[Official] Initial thoughts on Developer Preview of WP8.1

[ChanceNC]

Re: Initial thoughts on Developer Preview of WP8.1

Well, sad to say, I was forced to revert to Windows Phone 8 yesterday afternoon. In some other posts in other threads, I mentioned that I started experiencing phantom back button/start button presses about three or four weeks ago. I *never* had these issues prior to moving to 8.1, yet I wanted to attribute the behavior to excessive heat causing the digitizer in my phone to act up. That may be the case, but if it is heat, it's probably because the phone doesn't know how to manage it because the firmware isn't in tune with the 8.1 software. It got to be just too annoying, so I torched it and went back to the latest WP8 release for my device. The thing is running like a champ. I have purposely been giving it the spurs (running GPS navigation, playing games, using it in direct sunlight) and it has yet to act up. That said, it might twitch like a jumping bean as soon as I click the Post button for this message.

But here's some funny stuff:
I don't miss the notification center.
I prefer not having persistent indicators at the top of the start screen for Wi-Fi, cellular, etc.
The tile background image is just eye candy. I couldn't care less about it. It was cool at first, but it just doesn't send me.
I wasn't using Cortana very much. I thought I would use it more as time progressed, but I didn't.
I do miss the separated volume controls.

I'll be just fine until the official release comes out. And for anybody else who is having issues on a Nokia device, reverting back to WP8 was a breeze following the instructions here: FAQ - FAQ - How can I recover/reset/restore my phone software? - Nokia - USA

8.1 is excellent, but it's not yet ready for prime time, at least not on the 928.

I'm a little over 24 hours in with WP8.1 on a Lumia 928 and I love-love-LOVE it. I thankfully have experienced virtually none of the bugs (yet) from the compilation thread, and I'm blown away by all the upgrades this update brought. The only thing I've noticed (and, really, it might have been present before the update) that might be considered an issue is an occasional and brief dropout in audio, happening once this morning while listening to Pandora in the car (could've been shoddy cell signal), and again this evening while playing NBA Jam (could've been something running in the background competing for resources).

Battery life is the same as it was pre-update. I took the phone off my charger at work around 6 PM this evening. I've been pounding it, browsing the internet, checking social networks, listening to music, giving it little chance to sleep or stay off. I'm at 55% battery remaining. That's a win.

The Action and Notification Center is a nice and overdue addition.

Separate volume adjustments was long overdue and works very well.

Cortana has not proven to be very useful yet, but that's because of my lifestyle. Functionally, it's excellent.

I was worried after reading reviews about the "neutered" hubs but, honestly, I prefer the way they work now over how they did before. And, with time, the "new way" will work even better.

My favorite feature upgrade is the ability to increase the number of tile columns and use an image for the tile backgrounds. It looks great and lends a very personal touch to the phone that wasn't there before.

Hoping for smooth sailing till the official carrier release!

(and, no, I did not do a clean install, but this is my first toe-dip into dev releases, so my OS was official from the get-go)

 

[ChanceNC]

Re: Initial thoughts on Developer Preview of WP8.1

And as it turns out, I *won't* be just fine. Still twitches after reverting to 8. Downloaded a game and played it for a while a couple nights ago (Tetris Blitz) and thought the phone was going to catch fire. Caused all three capacitive buttons to stop working, but screen worked. I'm done. I reactivated the old but reliable Galaxy Nexus and am going to send the 928 in for warranty repair, which I'm sure will go well (not). Pretty sad, maybe the brief fling with 8.1 did some irreversible damage that wasn't corrected with a restore to 8. I just remember the twinge of potential remorse I had the evening I went to 8.1 and wish I'd listened to it more closely and just forgotten about it.

Those of you having good luck with 8.1 and/or Lumia 928's, more power to you.

