Is the HP Elite x3 the BEST Windows Phone?

[gvp 1995]

You can compare x3 to 1520 but not to 950XL. I have owned at different times 1020, 1520, 950XL and x3. 1020 has the best camera, no one can beat it even 4 years later. 950XL has many problems which originated with the weak battery: low volume, low brightness, you name it. Plus the battery can hardly go through the day. I never new what battery anxiety was before I had 950XL. It has a huge resolution but a smaller screen which makes it difficult to read sometimes, and increasing font size has strange effects.

1520 was released a couple of years prior to x3 but it is still a great phone. One big disadvantage it has no fingerprint reader. And no dual SIM (sometimes very important!). Also x3 is way faster plus the battery life is even better than 1520. So yes, x3 is the clear winner.

 

[gvp 1995]

In terms of the price I agree. I would not buy it for $800. But one day before Christmas I was in MS store and they had it for $600. So I did get it. I don't use Continuum. As for the camera, I read in reviews it is not very good. But after using it for a few months, it is pretty much the same as 1520. When hiking I take my old 1020 and that one takes amazing pictures. 1520 and x3 are on par. Much worse than 1020, but I suspect still much better than the vast majority of camera phones out there.

 

[nate0]

You can compare x3 to 1520 but not to 950XL. I have owned at different times 1020, 1520, 950XL and x3. 1020 has the best camera, no one can beat it even 4 years later. 950XL has many problems which originated with the weak battery: low volume, low brightness, you name it. Plus the battery can hardly go through the day. I never new what battery anxiety was before I had 950XL. It has a huge resolution but a smaller screen which makes it difficult to read sometimes, and increasing font size has strange effects.

1520 was released a couple of years prior to x3 but it is still a great phone. One big disadvantage it has no fingerprint reader. And no dual SIM (sometimes very important!). Also x3 is way faster plus the battery life is even better than 1520. So yes, x3 is the clear winner.

The SD 808 and 810 chips is what I put the fault on for the battery issues on the 950 series phones. The CPUs themselves were great. But the trade off was heat and energy wasted. This was a known fact and more widely through the Android models too. There were many attempts at kernel tweaks for the Nexus devices and the prior Sammy edge phone among a few trying to squeeze extra hours of on screen time out of them where possible. When the SD 820 came it was a whole new scene. Moving from Octa to Quad core made some of the difference as well as moving to 14nm. Kerenel tweaks were more effective and at least for the Android community made for a happy bunch. If a 950/xl were created here today it would sing a different song.

 

[James Falconer]

@Nate W - what do we have to do to get Microsoft to launch a refreshed/new model?

 

[nate0]

@Nate W - what do we have to do to get Microsoft to launch a refreshed/new model?

I've been contemplating that. I wish Microsoft was more open about things like that. They could always take a stroll through the forums here and get inspired

May be a little off topic here...
Since the last series of Lumia phones were released I feel no other maker has come close to at least matching those in the important or most needed areas. From a consumer perspective the newest addition from Alcatel is the closest. But lacks more than several things. It was mentioned here in the forums before that Microsoft may be holding out on some of the cooler more intriguing technology/innovation for their own device. Which makes me wonder about the camera department. The idol 4s has a pretty good Sony sensor. But it just seems maybe it's lacking the investment and technology to put forth in it to make it better than it turned out. It seems capable, but I'm not a camera buff and don't know for sure.

I suspect Microsoft has a plan B. It appeared that having other makers produce consumer driven handsets using W10M was the goal. I don't know if that will or has taken flight yet, but if it never leaves the ground or fails to stay in flight I suspect Microsoft will come with a plan B. Whatever that might be. Maybe we will know more at the conclusion of MWC 2017.

 

[ndouni]

Actually, for me, it wasn't for the freezing and reseting issue I was getting on a more than 5 times occurrences a day, which for some reasons, all that stopped since about 3days now (yes 3 days and more phone freezing ), and I hope this is the norm now, this phone is the best Windows phone I have ever owned. I owned the 920, 1520, 950XL and others. This phone is the best. The camera is not an issue for me, the image quality is just fine. App problem, not for me, I have just what I need, don't need games and all the distractions, and the games I need, I actually have them. As a bonus, the most fall restant phone I ever had; I lost 2 950 XLs due to falls. I can't count how many time this phone has fallen, even in water, on gravel, and Ice, nothing, still looking good. That being said, I hope this continue as I am really looking forward to the surface phone redefining mobile phone just the iPhone did.

 

[aespix]

No , for me it's the 950 xl or idol 4s.

 

[KrakenGt1]

It seems everyone is quite quick to forget the fact that The Elite X3 is MISSING features that the Lumia 950XL provides. These are microsoft specific features. Glance anyone? Equalizer for better IEM music experience? NFC? And all the nokia imaging software/advantages? Just to name a few that I can think of.

The Elite X3 is *NOT* the best windows phone. The Lumia 950XL provides a FULL package, unfortunately it has its' own set of issues which stop it from be the best.

The x3 has advantages, so does the 950XL. The "best" is dependent on what you want out of a phone.

Edit: Sorry, the phone has NFC, but doesn't support Tap to Pay...which is the biggest use of NFC. Right? or no

 

[dpgx81]

Hp Elite X3 has NFC...

 

[KrakenGt1]

Hp Elite X3 has NFC...

But Tap to pay isn't functional? isn't that one of the most desired uses of NFC? or am I just out of the loop?

 

[PerfectReign]

But Tap to pay isn't functional? isn't that one of the most desired uses of NFC? or am I just out of the loop?

I believe it is only available on the 950xl and only on insider builds.

Ahh, here we go

https://forums.windowscentral.com/e...microsoft.com%2Fen-us%2Fwallet&token=sTaSu7Rs

<quote>Make sure you have a compatible phone—such as the Microsoft Lumia 650, 650 Dual SIM, 950 or 950 XL—running Windows 10 and the Microsoft Wallet app. Check with your carrier for availability.</quote>

Sent from mTalk

 

[JaimitoFrog]

It's the best I have used. Had 950XL, 950, Icon, 1020, 920.

Screen, build quality, battery life, fingerprint and iris scanner, water resistant, dual wireless charging, dual sim and the second sim can run 3G. 1020/950 had better cameras, but the problem with W10M is photo processing and focus is too slow.

 

[JaimitoFrog]

Originally posted by KrakenGt1

Originally Posted by dpgx81
Hp Elite X3 has NFC...

But Tap to pay isn't functional? isn't that one of the most desired uses of NFC? or am I just out of the loop?

True, only if you have bank that is supported. NFC is useful for pairing with devices, like printer, headsets, etc.

 

[invisik]

Tap to pay is non functioning on X3. The screen is there and you can turn it on but then it asks you to select your payment app and payment card and there aren't any. Can't on 1520 either..... Boo.

-m

 

[dpgx81]

I use NFC for pairing with the lapdock too, its still valuable for pairing with other devices, but you are correct. Tap to pay does not function at this time.