Calling all Windows Phone fans! An iPhone owner needs your help!

[Osz]

I know this is probably a discussion that has been had on this forum again and again, so I apologize for the annoyance, and I appreciate any help you can offer.

I am somewhat platform agnostic. I have owned iPhones, Android phones, and I had a Lumia 900 for a while. I am currently using an iPhone 5 with AT&T, and will be replacing it in a couple of months after Apple announces the iPhone 6. Only time will tell if I purchase another iPhone or if my curiosity will get the best of me.

I like the iPhone. The hardware is gorgeous, the software has never caused any problem that a reboot couldn't solve, and the selection of third party apps is more than enough. The third-party apps developed for iOS are beautiful. I honestly have no complaints about the device and believe that the iPhone 6 is only going to be better.

But we humans get bored easily, at least I do. I took a look at the Lumia 1520 at the local Microsoft store and had a serious geek-out moment. It's gorgeous in every way. The same can be said about the 1020, which I might favor due to the awesome camera. I always liked the live tiles, the social integration, the awesome sharing functionality in Windows Phone. The deeply integrated OneDrive storage is also a winner for Microsoft. Now we have Cortana, and it looks as if Microsoft is serious about continuing to improve the platform, to make it every bit as compelling as Android or iOS. They have made it much more difficult for consumers to dismiss it.

My Lumia 900 experience wasn't bad. I truly liked the phone, but a number of things drove me to abandon it for my current iPhone. The fact that it couldn't be updated to Windows Phone 8 was a big one, but the biggest was the lack of apps. I know this is a sore spot with Windows Phone users and fans, and many of you do fine with what the Marketplace offers. I've taken a look at what I need, and I think if I were to go back to Windows Phone, most of my needs would be covered. It also lacked some customization I would have liked but it appears as if this is improving as well.

I am not dependent on Google Services, so there's no danger of the Microsoft-Google spat to get in my way. I could take or leave iCloud. I have already migrated to Spotify and it would be incredibly easy for me to do everything else I need through my Outlook account.

The only disadvantage I can find to switching to a different platform is that I would be missing the upcoming Continuity features of Apple's upcoming software upgrades. I own a Mac as well as an iPad. In a way, it makes no sense to change to another phone platform. The idea of answering a phone call on my Mac is awesome. Will I use it often? Probably not. I rarely need to begin work on one device and finish on another, so Handoff won't be used much either.

So here's the deal. I am seriously considering trying Windows Phone again. It looks amazing. I am especially interested in the cameras on the flagship phones and the wonderful Nokia apps that allow you to be creative. I also find myself missing the Live Tiles. I will not be buying a 1020, or a 1520. But I will be looking for their replacements if they arrive later this year.

So with all of that in mind, I am asking for some help. Surely some of you have walked away from the iPhone for a Lumia. Do you miss the iPhone? Do you have any frustrations over app selection. Do you feel like you are missing anything by owning a Windows Phone, or have you gained something instead?

Thanks for your help and opinions.

 

[Nerdy Woman]

We'd love to welcome you back to the tile side...

I've never owned an iPhone (private war with the Cupertino monopoly machine, not any objection to their products other than price) and I've owned a Lumia 920 since April 2013, my first heavyweight smartphone. I've since bought 2 more for my husband and daughter. Although they are no longer marketing the 920, they're elegant, durable, and powerful phones, kept up to date with software/firmware updates. I couldn't see paying more for a newer model when the 920 is perfection. Silly as it may seem, the curved case makes it so easy to lift off a flat surface. I'm nuts, but I still notice that after using it for a year. I also love the wireless Qi charging. I just set my phone down on the charger whenever I'm at my desk. I never thought that would be a big deal, but it's great. The 920 had it built in so no accessory cover is required.

I will qualify everything that follows by saying that I am a 30-year veteran user of Microsoft products. They've made missteps, but I've always thought they deliver a damn good product and try to play well with others.

