Thinking about switching from Android to WP8

[nicolaz]

Hi everybody!

I'm Nico! Very new to Windows Phone, but what I have seen I have really liked and I am considering a switch from Android over to WP8 now that I am due an upgrade on my network.

I'm really curious to hear some feedback from others who have made the switch and about the integration with Windows 8 on the PC.

To start, something I just don't like with Android, and the trend is continuing! Is that the phones are just getting to a point of ridiculous in size. I can only find one Android phone that comfortably fits in my hand and that's the Nexus 4. Everything else cannot really for me, be used comfortably one handed and I'm in London so always walking or on transport and the amount of times I see a Note 2 or an S3 fall to the floor and smash is worrying. But with the phones like the HTC 8X and Nokia Lumia 920, these are comfortable phones! And that's the first thing I like about Windows Phone, and so far that doesn't seem to be changing! I had an iPhone and loved the form factor but didn't like the OS. I don't really like Android as it doesn't seem to "flow" if that makes sense, and I feel that I am at risk with malware and threats like that.

I use Word, Onenote, Outlook all day, and I would be interested how this integrates with Windows Phone 8. Especially with things like email and calendar. I hate how I can delete an email on my Android phone, but it will appear in Outlook later so I always go through emails twice without needing to and even when I have this set as delete on server, it still doesn't work. Is this different on Outlook on the WP8?

I hear apps aren't big on WP8. The only ones I really need are Whatsapp, Twitter, English to Spanish dictionary, English to Portuguese dictionary, London Bus info, London transport app. And then the others like Amazon, Kindle, Ebay, Viber, and stuff like that but I believe all that is on WP8? Also, will future versions of WP8 be upgradable on current hardware. It seems before that the older Windows Phone's missed out.

I am also starting to use Skydrive a lot for documents and I'd love the function to read them on the go with Word. Does this link in well with Windows Phone? On my Windows 8 laptop, I can quickly save and access all of my Office files in skydrive quickly. I assume this is the same on the phone.

I'd really appreciate any advice or opinions!

Thank you.

 

[shpepin]

the phone sizes are what brought me to even consider windows in the first place. Then when I saw how seem less SkyDrive was I was sold. I've only had the 8x for a couple weeks but things are pretty smooth. Granted the os has a few flaws but hopefully ms will recognize them and fix with next update

 

[raul_junior]

Hey Nico, I love my wp8 and its a beautiful phone! If you do get one get the Nokia Lumia 920 because it gets A LOT of exclusive apps and its mapping technology might be even better than googles, and as for a London transit app, I'm pretty sure "Nokia transit" has a London one too so you can check train schedules,bus schedules etc all in. Real time! But you should check what cities it supported, and about viber, it currently doesn't exist on WP I Think but it was on wp7 so I wouldn't be surprised if it came to wp8, so whatever you do don't get an HTC or Samsung!!! Because NOKIA IS THE BEST and they are all in on WP and will keep supporting the platform!

 

[eric12341]

Yup WP8 is an excellent choice for your needs. All phones are guaranteed at least 18 months worth of updates so the 7.8 gate won't happen again. Doesn't matter which WP you go for as long as you get a WP. I will say this though, if you love music and listen to alot of it then your best bet is to go for the 8X.

 

[Daniel Ratcliffe]

As for your translators... you can scan text via your camera using Bing and then translate from there. Pretty nifty feature actually. As for the rest of the time, there's probably an app for that :wink: - Word, OneNote, Excel, et al, all synchronise painlessly via SkyDrive (you get 7GB free, and upgrading to 27GB costs ?6/yr!). Remember to set search region to the US though, so you can reap the full benefits of Bing. For some reason MS doesn't give us as much support as Google... And I can't think of anything else for now. Also, welcome aboard, I'm your friendly Holy Moderator (now that's a member title right there!), and eric is one of my supervisors. So we'll be on hand to help if you have any problems :smile:

 

[Samst22]

Sorry to go off topic, but how do you set Bing search to US? What other features are added?

Back on topic, I have had no issues with mail being unread in two places at once. If I've read it once then it appears read on my windows 8 mail app and on outlook.com. The only time is doesn't is when i'm on my laptop and the mail comes through on my laptop and my phone and the same time

 

[Daniel Ratcliffe]

Sorry to go off topic, but how do you set Bing search to US? What other features are added?

