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Windows Phone 8.1 thread

2K views 14 replies 5 participants last post by  @ruantec 
#1 · (Edited)
As a Windows Phone Developer i obviously got my hands on the WP8.1 preview release for my Lumia 920 before is out for the masses. After spending some time with it i have to say that i'm really liking what they are doing to the OS. What really impressed me most is the support for universal apps... now that may not be much for those who have zero idea what that means but in case some of you don't know it basically means MS first steps of upgrading the stupid WP OS into a full fledge OS slowly. By supporting universal apps they are making sure the same amount of API is available for the developer just as you have on Windows 8 and i'm really exited and happy they are slowly going that route. With there current changes they are allowing more control in the hands of the developer and going in my opinion in the right direction. Right from the start you get the Windows 8 logo and a very nice Windows 8-ish feeling. Still far from perfect and ugly but far better than it was in the past and with the time its not as bad as many people believe it is.

Here few screenshots i made today including more space for tiles, background wallpaper, the new notification center, music synchronization from my cloud music via Xbox Music, skype integration for video calls, song recognition, OCR translation and others:


Just as a reference here two pictures of the way it used to look:


With that in mind, i can't wait to soon get my hands on the Nokia 1520, install the OS and run the apps and games i just wrote as well as other ones:
 
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#4 ·
Nice pic Gladiator@!

After getting more space for tiles i still have to re-order them to get a better look. The one i have right now is OK but i'm still not happy with it. Btw... you got the update too? it's interesting since i haven't found cortana so far.

This is my current one:
 
#9 ·
Anyone can have a free developer account, ruan. That allows you to create and run custom apps in your own phone, gives you access to previews for developers and all that stuff.

Thanks, I like it better with the two medium tiles per row design. Also, here are some background pics I like:








I have a Lumia 928, btw.

Not to be a troll, but i never liked windows 8 mobile.... now after seeing this thread i'm liking it even less....
Troll! =P

It looks beautiful and runs flawlessly, what else do you need?

 
#11 · (Edited)
Anyone can have a free developer account, ruan. That allows you to create and run custom apps in your own phone, gives you access to previews for developers and all that stuff.
Yeah, totally forgot about that.

Honestly to me it doesn't look beautiful at all, quite the opposite...
It's all a taste thing i would say and in your case i think is tied to your personal hate toward Metro. I personally never liked the WP8 style that much but only accept it because of coding matters. With there recent changes that has changed a lot and while i still find it a bit ugly i really like what i see here. I used to like Android style a lot in the past but when i look the pics of your phone you post i even dislike it more. The only thing i really like about those pics are your fantastic artwork and background which give a nice touch to the picture but Android itself looks boring to me. WP8/8.1 may be boring to some too but i can tell you is a hell solid OS that works fantastic in all kind of situations unlike Android that get choppy at times.

Apart from that what really matters in the recent changes aren't cosmetic ones at all but what they are doing in the back which is fantastic. From a development point of view the WP8.1 is turning into a beast/beauty and that could attract a hell bunch of devs. One of the things i like about the new API is that you can create 1 app for all devices. That is a huge issue on Android as you usually have phone apps for all devices so to say.

Again... it's all a taste thing at the end.
 
#8 ·
But Android is stealing stuff from WinPho's design book, that has gotta mean something right?
 
#13 ·
Like i said... it's a taste thing at the end as some people like me see it differently. I never call it proper interface tho. but i surely started to like it. I guess your major problem with that interface is that you usually don't have the freedom to use all that kind of icons and images you would love to have in your devices which i can understand. However, is not like everyone share your view ;)
 
#15 ·
I never said it was a rule i made it obvious from the first post its a mater of personal preference that i can't like it, you people turned the discussion in other directions :p.
Nah, it's cool. I know you don't like it and that's fine... i was just trying to say what i think may be the reason you dislike it which i totally understand. However, in my case is not the visual that i like but what's in the background which in my opinion totally kills anything you can get development-wise on android. For me as a WPF/MVVM/C# developer that's just a dream.
 
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