Current state of affairs of L950 and XL

[sd4f]

Once I learnt that WP8.1 will lose support later this year, I've been examining finally upgrading. I'm still on a L920, which I bought new back at the very start of 2013... Hey I got a yellow one, it works, and I still get asked often enough about it.

Purpose of this thread is, I keep on hearing things about bugs and poor battery life with the last of the lumias, but similarly, that a lot of this stuff has been resolved. If I were to start fresh on either one, which would give the best performance in terms of battery and least bugs?

I personally would lean towards the L950 because of the smaller size, but if the L950 battery is somewhat wanting in getting at least that one day, I'd go for the L950XL, if it solves the issues.

While hardware is generally very similar between the two, when run side by side, what are the perceptible differences today? Because the phones were launched quite a while ago, it's hard to find information on how they are currently. Since it doesn't look like there's going to be any new hardware coming out, I think they're the only option for what I want, which is chiefly, good camera.

I'm not interested in running insider builds, just want to stick to the official production builds. Don't have the interest in mucking around with the fast ring or slow ring whatever, just want a phone that works.

Either this or I go back to android

 

[RumoredNow]

Either this or I go back to android

Emotional blackmail at it's finest. :winktongue:

Is Idol 4S Windows not an option where you are?

 

[libra89]

I'm going to tag @Indistinguishable . He has had both so he'll probably chime in on the differences.

As for the 950, it's fine. Battery life isn't terrible (or great honestly) but you will get a day. I have owned the 950 two times and with the most recent time, I have noticed a change in battery life for the better. My 950 works just fine for me. The battery life isn't what I prefer but there's no anxiety about it.

 

[Indistinguishable]

I thought the battery life on the Lumia 950 was just meh. But it's possible that it has improved since I used it a few months ago. The 950 XL does seem to do a noticeably better job managing it's battery life.

If you're looking for a smaller flagship Lumia, i'd say go with the 950. The differences in battery life are not that drastic. Go with the device that feels best in hand! They're both solid.

 

[libra89]

I thought the battery life on the Lumia 950 was just meh. But it's possible that it has improved since I used it a few months ago. The 950 XL does seem to do a noticeably better job managing it's battery life.

If you're looking for a smaller flagship Lumia, i'd say go with the 950. The differences in battery life are not that drastic. Go with the device that feels best in hand! They're both solid.

It's a little better than meh, but far from amazing.

 

[sd4f]

Emotional blackmail at it's finest. :winktongue:

Is Idol 4S Windows not an option where you are?

I could check it out, but the lumia camera is something that I really want. I really like the dedicated camera button as well.

 

[RumoredNow]

I could check it out, but the lumia camera is something that I really want. I really like the dedicated camera button as well.

Idol 4S does have a camera button, although it isn't two-stage. And, yeah, it isn't Pureview. Still, maybe check the samples: http://forums.windowscentral.com/al...al-idol-4s-picture-video-thread-new-post.html

It isn't a bad camera. It isn't a great camera. For most shots it does very well.

Idol 4S Windows has a lot going for it. SD 820 is very smooth, maxed out RAM at 3.5GB (effective), 64GB internal storage + very fast SD card bus, great stereo speakers, excellent battery life, tight build w/ high quality, schmexy good looks and VR to play with.

I took mine to AnTuTu where it handily outscored 950 XL and embarrassed the 950.

 

[tgp]

I could check it out, but the lumia camera is something that I really want. I really like the dedicated camera button as well.

At one time I thought too that the camera button was the way to go, but after using phones without them for a couple years, it is another one of those things that I wouldn't pay a nickel for now. Most other phones have some kind of gesture or key press that launches the camera.

Did you see this photo contest from last year? The Best Smartphone Camera, as judged by YOU! I found it interesting that while the Lumia 950 didn't take first place, it was also older than the others.

 

[sd4f]

So I take it that the current regular builds are running fairly smoothly and without the bugs that plagued the launch?

Unfortunately, it looks like the lumias are no longer available in Australia from MS, no one else sells them new, so my only option is ebay now.

Last thing is, and this is a general question, but what improvements are made compared to WP8.1? Apart from the obvious hardware and continuum, what does the OS offer now that wasn't there previously? I'm a bit concerned that most windows phones are still 8.1, and that seems to be still plaguing apps and no improvement in sight...

 

[libra89]

So I take it that the current regular builds are running fairly smoothly and without the bugs that plagued the launch?

Unfortunately, it looks like the lumias are no longer available in Australia from MS, no one else sells them new, so my only option is ebay now.

Last thing is, and this is a general question, but what improvements are made compared to WP8.1? Apart from the obvious hardware and continuum, what does the OS offer now that wasn't there previously? I'm a bit concerned that most windows phones are still 8.1, and that seems to be still plaguing apps and no improvement in sight...

Yes, there have been a lot of improvements. Way less bugs.

There have been a LOT of improvements and additions. I think it would be hard to list all of them. You can check out this thread for a good starting point: http://forums.windowscentral.com/wi...10m-new-features-listed-compared-wp8-1-a.html

 

[sd4f]

I'm thinking now that I might be best served in going for a L950, mainly because I've found a source for new ones, and they're so much cheaper. Plan is, if I don't like it or get really annoyed by W10M, then I'll move on to android. Hopefully a nokia flagship will appear by then as well (rumours abound, the current announced crop weren't interesting at all).

With respect to W10M, how well does the people integration work compared to WP8? I've read some comments that it hasn't been working too well. I personally got annoyed with the removal of features from WP8->WP8.1, as I found WP8 to have some really good stuff in it. Is W10M watering that down more?