I am an independent contractor who uses Skype extensively, both on my WP and my computer. I believe it is far more ubiquitous than Facetime, so if you need to communicate with others, you might find that advantageous. And yes, I can hand off Skype calls between devices. As for actual calls to my cell number? No. I can't answer those calls on my computer.

I also collaborate online with clients using OneDrive and Office apps. My first step with a new client is to set them up on OneDrive, OneNote, and Outlook and have them share a folder, notebook, and calendar with me. Viewing their project on my phone is as easy as accessing my own. I can view and add items to their calendars, notes to their notebooks, files to their OneDrive from either my Windows desktop or my phone. Using OneDrive, they can view Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files either using the Online Office apps or in the desktop apps simultaneous to me doing extreme editing in my own desktop apps which, of course, have all the whistles and bells absent from online apps.

I don't use a 3rd-party messaging app. Frankly, I've never understood why one would be needed. Having the native messaging app handy in every app with a sharing option just makes it easier. The new Wordflow feature in WP 8.1 is cool. So much easier than tapping each character. You just have to make sure it interprets your swipes correctly because, as you know, shut happens.

What's missing:

I've been looking to buy a new car and sadly, nothing sold in the US offers full support for Windows phones. Most offer Bluetooth interface with onboard Bluetooth, some offer audio support (depending on the phone you choose), but none go all out like they do for iPhone support. Which is illogical considering that Ford, Fiat, Nissan, and Kia all use Windows embedded to control the car itself. You'd think the user interface would be a no-brainer.

Business apps. Salesforce is partnering with Microsoft and we will probably see a Salesforce app later this year. Other than that, most B2B sites that offer phone apps build their iPhone and Android interfaces and call it done. On the flipside, I have native SharePoint support and that is useful for working with clients.

Fitness apps. There are plenty of them, but if you have a wearable you like using, you might check the mfg's website to see if they support Windows phones. Wellograph is the first one I've seen with full WP support.

Service apps: If you live in a city and use services such as Uber or Lyft, they don't have Windows apps. I don't use either, but my Pizza Hut app is a nice addition.


Now the real bad news: Like you, I use AT&T for wireless service. They haven't introduced a new Windows phone in almost 9 months. According to Microsoft, they carry the new Lumia 635, but I haven't seen it in the AT&T online store. Support is adequate, but even AT&T says they'll probably never offer a U-verse app for Windows phone. Surprising since they were the first to carry Windows 8 phones, but they've certainly not made any effort to sell them or even educate their store personnel about Windows phone. You may have encountered that when you played with the 1520. The 1020, with 32 GB onboard is probably the only current offering I'd consider, although the 1520 does have SDHC support.

Alternately, since ATT uses GSM (SIM cards), you can buy any unlocked phone and BYOD when you're ready to make the move. By this time next year, that will be even easier... Do a search for congress unlocked phones. Ars Technica has an excellent article. I'd post a link, but links aren't allowed in the Ask a Question forum (problem with spammers).

 

[omer620]

Too long to read. ?zet ge?

 

[badr0b0t]

I know this is probably a discussion that has been had on this forum again and again, so I apologize for the annoyance, and I appreciate any help you can offer.

I am somewhat platform agnostic. I have owned iPhones, Android phones, and I had a Lumia 900 for a while. I am currently using an iPhone 5 with AT&T, and will be replacing it in a couple of months after Apple announces the iPhone 6. Only time will tell if I purchase another iPhone or if my curiosity will get the best of me.

I like the iPhone. The hardware is gorgeous, the software has never caused any problem that a reboot couldn't solve, and the selection of third party apps is more than enough. The third-party apps developed for iOS are beautiful. I honestly have no complaints about the device and believe that the iPhone 6 is only going to be better.

But we humans get bored easily, at least I do. I took a look at the Lumia 1520 at the local Microsoft store and had a serious geek-out moment. It's gorgeous in every way. The same can be said about the 1020, which I might favor due to the awesome camera. I always liked the live tiles, the social integration, the awesome sharing functionality in Windows Phone. The deeply integrated OneDrive storage is also a winner for Microsoft. Now we have Cortana, and it looks as if Microsoft is serious about continuing to improve the platform, to make it every bit as compelling as Android or iOS. They have made it much more difficult for consumers to dismiss it.

