Anyone go from HD7 to 710?

[squire777]

Hey everyone,

I was an early adopter of the HD7 and even though that phone got a bad rap from some when it came out, I grew to love it over time. I didn't find any issues with the build quality because I gave that phone a beating (drops and such) and it's still holding up.

However I am in the market for a new phone and right now since money is a little tight I can't break the bank to get a new phone. Wind Mobile here in Canada is coming out with the Radar 4G but it's going to be $400 while Rogers has the 710 for about $250 which is a bargain (The guy at the Rogers store i went to said he could cut me a deal for even cheaper than that).

So my question to those that had the HD7 and now on a 710 do you find the 710 to be an improvement?

I know you lose some screen size but I could live with that. My main concern is the battery life. People say the 710 doesn't have great battery life (especially compared to the radar) but how does it compare to the HD7's battery? My main gripe with the HD7 has always been the short battery life.

I am just wondering if it is worth switching to the 710 or holding on to the HD7 and waiting to see if the Radar drops in price over time, or if something better comes out at MWC.

thanks!

 

[speedtouch]

I have an HD7 and my wife has a 710. I would say the battery life between the two is about the same. The 710 lasts a little longer, but not too much longer. However, the 710 is a *much* nicer device. The screen, though smaller, is much nicer, tap detection is greatly improved, it's much faster, and the power button feels a lot better. The 710's power button is not squishy at all like the HD7's.

In the end the 710 is a worthy upgrade to the HD7 if you can deal with the smaller screen. Also, since Microsoft and Nokia are pretty much married these days, I expect the Lumias to receive frequent updates. I don't expect the HD7 to get many more, if any, updates in the future.

 

[ljkelley]

Everything about the 710 is better than the HD7 it replaced (well minus the smaller storage, and to some the smaller screen).

Battery life seems decent to me. Going from the HD7 I've noticed an increase quite honestly.

 

[jabtano]

I'm in the same boat as speedtouch I have the HD7 and my wife the 710 one more thing I'll add on the HD7 i'm forever hitting the bing button on the 710 that mistake doesn't happen. I think overall the 710 is a better device but for me I'm a big screen guy. my wife went from a HD7 to the 710 she likes the 710 much better...

 

[mcquack]

I'm in the same boat as speedtouch I have the HD7 and my wife the 710 one more thing I'll add on the HD7 i'm forever hitting the bing button on the 710 that mistake doesn't happen. I think overall the 710 is a better device but for me I'm a big screen guy. my wife went from a HD7 to the 710 she likes the 710 much better...

What jabtano said about accidentally touching the "search" on the HD7 was always a problem for me!

I love the physical buttons on the 710!

p.s. also, for me at least, the 710 feels like a phone, instead of holding a mini tablet on my ear... I love big screens, but honestly, I really like going back to a "phone sized" phone, if that makes sense...

 

[freestaterocker]

I'm considering this as well, but with an 800 when it comes to TELUS. My concern is with screen size: I wanted an iPhone until I tried typing on one.

 

[TricBox]

Well I went from a Focus to the 710. Not too much difference in screen size, but for some reason my typing is better on the smaller screen. So far I like it, eventhough it's only been 24hrs. Still trying to decide on whether or not to keep the Focus as a "Zune" player. Plus I have to start some games all over again if I get rid of it. It is a $75 trade in to Best Buy. Not too bad for a phone that cost me 1cent. And got an awesome deal on the 710, free with free BT piece, gel skin, and car charger.

 

[squire777]

Thank you for all the responses. I have played with the 710 once more at a Rogers store and the phone has a nice feel in my hands, and the screen looks heaps better than the HD7.

I also got to play with the Radar and that is a nice phone too, but i hate the white colour.

I will see what goes down at MWC and after that make a decision on what to get.

 

[squire777]

Well I guess I am part of the 710 family now, with the help of some good fate.

I was talking to a friend today about phones and by chance he mentioned that a friend of his bought a phone "like the one you have" (i.e. a WP7 phone) a couple of weeks ago but didn't feel comfortable with it and had decided that he wanted to sell it. He wasn't sure which model it was so I asked him to check with his friend.

