Coming from the 1520 to 950 XL, give me the dirt.

[ElronTheElder]

Running W10 *586.63 on the 1520, has it's moments but mostly a stable, good build.
How about the W 950 XL? Hasn't been delivered yet so have no experience.
Any Gottya's I should look out for?
Camera better than L1520?
If you have had clear sailing with it, let me know.
Know most come to forums for issues, but not all.
TIA

 

[Blacklizted]

Camera is 950X better.

 

[Pete]

I also moved from the 1520 to the 950XL

Main things you'll notice:
* The screen is smaller
* The corners are less pointy
* The camera is better

I found that the screen looks better if you set the "size of text, apps, and items" to be 300% - this helps you get back to that tight, crisp look the display of the 1520 has with Windows 10 Mobile. I also set the colour balance to "vivid" which helps bring out the colours more.

I've not had any major issues with mine. I very occasionally get a lock-up, but then I'm using the fast ring build.

The battery might take a while to settle, so don't be surprised if the life isn't too good for the first few days.

 

[Ian Too]

I've had my 950XL about a week after a 930. Here are my problems:

1. I haven't found a belt holster yet so miss the weight of the 930 against my hip.
2. In the first couple of days, numerous restarts were required. The device wasn't crashing, it's just how many updates were downloaded and installed.
3. For some reason after I named the device (Dione), Excel would only let me view documents. After consulting these forums, I logged out in the settings section of Excel and all is now fine.
4. Windows Hello doesn't like spectacles. You take then off to train it and then you can refine that training with spectacles on, but in bright conditions Hello needs to have you hold the phone close. Still better than a PIN though and the PIN is there as a back up.
5. The 950XL doesn't work with the DT-910 wireless charger, but does with the DT-900.

I haven't had any overheating issues, power consumption is more, but balanced by the bigger battery.

Overall, The 950XL is well worth it and is the first phone that can actually do what I decided I wanted of a smartphone 5 years ago. The quality of the build is actually very good and the screen is a delight.

 

[Eddie Mendoza]

I love my 950xl the camera is much faster, and everything seems to run quicker, except for the messasing/texting app. It freezes or runs slow sometimes, ill get notifications of new text but it wont open or it will take forever, same with sending them

 

[anon(5327127)]

The 1520 battery seemed to last forever... the 950 doesn't. The 1520 handled sat nav easily while the 950xl does get quite hot. The camera, compared to a 1020, is nowhere near as good (But you didn't ask for that comparison). Low light pictures are not very good.

In a way the 1520 was a VERY solid device while the 950xl, with the battery being the worst part, just doesn't reach the 1520 heights.

It'll get better with more updates so I'm keeping mine. For now.

 

[dajma00]

I love my 950xl the camera is much faster, and everything seems to run quicker, except for the messasing/texting app. It freezes or runs slow sometimes, ill get notifications of new text but it wont open or it will take forever, same with sending them

Yes that seems to be a common complaint on the 950s. Incidentally texting is much better on the 1520.

 

[dajma00]

So I guess the 950 needs major firmware revision yet again.

 

[Joe920]

The 1520 battery seemed to last forever... the 950 doesn't. The 1520 handled sat nav easily while the 950xl does get quite hot. The camera, compared to a 1020, is nowhere near as good (But you didn't ask for that comparison). Low light pictures are not very good.

You forgot: the side buttons on the 1520 feel more premium and the 1520 body feels more solid. That said, I'm also keeping mine.

A major improvement that hasn't been mentioned here: the front facing camera is MUCH better than that of the 1520. 5MP vs. 1.2MP. And it really does feel a whole lot less unwieldy than the 1520, at least to me.

 

[snakebitten]

Just my opinion...................
The 950(XL) is the ONLY phone that is better than my 2+ year old 1520(s)
I have 2 1520's with SIMs still in them. They are still amazing devices. One has 8.1 and the other, like you has 10.586.63

If it were not for Continuum, I probably would still not have the 950XL. But for my professional life, Continuum is like some kind of gift from God. I have already leveraged it in ways that have benefitted my employer. And they are blown away.

 

[ElronTheElder]

Thank You all for the input.
Mine has shipped.
Really nothing wrong with my L1520 except it's big, new car smell is gone.
Will give L950 XL a few weeks Kick the tires n whatnot.
Have 30 days to decide.
Thanks again.

 

[Dinky89484]

Went from a 1520 to 950XL and I'm happy about it. In terms of function and features, they're pretty much the same. And by features and function, I mean my every day use and overall things I get done with it. Below are the things that are different:

The camera on the 950XL is better in my opinion.
950XL has Windows Hello which actually works much better than I thought it would (I originally thought it was just going to be a gimmick).
950XL has Continuum capability, although I can't speak to this because I haven't connected it yet to my Continuum Dock.
950XL has Micro USB C which is a nice upgrade over the 1520, especially from a charging standpoint. My phone can charge much faster because of the Quick Charge capability.
1520 feels a lot bigger - I actually picked up my 1520 this past weekend after putting it away once I got my 950XL and it really feels substantially bigger. How this translates to screen size probably depends with User to User but I don't feel the 950XL screen to be small at all. It's a great tradeoff for me, getting a smaller overall phone yet big screen. I forget how big the 1520 really is until I went back to handling it for a few hours.
Looks is a matter of taste but I do find myself liking my 950XL's look. Keep in mind I slapped a Mozo leather backing on it so it looks better than stock. The 1520 is still beautiful in my eyes though so this may be a wash.

