I Can't Deal With The 950XL Anymore...

[Justin Engel]

Sound like your problem is with the os not the phone huh

Um ... yeah ... My problem is with the phone experience. How do you experience your brand new windows phone, did you install android on it?

A photographer told me her 5 mp front facing phone camera is better than my 20 mp back camera, because the camera app is annoying and hard to use. My problem is the OS which goes hand in hand with the phone. We have a problem.

Yes the problem is the OS, but Microsoft wont make a surface phone if no one buys their flagship phone. Also what if Microsoft just cancels the surface phone like McClaren? The loyal fans buying the flagship Lumia 950 are telling others not to buy it. This is a serious problem.

We've all heard "wait and be patient" too many times. I support Microsoft. I love Windows 10 on my computer. I loved Windows Phone 8.1. They just seriously need to spend the next couple of months only fixing bugs, battery issues, and speed issues for Windows 10 mobile. I'm really hoping things get better soon. Really hoping I don't have to wait on AT&T for that firmware update.

 

[RUCKUS_US]

Well you're one of the few people complaining abut the camera. I found it easy to use and easy to get good shots. So maybe you don't understand how the camera app works. As far as win10mob is concerned, they have some wrinkles to iron out. Maybe you should have read real customer reviews before rushing out and buying something. I personally got a 950 and have no issues at all with it. The phone is great. Could care less about looks because 9/10 of us put a case over it anyhow. If you don't like something it's more productive to put out solutions instead of crying about what is wrong. Why not suggest solutions.

 

[Witness]

There is no point complaining about lack of Google apps like Gmail and Hangouts. Google won't let that happen because they don't want Microsoft taking market share from them. Which tells you they must feel Windows phone has enough about it to be a threat one day.

Facebook and twitter are there, Gmail displays in exactly the same way as (Microsoft) Mail and the YouTube app I have works perfectly, as do the rest. Instagram is also there in beta but 6tag is just as good.

Facebook is there, but it is nowhere close in feature/functions as their Android/iOS versions.

If nothing else your post just proves how a lot of people are misled into thinking those apps, or their equivalents, are not there. Yes there are gaps but overall it's a minor issue, not the major disaster most reviews would have you believe it is.

I mentioned Facebook and Waze. How does that prove anything? I don't make a big deal about apps and say the same to folks who don't want to try WP/WM because of apps. Universal apps adoption will improve this.

Do people spend their whole lives playing with apps? After 18 months with Windows phone I haven't missed a single app and the rest of the experience more than makes up for it anyway. My Lumia 930 is the only phone I have ever had that I can't put down. Stuff the apps myth.

Its still a relatively new OS for Mobile give it sometime. I know there has been a delay in fixing things but I get positive vibes with the Universal App thing. Noticed some really cool new iOS apps hitting Windows 10. If they can get some essential universal apps like FB, Twitter, Instagram, Hangouts, Gmail, Youtube(By convincing Google) on to their platform would be great.

Just for the record, I've given Windows CE some time. Then, I have PocketPC some time. Then, I have Windows Mobile and subsequently Windows Phone some time. Now we're back at calling it Windows Mobile 10 and I gave it less time. I'll be back, but planning to just sit it out for a couple months. The future looks brighter with UA and it's too bad I just can't hang on right now.

Sound like your problem is with the os not the phone huh

Yes. I avoided Preview builds for 10 and stayed 8.1 because I didn't want to have disruptive problems as they worked out the bugs. WM10 was released in a state that didn't do it for me. The phone hardware is good - the software and OS just needs to be more polished.

Apple stuff works? I have a friend with an iPhone 6 and she is on her third one, it's been the worst phone she ever bought (her words). She recently sent a group message to 8 of us using various phones, including android and other iPhone users and my own Lumia 930. I got it, 6 other people didn't, none of whom was using a Windows phone. How do we know the text message issue isn't an apple one rather than a Windows one?