Turned out it was a 710 and he was selling it for $200 and very lightly used. My friend suggested that he was an honest guy and wouldn't con me or anything so I went ahead and bought the phone.

I have spent most of the evening waiting for the unlock code, re-installing my apps, setting up my email and cleaning up my contacts (which I had kept putting off for a long time) but now finally I have had the opportunity to play with it a little.

Initial impressions - the phone feels really good in my hands, and the smaller size means I can do a lot of things with one hand now. It doesn't feel and look as thick as some reviewers made it out to be, probably because of the tapered edges.

The screen is definitely an improvement over the HD7 screen, but I will miss the bigger screen size for sure. The camera is also a major improvement over the HD7, but nothing too special (i think that shows more how poor the HD7 camera was).

I will have to use it more to give a proper review. I have to find a good screen protector soon and look for a blue back cover.

 

[daniel_sherlock]

Yes I just did that, MY HD7 went rong kept resetting, took it for repair and brought and 710 to used whist it was away. It came back and gave my 710 to my wife. Then GPS wasnt working on my HD7 so took it in again, brought another 710. I really love it, the nokia apps are worth wile, battery life it better. Its a bit smoother on games as faster processor I guess. Screen is better, but smaller. Changeable covers are cool.

All in all do it!

 

[BWB8771]

Does Nokia have any native call-blocking apps, or missed call/SMS ones?

 

[Welve]

It is somewhat of a battle of preferences to be honest...

Screen:

HD7's is bigger, noticably and that real estate is nice

Lumia 710s is smaller, but LED is better on battery life and you can really crank the brightness, I mean eye-blinding here...same resolution means Lumia 710 also gains a slight advantage in sharpness.

Holding it:

The HD7 is the right size for me (I am a big guy), holding it is comfortable, but not overly large

Lumia 710 feels a little smaller in my hands, not quite as comfortable (I have also had the HD7 since release, so I could be slanted here)

Fit and finish:

HD7 has good fit and finish EXCEPT the back cover, I always hated that you could see the SIM card, definitely annoying

Lumia 710 has great fit and finish, it is a nice looking device that feels very solid. I am personally torn when it comes to the hard press buttons. Sometimes my hand slips on the HD7 and I tap the search key and I swear under my breath (this happened with my androids too), but something about the way they light up on the Lumia 710 bothers me, it makes them look cheaper for some reason.

Overall:

I can't say, I like the 710 a lot, but I also love my HD7...and believe it or not I frequently use my HD7 for Netflix and I LOVE the kickstand. If it comes down to it when the apollo devices come, if HTC offers me a kickstand versus Nokia, even with all their wonderful addon apps, I might have to side with HTC lol

 

[freestaterocker]

As I type this on my HD7, I sit here thinking hard about pulling the trigger on a 710. I will have to buy off-contract if I want a new phone before mid-2014 (stupid Canadian 3-year terms) and I'm feeding a family of 5 on one income. It's a good income, as I'm a welder, but still. I'm sick of the battery on this thing. I can kill it in less than three hours simply doing what I'm doing now: browsing the forums on the mobile site. I know the 710 isn't the best of the new phones for battery, but you can get a 1500mah one for it that will fit with the stock battery cover, and I can get it unlocked and off-contract for under $300. I really want the 800 but it's too much $.

 

[jabtano]

I want to add to this mix.the HD7 has no volume when playing music of anything else...playing games ect. unless I use a set of cans. the 710 has volume like night and day really.I have three 710 and two HD7 wife and kids. the wife had the other HD7 when it came time for the youngest to have a device I got the 710 for nothing by adding a new line that is when the wife said I want that and Little one gets mine. she hated that device not because of the size but because of the volume.

The bad thing that I try to get some play time on the 710 but I'm banned from touching them strange how I can pay the bills yet I'm banned form playing with what I bought.. T-MO ever gets the 900 or something with the 4.3 or up in the Nokia line I'll buy it. because I don't think I would ever buy another HTC device. They don't stand behind there products at all.