Getting a new secondary phone

[hacer619]

Hello all,
im planning to get a new phone. However, im confused which one to get. Currently I'm thinking to pick one of these phones: Lumia 830, 640, 550. If you own any of these phone could you list the pros and cons from your experience for every one whether it is performance, battery life and durability. If possible, how are they performing with w10m? Which one do you think is the best?
Thank you

 

[fredriks]

Hi!

I was recently in your position. I bought a 830, mostly for the buildquality, qi charging and memory of 16 gb. Im in the windows insider program and now run the latest version of windows 10. It works perfectly I would say. Didn't really like the phone on 8.1 but now I think it's a fantastic phone, I also have a Samsung S6 and a Iphone 6S.

I can really recomend a 830.

 

[libra89]

I'm guessing that your primary device is a flagship?
It depends how much you care for the camera in this phone. I have tried the 550 and I own the 640. If you don't care for the camera as much, I would say that the 550 is the way to go.
It runs w10m decently enough. The battery life between the 640 and 550 are about equal. Can't speak on durability for the 550 because I no longer own it (The cameras is the reason why). The 640 is better than the 550 in some areas but the 550 is still a very solid device. The 640 is great for a light middle of the range device.

Edit: As for the 640 vs 550, the hd cameras on the 640 make all the difference over the 550. The 550 feels great in the hand. Performance is about similar too, but the 640 has a slight edge. I have had occasional resuming screens on the 550. The 550 is truly the best 500 series Lumia ever, if not one of the best. If you are looking for just a solid device experience that will do the job well enough, the 550 would be ideal.

 

[xandros9]

Unless you care about the improved camera, build and extra features (like Qi) on the 830, go for a 640.

As for 640 vs. 550, I cant really say.

 

[hacer619]

Hi!

I was recently in your position. I bought a 830, mostly for the buildquality, qi charging and memory of 16 gb. Im in the windows insider program and now run the latest version of windows 10. It works perfectly I would say. Didn't really like the phone on 8.1 but now I think it's a fantastic phone, I also have a Samsung S6 and a Iphone 6S.

I can really recomend a 830.

Based on the replies. I chose to get the Lumia 830. It'll replace my 520. However, I have read that a lot of lumia 830 have problems with the main camera. Did you encounter any problems with the 830? Or was that camera problem fixed with a firmware?

 

[hacer619]

I'm guessing that your primary device is a flagship?
It depends how much you care for the camera in this phone. I have tried the 550 and I own the 640. If you don't care for the camera as much, I would say that the 550 is the way to go.
It runs w10m decently enough. The battery life between the 640 and 550 are about equal. Can't speak on durability for the 550 because I no longer own it (The cameras is the reason why). The 640 is better than the 550 in some areas but the 550 is still a very solid device. The 640 is great for a light middle of the range device.

Edit: As for the 640 vs 550, the hd cameras on the 640 make all the difference over the 550. The 550 feels great in the hand. Performance is about similar too, but the 640 has a slight edge. I have had occasional resuming screens on the 550. The 550 is truly the best 500 series Lumia ever, if not one of the best. If you are looking for just a solid device experience that will do the job well enough, the 550 would be ideal.

My main phone is a lumia 930. Currently my secondary phonies a lumia 520. Referring to both the 640 and 550, they both have on screen buttons. Is it possible to lock these on screen buttons (keep them on screen)?

 

[Eustis99]

I have a 640 and a 550. I put the preview on the 640 and it was a terrible experience. More bugs than positives which made it hardly usable. So with that being said, I grabbed a 550 which has had zero issues. Performance is great, no load screens, no lag. I know many deem it to be a downgrade but in my experience, it doesn't seem to be. I'm happy with it, and I get LTE.

 

[hacer619]

Unless you care about the improved camera, build and extra features (like Qi) on the 830, go for a 640.

As for 640 vs. 550, I cant really say.

You are probably right about the extra features. Not to forget that the 830 has a dedicated camera button. Which is almost a deal breaker for me. For a moment I forgot that both the 640 and 550 dont have a dedicated camera button. The unlocked 830 costs slightly more that the unlocked 640 and equal to the price if the 640xl. Almost all the phones I mentioned appear to have the same performance based on the replies.

 

[libra89]

My main phone is a lumia 930. Currently my secondary phonies a lumia 520. Referring to both the 640 and 550, they both have on screen buttons. Is it possible to lock these on screen buttons (keep them on screen)?

Yes you can, there's a setting for that. Ohh the 550 is a great upgrade from the 520.

 

[fredriks]

Based on the replies. I chose to get the Lumia 830. It'll replace my 520. However, I have read that a lot of lumia 830 have problems with the main camera. Did you encounter any problems with the 830? Or was that camera problem fixed with a firmware?

Haven't seen any problem with my camera. Not yet anyway.

 

[the92playboy]

I'm going to piggyback on this discussion and ask for advice too.
Currently have the 920, but after years of use and abuse, it's reallyshowing it's age (mainly the battery life has dropped off a cliff this last week, WM10 Fast ring).

Looking for a low/mid-range phone to tie me over until the "next" flagship (or even Surface phone) comes out. I live in Canada and availability is basically limited to the Microsoft Store, so here's my options:

Lumia 550 ($189) - I like the size and fact it's running WM10 out of box, but have concerns about the Snapdragon 210

BLU Win HD LTE ($197) - Like the Snapdragon 410, but the screen isn't as nice as 550 and I am unsure on build quality etc.

Lumia 640 XL ($305) - Little more than I would like to spend for a placeholder phone, but it does have Gorilla glass (which the other 2 above do not)

Any advice? Leaning towards the 550 currently but maybe I am missing something.

 

[libra89]

I'm going to piggyback on this discussion and ask for advice too.
Currently have the 920, but after years of use and abuse, it's reallyshowing it's age (mainly the battery life has dropped off a cliff this last week, WM10 Fast ring).

Looking for a low/mid-range phone to tie me over until the "next" flagship (or even Surface phone) comes out. I live in Canada and availability is basically limited to the Microsoft Store, so here's my options:

Lumia 550 ($189) - I like the size and fact it's running WM10 out of box, but have concerns about the Snapdragon 210

BLU Win HD LTE ($197) - Like the Snapdragon 410, but the screen isn't as nice as 550 and I am unsure on build quality etc.

Lumia 640 XL ($305) - Little more than I would like to spend for a placeholder phone, but it does have Gorilla glass (which the other 2 above do not)

Any advice? Leaning towards the 550 currently but maybe I am missing something.

I would link my post comparing the Blu and the 550 , but it seems like you already found it. For those who haven't though, http://forums.windowscentral.com/mi...microsoft-550-blu-win-hd-lte.html#post3358794

Personally, the BLU and Lumia 550 are kind of tied, but the 550 has a slight edge. What are you looking to do on your phone? I haven't noticed a difference in performance between the 550 and the 640. I think if you like to take pictures often, the 640 xl would be your best bet.

 

[fkpaul]

I'm using the 550 today. I like it a lot, and because it's not my primary phone I can live with it's performance deficiencies (when compared to higher spec'd / pricier alternatives). Given you are looking for a bridge between now and the new rumoured Surface Phone, with W10M installed natively, expandable storage and a nice display, at such a low price the 550 is pretty compelling. It's why I chose it, a cheap bridge that is reasonably spec'd that should last until I'm ready to upgrade later this year.