One of the smartest things Apple did for the Iphone was to launch the App Store. The App Store provides an easy, central place for checking out apps and installing to the Iphone. It looks like Microsoft may have realized it missed an opportunity and is setting up to launch an app store of its own.
The fact that Windows Mobile supports third party apps is nothing new. Long Zheng puts it this way:
If one of the most compelling features of the iPhone are the third-party applications then it’s a sad fact for Microsoft since Windows Mobile has supported third-party applications since the last ice age.
Side by side, there’s an impressive 18,000 applications (hopefully at least a 1:5 gem-to-crap ratio) for Windows Mobile compared to just over 2,000 for the iPhone. The exception being there’s only one iPhone marketplace and about a bazillion WM marketplaces. Personally I’ve avoided purchasing any WM applications because of this.
Like almost everything Microsoft does online, their effort has been completely decentralized, disorganized and confusing. While there are indeed a boatload of third apps for Windows Mobile, they are spread all over the damn place. As a former user of a Windows Mobile device, I can attest to total confusion on where and how to seek out Windows Mobile apps for my phone. On the other hand, when I switched to the Iphone, it is as easy as two clicks in the App Store and an application begins installing to my phone.
Windows Mobile 7 is probably a year or so away, so the new SkyMarket won’t be debuting for some time. Too slow to the punch? Absolutely.
But, that’s Microsoft for ya.
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