Just ordered the 8X - new to WIndows Phone

[MikeLip]

I've never used Windows Phone before, but I was looking for something different from Android and iOS. I tried the new Blackberry Z10, being an old BB guy. But I found mine was suffering the spontaneous reboot problem and I didn't want to wait for Verizon to kick out an OS patch for it. The 8X looks like a beauty, and I like HTC from my Droid DNA. The DNA is a work of art and it looks like the 8X is too. The only thing making me hesitant is getting contacts in from Google - but if the Z10 could do that, I'm sure the 8X can. I just clicked the order button and now I'm sitting here like a kid on Christmas eve.

I had a good look at the app store and it looks like all my old friends are there - good turn by turn nav, Pandora, Kindle, a good selection of RPN calculators, and I'm hoping Netflix is there (I didn't check). I'm an electronic engineer so I will miss having the spice simulators but hey, I have them on my laptop and tablet. Having them on the phone is kind of ridiculous since the screen size makes drawing circuits a pain.

I was thinking about waiting for the 920, but patience isn't what I"m known for. Anyway, just dropped in to introduce myself and I will be reading this forum with great interest.

 

[rdifiori]

Netflix is there. You'll like the 8x, I bet.
Sent from my PM23300 using Board Express

 

[freestaterocker]

My Ativ S imported contacts and calendar from Google flawlessly, just like my HTC HD7 WP7 did before it. Netflix is available, though I haven't used it. Xbox Music pass has me flirting with my data cap every month as it is. (I don't have WiFi at home) The app has almost 250 ratings and sits at a solid 4/5 stars, though. For turn by turn navigation I highly recommend Nokia's HERE Drive. It's free, and supports fully offline navigation via downloadable maps.

Most importantly, let me be the first to say WELCOME TO WP!

 

[gospvg]

You and me both Mike, my 8X arrived yesterday but I'm waiting for my case to turn up before I power it up today.

Leaving iOS because I wanted something new & fresh. I did think about android but I have an android tablet nexus 7 and it would just feel the sane.

On windows phones it was a choice of the lumia 820 vs HTC 8x. After reading a few articles & watching a few videos on YouTube I went for the 8x

Looking forward to browsing the AppStore & more importantly spending some time on this forum.

Hello

 

[frankiect]

@gospvg Great combo, I also have a nexus 7 and a htc 8x. I have to say that facebook for instance on the nexus 7 blows the facebook on the 8x out of the water.

 

[asosko]

Welcome aboard, you will like it I also ran from android at the start of the year. Had Gmail and all contacts there. Had no problem importing them, but....I switched completly to outlook.com. Much cleaner, less crammed than gmail...give it a try...

 

[ajua]

MikeLip and gostpvg, welcome to the 8X owners family!

You will not regret your choice. The HTC 8X is an awesome phone with a beautiful design.

A few recommendations:

- Get HERE Maps, HERE Drive and HERE Transit. They are all Nokia apps, but they work very well on all Windows Phone. The Turn by Turn HERE Drive is excellent, you won't need another one.

- Besides what you can read about battery life on this forum, don't disable eveything just to get a couple of extra minutes of battery. I just have NFC disabled as I don't use it. Let the battery settle in after a few days of using the phone and charging it. It will improve.

- I don't know if it uses more battery or not, but as I use the HTC app for clock and weather only I deleted all stock entries as I don't want the app to update them periodically.

- By default, the option to keep Wi-Fi on when the phone is locked it's turned off. Turn it on if you (mots probably) want or need it to stay connected when locked.

- For apps, there are plenty to choose from, except some big names that haven't yet release for WP. My favorites: rowi (twitter, the official one is good enough), Mehdoh (great for twitter too, instagram, soundcloud), MetroTube (YouTube client), 4th & Mayor (Foursquare, better than the official), NextGen Reader (Google Reader, RSS client), ProShot (for plenty of options when taking pictures), Photoplay (Instagram-like social network, really good), Fhotoroom (another social network, but you can use it for editing only, plenty of options), Fotor (photo editing), Battery Level for WP8 (for showing battery status as a tile and/or lockscreen), WizTiles (for making tile shortcuts to Wi-Fi, Airplane, Bluetooth, it's the most customizable).

For cases, use the search function of the forum, there are many topics. I wrote reviews for the Doubleshot HardShell by HTC, the Incipio Feather and the Incipio DualPro if you are interested.

Enjoy your phones!

 

[Westiemom]

I used gmail exclusively before I got my 8x. But after I placed my order for mine I decided to start an Outlook account. I then linked my gmail to the outlook and now outlook gives me both mail sent directly to it and mail sent to my gmail account. BUT, I like outlook so much better now that I am changing to it exclusively.

Welcome to the 8X, hope you love it as much as I do!

 

[MikeLip]

Thanks for the greetings I see it's shipping. Now if I can just keep from looking on my front porch for a package every half hour I'll be OK! As for cases, I rarely use a case because I keep my phone in a pants pocket by itself. When I do it's a Ringke slim, Poetic or similar. But I prefer my phones uncased. It's a looks thing, accepting the added risk. I almost got it in blue or red, but I'm an old man and took black.

 

[WhippedKream]

Thanks for the greetings I see it's shipping. Now if I can just keep from looking on my front porch for a package every half hour I'll be OK! As for cases, I rarely use a case because I keep my phone in a pants pocket by itself. When I do it's a Ringke slim, Poetic or similar. But I prefer my phones uncased. It's a looks thing, accepting the added risk. I almost got it in blue or red, but I'm an old man and took black.

the thing with this phone is though that it can attract some unwanted dirt and stuff on the amazing back and its hard to clean off. But you'll love the 8X as I do. It is perfect for my needs and is an AMAZING music phone! If it wasn't for the music quality and sleek design, I wouldn't have bought it and just would've gotten the Lumia 920. Amazing phone! And welcome to the WP community, I think we are the best around