 

[ElronTheElder]

.................... Keep in mind I slapped a Mozo leather backing on it so it looks better than stock. The 1520 is still beautiful in my eyes though so this may be a wash.

Will be putting a wallet on mine. Functionality over Looks. Consolidating Wallet/Phone is a winner in my book. Have the L 1520 in a Leather Wallet. While it's HUGE it does the trick. Couldn't find a leather wallet for the 950 XL ....settled for a < $10 fake leather.
We shall see.

 

[mikepalma]

Will be putting a wallet on mine. Functionality over Looks. Consolidating Wallet/Phone is a winner in my book. Have the L 1520 in a Leather Wallet. While it's HUGE it does the trick. Couldn't find a leather wallet for the 950 XL ....settled for a < $10 fake leather.
We shall see.

Let us know how it is.I have returned to Amazon bc cutouts were off

 

[Blacklizted]

Will be putting a wallet on mine. Functionality over Looks. Consolidating Wallet/Phone is a winner in my book. Have the L 1520 in a Leather Wallet. While it's HUGE it does the trick. Couldn't find a leather wallet for the 950 XL ....settled for a < $10 fake leather.
We shall see.

Trokm has one.

 

[ElronTheElder]

Trokm has one.

NuNu on Amazon is what I should get today.
Carbon Fiber is the color
Should get the phone today also.

 

[ElronTheElder]

My new wallet with my new phone.
Hey, for $8 can't complain.
+
Next to my Lumia 1520 wallet.

Note: Woot, DT-900 wireless works.
.

 

[Bensi66]

I was using the 1520 but with windows 8.1, not a big tech guy but I just need things to work, . I got the 950xl and have been running it for about 6 weeks now, it had some strange quirks at first but the updates seem to make them disappear. I do not miss the 1520 anymore, my old one died. The biggest perks are the quick charge battery, yes it is much quicker but I bought the Qi charge plate for a new kind of lazy. That charges slower than the wall plug. Groove music works much better on this phone call quality is excellent, Pictures are fantastic.
The phone still has a few issues but nothing major stopping me from handling work. I did get the free Quantum device but I have not used it yet. All in All it has a lot more than the 1520 , It even acts as a hotspot when needed.
Enjoy the change just be prepared for a bit of a change.

 

[kodos78]

I went from the 1520 -> Note5 (it had an untimely meeting with a tile floor that rendered it useless) -> 1520 -> 950XL (returned) -> 1520 (while my MotoX was being built) -> to Moto X Pure Edition.

After going back and forth here are my notes:

1. I really like the quality of the 1520 display. It has a nice contrast ratio, and the colors are more pleasing to me.
2. I much prefer the 950XL's size. The 1520 is gargantuan.
3. The 1520 feels better - it feels like a more premium device.
4. The 1520 had some touch screen issues that never did get resolved. Phantom touches, usually.
5. I actually ended up preferring the removal of the capacitive buttons for back/home/search. I didn't expect that.
6. The 950XL is obviously quicker than the 1520. It flies. Especially with Windows 10 Mobile on my 1520, I started to notice how laggy it was.
7. I enjoyed having USB-C on it, and having the reversible plug.
8. The camera is noticeably better on the 950XL. The camera was shockingly good. I personally think it was better than the Note5 camera, in the week I had the phone.
9. Windows Hello didn't work well for me. I want my phone to unlock in a deterministic amount of time. And having to play around with how I was holding the phone so that the camera can line up with my eyes was aggravating. It also cannot be used to unlock the phone when it isn't in your face. I turned it off.
10. Battery life is superior on the 1520.
11. Continuum was neat on the 950XL. I didn't have much use for it though.
12. The 950XL weighs less than the 1520, the 1520 feels a little heavy in comparison to other phones I've been using since.

I ended up returning the 950XL because of the usual issues. W10M is not ready for primetime, and I didn't have some key apps (particularly my Chase banking app), and the phone was rather expensive ($700 after tax). However, going back to the 1520 felt like a definite downgrade.

I ended up with a Moto X Pure Edition because it was a lot cheaper ($425 after customizing it), and it had the software that I needed. That said, my heart is still with Windows phone, but "stock" Android isn't half bad. I hope that Microsoft can turn around the situation with Windows Mobile so that I can come back. If the 950XL was closer to $500 I probably would have stuck with it, but it was hard to justify (personally) spending that kind of money when I had to suffer through the lack of banking apps (and worst of all, had to borrow my wife's iPhone 5S in order to deposit my checks).

 

[bcraig94]

Ever since my Icon died I've considered the 950xl but I don't know if I can leave Verizon.