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Windows Phone 7 Sales Continue To Struggle
rtfa-troll writes "Even with the pre-Christmas buying rush, Microsoft is already desperately offering a new buy one get one free offer similar to the ones they gave for the KIN. According to the article, 'Windows Phone 7 devices can't even manage two per cent of the fortnight's sales.' These aren't official Microsoft figures; they come from online shopping sites. But since Microsoft official sales figures seem subject to manipulation, this is perhaps one of the better guesses we will get at the success of Windows Phone 7 until well into next year. This also strongly backs up other reports of deeply disappointing phone sales. Even Microsoft supporters have been wondering for a while whether it's time for Ballmer to go. If the sales reports are true, then he may be pushed before he jumps."
Which is funny because if you look at the web stats of Slashdot, 90% of visitors are using Windows computers. LOL, bunch of poseur wannabes
[citation needed]
Yes, a large portion of the visitors to slashdot use Windows. Then again, when compared to the general population, a large portion don't.
That so many Windows users see value in, and frequent, a site that is definitely pro-linux/bsd/open source, and what is arguably, even with all the "web 2.0" junk, the most influential tech forum on the net, says that Ballmer is right when Microsoft tells the SEC that linux and open source are the biggest threat to Microsoft.
Think about it - even with less than 1% of the desktop, and being distributed for free, it's more of a threat than Apple, who are worth more than Microsoft.
I don't call them poseur wannabes - I call them fresh blood :-)
The alternative would be an echo chamber.
Unless I'm missing something, it's a highly misleading summary. In the TFA, the quoted figures are from a UK price comparison site. It's not sales, it's site visitors comparing phones.
There is a discussion of sales, but it's from an article dated Nov 9.
This is an embarrassing post, even by Slashdot standards.
They shouldn't have attached the "Windows" brand to their phone. Windows is a desktop operating system. It has a popularized reputation (warranted or not) for being unwieldy, crashing, being expensive, and mostly dedicated to the accomplishment of boring or undesirable tasks like work, writing papers, using Office, etc. They should have created a new brand for the phone.
Having a "Windows Phone" from Microsoft is sort of like IBM coming out with a social networking site called "The IBM Human Interaction System" and then marketing it to young people as hip and cool. There is an emotional and/or psychological disconnect between the nature of the product and the mental conception people have of the brand.
Even though it's stupid, when I see the Android ads I think "oh cool, an ANDROID! I wonder what it can do? It looks futuristic. I kind of want one." (note: I don't have a smart phone because I think they are stupid.) However, when I hear the word "Windows Phone", it makes me feel like getting one would be like keeping a chunk of my job in pocket. No thanks.
Comparing a brand-new phone to ones that already have market-momentum is brain-dead, as has already been discussed on this forum.
And, this is Windows Phone version SEVEN, as clearly described in the name of the product. This might be a brand-new phone to mobile application developers, but for the other 99.9% of the people this is just a new revision of the same old horrible Windows phone operating systems.
It doesn't help at all that this phone is being advertised as "the smartphone for people who don't want a smartphone." Good job finding that marketing niche, Microsoft. What next? Microsoft Fruit Basket 7.0, for people who hate fruit? Microsoft Electric Car 7.0, for people who hate driving?
It also doesn't help that Microsoft's idea of "synergy" doesn't even bother to include embrace, extend, and extinguish anymore. Instead of eating the competition, the divisions at Microsoft are just eating each other. They didn't make a mobile version of XBox live that works on lots of devices, but works better on Microsoft phones. They didn't make a mobile version of the Windows Media Extender that works on lots of devices, but works better on Microsoft phones. Every time Microsoft comes out with something truly cool or innovative, they never let it stand alone. They bundle it to a flailing product, and then act surprised when it all fails together.
Because they are all using their corporation approved desktop's instead of working.
Users not posting on /. from work? You must be new here...