / still has functionality that wasn't introduced to iPhone for a long time, or functionality that iPhone still lacks. Also, APIs are available to develop applications not possible on iPhone, due to Apple's restrictions. For example, application to change profiles ( silent, outside, office, normal ) at a given time, or event ( such as calendar or location ), but this isn't possible on iPhone. The ability to load applications without having to go through some app store really is great. No dictator rejecting applications for obscure reasons.

The improvements have unfortunately come too late due to Nokia management incompetence. Nokia were too slow.