My Lumia 900 experience wasn't bad. I truly liked the phone, but a number of things drove me to abandon it for my current iPhone. The fact that it couldn't be updated to Windows Phone 8 was a big one, but the biggest was the lack of apps. I know this is a sore spot with Windows Phone users and fans, and many of you do fine with what the Marketplace offers. I've taken a look at what I need, and I think if I were to go back to Windows Phone, most of my needs would be covered. It also lacked some customization I would have liked but it appears as if this is improving as well.

I am not dependent on Google Services, so there's no danger of the Microsoft-Google spat to get in my way. I could take or leave iCloud. I have already migrated to Spotify and it would be incredibly easy for me to do everything else I need through my Outlook account.

The only disadvantage I can find to switching to a different platform is that I would be missing the upcoming Continuity features of Apple's upcoming software upgrades. I own a Mac as well as an iPad. In a way, it makes no sense to change to another phone platform. The idea of answering a phone call on my Mac is awesome. Will I use it often? Probably not. I rarely need to begin work on one device and finish on another, so Handoff won't be used much either.

So here's the deal. I am seriously considering trying Windows Phone again. It looks amazing. I am especially interested in the cameras on the flagship phones and the wonderful Nokia apps that allow you to be creative. I also find myself missing the Live Tiles. I will not be buying a 1020, or a 1520. But I will be looking for their replacements if they arrive later this year.

So with all of that in mind, I am asking for some help. Surely some of you have walked away from the iPhone for a Lumia. Do you miss the iPhone? Do you have any frustrations over app selection. Do you feel like you are missing anything by owning a Windows Phone, or have you gained something instead?

Thanks for your help and opinions.

The biggest thing missing with WP is full integration with the PC version of Windows OS. WP is totally an isolated OS from the WIndows OS family. It would be nice if it had a "Homegroup" capabilty where you can see all your PCs and NAS within your home network and share files, etc.

I came from Android OS and never really liked the iOS. I never play around with my wife's iPad. I only touch it when my wife needs some technical help. Productivity wise, Android is still better than WIndows Phone due to availability of more apps on android. This is why I am keeping good old HTC One X.

My L1520 is a bit lame at this point but I am still giving it a chance. It feels good in my hand. I thought of getting the 1020 from the beginning but I had a change of heart for 2 reasons: it doesn't have storage expansion and I have a Nikon D7000 if I need to take better looking photos. But the camera on L1520 is not bad at all.

If you don't see any problem with your L900 while using the iPhone at the same time, then the 1020 or the 1520 will surely be a lot better for you. Btw, a lot of WP user are ditching the 1020 over the 1520.

Good luck!

 

[Osz]

I'm nuts, but I still notice that after using it for a year.

Hey Nerdy Woman. Thanks for the detailed reply. Clearly, you're passionate about Windows Phone and that's great.

You mention many strengths of the OS for which I have only a little need. Like you, I'm an independent contractor, but the nature of my work does not require much online collaboration. I definitely like that Skype is integrated into Windows Phone, and would probably use it much more than I do now. I do not use FaceTime, so that's not a factor in my decision either. I've been wanting to get an Office 365 subscription, so Windows Phone would definitely be great for that.

One of the things I appreciated about my Lumia 900 was the durable and elegant design, and in two years, Nokia has only produced much better looking products.

You're right. Apple products are expensive. So is the beautiful Microsoft Surface Pro 3 which makes me drool every time I visit the Microsoft Store. You really do get what you pay for. Nothing about Apple is cheap, and their products generally (note the qualifier, generally) work the way you want them to. That's the kind of experience I want in a Microsoft product. I bought my Mac only after upgrading my Windows 7 machine (with a 27 inch monitor) to Windows 8. Microsoft sold it as a desktop OS as well as a touch-based OS, but it was very clumsily implemented for those who use a mouse and keyboard. Things are getting better and I look forward to the day when they rid themselves of their current identity crisis. I'm expecting big things out of Windows 9!

