I switched to WP mainly out of frustration w/Sprint and its terrible reception in my area. The cheapest way to a Tmo sim was thru the 521. I had always wanted to give WP for a whirl so I got a twofer: a better carrier and a new OS to explore.
When the 635 became available I immediately sold the 521 and scooped that up; for 2 mos now and on 2 different devices I can say I've had ample time to form an opinion concerning WP.
With WP as my daily driver I am less efficient, less capable and more hindered than using Android. The much ballyhooed 8.1 update brought only minor fixes. For example the notification shade is pitiful when compared to the notification capabilities of even one of Samsung's lower end devices.
I am NOT bashing WP, I am telling it how it is for me; your mileage will vary.
Not even counting the awful app situation the native apps are just not functional in the way we expect smartphones to be. Attachments in Messaging, adding contacts in People, Playlists in music, folders in camera (both Nokia and phone versions), Sharing in the Bing news and financial apps--all those are broken. Let's not even get into IE and it's myriad of issues.
Again, I am not bashing, but when I can't share a simple link from the news app to any of my social networks, there's a problem!
I have to carry around my de-commissioned S3 just to have access to basic but very important apps (WP doesn't have my banking app but contrast that to Android that has not only it but also my two prepaid credit card apps too!).
With both the 521 and 635 I actually used the phones less because the terrible screens made outdoor visibility nearly impossible. When I had to use the phones they gave me headaches because of the severe reflectiveness of the screens. It was a horror to answer an email.
As I've stated, my previous phone was an S3 bought this February, I am hardly some gadget hound, always needing the absolute newest and best; so my complaints are not that of a person accustomed to high end devices.
WP as an OS needs tons of work and the devices that it runs on need some serious upgrades. Look at the newest low end Samsung phone available at Tmo, the $216 Samsung Galaxy Avant, that runs rings around even WP's high end devices.
I really wanted to like WP but its functionality is too limited to be considered a modern smartphone.
When the 635 became available I immediately sold the 521 and scooped that up; for 2 mos now and on 2 different devices I can say I've had ample time to form an opinion concerning WP.
With WP as my daily driver I am less efficient, less capable and more hindered than using Android. The much ballyhooed 8.1 update brought only minor fixes. For example the notification shade is pitiful when compared to the notification capabilities of even one of Samsung's lower end devices.
I am NOT bashing WP, I am telling it how it is for me; your mileage will vary.
Not even counting the awful app situation the native apps are just not functional in the way we expect smartphones to be. Attachments in Messaging, adding contacts in People, Playlists in music, folders in camera (both Nokia and phone versions), Sharing in the Bing news and financial apps--all those are broken. Let's not even get into IE and it's myriad of issues.
Again, I am not bashing, but when I can't share a simple link from the news app to any of my social networks, there's a problem!
I have to carry around my de-commissioned S3 just to have access to basic but very important apps (WP doesn't have my banking app but contrast that to Android that has not only it but also my two prepaid credit card apps too!).
With both the 521 and 635 I actually used the phones less because the terrible screens made outdoor visibility nearly impossible. When I had to use the phones they gave me headaches because of the severe reflectiveness of the screens. It was a horror to answer an email.
As I've stated, my previous phone was an S3 bought this February, I am hardly some gadget hound, always needing the absolute newest and best; so my complaints are not that of a person accustomed to high end devices.
WP as an OS needs tons of work and the devices that it runs on need some serious upgrades. Look at the newest low end Samsung phone available at Tmo, the $216 Samsung Galaxy Avant, that runs rings around even WP's high end devices.
I really wanted to like WP but its functionality is too limited to be considered a modern smartphone.