Well, sad to say, I was forced to revert to Windows Phone 8 yesterday afternoon. In some other posts in other threads, I mentioned that I started experiencing phantom back button/start button presses about three or four weeks ago. I *never* had these issues prior to moving to 8.1, yet I wanted to attribute the behavior to excessive heat causing the digitizer in my phone to act up. That may be the case, but if it is heat, it's probably because the phone doesn't know how to manage it because the firmware isn't in tune with the 8.1 software. It got to be just too annoying, so I torched it and went back to the latest WP8 release for my device. The thing is running like a champ. I have purposely been giving it the spurs (running GPS navigation, playing games, using it in direct sunlight) and it has yet to act up. That said, it might twitch like a jumping bean as soon as I click the Post button for this message.

But here's some funny stuff:
I don't miss the notification center.
I prefer not having persistent indicators at the top of the start screen for Wi-Fi, cellular, etc.
The tile background image is just eye candy. I couldn't care less about it. It was cool at first, but it just doesn't send me.
I wasn't using Cortana very much. I thought I would use it more as time progressed, but I didn't.
I do miss the separated volume controls.

I'll be just fine until the official release comes out. And for anybody else who is having issues on a Nokia device, reverting back to WP8 was a breeze following the instructions here: FAQ - FAQ - How can I recover/reset/restore my phone software? - Nokia - USA

8.1 is excellent, but it's not yet ready for prime time, at least not on the 928.

 

[jenza77]

Well, it works fine with Android phones. In my phone it says: "Do you want to search app in store?" pushing yes and no apps found.

Hammarbyfotboll.se - Officiell webbplats f?r Hammarby Fotboll (in there you should be able to play video clips). I have been waiting for a long time .

How hard can it be to fix a videoplayer APP that plays those videos/files?. If Android can, WP can. But seems like they dont want or just cant. This makes me frustrated and tired of WP.

 

[junglescope]

Can someone provide an explanation on why nearly all third party apps are faster on an iPhone 5 than my 1520? I'd like to know.

 

[twint7787]

Can someone provide an explanation on why nearly all third party apps are faster on an iPhone 5 than my 1520? I'd like to know.

Better support from developers? This isn't the case with all apps.

 

[Timothy Rock]

Hmmm, I think 8.1 gives you a chance to setup the phone in a style like with android. The transparent tiles are very nice. I only miss the people hub integration. IE facebook.

 

[Nawt0k]

I only miss the people hub integration. IE facebook.

Yea, I thought the people hub was one thing that really set WP apart. The need to install the FB app to view pictures, comment, etc. is something that I am not going to do nor have interest in. I liked the native support and now it seems like the people feed is 50% broken out of the box.

 

[rusty_sim]

Just a bit of advice, don't perform a hard reset (through settings -> about). My phone became stuck between a factory device and 8.1 with lumia black. My glance screen wasn't showing notifications and I had the dreaded wifi password problem.

I used NSU to reflash back to black with 8.0 using a backup. I then installed 8.1 and glance is working properly

 

[artzznyzz]

More comments on a few major functionality defects:

MORE COMMENTS ON A FEW MAJOR FUNCTIONALITY DEFECTS:

Excessive Battery Discharge on NL 920 with DP 8.1 & all updates:
Nominal (1-2 %, or less) if phone is not being used at all. BUT grossly excessive (15 - 35% per hour) with any use, especially with ANY map application while on highway, (& even when in fixed location). This excessive discharge occurs even with all background apps disabled, no cellular data (but GPS / location on), e-mail updates only every 1 or 2 hours, no Wi-Fi. Often (but not always) accompanied by brutal overheating and full discharge / shutdown of phone, even if phone is in front of car's air conditioner vent. If overheated and discharged, phone will not recharge before cooling for 20-30 minutes. By then I'm lost, angry, etc. (In short, this turns phone into a [temporary] brick.
This problem of excessive discharge did occur on my original NL 920 with WP 8.0 BEFORE update to DP 8.1, purchased Sept. 2012, although not quite so severe. It is exacerbated - much much worse on my new NL 920 purchased June, 2012 (because of shattered screen on 9/2012 phone.)
Frequent feedback to Nokia / Microsoft via Diagnostics app, WPCentral forums, Nokia feedback on phone, etc. but NO ACKNOWLEDGEMENT from N / MS yet.
Is this an 'official' monitored forum? How about a reply?

