Show 115: Being an Independent Developer Today
What’s an independent developer today supposed to do? There are more app stores than you can shake a stick at, and on this show Erik and Kelly talk about how developers can pick a home. Kelly defends Microsoft. Erik doesn’t.
Stuff we talk about on the show:
- Windows Phones haven’t sold very well. Maybe 1.7 million have been sold.
- Folks like John Gruber are saying that Windows Phones deserve to sell better.
- Erik feels bad because he helped talk developers into being early on the Windows Phone platform. Overwhelmingly they haven’t made real money (yet?..).
- Android people aren’t surfing the web nearly as much as iOS people. Kelly points out that this is because it counts tablets. Erik points out that just because Apple is winning at tablets doesn’t mean you shouldn’t count it.
- Will the Kindle Fire be a huge hit?
- Why would you use a Windows 8 slate over an iPad? Kelly says maybe if you use office. Erik counters with a ridiculous scenario involving a 10 hour stay in a coffee shop. And hipsters.
- Erik finds a ridiculous reason to send a text to Kelly using Siri.
- Erik talks about how it feels wrong to not say “thanks” to Siri.
- Erik talks about the new sponsors.
- Talking about Windows Phone success stories, there is Elbert Perez. 800k downloads and 20+k USD over ~4 months (from GameFest).
- We haven’t heard of many (any?…) real Windows Phone success stories (think hundreds of thousands of dollars).
- Kelly talks about his Windows Phone game.
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Interesting note: the other day I went to a Best Buy Mobile posing as a buyer interested in a new phone with no preconceptions. We went through several smartphones and was lead toward an Android-based HTC.
What caught my attention, though, was when I casually mentioned if they had Windows 7 phones. The guy immediately told me that I really didn’t want one of those and didn’t even show it to me.
So, as you guys mention, the retailers have a great share on the tepid response to the Windows platform
Exactly the experience I typically hear about. It’s so weird/frustrating.
It’s like Microsoft’s heart isn’t in this one. Or only half in or something.
I’ve done lots of research on this since WP7 first launch and have been throughout dismayed at the complete lack of any kind of marketing outside the US.
I usually do spot checks across different stores (both carriers and independents) and the response has always been the same, little or no advertising, phones shoved in the back or surrounded by android phones and the deciding factor in any phone sale depends on whether the salesperson is an Android or Apple fanboy.
At least with the release of the Titan there does seem to be a new push (at least with the independents) on the mango release and showcase booths have started appearing along with TV / poster ads.
However it is still lackluster as the sales people haven’t changed and at best they recognise the phone has potential but they are still fan’s of whatever they have in their pocket at the time.
So I welcome the new public push for the phone which will grab peoples interest but unless they also peek the sales persons interest (pocket?) then people are still going to be turned away when asking about it in store.
So this is the big question. Why isn’t there a push for WP7/Mango? But the problem isn’t the question. The problem is the answer.
Hey ya’ll know that you can make voice text’s on WP7 right?
Hold down the Windows button
Say “Text Kelly White”
Say “Hello Kelly!”
Say “Send”
The specific feature works about as well as the iPhone4s. You guys seemed to imply that only Siri can do that on the iPhone.
So… I didn’t know that… Gulp. Why didn’t Kelly call me on that?
I’d like to believe that the phone is as important to Microsoft as Windows. I’d like to believe the phone developer community outside the company is more important to Microsoft than IE. I’d like to believe that the time I put into making apps for the Microsoft phone market would translate into real sustainable revenue without using ads. I’d like to think that Microsoft will support this awesome platform and make sales happen in stores.
A local T-Mobile store pushed Android smart phones and other feature phones the last time I went in one. There was one HTC HD7 on display with Windows Phone 7 and the salesperson had little interest in selling it. Maybe it’s the price point (too high) or maybe it’s something else (the plan). Whatever the reason, that is the problem Microsoft needs to fix and fast if they want to continue selling phones.
I think at this point they should “go all in” to the phone business to get around the carrier problem. Manufacturers know what they are doing. The carriers are the bottleneck.
It’s a great platform worthy of the effort.