Tango isn't out yet, but Windows Phone already getting calls of fragmentation
It's no secret that we are not fans of the term "fragmentation". It is nothing more than a negative marketing term popularized by Apple, that has no real meaning for the average user. And, now Windows Phone is lucky enough to get dragged into the mess because news has come out that Windows Phone Tango and Mango will coexist in the market.
Tango is designed for lower-end devices with less RAM, which means that some apps, most notably certain games, won't be able to run on Tango phones. This seems to be enough for Microsoft expert Paul Thurrot to claim that WP is moving towards fragmentation, because Tango phones won't be able to run Plants vs Zombies. Tango is expected to be Windows Phone 7.5.1 and apps will have to be certified specifically for those handsets. This means, just like every other app store out there, that Tango users won't see incompatible apps in the Windows Phone Marketplace.
If this is the standard for a "fragmented" platform, then every platform on Earth is fragmented, because there is no platform around in which every device in the ecosystem is running the same OS version. And, not having access to high-end games on a low-end rig is a fact of the tech world, not a reason to cry "fragmentation". If you want to play Crysis 3, you had best own a quality computer. The same philosophy goes for mobile devices, and that's not a bad thing.
Either way, we'll know more about Microsoft's plans, because Tango is expected to be unveiled at MWC at the end of the month.
source: Paul Thurrot via WMPU
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