Advice and opinions on new phone choices.

[chuck_manson]

Help! The time has come for me to upgrade (ie: kick to the curb) my old phone. I'm still carting around a Lumia 521 and spend way too much time restarting it to keep apps from crashing.

So, I'm looking at an unlocked 640XL or 650 and having a hard time deciding which is best. The 640 seems to have the better camera (which is fairly important, tho I've been happy with the camera on my current phone which is a 5mp (I think)). The 650 has the better built in storage and I like that both have SD slots. Other things that I want that are lacking on my current phone is the front camera (yes my phone has only the back camera) and gyroscope so I can use some of the VR apps.

I do find the amount of models overwhelming and have been forced to create flowcharts and family trees to figure out which the most current amongst all the models available. I believe the 650 is the newest model.

Anyone have any thoughts or experiences?

 

[Timbre70]

IPhone SE.

 

[sinime]

I had a 640 for a while and it was very smooth... Wife donated it to a person in need, so I lost my dev device.

Anyhow, here is a thread you might want to look at comparing the 640 and 650...
http://forums.windowscentral.com/mi...lumia-630-vs-lumia-640-xl-vs-lumia-650-a.html

 

[libra89]

Hmm, I think the size difference of the 521 to the 640xl will be a shock, but I think it's a good consideration. I'm assuming that since you have a 521, you must be in the United States.

Since you are, I would suggest skipping the 650 unless you are on Cricket. Just go for the 640xl. Or if you can find one, I would suggest the unlocked Lumia 830 or 735. Those are good midrange devices and they are a nice middle ground. The front camera is weaker on the 830 though.

 

[RumoredNow]

I believe the 650 is the newest model.

650 is the newest Lumia period. Apparently it will be the last Lumia.

The 640 XL definitely has a camera advantage with 13MP and a Zeiss lens. You could crop in (in lieu of zoom) and get much better results than the same crop on a 650 and general quality gets a boost. However, I've used a 640 which is essentially the same camera as 650 and it is a decent shooter. Definitely a step up from the 521 which I've also had.

It is worth noting that the Snapdragon 400 on the 640 XL will have Lumia Motion Data for step counting and other functions which the SD 212 on the 650 can't do. 640 XL also has Double Tap to Wake and 650 has not seen that feature implemented. 640 XL can record 1080p video and the 650 is limited to 720p. 640 XL also has a much larger battery, 150% the battery capacity of the 650.

650 and 640 XL both have a 720p display. The 650 spreads those pixels out less so the screen has a higher ppi and that makes for better viewing. Many users say they love the vibrant OLED display on the 650. (Personally I like the realistic colors and sunlight readability of IPS LCD - don't know which camp you are in...) As you mentioned the 650 has double the internal storage at 16GB and I think that is a key element. Also, as a made for W10M device the 650 has Call Recorder built in.

It's a tough choice. They each have advantages and disadvantages when seen side by side.

Maybe a summary will help and you can cherry pick which has the least number of tradeoffs for your usage.



For me, 640 XL stands out for:

• Compass, Sensor Core, Double Tap to Wake
• Camera quality and video recording resolution
• Battery

For me, 650 stands out for:

• Built for W10M, Call Recorder
• Despite my being an LCD fan, the OLED on 650 is probably better and a matte screen protector helps sunlight readability
• Better Bluetooth protocol for low energy use
• 16 GB internal storage

Good luck. Like I said, a tough choice and I believe only your personal usage needs will decide between the two...

 

[chuck_manson]

Thanks for the great reply.
I'm not big on the "phablet" size of the larger phones so that was a drawback for the XL.
I like the fact that the 650 is W10M designed. I prefer to not be outpaced by development of apps and updates; the fact that with a 640 you're already behind in the platform is a negative for me.
The compass/gyroscope is also a bit important because I think there will be a lot more VR apps coming out (and not just so we can "catch 'em all")

 

[libra89]

The unlocked 650 sold at the MS store doesn't have many LTE bands The 550 isn't so bad either but it seems like you want to go up in size and have a nicer camera.

 

[chuck_manson]

not necessarily go up in size but I'd prefer a better quality camera, compass and compatibility with apps and updates. With my current phone, really, any of the phones out there would be an upgrade.:smile:

 

[RumoredNow]

640 and 640 XL are running the latest Redstone really well for most users reporting in.