Tracking the internet meme, i t looks like Gruber lit the naming fire:
I think the “Windows” brand hurts them here. Windows Phone 7 doesn’t sound like a new platform. It sounds like an old one. They should have called it Metro 1.0.
McCracken follows up the idea with some more depth:
But I’m inclined to think that a new name would have made sense. It would have made a statement; it would have made the new software sound more like an iPhone-level big deal rather than an incremental update aimed at Windows Mobile users. It wouldn’t have had a meaningful effect on market share all by itself, but it would have gotten things off to a better start.
Of course, Microsoft being Microsoft, it’s not out of the question that it might change Windows Phone’s name yet. But there’s no way to rewrite history and get the big-bang effect that would have resulted from an all-new Microsoft mobile OS with an all-new name.
Of course it's not a new idea, as Michael Selvidge on MIR reminds us all he suggested this back in February!
...it’s sad to see Microsoft finally do something gutsy and innovative like the Metro UI and then stumble by calling it Windows. It must be said that just because Windows may be a "popular" or "known" brand, regardless of its sales, not many people really like it.
Now here's the question. What if the next major step, to Windows Phone 8.0, throws out the WP convention and does go with a new name? What if this new name covers not just Windows Phone, but Windows on the Desktop? What if Windows 8, Windows Phone 8.0, and all the other branding decides to go with the codename?
How does "Apollo" grab you?