Just received my Nokia Wireless Charging Stand (Quick Review)

chrgeorgeson

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Ok so I ordered my charging stand from ATT and it finally got here today.

Cosmetically it's great I ordered the black one and it really looks nice the first complaint though is that Nokia cheaped out on the cable (which is proprietary from what I hear) and gave me a white AC plug. However I was able to let that go since it's actually going to be hidden behind my desk.

Charging is great and I like how I can set it up right.
On the base of the unit you'll notice a small bit of print that says "NFC".The first time you sync it up with your phone it launches a built in app on the phone. It's an NFC "programming" application. Boy I was so excited however I was quickly disappointed by this app.

The issues:

1. After a long period of time the application queries your phone for all applications that you installed.... in fact every time you launch this application it does this and it takes about a minute for this process to finish if you have a lot of apps it might take longer.
2. The first app I picked was Hey DJ! I just picked one at random. Once that was done I exited the app and then NFC paired my device. The phone prompted me to accept the connection which I did then off to a blank black screen you go, and then you wait.... and wait..... and wait... Now in all fairness you do see a few of those loading dots 'wooshing by' over and over again while this is going on and it takes about 45 seconds to a minute. I thought "Ok maybe this is a glitch?" I rebooted my phone relaunched the NFC app and picked a different app... same exact results. At this rate you might as well have unlocked the phone and launched the app manually because it's much faster.
3. At this point I thought "Well Nokia can fix this later..." So I decieded I wanted to pick a different application I decided to pick Xbox Music.... nope you can't. How about the Alarm app.... nope..... Long story short you can't pick ANY app that is built in to the OS not even calculator.
4. You cant chain actions together as well. Meaning you can't NFC pair your phone have it set an alarm, and then turn the ringer off/down. It just doesn't do this...at all.

So for wireless charging it works... and if you NEED to have your phone standing instead of laying then this is the device...but for NFC it's nearly useless.
FYI I did try a free NFC app from the app store and tried a basic NFC tag and it didn't seem to work, admittedly I didn't try too hard though.

My opinion is, until WP8 has advanced NFC support there is NO reason to buy this unless:
1. MS releases better NFC functionality.
2. Developers come out with a solution.
3. Nokia (who actually can change the OS) gives us better NFC support.

I'm glad I had a gift card and didn't really spend my money on this thing. I am optimistic about better support though.

-Chris
 

rkgriffin

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Is the NFC app it launching the same thing as going into the Settings and launching the Nokia Accessories app? I have the JBL speaker and I gave up after waiting forever with those little dots going across the top. I just thought I was doing something wrong. Maybe the speaker can't be configured like the stand. Either way I agree with you, for now the NFC part is useless. I am going to order a second pad and forget about the stand for now. Also trying to decide to return the speaker or not. Half of the reason I bought it was NFC and working I could have it silence the phone and set an alarm at night.
 

lordofthereef

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I have the stand too, but didn't really get it by choice, it was just all they had left. If I may add a bit to the review....

Objectively, all the issues you outlined of the stand are actually issues with the software Nokia built. While I agree that this is an extremely legitimate problem, it's not specifically an issue with the stand. Someone reading here two months from now may dismiss the stand as junk. Nokia could very well do some software tweaking. Will they? Who knows. My point is simply that these issues aren;t hardware limited.

But there are some hardware limitations. The phone has to be standing upright for it to charge and that's it. It cannot be upside-down, nor can it be in landscape. I actually wish greatly that it worked in landscape. The stand holds it just fine, but it simply doesn't charge. Bummer. I would have liked to use it at my desk with a Netflix show or some such playing in the background without taking up any of my PC screen real estate. I could likely jerry-rig something, but that just doesn't look as sexy.

I was also hoping that this thing would fold down to allow for flat charging. That is not the case. It is completely rigid. Another bummer for me, because sometimes I might prefer to have the phone just laying on the desk rather than standing. It's not exactly practical, or cost effective, to have two units , totaling $120, right next to one another.

Overall, as it currently stands, it isn't worth the $20 premium over the flat pad, IMO.
 

chrgeorgeson

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I have the stand too, but didn't really get it by choice, it was just all they had left. If I may add a bit to the review....

Objectively, all the issues you outlined of the stand are actually issues with the software Nokia built. While I agree that this is an extremely legitimate problem, it's not specifically an issue with the stand. Someone reading here two months from now may dismiss the stand as junk. Nokia could very well do some software tweaking. Will they? Who knows. My point is simply that these issues aren;t hardware limited.

