Windows Phone 7 Launch Figures not that Impressive

Windows Phone 7 has hit the market in the US, with 40,000 devices sold on the first day. While this is nothing compared to the numbers commanded by recent Apple and Android releases, it is a decent start that Microsoft are hoping will grow over time.

While Apple can boast 270,000 iPhone activations during their first weekend of sale, these numbers are worldwide and therefore hard to directly compare. The Motorola Droid also had some impressive numbers with 250,000 activations in its first week, although again, these are worldwide figures. However, no matter how you look at it, 40,000 units – while far from a bomb – is not really that impressive either.

There are a few possible reasons for these low figures, including the actual date of the launch and the number of different devices available for consumers to choose from. Windows Phone 7 launched with a total of nine devices, all of which were similar both in price and features, which may have confused consumers. This puts Microsoft in a very different position to Apple for example, who have only one device and a well integrated marketing campaign to go with it.

Roger Entner, Nielsen telecom analyst has said “It’s early in the game,” adding “Not every product surges right out of the starting blocks. The first Android phone was not a big seller at T-Mobile. We’ll see what happens with Black Friday sales. They’ll probably cut prices like everyone else does. It’s the nature of the beast.”

Only time will tell what the future holds for Windows Phone 7, and whether it can really compete with Apple and Android in the mobile marketplace. In the last couple of days since the release, Microsoft have said that “initial supplies are tight” and that many customers were “disappointed to learn their local stores are already out of stock”, but whether this is marketing hype or not remains to be seen.

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