Extra news and such through the Bing quick button. Such as news, etc. Basically, it isn't just a search bar with the usual Bing background, you can swipe across to more stuff. And here is how you to get to it. Options - language + region. See screenshots for more info.

 

[Ozi1950]

Cheers Nico, I'm Ozzie from Croatia living in the states. I had an opportunity to get Lumia 920 on a contract 3 months ago and I love it. In last 5 years I had the iPhone, BlackBerry and different Android phones, but I was anxious to try Windows Phone. However, Lumia proved to be worth of a shot. I had some difficulties with battery and app adjustments in first few weeks, but now I am realizing the full potential of this phone. All the apps that you mentioned I am using, especially Whatsapp, Viber, and SkyDrive. I didn't have any problems with Whatsapp so far while Viber doesn't have a call option for Windows Phone, but I am hoping its coming soon so I can take advantage of this crazy good LTE service. I am sure you will like the Transit app for London. Camera is in my opinion the best compared to iPhone, S3 and I proved that many times in real life situations. My last ecosystem was Android and Windows Phone surprised me and I'm loving it.

I hope this helps a little bit.

 

[Keith Wallace]

Yup WP8 is an excellent choice for your needs. All phones are guaranteed at least 18 months worth of updates so the 7.8 gate won't happen again. Doesn't matter which WP you go for as long as you get a WP. I will say this though, if you love music and listen to alot of it then your best bet is to go for the 8X.

I disagree there. Yeah, the 8X has Beats, but the Nokia devices have Dolby and an equalizer on their side as well. Nokia's devices also have Nokia Music, which I think is the best option for music streaming because of the offline playlists.

That, and there is the simple fact that though this isn't related to music, Nokia gives you MUCH more support. I mean, we're seeing that brought up on the main site now in the comments, that Nokia is getting exclusive games and all kinds of utilities and updating their stuff as well (such as the incoming improvements to the display options). There's honestly not a single excuse to pick the 8X over the alternatives. The Lumias have better exclusive apps, and the devices either have more features (in the case of the 920) or are cheaper than the 8X (in the case of the 820). I mean, unless Stephen Elop killed your pet cat, and you hate Nokia as a result, there's not reason someone shoudl subject himself to the horrific support that HTC offers--and that goes for both Windows Phone AND Android (I had first-hand experiences with it on Android).

 

[nicolaz]

Hi!
Thank you for all the replies here. I am going to check and see what additional apps are available but it sounds like a great switch. I am thinking as well to switch over my email to Outlook.com (I'm currently on Gmail) as it works great on my desktop and at work the interface in the browser is great. I assume that Outlook.com has a great WP8 integration. I am getting tired of reading the same email three times!

Now, I can buy the 8X now as it is a great offer. But the 920 is expensive. I'm wondering whether to start with I should go for the 8X and maybe next year go for a better WP8 phone. Or is there just so much more on the 920 that I can't get on the 8X. I must say, the yellow 920 is hot!

 

[slashd0t]

Careful if you use trains in and around London as WP and Nokia Maps doesn't do a very good job (doesn't even have National Railway).. Learned this the hardway visiting the UK last week where my 920 wanted me to take the bus from Paddington out to places like Maidenhead/Marlow LOL..

Google Maps quickly sorted it out with accurate train times. Nokia did respond to me on Twitter however telling me that they were going to add NR soon.

 

[rob45]

I have had my HTC 8x for two months now and it just keeps improving everyday with my learning new tricks and more apps etc. As long as you have a MS Live account everything syncs well. I have found the 8x to be just the right size for my hand-even with an Otterbox Defender case on it. The camera is much better than I expected and the wide angle landscape shots are huge. I am on Verizon and found the $3 a month charge for live voice mail to be a great feature. I also use the Bing lock screen which presents all the appointments, weather etc on the start screen. Very nice.

 

[nube_android]

Trust me, when you get a Windows Phone, (especially Lumia)
You won't want to go back-unless you are an app fanatic.

