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Nokia "Suspends" Its Free Developer Program
jbernardo writes "Nokia has put in deep freeze its free developer program, the launchpad. Now, in the Developer Programs page, one can only see a pitch for a paid 'Nokia Premium Developer Program,' and below, in the Nokia Developer Pro and Developer Launchpad box, there is a text merely stating that Nokia are not currently accepting new applications for Nokia Developer Launchpad and Nokia Developer Pro programs. With most (if not all) Launchpad memberships already expired, seems like Nokia no longer is interested in the developer community, which once was one of the mainstays of its domination of the smartphone market. Of course, that domination was destroyed by Elop and its 'burning platforms' memo, together with the failed bet on Windows Phone 7, so maybe giving up on developers would also be expectable."
As someone surrounded by friends with iOS and Android devices I've got to give it to this phone for being able to impress them to the point of being speechless (and when they do speak it's "Wow" or "my phone can't do that"). The OS is absolutely beautiful, the screen is amazing and everything runs like butter. Seriously, if you're unsure about buying this phone then all you need to do is to hold one in your hand for a few seconds and your decision will be made for you. A great job by both Nokia and Microsoft in everything from hardware design, to software design.
Don't let the negative press about the lack of apps fool you. As of right now, the marketplace has 50,000 apps and from what I've read it's increasing at the rate of a few hundred apps per day. It's more than you want, has everything you need, and you're actually a lot less reliant on apps because of the way Windows Phone works. For those that are really concerned then yes there are fart apps on there too.
The Apple iPhone is a very nice piece of hardware, but if you want a larger screen or keyboard, forget it. Every iPhone is the same. One of the neat things about WP8 is, like Google’s Android, a variety of hardware manufacturers are making smartphones with WP8. Microsoft put together a set of minimum hardware requirements ranging from required buttons, minimum storage, screen resolution, and processor speed; ensuring that the WP8 experience is consistent from device to device, but from there, hardware manufacturers are left to do what they want with the device. Already, Dell has shown one of the slickest keyboard smartphones ever created (Dell Venue Pro), leaving phone nerds everywhere drooling. Other interesting offerings include HTC’s phone with a massive slide out speaker (the HTC Surround). Also, just about every smartphone screen size is represented, from the smallest form factor, to the largest screen that they put into phones.