Win Windows Phone
How would you like to snag a Windows Phone running Mango? As part of its launch promotion and "Inner Circle" tour, Microsoft has graciously offered BetaNews one Windows Phone to give away to a lucky reader. That could be you.
Microsoft's design and marketing strategy for Windows Phone is "glance and go" -- let people get what they need from their smartphones quickly rather than be consumed by them. Conceptually, Windows Phone enables people to live better rather than spend their lives tap, tap, tapping on the touchscreen. That concept, and the task-oriented user interface behind it, makes Windows Phone remarkably different from either Android or iOS. It's also inspiration for our contest. Please tell us why glance and go appeals to you and how you would benefit from it. You can respond in comments below or email joe at betanews dot com. We'll accept entries until November 14, 11:59 pm ET.
Our panel of judges will select the best responses and choose a winner among them. How we narrow down a winner depends on quality and number of responses. If one stands out, that's the winner. If several are exceptional, we may come back to you to vote or simply roll the dice, so to speak, and randomly choose from the best responses.
By the way, some of you might wonder about the Windows XP contest. We'll announce winners this weekend and send out the five Microsoft mice next week. There we asked for your reasons why switch to Windows 7 from XP. Choosing winners has proved arduous, in part because there were so many clever, funny responses. It would be easy to award all the prizes to the comedians, but that would be unfair to those of you who offered smart, serious responses. Please be patient with the process.
Microsoft has taken a decidedly hands-on approach to launching Windows Phone 7.5. Mango started rolling out as an over-the-air update to existing WP customers on September 27. The first Mango handsets starting selling in the United States this week. They are: HTC Radar 4G on T-Mobile and Samsung Focus Flash and Focus S on AT&T. The HTC Titan soon comes to AT&T also. On Monday, Microsoft set up a six-story Windows Phone, where Far East Movement played a mini-concert, in New York City. Last week, the Windows Phone "Inner Circle" tour started in Los Angeles -- the first of 19 cities through November 21. I attended the San Diego event two days ago.
This coordinated effort is all about word of mouth. Presumably many of the people who owned Windows Phone before Mango's release are enthusiasts. They're influencers. Microsoft rewarded their loyalty with Windows Phone 7.5 first, which also is smart marketing if enthused users tell their friends to buy. The New York event and Inner Circle tour are about putting Windows Phone in front of people -- letting them see just how different the user interface and broader user experience is from Androids or iPhone.
Microsoft is going for slow-burn buzz that lasts long and builds loyalty, while also recognizing that Windows Phone must be seen, touched and used to be believed. Apple won't sue Microsoft for copying (like it is Android licensees); Windows Phone is nothing like iOS. Of course, Microsoft wants its OEM partners to sell lots of phones, but given the overwhelming noise out there about Android and even louder about iPhone, there's sense to the approach, which also should appeal to the business user base.
I used the San Diego Inner Circle tour as opportunity to study the different Windows Phones and the people checking them out. In an unusual tact for me, I repeatedly circled the room like a shark -- always moving -- rather than interview participants. Many attendees clearly were gadget geeks or professionals. As for the phones, the white HTC Radar 4G is the handsomest of the newest Windows Phone 7.5 handsets, but I liked it least. The display dosen't pop the same as Samsung Focus Flash or Focus S. I wouldn't buy the HTC Titan (Microsoft gave away four of them during the event), because of the 4.7-inch screen size. Even the 4.5-inch smartphone I currently use seems overly large. That said, it's a beautiful handset. My fav is Focus S.
If you haven't used Windows Phone 7.5, please go to a retail store and do so before entering the contest. I find the operating system to be fast and fluid on all the handsets presented during the Inner Circle. You'll want that experience, too, before explaining why glance and go appeals to you.