Mobile
Microsoft Admits Windows Phone Got Smoked by the Galaxy Nexus
Microsoft is in damage control mode after our friend Sahas Katta from SkatterTech was denied a prize from a Windows Phone Challenge where Katta’s Samsung Galaxy Nexus smoked Microsoft’s platform in a test. Originally, Microsoft denied Katta his award after his Android phone was able to open up the weather in two different cities before the Windows Phone device could and Ben Rudolph aka BenThePCGuy has since apologized to Katta and informed him that the award is his.
The company has been using a “Smoked by Windows Phone” challenge to promote its platform and Katta took them to task bringing his Galaxy Nexus to one of the challenges.
The original challenge offered $100 to anyone that could beat Rudolph in tests ranging from from taking and uploading a photo to Facebook to posting a status update to Facebook and Twitter.
Microsoft then upped the ante in a cross-promotion with Hunger Games offering a Hunger Games Special Edition PC valued at over $1000 as the prize.
Katta successfully opened up the weather in two cities on his Galaxy Nexus, one of the other challenges, before the Microsoft employee could do so on his Windows Phone. However, he was not awarded his prize and given a strange reason as to why.
The reason given was that Katta actually did not win because it had to be weather from two different states, not just weather from two different cities.
This was not explicitly said to Katta before the start of the contest.
The backlash was fierce and now, Microsoft has backtracked, offering Katta the award and a new Windows Phone as well as an apology for the mishap.
Clearly, this is a black eye for Microsoft – even if it was just a misunderstanding – but at least the company made it right.
Still, we can’t see this contest lasting for much longer considering Katta’s experience and the experiences of others who also feel like they have been duped by Microsoft’s challenge.
Or maybe they should just have Rudolph run all of the tests.
Things were much quieter when that was case.
Rodney E. Jones
03/29/2012 at 7:25 pm
Windows Phone is great! It will survive!
TheTehk17
04/23/2012 at 5:33 pm
Windows Phone is great?