[romaniv]

> CE Pocket PC et al suffered the same problem as Symbian and everything before iOS: they didn't have the App Store, and as such it was a pain to get software for the devices other than through the OEM.

Huh? Software could be installed by downloading a file and clicking on it. In many ways was a simpler and more pleasant process than interacting with App Stores. The problem wasn't with finding or installing anything, it was with monetization. App Stores and always-online model made it trivial to charge people and show them ads.

Overall, I remember my Windows CE PDA with fondness. Using it was a positive experience, which I can't say about any smartphone I owned.

[pjc50]

Chicken and egg though, surely? The inconvenience of selling apps to people was a disincentive to writing them.

(Didn't they all have resistive touchscreens too? That was the other big iPhone launch advantage, much better touch)