So, your friend said that. I take you don't have any other phone than WM? Well, much like I say to WM naysayers who've only carried iPhones or Android, you're not all that credible if you haven't talked a mile on another phone. Well, you know what I mean. I have plenty of complaints about the iPhone and the biggest one is that the OS is an overly simplistic dogpile. Whereas iOS has remained exactly the same with years to polish the poo, it is at least a stable piece of poo. So when I said "it just works" as Steve Jobs said, I have to agree. It's not better than WP8.1, but it does work.

The phone the OP has must be faulty if it's that bad; think about it - if they were all that bad they would all be sent back although there is some obvious exaggeration in the post. As for people complaining about software issues though, it has been well documented that there are issues that need addressing so I would have to ask why people are buying them then complaining when they know there are issues?

No exaggeration. Read my post history. I don't exaggerate. There's even screenshots for two of the issues I encountered, one of which is now fixed.

Microsoft do seem to be quick at releasing updates for these phones so most issues should be sorted out pretty quickly. I won't be buying until after Christmas so it will be interesting to see what the position is come January.

Yes, they have been pretty quick with updates. You don't even have the 950XL yet? Not sure why you have such a strong position and calling me out for exaggeration when you don't

Well you're one of the few people complaining abut the camera. I found it easy to use and easy to get good shots. So maybe you don't understand how the camera app works. As far as win10mob is concerned, they have some wrinkles to iron out. Maybe you should have read real customer reviews before rushing out and buying something. I personally got a 950 and have no issues at all with it. The phone is great. Could care less about looks because 9/10 of us put a case over it anyhow. If you don't like something it's more productive to put out solutions instead of crying about what is wrong. Why not suggest solutions.

I'm a professional photographer with over 15yrs of work. I think I know how to operate cameras - it's a little less complicated than my Canon 1DX. However, I didn't say the camera was bad, but when it crashes upon depressing the shutter or takes more than half a minute for it to apply "Finishing Touches," it's a problem. That issue however has been resolved by Snakebitten's post to enable background for the camera app - see, he's being helpful. Your post just says I don't know what I'm doing and that it's more productive to put out solutions. If I had a solution to the issues I'm experiencing, I wouldn't have posted in the first place. And before you continue with that, just look at my post history as I go into other people's posts where they "crying about what is wrong" and I help them fix issues they're experiencing. Your post didn't help anyone.

 

[snakebitten]

I love my 950XL. But it would be nice if you didn't have to KNOW so much about W10Mobile and the quirks you have to address before you can judge it for what it is capable of.

It might come across as arrogant, I don't mean for it to, but you do have to be well read up to get the out-of-the-box Flagship running right. Heck if you are an AT&T customer, you have to research just to discover how to "trick them" into provisioning it for LTE.

All of these issues are early-release, early-development issues. I don't apologize FOR Microsoft (or anybody) when I say that.
But in my opinion, a 950XL can be an awesome "FlagShip" worthy device if it is configured properly. Of course, if you do not like W10Mobile, or you MUST have snapchat, you are never going to be satisfied. And that doesn't offend me at all.

Edit: And it is entirely possible to get a defective unit. There appear to be some. But that's true for washing machines AND IPhone.

 

[Gaurav Vishal]

My device keeps restarting, that happens when I am connected to an external wifi, reception no issue, camera is fine. I do not think its hardware fault, it is half baked OS that is causing the issue.

 

[Adam Frix]

I've been defending and fighting for windows phone for several years. It's sad. I'm actually known as the Microsoft ******. However, I no longer recommend windows phone to people.

I've seen pictures disappear before my eyes. The camera software is awful. At one point Bluetooth was really buggy (I think they fixed that now). Cortana with Ford Sync asks me if I want her to read my text then doesn't (Used to be my pride and joy of windows phone). Messaging + Skype app takes 35% of my battery; I don't use Skype and sent maybe 10 text messages. My brand new phone doesn't even last a day ... If I actually use my phone I have to charge it more than once a day (thank goodness for quick charging!). Apps just close at random (It doesn't happen every day, but it still happens enough). Windows 10 is very inconsistent. The back button closes some apps, other apps you have to manually close. Some things that worked beautifully in Windows Phone 8.1 no longer work in Windows 10 Mobile. Microsoft Edge just opens tab after tab and never closes them unless you do it manually. I have the Windows Feedback App pinned to my start screen. I report 2-3 bugs per day. I've had the phone for a month now, and I am still reporting bugs daily. This phone is not reliable.