Once again, thanks for your reply. I appreciate that you mentioned some things I hadn't given much thought.

 

[Osz]

The biggest thing missing with WP is full integration with the PC version of Windows OS. WP is totally an isolated OS from the WIndows OS family. It would be nice if it had a "Homegroup" capabilty where you can see all your PCs and NAS within your home network and share files, etc.

I came from Android OS and never really liked the iOS. I never play around with my wife's iPad. I only touch it when my wife needs some technical help. Productivity wise, Android is still better than WIndows Phone due to availability of more apps on android. This is why I am keeping good old HTC One X.

My L1520 is a bit lame at this point but I am still giving it a chance. It feels good in my hand. I thought of getting the 1020 from the beginning but I had a change of heart for 2 reasons: it doesn't have storage expansion and I have a Nikon D7000 if I need to take better looking photos. But the camera on L1520 is not bad at all.

If you don't see any problem with your L900 while using the iPhone at the same time, then the 1020 or the 1520 will surely be a lot better for you. Btw, a lot of WP user are ditching the 1020 over the 1520.

Good luck!

Thanks for your reply, badr0b0t. You mention that if you have a need to take better photos, you would just take your Nikon. I have cameras I could take with me too, and that would pretty much take away half of my desire for one of the Lumias. The only problem with that is I don't always have my SLR with me. There have been times when I was driving in the country noticed that the sunset was something worth capturing in a photograph. Or I might be driving through some small town and see a beautiful old county courthouse or church. Having a great camera on my phone would make life amazing at those moments. I have been able to produce some reasonable-looking pictures with my iPhone, but unless there is a great amount of light, it's performance is not all too great.

Thanks again!

 

[JamesPTao]

I own an 920 and my wife owns the 1020. I would highly recommend either. The 1020 by far has no competition in the phone department, period. I am a photographer on the side but stick with the 920 as no camera phone or point and shoot fills my needs. (I shoot for enjoyment and have no problem carrying my canon 1 Ds around. My wife has her 1020 for family shots when I don't. Now there is a successor coming for the 1020. I don't see it increasing in mp, but with their recent partnership with canon I could see them adding canons digic 4 processor to help process the huge raw files without replying on the CPU to dramatically speed things up. That itself would be huge. If you don't need 40mp the 1520 is supposed to be a da tastic phone. The 1520.3 adds an ips screen, qi charging and a couple of other features (the battery life makes it really appealing to me). Qi is one of those features that seems neat and not a big deal until you get a phone with it, then you never want a phone without it again.

 

[Osz]

I own an 920 and my wife owns the 1020. I would highly recommend either. The 1020 by far has no competition in the phone department, period. I am a photographer on the side but stick with the 920 as no camera phone or point and shoot fills my needs. (I shoot for enjoyment and have no problem carrying my canon 1 Ds around. My wife has her 1020 for family shots when I don't. Now there is a successor coming for the 1020. I don't see it increasing in mp, but with their recent partnership with canon I could see them adding canons digic 4 processor to help process the huge raw files without replying on the CPU to dramatically speed things up. That itself would be huge. If you don't need 40mp the 1520 is supposed to be a da tastic phone. The 1520.3 adds an ips screen, qi charging and a couple of other features (the battery life makes it really appealing to me). Qi is one of those features that seems neat and not a big deal until you get a phone with it, then you never want a phone without it again.

Thanks, James. You're right. No phone camera can compare to an SLR. I had not heard of a partnership with Canon. The idea of a digic 4 processor in the phone sounds intriguing. I wonder how that would affect the price of the phone.

 

[JamesPTao]

Thanks, James. You're right. No phone camera can compare to an SLR. I had not heard of a partnership with Canon. The idea of a digic 4 processor in the phone sounds intriguing. I wonder how that would affect the price of the phone.

