There is a huge problem afflicting Windows Phone users in relation to apps. I’ll call it Vsco Cam syndrome. Why Vsco Cam syndrome? For those who are uninformed, there is an app on Android and iOS called Vsco Cam. It’s a really good photo editing app that has received a lot of praise. It’s also not on Windows Phone and Windows Phone users want it. What’s wrong with this picture? There are many great photo editing apps in the Windows Phone app store, like Fhotoroom and SophieLens HD which offer a similar feature set. In the case of Fhotoroom, I believe it matches Vsco Cam feature for feature at this point. Yet a vocal crowd of users would rather whine and yell for an unavailable app from developers who don’t care about them while ignoring the developers that do. Instead of moaning and whinging about apps that are unavailable, why not embrace the apps that are there. Search for home-grown apps and reward the developers for taking out time to develop for Windows Phone. A particularly disgusting example of Vsco Cam syndrome can be found in the Windows Central comments section (which I will not link to), when VLC Beta was announced. Someone commented, unprompted “No one wants to pay for MoliPlayer Pro..!!” , another replied “Already brought 6 months ago … Now feeling like wasted 160 Indian rupees”
They consider paying for someone else’s work a waste of money. Someone who has used time and money to fulfil a need they had all because of a previously elusive unicorn app. Consider the effects of this, rather than spending time creating and making cool and innovative apps, we have reduced our devs into making uninspired clones of Android and iOS apps. Imagine if Rudy Huyn was free to make his own apps, or Daniel Gary. Both are excellent devs. But they won’t. Do you know why? Because why have new apps like TVShow when you need 6sec and 6tag to be updated to support Instagram and Vine’s latest features.
The sad thing about this is that nothing can be done. People won’t change quickly. The only thing that can happen is for devs who are already taking a huge risk by betting on Windows Phone to brave on till they become successful. In the meantime, there’s a new game called My Friend Spooner in the store, use that to tide you over till Candy Crush comes.