UI: Impressed

Name/Identity: Unimpressed

Strong-arming partners: Impressed

I didn't expect Microsoft to pull it out, but so far it looks like they have the most innovative UI since the iPhone debuted in 2007. Frankly, this looks like a nice "fuck you" to the competition out there and I'm actually pleased to see it. Thankfully (for everyone) Windows Mobile 6.5 was no indication at all of what the new platform was bringing to the table. It's still early and much of what has been shown (at least what I've seen) is only a little more in-depth than checking out the slip-cover on a new book.

Android and WebOS have been no competition for the iPhone. Google seems to have no control over what partners do with Android and by all accounts they may be digging themselves into the predicament Microsoft was in with previous versions of their Mobile platform.

This new platform should simply have been called "Windows Phone" - none of this "7" or "series" bullshit. Let's hope MS sees the obvious issues and drops the non-essential parts of the name. With the more simple name it enables them to keep moving forward with a unified platform, which is what it seems they want to do, based on their announcement.

OEMs will be more tightly controlled, pretty much having most of their freedoms cut-off when it comes to branding the UI. That's a very good step. No customs skins are allowed for instance. The hardware will also have more stringent minimum requirements, hopefully making sure the experience on every handset is similar and giving developers a clear target to aim for.

We won't see an actual product ship until sometime late in the year, but things look pretty good insofar as competing with Palm and Android. I don't think in the short term Apple's marketshare is going to be affected at all by this platform. I do hope that the aggressiveness of MS gives them a kick in the ass however.

Apple claimed that they had some years head-start on the competition, and while that remains true in terms of the apps available for the iPhone, the platform itself is nearly unchanged in almost 3 years - it's really been a standing target. Maybe we'll see some shakeup this summer at WWDC. What's also going to be interesting is to see how developers take to this new platform, since software for Windows Mobile is not compatible. Another good thing. Like I said in another thread, you have to start with a purpose-built OS sometimes, and the old Mobile platform just wasn't a good foundation for a phone or a hand-held computer.

Oh. NO Flash and NO third-party multi-tasking. Sounds familiar.