Hopefully not too much. My slr has three digics two for processing one dedicated for focusing.

 

[Nerdy Woman]

I've been wanting to get an Office 365 subscription, so Windows Phone would definitely be great for that.

...I bought my Mac only after upgrading my Windows 7 machine (with a 27 inch monitor) to Windows 8. Microsoft sold it as a desktop OS as well as a touch-based OS, but it was very clumsily implemented for those who use a mouse and keyboard. Things are getting better and I look forward to the day when they rid themselves of their current identity crisis. I'm expecting big things out of Windows 9!

Once again, thanks for your reply. I appreciate that you mentioned some things I hadn't given much thought.

With the Office 365 subscription, your OneDrive storage gets bumped to 1 terabyte. Just thought you might like to know because, yes, size matters.

Interesting viewpoint on Windows 8, certainly shared by many. I got my Lumia 920 before I upgraded from 7 to 8 on my laptop. Although, after playing with live tiles on my tiny phone screen, I couldn't wait to get my beast upgraded. I was taking 6 classes at the time and my daughter kept telling me I didn't need to add new OS to my lesson plan. I upgraded 2 hours after turning in my last assignment. My 5 yo Dell is strictly mouse and keyboard, nary a touchscreen in sight. I cruised through some tutorial videos about navigation and found myself frustrated when 8.1 returned me to the old X in the upper right corner. To each his own, but I love the start screen, even with a mouse.

Like you, there's gotta be a Surface in my future!

 

[ultravi0let]

I didn't read through the responses, but let me give you my take on this matter:





I own several devices from blackberry to android and iPhones. Right now I switch between a Lumia 920 and a 1520 - they just work better as a GUI front end for what I want to do. However, especially if you're used to the apple or android ecosystem, you will find the following very frustrating:


- mobile streaming: there are many excellent apps on android and IOS to stream media from your home computer. This is not the case with windows phone at this time. There claim to be apps that do this but don't waste your time.


- remote file server: same as above. Onedrive used to work but is now unreliable. You would think that windows phone would communicate easily with windows machines but this just makes no sense. Epic fail here.


- the same apps for android and IOS seem to be steps behind. Things like Skype, Whatsapp, instagram, Facebook, etc sorely lack features that you're used to on other platforms (uploading, editing privacy on posts, downloading, etc). Unless MS changes policies on some aspects for developers, expect to be behind compared to the other platform counterparts.


- if you like taking pictures, STAY AWAY. No matter how good they claim he cameras to be, they do not match the speed, ease, and clarity of iPhone devices. That is the truth, anyone that says otherwise is lying to you. IPhone especially the 5s has the quickest startup to shoot sequence, including focus time. The pictures come out clear and the colors are not washed out or too saturated. I have missed many good shots due to both the 2+ second camera startup lag and the focus/shutter lag. More often than not, I will get a blurry picture when photographing people due to movement where the 4s/5/5s always get a clear pic. No my phones are not broken, I have seen this on Nokia models throughout the board.





And there you have an honest opinion from someone who actually likes the WP side. I believe you should make the best move knowing whether you can accept and work around the shortcomings of whatever choices you have.






PS. I don't know why so many complaints about windows 8. I am not the only windows power user so I cannot understand why it is not intuitive to access the desktop to operate like a normal windows machine and just skip the tile GUI if you don't like it. Like many windows "problems" it sounds way worse than it really is. Fwiw, I have no loyalty to operating systems, I will simply use what is available.


Sent from my RM-940_nam_att_200 using Tapatalk

 

[Osz]

I didn't read through the responses, but let me give you my take on this matter:





I own several devices from blackberry to android and iPhones. Right now I switch between a Lumia 920 and a 1520 - they just work better as a GUI front end for what I want to do. However, especially if you're used to the apple or android ecosystem, you will find the following very frustrating:


- mobile streaming: there are many excellent apps on android and IOS to stream media from your home computer. This is not the case with windows phone at this time. There claim to be apps that do this but don't waste your time.