But there are some hardware limitations. The phone has to be standing upright for it to charge and that's it. It cannot be upside-down, nor can it be in landscape. I actually wish greatly that it worked in landscape. The stand holds it just fine, but it simply doesn't charge. Bummer. I would have liked to use it at my desk with a Netflix show or some such playing in the background without taking up any of my PC screen real estate. I could likely jerry-rig something, but that just doesn't look as sexy.

I was also hoping that this thing would fold down to allow for flat charging. That is not the case. It is completely rigid. Another bummer for me, because sometimes I might prefer to have the phone just laying on the desk rather than standing. It's not exactly practical, or cost effective, to have two units , totaling $120, right next to one another.

Overall, as it currently stands, it isn't worth the $20 premium over the flat pad, IMO.

The software is part of the package though. It's kind of like saying that reviewing the Wii U is wrong because people keep giving it a low score cause the games aren't that great... they should just review it for the hardware alone. The software is part of the experience.

I agree with some of the things you said about the stand though, although I never bought this stand intending to use it in landscape mode some people might think they could.
 

chrgeorgeson

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Is the NFC app it launching the same thing as going into the Settings and launching the Nokia Accessories app? I have the JBL speaker and I gave up after waiting forever with those little dots going across the top. I just thought I was doing something wrong. Maybe the speaker can't be configured like the stand. Either way I agree with you, for now the NFC part is useless. I am going to order a second pad and forget about the stand for now. Also trying to decide to return the speaker or not. Half of the reason I bought it was NFC and working I could have it silence the phone and set an alarm at night.



I believe it is actually.
 

lordofthereef

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The software is part of the package though. It's kind of like saying that reviewing the Wii U is wrong because people keep giving it a low score cause the games aren't that great... they should just review it for the hardware alone. The software is part of the experience.

I agree with some of the things you said about the stand though, although I never bought this stand intending to use it in landscape mode some people might think they could.

I didn't say your review was wrong. I was simply saying we are reviewing hardware with NFC built in. If I coded an App for Android, it will work the same way it does in the stand. The NFC works fine. It's the software, within the Lumia, that isn't up to snuff.

Also, I said what I did because this issue is potentially fixable. Basically, I wanted to point out that the problems are all hardware, not software. That's all :)

I got the thing for free, so I can't really complain. I just felt like an extra $20 retail value should get you something more than just an NFC chip slapped into the stand.
 

chrgeorgeson

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I didn't say your review was wrong. I was simply saying we are reviewing hardware with NFC built in. If I coded an App for Android, it will work the same way it does in the stand. The NFC works fine. It's the software, within the Lumia, that isn't up to snuff.

Also, I said what I did because this issue is potentially fixable. Basically, I wanted to point out that the problems are all hardware, not software. That's all :)

I got the thing for free, so I can't really complain. I just felt like an extra $20 retail value should get you something more than just an NFC chip slapped into the stand.


I think you and I could keep going round after round on this. :)
I never said you were wrong either by the way just that I didn't/don't agree with you.
I reviewed this unit and never said NFC didn't work correctly but that it isn't worth using this device because it won't enhance the experience of using WP8 in any efficient way.
Also in my review I stated that these problems can be fixed by Nokia if they choose to do so.
This is a Nokia product that I'm using with another Nokia product and I feel reviewing the entire experience is absolutely valid. Again it is ok that you don't feel that way.
 

lordofthereef

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I never said you were wrong either by the way just that I didn't/don't agree with you.

Pretty much the first thing you responded with was...

The software is part of the package though. It's kind of like saying that reviewing the Wii U is wrong because people keep giving it a low score cause the games aren't that great...

Also, I am not sure what you don't agree with, because I essentially said what you said while adding to it (and the additional parts you said you agree with), so this has me scratching my head a bit.

I was just trying to neutralize the defensiveness of your response. Obviously crashed and burned there. Sorry! You wrote a great review. I agree with everything you said. I simply added to it.
 

chrgeorgeson

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Pretty much the first thing you responded with was...



I was just trying to neutralize the defensiveness of your response. Obviously crashed and burned there. Sorry! You wrote a great review. I agree with everything you said. I simply added to it.