Windows Hello is cool though. It works and it works fast. You just have to hold it up to your face.

Seriously though, it feels like I spent $600 to be a Windows 10 Mobile beta tester. I'm not using the technical preview. I used the technical preview on my old phone. The Lumia 950 does work better than the preview. In the past I bragged about windows phone and how someone should get it if they don't mind not having some of the apps. Now if someone asks me how I like my phone I say, "It's okay. It's cool. Oh! but don't get it! It's super buggy and might not have all of the apps you want." If someone who never owned a windows phone bought the Lumia 950 they would return it and never buy a windows phone again.

As was confirmed in a different thread, "the phone is exactly what it is the day you bought it--and don't expect it ever to be anything else, REGARDLESS OF ANY PROMISES FROM MICROSOFT, PAST OR PRESENT".

I really wanted to like the 950XL. When it first came out and did not play well with T-Mobile (unlike a similar flagship competitor, the Blackberry Priv), I paused and didn't pull the trigger. And I'm very glad now, seeing all this, that I didn't.

I liked my time with Windows Phone 8.1, despite it being low end hardware. I really liked the concepts brought forth with Windows Mobile 10. But it's obvious that Microsoft is not someone I should give my money to for this kind of a product.

Maybe--MAYBE--if a well-known hardware manufacturer like LG partnered with them on a phone, I would consider it. But it's obvious now to be very, very careful and considerate when choosing to do business with MS on something like this.

 

[Muessig]

As was confirmed in a different thread, "the phone is exactly what it is the day you bought it--and don't expect it ever to be anything else, REGARDLESS OF ANY PROMISES FROM MICROSOFT, PAST OR PRESENT".

I really wanted to like the 950XL. When it first came out and did not play well with T-Mobile (unlike a similar flagship competitor, the Blackberry Priv), I paused and didn't pull the trigger. And I'm very glad now, seeing all this, that I didn't.

I liked my time with Windows Phone 8.1, despite it being low end hardware. I really liked the concepts brought forth with Windows Mobile 10. But it's obvious that Microsoft is not someone I should give my money to for this kind of a product.

Maybe--MAYBE--if a well-known hardware manufacturer like LG partnered with them on a phone, I would consider it. But it's obvious now to be very, very careful and considerate when choosing to do business with MS on something like this.

Have you considered the upcoming Acer phone? It will have continuum and mid-range specs.

 

[nokia4life]

This 950XL that I have waited so long for is definitely going back - I just can't deal with it anymore. This phone was released with many bugs and we're expected to just live with it and wait for the updates. I did. I installed the .36 update hoping that it resolved just enough issues for me to keep it. I'll be back eventually, but this thing has got to go and here's why.

I'll just list the dealbreakers first. These are ranked from the most dealbreakerest to the least, but each of these are almost equally bad for my case and combined brings me to kicking it to the curb:

1. The camera: The hardware itself is good, however the software behind it makes me want to throw it to the ground. Not only does it take in excess of 30 seconds for it to "Add finishing touches," but snapping a photo has crashed my phone more than just a few times - about 3 times yesterday and once today. That is completely unacceptable. As for the post processing, I cannot delete nor zoom in a photo while it's doing its business. You have this guy who touts WM as a great phone OS, but when this stuff like this happens it is embarrassing. The moment the phone crashed several times yesterday, that was it for me. Update: u/Snakebitten suggested I allow background for the Camera app and it has not freeze/rebooted or taken more than two seconds for image post processing since. Resolved.
2. Rebooting in my pocket: Whip out the phone and stick it six inches from my face for Hello to scan my eyes only to see that it requires me to enter my PIN since it has been reset. WTH, this has been happening pretty often and not to mention that it is warm to the touch. Update: Since the last firmware update bringing my phone up to .36, it does not reboot nearly as often. Still warm for no reason some times, but mostly a non-issue now. Resolved.
3. Doesn't play nice with Band: It is as if the Band and the Phone were made by two different companies. Incoming call that I try to dismiss so I can get my phone to be quiet - 70% chance it'll work. Incoming text I just need to type "Ok" from my quick response - 60% it'll actually work, so you better pull out the phone anyways to see if it actually went through which negates the usefulness of having the Band.
4. Facebook: Yes, it's not made by the Zuck himself, but this dogpile app in both the regular and Beta is just dogpile. Post a photo and there's a chance it doesn't upload. Post a photo and the location check-in doesn't work, however you can work around it by doing a Check-In first, then add the photo which is bull. I use Facebook both personally and for business to extend my brand, so it is important enough that it breaks the deal for me. Other issues as well, but usability issues of just publishing my content is enough.
5. MS Office: Just a few days ago, I fire up Excel to enter some mileage only to find that my license expired for Office 365. Expired? I've never had to pay for Office on my phone since Windows Mobile (the CE 1.0 WM), so WTH is this? I check it on my iPhone which is signed on the same account and it's fine. Maybe it's just me and someone here can clarify it for me, but I just don't have time to go looking for a solution - I already did spend some time already. Update: u/Xandros9 suggested I reinstall the app and it seems to have fixed the issue. In reading on another post however, I learned that MS will be charging Office subscription for those who use Continuum starting in April. It makes me wonder if playing around with Continuum before lead to my expiration issue. Resolved.

I am not happy to go back to my iPhone 6 + Watch, but right now I just need something that "just works." That Apple quote, ugh. It is sad for me to come to this point - not recommending this phone to anyone and not recommending anyone go WM10... right now. I am a big supporter of all these MS things, but damn Windows 10 needs work all across the board - even my Surface Pro 3 is problematic since the upgrade. The other problems with this phone are:

• Signal: The 950XL has worse signal reception than my iPhone 6. An unconnected phone is a useless phone.
• Heat: Beside it warming up when it's doing nothing, it warms up on the Nokia wireless charger.
• Power button: Some people like the placement, I don't .
• Camera button: I love having a dedicated camera button, but not when it's too easy to activate in my phone or holster.
• Hello: Putting the phone six inches from my face is hardly better than a fingerprint scan, because it's uncomfortable to look at the screen to see if it unlocked yet.
• Outlook: iOS has Focused inbox, WM doesn't. There are many other features that WM Office gets shafted and needs to catch up, but &*#%$~!!!
• iPhone 5 Battery Life: WTH is draining my battery?! Checks. Messaging + Skype has been drawing 33%+ of the battery? WTH!!!
• No Waze: This is Google's fault, but raaage!
• Quiet Hours: Quiet until Words With Friends wants to let me know that it's my move. Shut up!
• Text Messaging: Rock solid, unless someone is texting you with an iPhone and then maybe you'll get it. Or, you're Group Texting and one of them is using an Android, therefore you replies doesn't always stay in the group chat. iPhone+Android = practically everyone else.
• Text Messaging via BT: Cortana asks if I want to read the text and I say "read it" with a 50% success rate compared to 90% on my old L920. Better yet, it's a group text from iOS users so Cortana reads the message back as: "No Subject."
• Emailing Photos: Trying to attach two screenshots for this post via the Photo>Share and it doesn't respond to my selecting the email account I'm trying to send from.

I feel like Microsoft might be spread too thin - fighting battles on too many fronts, so it pushes out products like Google. Everything is Beta. This phone is going back even though the Continuum dock will be delivered Monday. Doesn't matter. I'll repurchase this phone after I see some of these problems get cleared up and the inevitable price drop. I want to support and I tried, but I just can't hang with this, so back it goes.
Raaage!
View attachment 119241View attachment 119242

I feel your pain I had the same issues, I sold mine along with my band 2 on eBay got my money back and some. I kept the dock though as I plan on coming back once WM10 is good doesn't have to be great but good right now it is bad to many kinks. Some folks are gonna call you all kinds of haters and what not but I went through it and its well documented on just about ever tech website the issues with this phone and the software. I will wait for that Surface phone I will already have my dock and I plan on getting the next version of the surface tablet that will complete me once everything is good not great just good.

