Hello everybody!
I've been lurking for the past few weeks reading great advice and information relating to Windows Phone 8. I currently have an Samsung Intensity III with Verizon, and although my family members all have smartphones now I have held back because I want to make sure I get the phone that will suit my needs and will be worth the added monthly cost. One interesting fact, though, is that last November I actually upgraded to a Lumia 822...for 3 hours before turning it back in. It's a long story, but with the pressures of traveling back to college in the same day as well as being forced to decide on the spot when my Cosmos Touch broke, I wasn't ready yet for a smartphone and barely scratched the surface with the Lumia 822.
Now here we are, 8 months later and I'm ready to consider a smartphone again, only this time I've thought long and hard about it. I have always been heavily involved with Microsoft's Windows ecosystem, so I'm hoping to hear from you all that the phone will tie in nicely with my tastes. I have a Laptop with Windows 8 Pro that I upgraded on the day of release, a Zune loaded with music, and an Xbox. I now use Skydrive as well as the full Office suite. Even so, I primarily use a Verizon POP email address with my Microsoft account yahoo email as backup, alongside a Microsoft Exchange college email.
Reading the above, will Windows Phone 8 be a good fit for my uses? I heavily use calendars that alert me 30 minutes in advance on my dumbphone Intensity III, so that would be nice to continue as accessibly. I have a Google calendar, but wouldn't mind switching fully to Outlook at some point. I guess my biggest fear is longevity of the operating software. People comment how it's a fresh departure from Android and iOS (my family members all have iPhones, which I think are great phones but a dime a dozen), but what about those who never had Android or iOS to begin with? I enjoy the live tiles on my Windows 8 PC and I like the Metro interface, however with the option of a desktop I spend 95% of my time in desktop on my PC. I am more productive in that way, so I just hope that full-time Metro on the Windows Phone 8 will be decent. Not full blown, but enough to edit documents with ease if needed.
Back in November with the 822 my big concern is apps. I'm just a teenage college student who is more focused on his degree than any old app, but of course if my friends have it, I want it...eventually. I don't mind waiting, and it seems now that it has paid off, with 3rd party apps filling the void in the marketplace nicely. This isn't as much of a concern anymore. And of course, Text Messaging is my biggest use currently, and I want it to be easy on this OS as well.
Finally, which phone should I choose? I could go back to the Lumia 822 for free, or jump for the 928 for $50 more, or get a different OS altogether if you don't believe windows phone is for me. Thank you very much for your time reading this painfully long introduction!
I've been lurking for the past few weeks reading great advice and information relating to Windows Phone 8. I currently have an Samsung Intensity III with Verizon, and although my family members all have smartphones now I have held back because I want to make sure I get the phone that will suit my needs and will be worth the added monthly cost. One interesting fact, though, is that last November I actually upgraded to a Lumia 822...for 3 hours before turning it back in. It's a long story, but with the pressures of traveling back to college in the same day as well as being forced to decide on the spot when my Cosmos Touch broke, I wasn't ready yet for a smartphone and barely scratched the surface with the Lumia 822.
Now here we are, 8 months later and I'm ready to consider a smartphone again, only this time I've thought long and hard about it. I have always been heavily involved with Microsoft's Windows ecosystem, so I'm hoping to hear from you all that the phone will tie in nicely with my tastes. I have a Laptop with Windows 8 Pro that I upgraded on the day of release, a Zune loaded with music, and an Xbox. I now use Skydrive as well as the full Office suite. Even so, I primarily use a Verizon POP email address with my Microsoft account yahoo email as backup, alongside a Microsoft Exchange college email.
Reading the above, will Windows Phone 8 be a good fit for my uses? I heavily use calendars that alert me 30 minutes in advance on my dumbphone Intensity III, so that would be nice to continue as accessibly. I have a Google calendar, but wouldn't mind switching fully to Outlook at some point. I guess my biggest fear is longevity of the operating software. People comment how it's a fresh departure from Android and iOS (my family members all have iPhones, which I think are great phones but a dime a dozen), but what about those who never had Android or iOS to begin with? I enjoy the live tiles on my Windows 8 PC and I like the Metro interface, however with the option of a desktop I spend 95% of my time in desktop on my PC. I am more productive in that way, so I just hope that full-time Metro on the Windows Phone 8 will be decent. Not full blown, but enough to edit documents with ease if needed.
Back in November with the 822 my big concern is apps. I'm just a teenage college student who is more focused on his degree than any old app, but of course if my friends have it, I want it...eventually. I don't mind waiting, and it seems now that it has paid off, with 3rd party apps filling the void in the marketplace nicely. This isn't as much of a concern anymore. And of course, Text Messaging is my biggest use currently, and I want it to be easy on this OS as well.
Finally, which phone should I choose? I could go back to the Lumia 822 for free, or jump for the 928 for $50 more, or get a different OS altogether if you don't believe windows phone is for me. Thank you very much for your time reading this painfully long introduction!