Would you recommend WP8?

[cckgz4]

Why in the blue hell would anyone recommend a WP7 device when there are WP8 devices (in the US) that are BRAND NEW for $100 and less OFF contract? (520/521)

Anyhow, it depends on the person and how they use their phone. I've actually saw three people with WP8 devices today (a 928, 8x, and I believe a 920). I talked to the owner of the 928 and pretended like I didn't own one to see what he said, and he said that he likes the phone a lot and it has the apps that a lot of people use, and he was tired of the usual iPhone choice. I think the general consumer has a stigma that everything outside of iOS and Android can't fulfill their needs, not knowing that on a day to day basis they probably only use 6 apps consistently, and it's probably available on WP8

 

[Moiz Mian]

If we discount all the issues of battery drain, freezing, notification issues, fb chat issues, and just pretend that on SOMEONE's device, all is working as it was intended, I have kind of lost my motivation to recommend windows phone. I've been a trooper since the first month Windows Phone 7 was released. I wholeheartedly recommended it then, I recommended it when Mango was released, and I still recommended it when WP8 was released, but almost all of the novel ideas of windows phone have been jacked by iOS and Android including integrated chat/sms, "flat" metro UI, and even Tell Me is a joke compared to Google Now and Siri these days. And on top of that windows phone hasn't gotten many of the features that iOS and Android came out with, so it just seems to be falling farther and farther behind.

All that being said, I am holding out hope for windows phone 8.1. I REALLY hope they can address all of the shortcomings, but considering how many there are, I honestly don't think Microsoft can address everything. But until WP8.1 is announced, I likely won't be recommending high end windows phones to anyone.

 

[rockstarzzz]

I'm happy this discussion has reached so far, in such a depth without someone spoiling the party
I don't have anything more to contribute that what others have said already - yes I would recommend WP8 to anyone who isn't an app wh*** or a power user.

Some one who wants to live with technology, someone who wants to use things like cloud, subscriptions, integration, minimalism - WP is their only choice even after cartoon revamp of iOS.

 

[eric12341]

It's so sad to see so many people on here say that they won't recommend WP8 to anyone. I also have a hard time understanding where WP falls behind iOS in, I think it's the other way around. Everytime I get ahold of someone's iPhone or Android I can't wait to put it down and get back to my WP. That said I'm more than happy to recommend WP8 to people, I do it all the time and even converted some people but one went to iOS only because we weren't on speaking terms anymore.

 

[Jazmac]

has nothing to do with caring what others want...there are other reasons, im just giving an example of how MS can start to lose support. I think iPhone does a few things that WP doesn't for my needs.

It doesn't?? Let me refresh what I read from you.
"It gets harder each day for me to recommend a WP8 device since the changes most people want and have been asking for aren't here yet....although Some exist in gdr3. I've got my HW upgrade coming in 3 months and now iPhone 5s is a candidate along with waiting to see what WP8.1 brings."
Yep, I think I quoted you correctly.
You find WP8 hard to recommend and Iphone5s is a candidate for you. I got it. I'm not mad at cha. I was just asking for confirmation.

 

[christenmartin]

It's so sad to see so many people on here say that they won't recommend WP8 to anyone. I also have a hard time understanding where WP falls behind iOS in, I think it's the other way around. Everytime I get ahold of someone's iPhone or Android I can't wait to put it down and get back to my WP. That said I'm more than happy to recommend WP8 to people, I do it all the time and even converted some people but one went to iOS only because we weren't on speaking terms anymore.

Each to his own but my mother in law just bought a iPhone 5 and helping her set it up felt like going back in time. Good phone for her.

 

[tgp]

Each to his own but my mother in law just bought a iPhone 5 and helping her set it up felt like going back in time. Good phone for her.

Any phone you're not familiar with will feel that way. I felt that way about WP too when I bought my first one. Not anymore though!

 

[chezm]

To clarify, it gets harder to recommend WP8 to others since a lot features most people want or except do not exist on the platform yet. It doesn't mean I care about those features of what others want, but I wouldn't recommend the device if I know they want, lets say certain apps, that dont exist on WP. Meh...yes iPhone 5s is a candidate in my scenario for other reasons...but WP also has things I dont want to give up...its not an easy choice.

 

[Dave Blake]

To clarify, it gets harder to recommend WP8 to others since a lot features most people want or except do not exist on the platform yet. It doesn't mean I care about those features of what others want, but I wouldn't recommend the device if I know they want, lets say certain apps, that dont exist on WP. Meh...yes iPhone 5s is a candidate in my scenario for other reasons...but WP also has things I dont want to give up...its not an easy choice.

Okay so don't recommend WP that's fine. At this point from your experience you can't recommend any OS. At least that is how I take it from your statements correct? Instead when people ask you tell people what's different about WP and let them decide what they like. I think we can all agree that we all have our own individual experiences with our devices, right? Why cant you tell people what you like about WP OS?

I like Rooms in WP8 its a life line between me and my wife. We both have Windows Phones we share our calendars, pass love notes, pictures, and generally share our experiences when we are apart. Its a wonder feature of WP. I use Maps wallpaper app with traffic for my lock screen. All I have to do is turn on my phone and I know if there is traffic I need to be aware of. Talk about Bing integration, Office integration, Peoples hub, Skydrive, XBOX, XBOX Music... list goes on and on. I'll stop now but you get the idea. Tell people what you like about WP and let them decide.

