Ativ S Neo for first Windows Phone

tre10

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Hi, like the title says I want to get my first Windows Phone. I'm considering an unlocked Ativ S Neo as I'm in the Caribbean. Is this a good choice or is a Lumia a better choice? Also does anyone have experience with refurbished phones?

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amitnahar

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I will suggest you to wait for the forthcoming 4th Sept. announcement.
Lumias have better support and has exclusive apps, features so Lumia will be a better choice.
Refurbished ones are like new phones so no need to worry .
Sent from my Lumia.
 

xandros9

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Refurbished gadgets typically are just fine.

Lumia's in general are better choices as Nokia/MS really supports them and makes some additional features, but if I had to use a Samsung, I don't think I would mind too much, especially if the price is right.
The S Neo is a fine midrange device by itself.
 

KEB64

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Doesn't the Neo have a wider screen? I think the screen size on the neo is just about perfect. It's a fine piece of hardware if you ask me. What aspects of a phone are most important to you? One of mine is speaker volume and quality. I listen to quite a bit of music through the phone speaker. The Neo does pretty well in this respect. The EQ that comes on board is either Samsung or Microsoft, not sure. That helps sculpt the sound for my ears.
In terms of updates, yeah that's anybody's guess. I'm running a developer preview courtesy of Microsoft, so its seeing 8.1 at this point.

The nice thing about 8.1 is updated OneDrive and Xbox Music. This assures proper syncing to PC for me.

Welcome to WP and good luck with your decision. I can whole heartedly recommend the Neo for what it does for me.
 

snowmutt

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I don't see any reason why not. Samsung was my first WP.

What everyone states about Lumia's having better support is 100% true, though. You will get updates and firmware support on a Lumia for sure. We "think" Sammy will update the Neo, but so far I haven't heard anything.

It is a great phone though, and it all depends on what you want from a first phone. If you want a phone that works, and has an amazing screen, then the Neo will serve you well. Expandable memory and replaceable battery are a bonus.
 

anon(8648115)

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I have a bunch of Lumias and a Neo, and I honestly prefer the Neo for several reasons:

1. Samsung devices, for some reason, have the ability to run multiple things in the background and not suffer horrible battery drain. My 925, 920, and 520 cannot.

2. Samsung phones tend to have better heat dispersion. It has never gotten beyond comfortably warm, even from intensive tasks.

3. Larger screen. The Nokia's LCD and AMOLED screens can't be beat, but the Neo has nice ppi and a good size. Its auto brightness is a tad dimmer than the nokias but it's not a deal breaker at all.

4. SD card expansion and removable battery. While not a big deal for some, it's required for me.

However, if you take tons of pictures, the Lumias might be a better choice. The camera on the Neo, however, is not bad in the slightest and they lack the terrible yellow tint that many Lumias have gotten with their firmwares (ALL of my nokia phones have them. Even on a computer its noticeable). Daresay, I think the Neo's camera is quite good. Surpassed my expectations, but that's just me.

However, what is said above is true. Samsung isn't fully 'in the game' right now, and they have not released firmware for WP8.1 yet. Still, I'm running 8.1 GDR 1 and it's working flawlessly, save for a few minor bugs which can be overlooked. Overall, I feel the Neo is a solid device. Got mine off ebay for 130 bucks locked to ATT, I'm sure an international unlocked version won't be much more expensive.
 

Matthew Becker1

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What everyone states about Lumia's having better support is 100% true, though. You will get updates and firmware support on a Lumia for sure. We "think" Sammy will update the Neo, but so far I haven't heard anything.
That is also contingent on the carrier from which you've purchased your device. I've heard several complaints about AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile being very slow to pushing out any software updates.
 

tre10

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I think I'll give the Ativ S a try as I'm pretty satisfied with what it is out of the box. I'm also coming from android so installing a dev preview isn't beyond me :D

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