- remote file server: same as above. Onedrive used to work but is now unreliable. You would think that windows phone would communicate easily with windows machines but this just makes no sense. Epic fail here.


- the same apps for android and IOS seem to be steps behind. Things like Skype, Whatsapp, instagram, Facebook, etc sorely lack features that you're used to on other platforms (uploading, editing privacy on posts, downloading, etc). Unless MS changes policies on some aspects for developers, expect to be behind compared to the other platform counterparts.


- if you like taking pictures, STAY AWAY. No matter how good they claim he cameras to be, they do not match the speed, ease, and clarity of iPhone devices. That is the truth, anyone that says otherwise is lying to you. IPhone especially the 5s has the quickest startup to shoot sequence, including focus time. The pictures come out clear and the colors are not washed out or too saturated. I have missed many good shots due to both the 2+ second camera startup lag and the focus/shutter lag. More often than not, I will get a blurry picture when photographing people due to movement where the 4s/5/5s always get a clear pic. No my phones are not broken, I have seen this on Nokia models throughout the board.





And there you have an honest opinion from someone who actually likes the WP side. I believe you should make the best move knowing whether you can accept and work around the shortcomings of whatever choices you have.






PS. I don't know why so many complaints about windows 8. I am not the only windows power user so I cannot understand why it is not intuitive to access the desktop to operate like a normal windows machine and just skip the tile GUI if you don't like it. Like many windows "problems" it sounds way worse than it really is. Fwiw, I have no loyalty to operating systems, I will simply use what is available.


Sent from my RM-940_nam_att_200 using Tapatalk

Thanks for your honest opinion. I remember reading some raves about the Lumia 900 camera when it was first introduced, but I didn't think it performed as well as advertised. It wasn't a horrible camera, but it didn't live up to the hype. Not much ever does. I have not used the iPhone 5s camera, but the iPhone 5 is lacking good image stabilization and low-light capabilities. Unless I have good light, I can't take a very good looking photograph with my phone.

I have a love/hate relationship with Windows 8. I appreciate its stability and beauty, but it initially lacked features friendly for those who prefer to use extra large desktop displays. I would have rather found a way to be happy with the Modern UI, but everything appeared to be huge on the monitor. It's quite clearly a tablet or small screen interface, and looks especially stunning on those devices. The desktop UI was fine. I even downloaded a third-party start menu so that I didn't feel like I was losing anything. Windows 8 does work, and it is fairly intuitive, but once I was finished with the initial wow factor, I began to notice some of the more glaring issues which Microsoft itself has been addressing through updates.

I'm looking forward to seeing what Windows 9 will be.

Again, thanks for the comments, especially those regarding your opinions on the cameras and the differences between apps across platforms.

 

[swootton]

I didn't read through the responses, but let me give you my take on this matter:





I own several devices from blackberry to android and iPhones. Right now I switch between a Lumia 920 and a 1520 - they just work better as a GUI front end for what I want to do. However, especially if you're used to the apple or android ecosystem, you will find the following very frustrating:


- mobile streaming: there are many excellent apps on android and IOS to stream media from your home computer. This is not the case with windows phone at this time. There claim to be apps that do this but don't waste your time.


- remote file server: same as above. Onedrive used to work but is now unreliable. You would think that windows phone would communicate easily with windows machines but this just makes no sense. Epic fail here.


- the same apps for android and IOS seem to be steps behind. Things like Skype, Whatsapp, instagram, Facebook, etc sorely lack features that you're used to on other platforms (uploading, editing privacy on posts, downloading, etc). Unless MS changes policies on some aspects for developers, expect to be behind compared to the other platform counterparts.


- if you like taking pictures, STAY AWAY. No matter how good they claim he cameras to be, they do not match the speed, ease, and clarity of iPhone devices. That is the truth, anyone that says otherwise is lying to you. IPhone especially the 5s has the quickest startup to shoot sequence, including focus time. The pictures come out clear and the colors are not washed out or too saturated. I have missed many good shots due to both the 2+ second camera startup lag and the focus/shutter lag. More often than not, I will get a blurry picture when photographing people due to movement where the 4s/5/5s always get a clear pic. No my phones are not broken, I have seen this on Nokia models throughout the board.





