Windows Phone Thoughts: Unique Developer Features May Help Windows Phone 7 Succeed

"At a recent briefing with Microsoft, TechRadar was told that one problem with free versions of applications on other app stores is people will install the trial, take a quick look then uninstall. When asked to rate, the results are invariably low - therefore by placing both the free trial version of the app and the full price version together, the end rating will better reflect the quality."

Tech Radar recently published an article about the Trial API feature available to Windows Phone 7 developers. As Windows Phone Thoughts reported back in March, this is one of many differentiators for Windows Phone 7. This API allows developers to provide its users unlock functionality as opposed to providing two different versions of the same application. This API, along with the excellent development environment and stringent hardware minimum specifications will hopefully provide developers with the incentive to create some great applications.

Besides unique developer APIs such as this one, what else can Microsoft provide to woo developers and consumers alike? As the release of the OS draws near hopefully we will learn more about Microsoft's strategy. Some news could really help Microsoft overcome the bad press of the recently deceased Kin.