Windows Phone 8 Improves Platform, Market Share Still Weak

The Windows Phone 8 smartphone platform became available in Oct. 2012, bringing user interface improvements and new features, support for more powerful hardware, and new capabilities for managing devices in organizational environments. It also delivers better development options, in part due to a new kernel shared with Windows for PCs. Windows Phone could be a good fit for enterprises invested in Microsoft OS, server, and client technologies because of its similar development model and user interface and potential for superior integration. However, the two-year-old platform has not experienced significant adoption as Android- and iOS-based smartphones dominate the market.

User Interface Improvements, New Features

Windows Phone 8 (Phone 8) is a major release that arrived on the market within days of the Windows 8 and Windows RT OSs. (Microsoft called the first Windows Phone release version 7, following Windows Mobile 6.5, the company’s previous smartphone platform, and conveniently aligning it with Windows OS version numbering.) The release delivers several user interface updates and new features: