Should I replace my 925 with a 830

[Desynthesis]

I switched from an unlocked 925 to an unlocked 830 on T-Mobile.

Most of my recommendations are covered already--the 830 is a bigger phone, though the resolution and colors aren't really any better (perhaps slightly weaker), but does have a MicroSD slot and wireless charging unlike the 925. I will add this: the 830 is a WP 8.1 phone inherently, which has one very important advantage to me--the music playback "cracking" issue.

So far, it seems that every single WP8.0 that was updated to 8.1 has some form of "cracking" between songs during music playback, through Xbox Music or any other app, so long as you're using the headphone jack to listen to it (and also the speakers, if memory serves). Playback through BT devices doesn't appear to have this problem, curiously. There is no way to fix it, and it doesn't appear that Microsoft knows how/has any plans to fix it. No 8.1 phones suffer from this problem, so we can pretty confidently say it's something to do with the update from 8.0 to 8.1.

I'm very confident that every handset initially designed for 8.0 has this issue when updated. Now, not everyone uses the headphone jack, and not everyone has good enough hearing to notice (though I think most people do if they're listening for it). It is a problem with out a solution (short of reverting your phone to 8.0, which isn't always an option), but there are ways to avoid it.

If you do use your WP as a music player, and use the headphone jack, this may be worth considering. I'm very happy with my 830 (though I initially got one that had the dreaded "autoreset" bug, I traded it for a replacement), and basically prefer every aspect of it to the 925 with the exception of the colors, which do seem a little less vivid--taken by itself, I'm happy with the switch (and wish I had gotten an 830 in the first place).

Of course, the 830 isn't as new anymore (though is still a little on the pricey side), so you may be better off looking at newer, cheaper options like the 640. As 8.1 phones, they should avoid the playback cracking issue as well.

 

[KyleGM]

Just received my 830 and I can say initial impressions are great, I took a few pics with my 925 and 830 to compare, and the 830 is noticeably better, I don't see how people say it's worse than the 925, sharper images, colours are better and the new Lumia camera is pretty special. I'm on Denim with update 2 and apart from the screen it performs better than the 925 in everything. Very happy with my purchase! I plan to do a full write up in the coming days if anyone is interested. So @gordonfink, I don't hate you

 

[KyleGM]

It's actually not quite as black-and-white as that. The 830 has a smaller image sensor and higher resolution so the image quality will not be any better (might even be worse in low light). I don't think the S400 is bad for a WP device but the 925 certainly has a far better GPU. The only video comparison I could find, it shows how app resume and game loading is faster on 925.

http://youtu.be/DkFH-h8r3aA

Honestly, it depends on what you want to do with the devices. For general use, they are pretty much on par.

I'm happy to report the camera is quite noticeably better on the 830 compared to the 925, even in low light. I don't play games on my phone so that's not an issue, I'm noticing pretty much similar performance in everything else, the 925 is a great device, but the 830's better camera, battery and MicroSD support is too much to go back to the 925 now.

Took a quick sample in low light with flash (only light source being my monitors) 830 on the left, 925 on the right. There is a bit more noise on the 830 but the actual colours of the picture is far better than the 925:

 

[KyleGM]

I switched from an unlocked 925 to an unlocked 830 on T-Mobile.

Most of my recommendations are covered already--the 830 is a bigger phone, though the resolution and colors aren't really any better (perhaps slightly weaker), but does have a MicroSD slot and wireless charging unlike the 925. I will add this: the 830 is a WP 8.1 phone inherently, which has one very important advantage to me--the music playback "cracking" issue.

So far, it seems that every single WP8.0 that was updated to 8.1 has some form of "cracking" between songs during music playback, through Xbox Music or any other app, so long as you're using the headphone jack to listen to it (and also the speakers, if memory serves). Playback through BT devices doesn't appear to have this problem, curiously. There is no way to fix it, and it doesn't appear that Microsoft knows how/has any plans to fix it. No 8.1 phones suffer from this problem, so we can pretty confidently say it's something to do with the update from 8.0 to 8.1.