CORTANA is Intrusive, and can not be easily disabled:
If Cortana is not fully disabled, it pops up frequently during the day (seemingly 2-3 times per hour), even if the phone is just sitting UNTOUCHED on desk, etc., with messages or beeps. (This was also a bug with Bing search.) While the 'personality' is annoying, the real bug is that this seems impossible to eliminate without the multiple keystrokes of disabling Cortana, and then resetting phone. So the moment's distraction becomes a couple minute side trip - TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE when trying to accomplish work, whether on the NL 920 phone, or on desktop. I now find myself turning the NL 920 OFF and continuing on my desktop / laptop, rather than bothering with the reset. Stop imposing these cutesie interruptions on your users' business day, or enable the a temporary turn off (as is obviously present when in "quiet mode" (a great feature)

Office 365 Excel Default Alpha / Numeric Shift Returning Keyboard to Numeric (generic - not specific to 8.1):
After shifting keyboard to numeric, and after entering data into a cell, and then moving to a new cell, the keyboard AUTOMATICIALLY reverts to alpha layout. The extra keystrokes to re-shift back to numeric are infuriating, and counter-intuitive. Motivates me to avoid using excel for even the most trivial updates.
Better / right action would be to RETAIN last user alpha or numeric shift as default until over-ridden by next user selection.

OFFICE 365 Excel Can Not Add Lines or Columns (generic - not specific to 8.1):
No apparent way to do this in O 365 E on NL 920 phone. AND No apparent easy way to save spreadsheet to cloud, and then add rows or columns, and then import back to phone (other than to e-mail, edit, re-e-mail, and then save file on phone. -COME ON, don't you recall "SNEAKER-NET???).

Office 365 Outlook Non-Workable Folder Selection (generic - not specific to 8.1):
1 - My NL 920, and Outlook, are business tools. My outlook is installed on Microsoft Exchange Server under Office 365 Business Pro subscription, and accessed directly on desktop, NOT via Outlook.com. The problem is that I have (AND NEED) a couple hundred e-mail sub-folders to organize incoming messages via my rules and save them. On my desktop, I use a search view to display all messages received within the last 7 days as my default view, so as to easily focus on new messages. So the first problem is that there is no way to bring up the search folder / results on my NL 920. (There is an in-elegant work-around, which is only partially adequate.)
2 - Outlook 365 does (AS IT SHOULD) retain the tree / root structure from Outlook desktop for storing and displaying e-mails according to the folder they are in. However, it is impossible to scroll through this root structure on a folder to folder basis (skipping sub-folders as in DOS, or Windows Explorer, or Outlook on Exchange) on Outlook 365 under WP 8.0 or 8.1, without going through EVERY folder sequentially. Said differently, folders can only be viewed on a FULLY EXPANDED basis. I need to be able to decide to collapse sub-folders, and then skip over these collapsed sub-folders, in order to view specific sub-folders further down the root structure. (E.G., skip over collapsed "Organizations", "Chamber of Commerce", "Rotary", "Personal" etc. to view "Practice", "Clients", "S", "Some specific client". (and this functionality must be available on a "dynamic basis - according to my needs on any specific search / view of my data.)

In Summary,
I've used Nokia phones for ~ 2 decades, and (so far) always come back after brief diversions onto "the dark side." But these longstanding items are not features of the technology. They are DEFECTS. I am almost forced to look at alternatives again.

If NOKIA / MICROSOFT want Windows Phone to be a business tool, these issues must be addressed.

HELLO, Microsoft / Nokia - HOW ABOUT A REPLY,
(or at least acknowledgement that you are listening . . .

PS,
All of above is intended to be constructive. Art : - )

 

[Will6371]

Do you really think that Microsoft is going to reply?

If your not happy with 8.1 go back to 8.0 and wait for 8.1 combined with Cyan firmware.

Cortland is anything but intrusive on my phone so I can't comment on it.

Number going back to letters, is there not a setting to keep it on numbers?

Also did you do a hard reset after installing 8.1 because it sorts a lot of problems out for many. Do not restore from a backup after the hard reset either.

Hope you get it sorted out.

