iOS developer reviews WP7, we summarize

Justin Williams, owner and developer at Second Gear LLC, is an experienced OS X and iOS developer who has ventured over to Android for a week to see how he rated day-to-day usage in comparison to the iPhone. Justin has now had a good look at Windows Phone 7, and has made his opinions known to the world.

Although reviewing the software, the Samsung Focus was also a main point when creating the opinionated review and wasn’t positive when covering the hardware.

“The rest of the hardware? It’s pretty cheap. Apple hit a home run in the ‘feel’ aspect of the iPhone 4. When you hold it in your hand, it feels hefty (but not too hefty), solid and substantial. The Focus, on the other hand, feels light, cheap and full of air.”

He later moves onto inserting the SIM card and mentioning how he found the plastic build to be slightly offsetting when – presumably - compared to the build of the iPhone 4. I feel as though I should agree with the negativity in using plastic compared to materials Apple use to manufacture their smart phone, but to say that a Samsung phone may make you believe you could damage it easily due to being plastic I find hard to comprehend. Especially when I have handled both an iPhone and my own Samsung Omnia 7, and the iPhone 4 have had numerous reports of hardware related issues.

“In fact, my first experience with the phone was a bit offsetting because of the build quality. Since the entire phone is plastic, I have to snap the back off to insert the battery and SIM card. I felt like I was going to break the phone each time I ripped it off.”

On a more positive vibe, moving onto Facebook integration being second to none is absolutely dead on the ball. There’s no denying that Windows Phone 7 makes your social giant life much more complete when away from your computer.

“If you are a Facebook junkie, Windows Phone 7 is awesome. While the official Facebook app developed by Microsoft isn’t great, the integration in the OS itself, is fantastic.”

Lastly, I would like to include how he found the Metro UI, being an iOS developer, ensuring the app looks good is a huge factor in the marketing, increasing sales, and keeping users content with their experience. Justin seemed relatively impressed with the UI, like all of us who moved over (whether it be from other platforms or WM) we were drawn by the new look that was unlike any other smart phone OS.

“The entire UI paradigm for Windows Phone 7 is referred to as ‘Metro’ and takes its inspiration from signage at train stations. It looks really good as a whole. My favorite aspect of it is the concept of Pivot or Panorama views.”

Overall I’d say we have almost converted another (as if we are all Smith off the Matrix and are duplicating one another) and his view seems positive when taking into account that the negativity given off from his post were/are expressed by many Windows Phone 7 users.

Source: Carpeaqua; via: WP Secrets

Rich Edmonds
Senior Editor, PC Build

Rich Edmonds was formerly a Senior Editor of PC hardware at Windows Central, covering everything related to PC components and NAS. He's been involved in technology for more than a decade and knows a thing or two about the magic inside a PC chassis. You can follow him on Twitter at @RichEdmonds.