I'm very confident that every handset initially designed for 8.0 has this issue when updated. Now, not everyone uses the headphone jack, and not everyone has good enough hearing to notice (though I think most people do if they're listening for it). It is a problem with out a solution (short of reverting your phone to 8.0, which isn't always an option), but there are ways to avoid it.

If you do use your WP as a music player, and use the headphone jack, this may be worth considering. I'm very happy with my 830 (though I initially got one that had the dreaded "autoreset" bug, I traded it for a replacement), and basically prefer every aspect of it to the 925 with the exception of the colors, which do seem a little less vivid--taken by itself, I'm happy with the switch (and wish I had gotten an 830 in the first place).

Of course, the 830 isn't as new anymore (though is still a little on the pricey side), so you may be better off looking at newer, cheaper options like the 640. As 8.1 phones, they should avoid the playback cracking issue as well.

I have no issues with music with or without headphones, maybe it was fixed in update 2?

 

[EMitchell]

I currently carry both a 925 (work phone) and an 830 (personal phone). So I get to see the differences side by side every day. Personally I prefer the size of the 925 more, it's a little smaller, a little thinner, and just fits in my hand and pocket easier. It's a great phone, my only work phone, pretty solid. There are times it glitches a bit, but overall, pretty good.

That being said, the 830 is a superior phone in almost all categories. I love the ability to expand the memory. The camera takes superior pictures. Music playback is superior. I use wireless charging on the 830, unavailable on the 925 without a back cover addition. Overall, the phone is just a better phone when comparing features.

 

[KyleGM]

I currently carry both a 925 (work phone) and an 830 (personal phone). So I get to see the differences side by side every day. Personally I prefer the size of the 925 more, it's a little smaller, a little thinner, and just fits in my hand and pocket easier. It's a great phone, my only work phone, pretty solid. There are times it glitches a bit, but overall, pretty good.

That being said, the 830 is a superior phone in almost all categories. I love the ability to expand the memory. The camera takes superior pictures. Music playback is superior. I use wireless charging on the 830, unavailable on the 925 without a back cover addition. Overall, the phone is just a better phone when comparing features.

Yeah I love the 925, it's a great phone. Personally I prefer the slightly bigger screen on the 830, but I can't get over the camera quality compared to the 830! I also have a case on my phone so was never able to use to the wireless charging, can't wait to get my DT-903.

 

[Desynthesis]

I have no issues with music with or without headphones, maybe it was fixed in update 2?

You're the only person I've heard who had the playback cracking problem fixed--including a few people who updated to Windows 10. Not to be rude, but are you sure you're playing music on a WP8 updated to 8.1? As I mentioned, it does not effect music playback that doesn't use the headphone jack (so, presumably speakers and BT device playback).

 

[PiggyMiddle]

>> Should I replace my 925 with a 830
A little OT, but I replaced my 520 with a 930, then replaced that with an 830 and then replaced that with a Blu Jr. {gasp!!} Happy camper again, I like the smaller size and weight of the Jr. Had the larger Lumia screens showed more stuff instead of just making everything bigger, I would probably still have the 830.

 

[KyleGM]

You're the only person I've heard who had the playback cracking problem fixed--including a few people who updated to Windows 10. Not to be rude, but are you sure you're playing music on a WP8 updated to 8.1? As I mentioned, it does not effect music playback that doesn't use the headphone jack (so, presumably speakers and BT device playback).

Sorry I read that wrong, I though you where saying the 830 has a music cracking problem! But on my 925 which I think was a WP8 device originally and I've never experienced music cracking and I listened to a lot of music through headphones, strange.

 

[Desynthesis]

Sorry I read that wrong, I though you where saying the 830 has a music cracking problem! But on my 925 which I think was a WP8 device originally and I've never experienced music cracking and I listened to a lot of music through headphones, strange.

Interesting--honestly, it's possible to not have sharp enough ears to hear it (depending on what kind of music you play). The Lumia 925 is a 8.0 device I'm pretty sure, so you should have had the issues (assuming you're not using BT headphones).