If anything, it would be nice to have a comprehensive review of what W10M was like at launch, back in late 2015, compared to now. It's clear that a lot of work has been put into the OS, but it's really hard to make up my mind when, there doesn't appear to be any serious support coming its way, in terms of apps and hardware, so I really think I should only look at it as a stopgap solution.

 

[greedo_greedy]

The Lumia 950 should serve you well (though I will personally go with the Lumia 950 XL for the better processor and battery)

The Alcatel Idol 4S is also an excellent alternative and in many ways waaay better than the Lumia 950.
But if camera quality is your thing, then nothing quite matches the Lumia 950.

Windows 10 Mobile has made great progress from it's initial inception in 2015 and is like night and day when comparing it to before, we should see more improvements soon as the Windows 10 Creators Update will be rolled out to mobile on April 25.

Also Windows 10 Mobile beats WP8.1 in terms of sheer number of features and functionality.
Everything is better, from Groove Music, Movies & TV, Calculator, Mail & Calendar, Settings and much more.

The awesome people integration from WP8 though has taken quite the backseat in Windows 10 though I'm sure we should see improvements in future updates.

Still liking the OS is subjective so it'll really depend on your personal tastes.

HTH

Please share your feedback when you get your device

 

[Ejay Lozano]

I have a started off with a L800, to a L900, to a L920, to a L830(midrange) to a L950. I settled for the L830, because the L930 wasn't available in the US, but I know you can get it unlocked, but the LTE feature wasn't available and I was gimicky about no glance and no expandable memory on the L930, so I held on to the L830 till the L950 got cheaper. To this day, I love the phone. The battery life isn't that bad. To solve the battery issue, I always keep a battery pack with me. It's the last of the lumias and I'm still rocking it. Until the WP is completely dead, I may have to switch to android, but still stick with Nokia.

 

[sd4f]

The awesome people integration from WP8 though has taken quite the backseat in Windows 10 though I'm sure we should see improvements in future updates.

This bothers me a fair bit. When I got my L920, that was such a great feature with the integrated posting and messaging with various social media platforms.

Will it still sync facebook pics for contacts? I've read that things like "what's new" don't work like they did with WP8.1. I currently have my "what's new" set up to only have people with whom I have phone numbers, they're generally closer friends than people I went to school with, for instance, so it's a good way to filter out less important stuff.

 

[rocketboy]

I upgraded to a L950 from the exact L920 that you had back last August when they dropped the L950 to $298 US. For the first 2 days I thought I had made a horrible mistake as the phone ran hot and drew a lot of power resulting in terrible battery life. However, I think that had something to do with out of the box updates with W10 (I had similar problems with a new SP4).

Once that initial period was over though battery life stabilized and things have been going well since then. The battery life is easily as good for me as the L920 and makes it through the whole work day for me with ~40% remaining. I got to keep using my L920 wireless charger. The screen is nicer (such that I've had iPhone users comment on what kind of screen that was) than the L920. It's definitely faster. I lost a few games coming over to W10M, but nothing else serious. The camera is much improved over the L920 in the sharpness category. My lifelong photographer dad noticed the image quality right away. It's lighter than the L920, but definitely feels less sturdy.

I'm a middle aged dad whose not spending time keeping up with every new app or social media trend. I take pictures, email, calendar, access documents, SMS/Slack, read news, play music, watch the occasional video clip, sync with my Band2, use GPS navigation on maps, and fire up the occasional game to entertain my 5-year old in restaurants. The L950 meets these needs fine.

The only disappointment I have is from the perspective of a Windows Phone enthusiast. That this could well be the last good piece of Windows phone hardware I'll own.

 

[sd4f]

I finally got the L950 I ordered on ebay, but it's looking rather suspicious.

Outer box says that it's a lumia 950XL, inner box suggests that it's a Lumia 950. It's shrink wrapped (not that it's any sort of seal of authenticity). I specifically asked if it's an Australian version with no carrier stuff, since I don't want to worry about carrier bands and crapware, but the inner box label says that it's a RM-1105 which is AT&T.

I think given what's going on, this last week has been awful, I probably should best get my money, maybe wait for build and see if anything is in the pipeline, and then decide whether I go forward.

 

[libra89]

I finally got the L950 I ordered on ebay, but it's looking rather suspicious.

Outer box says that it's a lumia 950XL, inner box suggests that it's a Lumia 950. It's shrink wrapped (not that it's any sort of seal of authenticity). I specifically asked if it's an Australian version with no carrier stuff, since I don't want to worry about carrier bands and crapware, but the inner box label says that it's a RM-1105 which is AT&T.

I think given what's going on, this last week has been awful, I probably should best get my money, maybe wait for build and see if anything is in the pipeline, and then decide whether I go forward.

It might be an unlocked AT&T phone. Either way, I agree that your should request your money back. Sorry that you have to deal with this. :/

 

[sd4f]

Sorry that you have to deal with this. :/

Not your fault. Just goes to show how crappy it is to deal with ebay to get a windows phone...

 

[libra89]

Not your fault. Just goes to show how crappy it is to deal with ebay to get a windows phone...

You're so right about that point. It just sounds like a pain either way really.

 

[greedo_greedy]

Not your fault. Just goes to show how crappy it is to deal with ebay to get a windows phone...

Were you able to get a refund? If you get another one, try find one preferably brand new, some sell for about 300 bucks.

Let us know how it goes.