 

[angusdegraosta]

It is a good platform and I would certainly recommend it to people who are interested. Whatever half-assed plans Microsoft executives have in store for the phone in the months ahead, my 920 has great camera, awesome Office/SkyDrive integration, good GPS, solid battery life once you figure out settings, and an attractive interface. Works fine for me.

 

[Nokia Boy]

Before i try WP8,when i was hearing the words Windows phone,i was like "It's crap lol"
But finally i decided to buy a nokia lumia and i really liked it,i love WP8 and i'm sure my next phone will be lumia too.
Still i can't understand why everyone hates the WP8 before even try it? Some iOS and Android users really underrated nokia phones,but actually nokia (and the windows phone) are the best!
PEACE!

 

[chezm]

Okay so don't recommend WP that's fine. At this point from your experience you can't recommend any OS. At least that is how I take it from your statements correct? Instead when people ask you tell people what's different about WP and let them decide what they like. I think we can all agree that we all have our own individual experiences with our devices, right? Why cant you tell people what you like about WP OS?
.

Actually you hit the nail on the head, I dont think any of the platforms are exceptional and all need work. My biggest fear is telling someone to go with a product because of my personal opinion, only for them to discover it was the wrong choice. And while it may be their own mistake to take my opinion wholeheartedly, I would still feel at fault.

I will always tell someone what I think WP does best and why...thats not difficult cause I think it does a ton very good. I've got some peers on the fence, along with me, on what platform to use next. They are deciding between iPhone and WP...i let them play around with 920 and brag about its key benefits imo like the unique/personal start screen, responsive keyboard, nokia drive and no data gps, lagless os and social integration....and the camera which is the biggest winner.

A main downfall if iPhone for me right now is the lack of freedom of uploading files to the phone. You need to use iTunes and the device is locked to a single PC. I hate this, at least with WP I can plug it into the multiple computers I use and upload/delete what I what whenever I need to. There are ways around this but its annoying and an advantage windows phone has. And also, while I love the iPhone screen size the keyboard is a tad small...so I keep testing with my wife's iP5 to see if its doable.

 

[rockstarzzz]

Okay so don't recommend WP that's fine. At this point from your experience you can't recommend any OS. At least that is how I take it from your statements correct? Instead when people ask you tell people what's different about WP and let them decide what they like. I think we can all agree that we all have our own individual experiences with our devices, right? Why cant you tell people what you like about WP OS?

Isn't that the main selling point of WPs?

"Individuality"

Experience remains the same from device to device - you don't have to learn anything new with 50,000 launchers on 10 different phones, but you can tailor it to what you are.

Does this sound familiar to anyone - "You are, what you pin." or "Pin. What matters to you."

When people say "Oh there is no customisation on WP like widgets and colours and themes and backgrounds" - I call it bull****. Why? Because my phone has never looked the same since 2010. Not one day. Each day I pin and move things around according to what is going to be important to me on that day. If I am going to call my escort (jk!) more than my wife, my wife goes 3 rows down. If I am going to text Obama all day instead of Elop, I make a mega large tile of Obama. If I have fall out with Dave Blake, I just unpin him.

That takes seconds, literally seconds to make your phone look and feel like what you are. It does things differently. You can pin Xbox titles on your start if that is what you are into or you can pin your work documents if that is what you are into. You can go to cloud with Skydrive or you can alienate yourself download one of those "Lock photos" app to hide your porn.

So yes, tell people what WP has and I bet you will think why haven't you recommended WP8 before!

Our issue lies when we want WP to do what iOS and Android does. But that's human nature right? You always want what you don't have and you won't appreciate what you have (say a Lumia 520) until you have lost it (buying a ZTE Blade)

A main downfall if iPhone for me right now is the lack of freedom of uploading files to the phone. You need to use iTunes and the device is locked to a single PC. I hate this, at least with WP I can plug it into the multiple computers I use and upload/delete what I what whenever I need to. There are ways around this but its annoying and an advantage windows phone has. And also, while I love the iPhone screen size the keyboard is a tad small...so I keep testing with my wife's iP5 to see if its doable.

So you aren't a cloud person then? Or does iCloud not store stuff like Skydrive?

 

[chezm]

So you aren't a cloud person then? Or does iCloud not store stuff like Skydrive?

Good point, i'm only starting to use the Cloud based services more now then ever...i doubt i'd use iCloud since my home PC's are Windows based and i love the simplicity of Skydrive (which i confirmed is available to download on iPhone). Since we have these these types of services now i should start utilizing them more, thanks for noting this.

 

[iamtim]

Or does iCloud not store stuff like Skydrive?

It doesn't.

iCloud uses an application-based storage model. So, an app can be configured to store stuff on iCloud, and then those files are available to that app from the cloud, but no other app has access to them. There's no "here's what's in your iCloud" site/page/view like there is with Skydrive. You can see how much space you're using, but that's it outside of the specific apps which use iCloud.

 

[chezm]

It doesn't.

iCloud uses an application-based storage model. So, an app can be configured to store stuff on iCloud, and then those files are available to that app from the cloud, but no other app has access to them. There's no "here's what's in your iCloud" site/page/view like there is with Skydrive. You can see how much space you're using, but that's it outside of the specific apps which use iCloud.

Thanks for the clarification, i now know i wouldnt never use iCloud and stick with Skydrive (especially how nicely it syncs with my Pro 2)