 

[Justin Engel]

Maybe--MAYBE--if a well-known hardware manufacturer like LG partnered with them on a phone, I would consider it. But it's obvious now to be very, very careful and considerate when choosing to do business with MS on something like this.

The hardware isn't my problem. If you are okay with waiting 3 minutes (I tried the fixes it still takes a while) for the photos app "Adding the finishing touches" then the camera is beautiful. The OS is the problem. Windows 10 Mobile needs time. I'm sure in two to three months the phone will be excellent.

 

[Jonny702]

I also returned mine. The phone (mostly the OS) didn't feel "ready" to me. Maybe one day when everything is sorted out and they come out with a "Surface phone" I might come back, but I just can't deal with the number of problems currently

 

[cracgor]

There is no point complaining about lack of Google apps like Gmail and Hangouts. Google won't let that happen because they don't want Microsoft taking market share from them. Which tells you they must feel Windows phone has enough about it to be a threat one day.

Facebook and twitter are there, Gmail displays in exactly the same way as (Microsoft) Mail and the YouTube app I have works perfectly, as do the rest. Instagram is also there in beta but 6tag is just as good.

If nothing else your post just proves how a lot of people are misled into thinking those apps, or their equivalents, are not there. Yes there are gaps but overall it's a minor issue, not the major disaster most reviews would have you believe it is.

Do people spend their whole lives playing with apps? After 18 months with Windows phone I haven't missed a single app and the rest of the experience more than makes up for it anyway. My Lumia 930 is the only phone I have ever had that I can't put down. Stuff the apps myth.

The app gap is still there. Try posting a video in facebook or using the facebook app to apply a filter to your photo or simply unfollowing a friend without going into the browser. That and the app really does take forever to load pages compared to at least the Android counterpart. I don't even think you can post two pictures in the same status update unless that was fixed.

How much does it financially cost to use 6tag compared to Instagram with in app purchases? I really think it is great what Rudy did for the OS, but saying it is superior to the official app is untrue. Another comparison I read with the third party apps is TubeCast versus Youtube...but there is a cost for things like casting media.

Google doesn't care about making apps for WM because the platform isn't large enough. Google doesn't care about making apps for PC because Chrome...

 

[KyleGM]

I always thought that the first impression was the best one....

First impression's are always going to be important, mine was great, however you can still have a bad first impression but end up changing your mind completely. For example when the new Guitar Hero was announced I slated it, my first impression was horrible, but now that I've actually played it, it is in my opinion the best Guitar Hero game made to date!

First impressions count
Second chances matter

 

[Witness]

I feel your pain I had the same issues, I sold mine along with my band 2 on eBay got my money back and some. I kept the dock though as I plan on coming back once WM10 is good doesn't have to be great but good right now it is bad to many kinks. Some folks are gonna call you all kinds of haters and what not but I went through it and its well documented on just about ever tech website the issues with this phone and the software. I will wait for that Surface phone I will already have my dock and I plan on getting the next version of the surface tablet that will complete me once everything is good not great just good.

I also returned mine. The phone (mostly the OS) didn't feel "ready" to me. Maybe one day when everything is sorted out and they come out with a "Surface phone" I might come back, but I just can't deal with the number of problems currently

Even though I've said I was going to return it, I kept at it over the holidays. Things were still so-so, but yesterday was just god awful. I was snapping photos within a 10min span of the kids playing carnival games and the 950XL rebooted THREE TIMES! Then at dinner, because it was just a glorious pile of meat trays (hot pot), it rebooted again while there was a nice moment and I had to ask my wife with her iPhone to shoot it.

Outstanding photos from that camera, but utterly useless if you cannot take a photo at critical moments because it reboots. I'm heading on a short trip in the next few days and I have both my Lumia and iPhone 6 with me today to do the migration back to iPhone. This might be it. Oh and this morning, it disconnected my Band connection twice in the same hour. I'm rebooting it to see if that fixes the flaky connection. :unhappysweat:

 

[Akira X]

On my 950xl, I get the "finishing touches" after taking photos on my 200GB sandisk micro SD and on the internal storage, about 4 seconds or so.
Havent had it reboot after taking a photo. Sounds like a faulty phone.
950xl