And there you have an honest opinion from someone who actually likes the WP side. I believe you should make the best move knowing whether you can accept and work around the shortcomings of whatever choices you have.






PS. I don't know why so many complaints about windows 8. I am not the only windows power user so I cannot understand why it is not intuitive to access the desktop to operate like a normal windows machine and just skip the tile GUI if you don't like it. Like many windows "problems" it sounds way worse than it really is. Fwiw, I have no loyalty to operating systems, I will simply use what is available.


Sent from my RM-940_nam_att_200 using Tapatalk

I respectfully disagree with your camera points. My wife has a iPhone 5s which she upgraded from a Nokia 920 because of an app she needed for work. She hates the camera and complains all the time how the camera sucks compared to her old 920. Than there's my 1520 which take pictures that make her iPhone pics look like a child took them with a toy camera. There is absolutely no comparison on which phones take better pictures out of the box. Now maybe you can play with settings and get an iPhone to take better pictures but I wasn't able to find any better servings.

My daughter's iPhone 4 died and my old 920 was available and I told her she cold have that. She protested for several weeks and now 2 months later won't go back. She like her 920 better and that's hard for a 13 year old especially when all her friends have facetime and she doesn't.

 

[Nerdy Woman]

She like her 920 better and that's hard for a 13 year old especially when all her friends have facetime and she doesn't.

Conversely, my older daughter and her family miss out on group Skype calls because she refuses to load Skype on her Mac. Meanwhile, her 17 yo sister, grandma, aunt, and I all enjoy the time together...

And my 15 yo grandson wants a Windows phone so he can stay plugged in to xbox when he's away from his console.

I'm glad we got your daughter to come over to the tile side...

 

[dgr_874]

I use an iPhone 5, a Lumia 920, and a nexus 5 all in my home so I think I could give some advice.

I find managing media on my windows devices much more bothersome then on the other two. If you like how iTunes manages your music you will be in for some bumpy patches trying to abandon it. I really miss the ability to rate my music and having smart playlists with playcounts. Xbox music just does not give you the ability to fine tune your collection. In addition, if you purchase a video or music off of Xbox music you only have 5 downloads and then have to repurchase it. ITunes lets you download as much as you like. ITunes mirroring to and apple TV is hard to beat.

I just find the whole ecosystem disjointed right now because of the big shakeups happening in the company. Things kind of work, and every now and then I see something really neat that syncs through all my windows devices. I think by this time next year WP will either be much closer to the device and software that people want, or its going to start its downward slide.

 

[Nerdy Woman]

I use an iPhone 5, a Lumia 920, and a nexus 5 all in my home so I think I could give some advice.

I find managing media on my windows devices much more bothersome then on the other two. If you like how iTunes manages your music you will be in for some bumpy patches trying to abandon it. I really miss the ability to rate my music and having smart playlists with playcounts. Xbox music just does not give you the ability to fine tune your collection. In addition, if you purchase a video or music off of Xbox music you only have 5 downloads and then have to repurchase it. ITunes lets you download as much as you like. ITunes mirroring to and apple TV is hard to beat.

I just find the whole ecosystem disjointed right now because of the big shakeups happening in the company. Things kind of work, and every now and then I see something really neat that syncs through all my windows devices. I think by this time next year WP will either be much closer to the device and software that people want, or its going to start its downward slide.

I can't argue with everything you've said, dgr. The reason that the entire Apple ecosystem works so smoothly is because they grow their interface, not even attempting to play well with others. Right down to their connectors, the touch screens on their phones, every accessory is unique and more expensive than industry standard counterparts

As long as you don't have a problem having to buy everything Apple, at whatever prices they set, you're fine. But their absolute control over every aspect of your digital life is precisely the reason I won't buy Apple. I may sacrifice some of the convenience, but for me, that convenience is too spendy.