 

[mozman68]

Re: More comments on a few major functionality defects:

CORTANA is Intrusive, and can not be easily disabled:
If Cortana is not fully disabled, it pops up frequently during the day (seemingly 2-3 times per hour), even if the phone is just sitting UNTOUCHED on desk, etc., with messages or beeps. (This was also a bug with Bing search.) While the 'personality' is annoying, the real bug is that this seems impossible to eliminate without the multiple keystrokes of disabling Cortana, and then resetting phone. So the moment's distraction becomes a couple minute side trip - TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE when trying to accomplish work, whether on the NL 920 phone, or on desktop. I now find myself turning the NL 920 OFF and continuing on my desktop / laptop, rather than bothering with the reset. Stop imposing these cutesie interruptions on your users' business day, or enable the a temporary turn off (as is obviously present when in "quiet mode" (a great feature)

What are you talking about?

Notifications is very visible in the settings and applies to Cotana updates as well.

The only time Cortana notifies me during the day is when the Tigers are playing and they either lose or win a game....because that's the way I have it set up!

 

[hidayat225]

Well if you are experiencing issues out of the norm, it's usually because something went wrong in the installation. Had no issues during my few weeks with 8.1 DP.

But. Reverted back to 8.0 and I felt the WP uniqueness again. I agree with some posts here that I don't miss the Notification Centre at all. I love the hubs integration and the old music player. God Microsoft is certainly doing something wrong here.

I'm not sure if they are heading the right way with this preview. What they should do is reinforce their 8.0 by making it as stable as ever and only add the 'needed' features. A black goose shouldn't paint itself white.

Just my opinion

 

[X0LARIUM]

[h=1][Official] Initial thoughts on Developer Preview of WP8.1 ?[/h]
​Sucks.

 

[SAM 77]

Well I have had the preview installed since release and can honestly say I'm glad I did it.

With the official update coming late July/early August it will be 3 months on 8.1DP
Never considered rolling back and glad I didn't wait for the official release to experience the new features.

 

[cvflowe]

So far so good! I've had the phone for almost a month, got impatient for 8.1 and downloaded the preview. Glad I did. I guess I'm the lucky one, I've had no issues at all. I'm loving it!

 

[angelito panganiban]

I am using wp8.1 with firmware 1028.3562.1402.0003. I updated my OS using developer version. Will I still be able to download and install the new official wp8.1 update issued by microsoft?

 

[cvflowe]

I am using wp8.1 with firmware 1028.3562.1402.0003. I updated my OS using developer version. Will I still be able to download and install the new official wp8.1 update issued by microsoft?

Yes, once the official copy is released.

 

[horseybob]

Finally got around to using MSDN license towards this and installed 8.1dp on my 928 on Friday. Following the obligatory downloads, restarts, cogs, restarts, repeat... I like it! Smoother, faster, better (less bad, technically) battery life. Love the extra tiles, especially in conjunction with app folder. Wifi sense needs a bit more intelligence. Cortana was very frustrating until I figured out she doesn't understand my very low voice via Bluetooth; via the phone >95% recognition (wow!). <Much> better than my Android tablet. Her jokes need work &#55357;&#56848; The files function is FINALLY here, sorta! w00t! Notification center as well. Glance occasionally won't rotate back if the phone is upside down, but view that as a minor bug. Looking forward to seeing how/if the "Inner circle" works during the work week. Only real irritance so far is that many sites with IE show up in mobile mode despite being set to desktop (known bug), including WPCentral! Until I logged in. A small price to pay for an overall better experience. Note that this was partially written with WordFlow, which shall occupy a fair bit of my attention this next week.

Overall, I really like 8.1 much better, and my daughter and her 822 are green with envy.

Can't wait for Cyan! &#55357;&#56843;

 

[falconeight]

I hate it. With every update Microsoft removes the look and feel of its original metro os.

 

[courtneyg2013]

Buggy as hell software, battery drain is terrible if the screen is on. Otherwise Nokia\MS are going in the right way. Would like to see a few things a bit more refined and a bit of innovation please. Looking forward to using Cortana in England. The process for the CYAN rollout is a shambles.