Err, the tiles support icons too. A lot of tiles on Windows Phone apps are just icons. Eg see some at <a href="http://www.wp7applist.com/" rel="nofollow">http://www.wp7applist.com/</a><p>Tiles are better because you can get to see updates on things like weather etc. without having to open the app. Example, you can have a Fedex tracker app that updates when the item status changes, but without bothering you with a full fledged notification.