HTC Radar or Lumia 800

[Carl Bytes]

Hi guys I just found an online shop for Lumia 800 for $540 (pre-paid/unlocked) while Radar for $370 (pre-paid/unlocked also).

I am now really concerned for upgradability to Apollo / Windows 8 and of course, the price. I understand Lumia 800 is faster than the Radar (1.4 ghz vs 1 ghz), both are Mango phones, have excellent screen and size and Radar has front camera (not priority).

Any tips, I'm gonna buy today. Lumia 900 is not available yet. Thanks.

 

[jabtano]

Well if the FFC is not an issue then the choice would be the Lumia 800. reason for this it's a much better looking device on the outside. then we can toss in the Nokia apps... the firmware for the camera has taking care of the first issues. the Lumia is faster and I think all the second gen devices will be upgradeable to WP8 I don't think the first gen will be. The reason for this is Nokia is pushing the Lumia line hard. not to have the new Lumia line upgraded to WP8 would be a total fail for both Nokia and Microsoft.

 

[Dave Blake]

Get the Lumia I have never even held a Radar but I use my 800 all the time
very solid nice device. If the FFC isn't an issue for you I would say get the Lumia.

 

[Carl Bytes]

Get the Lumia I have never even held a Radar but I use my 800 all the time
very solid nice device. If the FFC isn't an issue for you I would say get the Lumia.

But the thing is the Lumia is costlier and if I got a radar $370 and IF both will stick to wp7 and not be upgradable to Apollo, I will have extra money to buy Apollo handset come this september. If I will get lumia 800 $540, I might as well the titan $650.

 

[HeyCori]

Get the Titan for 650

 

[Chinocop]

Get the Lumia. It might be more money, but it's money well spent. I've played with the Radar, and the quality between the two is night and day. Once you hold the 800, you realize that it's a high quality phone. Also, think about this. Why would MSFT not upgrade current phones to WP8. They would severely damage the relationship they have with Nokia. It doesn't make any sense and would be terrible business to piss off your partners and customers. Microsoft can't afford that with the precarious position they find themselves with Windows Phone.

 

[interpolmg]

looking to get into the WP7 world and I too am in the "Radar vs Lumia 800" dilemma but only concerned about one thing: battery life.

is the Radars battery SIGNIFICANTLY better than the lumias? If it isn’t, I’m going for the lumia (sexy design) BUT if the difference is as huge as the link, then it’s definitely the Radar:

http://st.gsmarena.com/pics/11/12/lu...marena_002.gif

4 hours vs 7 hours browsing screen on time!

Thank you!

 

[freestaterocker]

Hi guys I just found an online shop for Lumia 800 for $540 (pre-paid/unlocked) while Radar for $370 (pre-paid/unlocked also).

I am now really concerned for upgradability to Apollo / Windows 8 and of course, the price. I understand Lumia 800 is faster than the Radar (1.4 ghz vs 1 ghz), both are Mango phones, have excellent screen and size and Radar has front camera (not priority).

Any tips, I'm gonna buy today. Lumia 900 is not available yet. Thanks.

What country and do they have the 850/1900 bands? Those prices are right where the devices are priced by their respective carriers are offering them off-contract and locked. (TELUS the 800, Sasktel the Radar) I'm locked to Bell and would love to have either device!

 

[freestaterocker]

I played with working models of both devices yesterday, and the 800 feels better in hand, but the Radar is still great, and the battery life issue is huge. Apparently the battery of the Lumia has been beefed up by a recently released firmware patch, but I don't actually know if it addresses the talk time or the standby or both...

 

[Jazmac]

Someone correct me but the Radar has no gyroscope whereas the Lumia 800 does. Both are solid Windows Phones but the Lumia has a slightly better spec.

 

[gwydionjhr]

The Lumia will have a much better resale value if you decide you absolutely have to have a Win8 device come fall.

 

[freshairr]

I have the Radar and would much prefer the Lumia 800. Only reason I went for it was because T-Mobile doesn't have the necessary bands for the Lumia to have 3G speed.

I think Lumia's build quality is top notch and has a digital compass, which the Radar does not. Both lack a gyroscope.

 

[cedarlog]

lumia 800
radar is not comparable with 800 maybe with samsung focus s but not with radar

 

[mtaylor100]

Get the Lumia I have never even held a Radar but I use my 800 all the time.

 

[AngryNil]

Nokia's still pumping out battery fixes, so I wouldn't take an early review as an indication of how long the battery lasts once they have it finalised. Perhaps WP Central will publish what they find.

 

[ubizmo]

I think a major question that has to be answered first is whether the OP plans to do much gaming on the device. The gyroscope is irrelevant for non-gamers. The processor speed difference is also irrelevant for non-gamers. So much of the "spec" mentality is driven by the needs of gamers, because games make the greatest demands on hardware. A person who is going to be doing mainly email, web, FaceBook, taking photos, etc., isn't going to notice much, if any, difference between the two processor speeds.

I have the Radar, but I don't play video games. The Radar is a fine device, with excellent battery life. The choice between it and the Nokia should be based on what kinds of features are most important. For example, the Nokia Drive navigation software alone might be a sufficient reason for some people to prefer the Nokia. The front-facing camera might be a good enough reason for others to prefer the Radar.