I think things get lost in translation. I feel that you think I'm jumping on you about this. I just don't agree with you and were merely having a discussion about it. You don't need to scream an apology at me. :wink:
Again I don't have to agree with you but that doesn't mean you are wrong in the way you feel.
 

lordofthereef

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I think things get lost in translation. I feel that you think I'm jumping on you about this. I just don't agree with you and were merely having a discussion about it. You don't need to scream an apology at me. :wink:
Again I don't have to agree with you but that doesn't mean you are wrong in the way you feel.

No, I don't feel you were jumping at me. I am just sitting here scratching my head about what you actually disagree with when I said everything you said. This is a software issue. It is fixable. Then I added a few more points. Where (or why) the WiiU came into this is beyond me, but I felt you were getting defensive there, hence my responses. To be clear, my intent is not to have you agree with me. But when we are saying the same things... do you see where I am going with this?
 

chrgeorgeson

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No, I don't feel you were jumping at me. I am just sitting here scratching my head about what you actually disagree with when I said everything you said. This is a software issue. It is fixable. Then I added a few more points. Where (or why) the WiiU came into this is beyond me, but I felt you were getting defensive there, hence my responses. To be clear, my intent is not to have you agree with me. But when we are saying the same things... do you see where I am going with this?

You and I do disagree on one thing it seems though you alluded that I shouldn't be reviewing the unit based off the software and that the hardware works just fine. I agree with that except you can't really review the functionality of this device without reviewing the NFC software portion of it as well. This is why I made the comparison to the Wii U. Who would want a Wii U for just the hardware and not the Games/Software support to back it up? Who would want this NFC charging stand that Nokia put out if it doesn't provide any good functionality. I think people spending $70 on this would want to know all the current limitations on this.I even stated in my initial post that these things could be fixed by an update by Nokia so I guess my question to you is why did you repeat the same thing I already said?

I agreed with you on the stands limitations and stated that in one of my other posts.

.Keep in mind that this is a forum and the point of it is to discuss things which is merely what we are doing. No name calling has been done, we've merely had a healthy conversation. I think things get lost in translation sometimes. I've never tried to seem defensive in a hostile way but just trying to project my point across.
 

Frantics

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Just got a Wireless Charging Stand too from the Microsoft Store yesterday.

Yeah, setting it up takes time but in my case, after a few moments of the moving dots, it eventually loaded and it let me choose the app I want to pair with.
BTW, I already have the free charging plate but I want to try the stand for my work desk.

Charging works similarly to the plate but yeah, the NFC feature is kinda useless since from my testing, you still have to tap the phone to the NFC area, then tap "Accept" on the screen before the selected app loads. Plus your phone's screen needs to be on and out of standby for the NFC tap to even register!

I think it's just quicker to unlock the phone, then open the app (say, a clock) via Live Tile then lay it on the stand to charge than going through the whole NFC routine.

So I'll probably won't use the stand's NFC features but I'll still keep it since I like how it props the phone up while charging. :)
 
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chrgeorgeson

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What is the purpose of NFC on the charging stand?

Well theoretically you'd be able to have NFC do lots of things but an example would be something like this: Tap NFC on my stand which is located on my night stand and it automatically sets the phone to vibrate only and sets the alarm for me.
Some people on Android have set up NFC tags that you can put anywhere and have it set the lights to a certain level, and turn the stereo on.
Pretty cool stuff IMO.
 

lordofthereef

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You and I do disagree on one thing it seems though you alluded that I shouldn't be reviewing the unit based off the software and that the hardware works just fine.
Sorry, but it seems you are reading between the lines and seeing something that isn't there. It is true that the issues you had were software. I was not saying that you shouldn't review the unit in whatever way you wanted. I was simply adding to the review, my personal experiences. That's what a forum like this is all about, right? :)

To add something about the hardware that I find interesting, I find it quite strange that you need to tap the base at all. I wonder why they didn't just make it so it launches automatically when placing it on the charging stand. Maybe to give the user the option of NOT automatically launching something? Who knows...
 

chrgeorgeson

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Sorry, but it seems you are reading between the lines and seeing something that isn't there. It is true that the issues you had were software. I was not saying that you shouldn't review the unit in whatever way you wanted. I was simply adding to the review, my personal experiences. That's what a forum like this is all about, right? :)

To add something about the hardware that I find interesting, I find it quite strange that you need to tap the base at all. I wonder why they didn't just make it so it launches automatically when placing it on the charging stand. Maybe to give the user the option of NOT automatically launching something? Who knows...

Sure....
 

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