Long post, bear with it, might be worth something in the end, if anything to summarise the ills of the 1520/WP8 combo in vain hope that MSFT does something about it 
. Mods, kindly let it linger a bit before kicking it to the curb.
I bought the 1520 the first week it got out. The tap/swipe problem on that handset was so bad it was practically unusable, hence summarily returned for a refund, had it barely a week.
WPcentral and Nokia forums were full with (monster) threads about the issue so waited patiently for months for a fix from Microkia eager to dive back in. Disappointed at the lack of progress in September I decided to bite the bullet, preordered the iPhone 6 Plus and nipped my problem in the bud, no tap/swipe issues.
Beginning of October though I saw the CV_GB 1520 on Amazon UK for ?362.99 (even went down to ?357.99 a few days later), an absolute steal, an opportunity one couldn?t miss, so decided to play handset lottery and ordered, JesusPhone passed on to the bewildered (by now) wife.
1520 arrived, opened it, fondled it and nearly p1ssed myself from joy, no tap/swipe issue! Nada!
Well, celebrated too soon: 3rd week of ownership and the gremlins started appearing. In only a couple of days the issue was back with a vengeance. The handset had always been housed in a hardback folio case and treated with woollen mitts, no excuse for this. Thank the lord for Amazon?s 30 day no quibbles return policy.
So how does the 1520/WP8 compare to the iPhone6 Plus/IOS (unscientific, subjective etc, don?t flame).
1) The 1520 unfortunately can?t hold a candle to the iPhone build wise, the latter is phenomenally well built and screams quality. Don?t get me wrong, the 1520 is no S5 or Note but it is just not up to par with the iPhone.
2) I am a business user and the ecosystem is not really a deal breaker, however I also have been a WP8 devotee since day one and I have to say that the app gap is widening not closing whatever Joe (Belfiore) says. Mainly quality wise (Office suite better in IOS, really MSFT?) but also in terms of breadth of availability: all my banks have an app, my mobile provider as well, my broadband provider, Strava, the list goes on. For years I had to jump through hoops to get my rides to Strava (I refuse to pay for the upload feature of some WP8 apps, call me stingy), I can now do it from the lock screen, it is small things like these that matter the most.
3) IOS is still (even after two years? worth of WP8 updates) a more mature/complete mobile OS and just works better: connects to my WiFi at home and at work flawlessly, ActivSync implementation is still better on IOS than on Windows Phone (in WP8 you still need to wait for a new message to arrive, in the same folder mind you, for mail status to be updated, really MSFT?), the notification centre is better, the control centre better, the list goes on.
Is it all Lumia/WP8 bad, iPhone/IOS good? No.
1) I miss wireless charging, as in a lot.
2) I miss Live Tiles, as in a lot more.
3) I miss a (properly placed) back button, I still instinctively hit bottom left to go back.
4) I miss the WP8 look and feel, not so the transitions but hey.
5) I miss pointlessly searching the Store for an available app and when I thought I found one it transpires it was hacked by a toddler (spelling mistakes and all).
So will I be returning to Lumia/WP8-W10? Yes, provided they release a decent high end phablet/phone (830, the "affordable flagship", really MSFT?) that works. I am a business user and I buy a quality handset first and an ecosystem second as most of the apps I need are found in all mobile OS flavours. Having though a wide selection of quality apps for just about everything (as I do now) doesn't hurt.
In the meantime on top of parting with my 920 I had to admit through gritted teeth to my iPhone wielding staff that the iPhone 6 Plus does indeed kick some serious back side... Oh the humiliation...
. Mods, kindly let it linger a bit before kicking it to the curb.I bought the 1520 the first week it got out. The tap/swipe problem on that handset was so bad it was practically unusable, hence summarily returned for a refund, had it barely a week.
WPcentral and Nokia forums were full with (monster) threads about the issue so waited patiently for months for a fix from Microkia eager to dive back in. Disappointed at the lack of progress in September I decided to bite the bullet, preordered the iPhone 6 Plus and nipped my problem in the bud, no tap/swipe issues.
Beginning of October though I saw the CV_GB 1520 on Amazon UK for ?362.99 (even went down to ?357.99 a few days later), an absolute steal, an opportunity one couldn?t miss, so decided to play handset lottery and ordered, JesusPhone passed on to the bewildered (by now) wife.
1520 arrived, opened it, fondled it and nearly p1ssed myself from joy, no tap/swipe issue! Nada!
Well, celebrated too soon: 3rd week of ownership and the gremlins started appearing. In only a couple of days the issue was back with a vengeance. The handset had always been housed in a hardback folio case and treated with woollen mitts, no excuse for this. Thank the lord for Amazon?s 30 day no quibbles return policy.
So how does the 1520/WP8 compare to the iPhone6 Plus/IOS (unscientific, subjective etc, don?t flame).
1) The 1520 unfortunately can?t hold a candle to the iPhone build wise, the latter is phenomenally well built and screams quality. Don?t get me wrong, the 1520 is no S5 or Note but it is just not up to par with the iPhone.
2) I am a business user and the ecosystem is not really a deal breaker, however I also have been a WP8 devotee since day one and I have to say that the app gap is widening not closing whatever Joe (Belfiore) says. Mainly quality wise (Office suite better in IOS, really MSFT?) but also in terms of breadth of availability: all my banks have an app, my mobile provider as well, my broadband provider, Strava, the list goes on. For years I had to jump through hoops to get my rides to Strava (I refuse to pay for the upload feature of some WP8 apps, call me stingy), I can now do it from the lock screen, it is small things like these that matter the most.
3) IOS is still (even after two years? worth of WP8 updates) a more mature/complete mobile OS and just works better: connects to my WiFi at home and at work flawlessly, ActivSync implementation is still better on IOS than on Windows Phone (in WP8 you still need to wait for a new message to arrive, in the same folder mind you, for mail status to be updated, really MSFT?), the notification centre is better, the control centre better, the list goes on.
Is it all Lumia/WP8 bad, iPhone/IOS good? No.
1) I miss wireless charging, as in a lot.
2) I miss Live Tiles, as in a lot more.
3) I miss a (properly placed) back button, I still instinctively hit bottom left to go back.
4) I miss the WP8 look and feel, not so the transitions but hey.
5) I miss pointlessly searching the Store for an available app and when I thought I found one it transpires it was hacked by a toddler (spelling mistakes and all).
So will I be returning to Lumia/WP8-W10? Yes, provided they release a decent high end phablet/phone (830, the "affordable flagship", really MSFT?) that works. I am a business user and I buy a quality handset first and an ecosystem second as most of the apps I need are found in all mobile OS flavours. Having though a wide selection of quality apps for just about everything (as I do now) doesn't hurt.
In the meantime on top of parting with my 920 I had to admit through gritted teeth to my iPhone wielding staff that the iPhone 6 Plus does indeed kick some serious back side... Oh the humiliation...
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