I have had my L925 for over a month now and it is an amazing phone. Awesome camera, crisp screen, great battery life; I consistently get a day and a half on a single charge with medium usage, a day on heavy usage and two days with light usage. The upgrade to WP 8.1 will bring your phone to life. It will turbocharge its performance.
I have coworkers all the time asking me fabout my phone because everyone is either Android or iOS. Seeing my phone impresses them a lot that they want to find out more about it. As far a screen cover I worked STRONGLY suggest getting a Zagg screen protector. For $15, it's the best protection for your screen. Every phone I've had has had one since my olds HTC HD7 & I've never had a damaged screen. A back cover is definitely needed so as to protect the camera bump. Otherwise, cheers and enjoy your phone.