Techcitement Review: A webOS User Tries Out Windows Phone 7.5 With Mango

This is a follow-up of sorts to my previous article, “Tasting Gingerbread: A WebOS User Dabbles In The Android Waters”. I’m still using a Palm Pre+ hacked to run on Sprint, but I know this can’t last forever. With webOS’s uncertain future almost certainly not including phones, I’ve continued to look elsewhere. That’s why when Samsung sent me a Focus Flash, I decided to treat the OS and hardware as two different items.

It’s important to note that unlike Android, I’m only using one phone as my basis. If I make a mistake and attribute something to Windows Phone 7 that’s actually Samsung specific, please let me know in the comments. Also, I’m comparing Mango not just to webOS, but to my other options of Android and iOS.

The Doctor has made his choice

As before, we’re breaking this down Eastwood style.

The Good
It took a few days to adjust to Windows Phone 7.5’s unique Metro User Interface, but I soon began to enjoy it. Despite Microsoft’s early ad campaign claiming you ‘ll spend less time immersed in their OS, I found that not to be true. I was okay with that though, because the OS is well made. I’m not a huge fan of providers adding custom skins, and Microsoft’s ban on them means I can enjoy an HTC device without struggling through using a Sense or a Samsung without TouchWiz. One over-riding interface is the way to go. Microsoft must agree, as they take Metro to the desktop with Windows 8.

In other words, get used to this.

Microsoft has almost nailed social network integration. Clicking the “People” tile first gives you a phone book, but clicking your own image then gives you the option to check in or post a status update to Facebook, Twitter, or Windows Live. Swiping one over gives you notification. If you’re slightly less self-obsessed, you can not click your image and swipe to the left, which gives you your Twitter and Facebook feed as one integrated stream. One more swipe shows you people you’ve been in recent contact with. You can also Facebook Message on the phone, which is great — as long as you remember you’re logged in. I forgot and got the occasional middle-of-my-sleep chime.

Don't add me on Facebook. I'm boring.

Contacts will also be synced from your social networks. From what I can tell, webOS’s “link a profile” solution (for when you have someone in Google Contacts and on Facebook) is an automatic function of WP7.5.

With all the fuss about Siri I’m shocked there isn’t more written up about Mango’s voice interface, TellMe. Like Siri, you hold down the center button and then speak. Unlike Siri, there’s no cute personality, but it does talk to you and you can text or call someone via voice. It even knows to ask you if you want work or home, should you forget to mention it. TellMe is smart enough to know when there’s someone with the same name. The functionality is great. Searching and navigating can also easily be done via voice.

Listening to it try to pronounce "Mordechai" could cure depression.

It’s a small thing, but I like that apps auto-alphabetize on the list. It’s also cool that the Marketplace tile on the font screen shows you available updates.

I was also impressed by the onscreen keyboard. It doesn’t look like much, but I found my accuracy to be much higher than with Android or iOS, even on the Focus Flash’s small screen. Text suggestion was well implemented also and much preferred to autocorrect. The only quibble I had was that I sometimes missed the backspace key and hit enter.

They never suggest testes.

On a related note, I found the built-on Office suite to be quite useful. This is one up on almost every other phone OS, which maybe if one is lucky bundles in a reader.

Yes, that *is* a spreadsheet in my pocket.

Microsoft’s cloud solution, Skydrive, lets you store your music online and stream it. While there’s not a ton of space, it’s a good enough perk to warrant a mention.

The Bad
Windows Phone 7.5 has the disadvantage of only being on a few handsets. You can get one with every carrier, but you have a  pretty limited selection. It’s a greater selection than iOS or webOS, but they’re barely there compared to Android. This may change in the coming year.

If you hold the back key down, you get a list of open windows. That’s nice, but sometimes you think something is open, only to notice you backed out too many times and it’s not there. This is a massive pain if you’re used to true multitasking on webOS  or even iOS’s semi-multi-tasking attempt.

So close, yet so far.

Speaking of things other OSes do better, notifications need tweaking. I’d like to be able to go right from the lock screen. Alas, I cannot. The lock screen in and of itself is very minimal and functional, which one could see as bad or good.

Then again, it does the job it's supposed to.

Needing the Zune software to sync files was just plain annoying. I don’t like having to use iTunes with an iDevice either. Let me mount my phone as an external drive. Is that too much to ask?

The last remnant of a once awesome media player.

For other people, I’m sure the Xbox Live aspect is great. As I do not own an Xbox, it was just there. Know what wasn’t there? Any way to take a screenshot. That’s why you’re stuck with my absolutely horrible photos, taken with the low-quality camera I noted in the Samsung Player.

Say, speaking of apps…

The Ugly
You know how people complain that there aren’t enough webOS apps? Compared to WP7.5, my cup runneth over. Some of the missing apps actually blow my mind. For example, how in the world has Microsoft not fast-tracked Skype (which they own)? Instead, while reviewing this unit, Tango came out. It wasn’t bad, but a heck of a lot more people use Skype, and it’s just obvious synergy.

It takes two to tango, and that's how many people I know who use it.

Also, the thought that there is a recently-released mobile platform without a Pandora client is just scary. For goodness sakes, there’s a client for Windows Mobile! SlackerRadio will do in a pinch, but it’s not the same thing.

Pandora even has better ads, for Bob's sake.

Maybe the most perfect illustration comes when we look at casual gaming. There’s only one version of Angry Birds for Mango. It only has the original Angry Birds, no Seasons or Rio. My wife and daughter lost most of their interest when they heard that. Considering what a huge part of the cell industry casual gaming is, this is almost unpardonable.

Wrap Up
I started this review wanting to like Mango. It has an elegance that I think Android for the most part lacks and a tighter user experience that I enjoyed. It has the first onscreen keyboard I could actually see myself using for prolonged periods, and the social network integration is actually better than webOS in a ton of ways. However, the lack of equivalent apps to the ones I use every day on my Pre is unacceptable. That a live operating system with the force of Microsoft behind it should have less solutions than one that has been placed in limbo by HP makes no sense.

Fortunately, this is something that can change. The switches between Windows Phone 7 and Windows Phone 7.5 show that Microsoft is paying attention to what people are saying about their system. Hopefully, we can revisit this OS in the future and recommend it to anyone.

Here’s hoping my Pre holds out that long.