 

[conanheath]

Here is the reality, there isn't much win8 integration with wp8. They look kind of similar, but Xbox music is it and it can be a mess. Otherwise, there are a few apps that are the same.

SkyDrive; only thing wp8 does that android doesn't is give ability to auto upload photos and videos. Problem with that, it apparently is the contributing issue with the "other" storage eating up gbs on phones. Otherwise it has the same functionality as android. One note is the same as well.

Calendar app sucks and is worthless on wp8. And there are no alternatives right now. Can't read anything on calendar view, no week view and agenda view is just too busy to really see anything. There is a paid app to get a week view that's pretty good.

Word; there is currently no file manager on wp8. You can copy word docs to phone, but they just go to one folder and you have to search for files. I use a lot of excel with job #s for file names. Its worthless for me. I eat up my data pulling from SkyDrive because that is the only way to get access to a file manager.

Now, Outlook sucks on android without a doubt. Email UI on wp8 is so much better. There are issues with pdfs and email, but it will probably be fixed in update. Also UI is fast. No lag and smooth too. And the keyboard on wp8 is the best I've ever used and I've tried them all.

Notifications are another issue currently. MS doesn't know what a sound profile is and after four months, I have yet to receive a fb or twitter notification. And updates are slow in coming.

If I had one piece of advise, I would say wait at least a year, maybe two before you try it. Between the hardware issues with my 920 and the unfinished OS, its been a very bad experience for me. But, if what you have listed is all you plan on using, it may be right for you. And MS will get issues resolved but its two years before they are comparable to Android and Apple. Right now, there are lots of missing pieces in the OS.

 

[nicolaz]

I am probably going to go for the 8X. The biggest factor for me is price and overall value for money and my budget can't stretch as much as the 920, and I'm not entirely sure I could live with it simply because it is too heavy for me. The 8X fits perfectly in my hand and has a great weight.

I assume all the Nokia apps are only for Lumia phones? I haven't really tried them but I doubt I'd use them. As much as I dislike Android, Google maps is still the best mapping solution and I see there is a gMaps app available. Unless of course the HTC would have it's own maps using Bing.

Other than that, every other app that I really use. (I've counted which out of the 90 I use daily and it's about 10!) are available for Windows Phone.

 

[astraith]

I am probably going to go for the 8X. The biggest factor for me is price and overall value for money and my budget can't stretch as much as the 920, and I'm not entirely sure I could live with it simply because it is too heavy for me. The 8X fits perfectly in my hand and has a great weight. I assume all the Nokia apps are only for Lumia phones? I haven't really tried them but I doubt I'd use them. As much as I dislike Android, Google maps is still the best mapping solution and I see there is a gMaps app available. Unless of course the HTC would have it's own maps using Bing. Other than that, every other app that I really use. (I've counted which out of the 90 I use daily and it's about 10!) are available for Windows Phone.

You could also consider the new Nokia 720 & 520, assuming they are being released where you live. They are cheap, smaller, and offer many if the innovations the Nokia 920 is known for.However, if the 920 and 8X are the only options, I'd go with the 8X. It seems a better fit if you like smaller devices.Either way, I am getting the 920 hopefully tomorrow. Good luck with the switch.

 

[jdriscoll636]

Come to Windows Phone we have a cool aid colored phones.

 

[rockstarzzz]

These are what I found by searching. Might help.


http://forums.windowscentral.com/nokia-lumia-920/218360-should-i-switch-wp8.html

http://forums.windowscentral.com/nokia-lumia-920/218435-switched-note-920-mind-blown.html

http://forums.windowscentral.com/no...itched-lumia-920-now-need-help-seriously.html

http://forums.windowscentral.com/phone-wars/218245-wp8-progress-vs-android-vs-ios.html

http://forums.windowscentral.com/windows-phone-8/217258-wp8-me.html

I've tried to give balanced read, so that you can see both sides of it. There was a thread of Android to WP8, but can't find it yet. If I do, I'll add that.

 

[BHFH]

I have both, android and WP8. If the games I play becomes available I would use WP8 full time. WP8 is so much cleaner, smarter and consistent. I have 5-6 different folders where images are stored, one for each app. Even with file manager its a PITA to manage anything.

If I stop playing mobile games I would ditch android in a heartbeat.