One M8 for Windows on AT&T

[Br1t]

I just took the plunge today since Amazon had it at $0.01 to up for another 2 years. Not gonna miss that resuming screen from my 920!

 

[lankylars]

I'm now five days in to my time with the One M8 on AT&T. So far I'm very satisfied overall with the device. First observations:
Pros:
- Fit and finish look and feel much better than the Lumia 925 (my previous phone)
- No protruding camera lens (a la 925)
- Screen is very bright and crisp indoors, and I prefer the look and colors to my 925
- Speeds through apps and tasks much more quickly than the 925
- I see approximately 33% more battery life out of it under normal daily usage circumstances

Undecided:
- HTC apps - have not used extensively yet
- Virtual Windows bar/keys - is nice in some circumstances; in others it is annoying to have to show and hide
- Camera - have not messed with post-capture refocusing at all yet
- Power button on top - probably not an issue, but muscle memory will make it hard to relearn
- Speakers - they seem to produce more volume and more clearly than the 925, but I haven't extensively tested them yet (nor used for speakerphone)
- Headphone and USB ports on bottom of device - sometimes it helps to have them at the bottom, other times it's annoying
- Softcard capable - I have set it up but have not used it to pay yet
- SD card slot - glad to have, but haven't evaluated yet (64gb card to be delivered soon)

Cons:
- Lack of external camera button - annoying for me, and putting a link in the Notification Center is a workaround but not a good one
- Camera in general - in app pictures (i.e. without full manual control options) produces very soft images without much definition (ex. apps include Instagram and 6tag and 6snap)
- Slippery metal body requires more care when handling
- Outdoors the screen lags far behind the 925 in basic sunlight readability - I will miss that during spring/summer months


--Update 12/4/2014--

After some more time using it, I figured I'd help out others by updating my observations. See below:

Pros:
- tap to wake is nice (though sometimes it takes two or three series of double-taps to get the phone to recognize this input)
- battery life still holding up as observed before

Cons:
- might just be generic to switching devices in general, but the spelling autocorrect has been quite poor. I don't remember it being this bad when I got my 925. I know it will learn with time, but it can be frustrating sometimes in the interim.
- camera - still really bugging me. While I don't have enough time spent with it yet to definitively rule out a method for taking consistently good photos across varying light situations, in general photos are of poor quality and end up quite blurred looking without flash (which obviously undesirably mis-colors the subject). There were actually a few cases recently where I grabbed my 925 to take a few shots after becoming frustrated with the One M8 (e.g. Christmas tree lit up in a low light room).


The camera displeasure will almost certainly mean that if a new WP flagship comes out sometime next year, I'll upgrade to that. To be fair to the One M8, however, that was my plan all along, regardless of whether I chose the One M8, 1520, or 830.

 

[cannon#WP]

I'll add my experience to the list. I also got mine day one on 11/7 and I'm still completely enamored with this phone. I've had absolutely no problems with the phone itself. The battery life is really good, the screen is large & bright, the body is attractive and the camera is nice. Coming from a 920, this phone is miles beyond that in almost every way except for taking pics in extreme low-light situations.

I've gotten use to the virtual keys and I feel they're no different than the capacitive keys I had on my Titan II & 920 with the added bonus of being able to hide them. Do I miss a dedicated camera button? A little. Putting it in the action bar has been getting me by though.

I can never see myself going back to a Lumia. I've never found them attractive and I always looked at my 920 as just a way for me to use WP8 since my Titan II would never get it. Although it did take some great shots, there's nothing there to bring me back. This is a phone I can use for years and never get envious (unless the M9 brings back OIS).

 

[jdballard]

- Screen is very bright and crisp indoors, and I prefer the look and colors to my 925

Interesting. I found my TMO 925 had better black and colors. I feel the M8 colors appear a bit washed out. Could be that the black isn't as black, so it's the contrast. Other than that, though, I love this phone.

 

[ajb1965]

Interesting. I found my TMO 925 had better black and colors. I feel the M8 colors appear a bit washed out. Could be that the black isn't as black, so it's the contrast. Other than that, though, I love this phone.

Is the difference that noticeable? The display is one of 2 things holding me back from taking the plunge. The other is lack of WiFi calling. I had the Icon, and now 635 and love how sharp the display is even though the resolution is lower than the Icon. Being on T-Mobile now my options are limited to upgrade and the fact that I can't go into a store and look at it is frustrating. I will NEVER set foot in a VZW store again, so don't even suggest it lol. I've had this phone in my T-Mobile shopping cart 4 or 5 times now but just can't bring myself to do it yet...

 

[jdballard]

Is the difference that noticeable? The display is one of 2 things holding me back from taking the plunge. The other is lack of WiFi calling.

It's definitely noticeable but I personally can live with it. My wife, when looking at both, said for her it's not as noticeable on the black, but definitely on the colors. Since TMO doesn't have it in store, you could swing by an AT&T store and see for yourself if it's a deal-breaker for you.

The Wi-Fi calling for me isn't a deal breaker but can see why it's important for others.

I tried taking screen shots of both start screens, but I don't see the difference like I do when actually looking at the phones. Tried taking a picture of both phones but couldn't get it to come out without shadows and what not.

 

[prest208]

I dropped my 1520 and cracked the screen...I filed an insurance claim,..but att&t doesn't have another in Stock...and doesn't know when one will be available...the only replacement phone I can get is the htc one...should I go for it...or wait until they get the 1520 back in stock

 

[ajb1965]

Since TMO doesn't have it in store, you could swing by an AT&T store and see for yourself if it's a deal-breaker for you.

That was an excellent suggestion, which I took, thank you. Now I'm struggling even more!! They had the M8 sitting right next to the 830, so I was doing side by side comparisons of those 2 phones plus my 635.

Man the 830 has a beautiful display. The M8 display looked dim and washed out compared to it. As far as speed, while I know it's the same processor as my 635, the 830 seemed to keep up with the M8 on opening apps, files etc. where my 635 was still 'resuming' when I compared it to the M8. I suppose the extra RAM helps with that. Some apps opened faster, but the difference was negligible. I think you would need a CPU intensive app running for the differences to really come out, which are rarely installed on the demo units.

The cameras on both took great photos of the security device attached to the phones lol, but the M8 was definitely faster in the camera department. I didn't think I really cared about the camera, but looking at the Pureview again made me realize how great the photos were on my Icon, even though it was comparatively slow after coming from an HTC DNA.

Rumor had it that T-Mob is supposedly getting the 830. If they do, I may just hold off. I say this today, but knowing myself the way I do, tomorrow I may say screw it and just go get the M8!! Decisions decisions......

 

[mark233]

If your pocketbook can swing it, get both! lol :amaze:

 

[Br1t]

Well after a couple of days with mine, I'm in the washed-out opinion too. It's Ok, but the clear black really shows a difference. It's a contrast issue, it's worse the brighter the screen is. We need something to tweak the colour profiles like Lumia's, maybe in time if enough sell HTC will work the firmware.

 

[jdballard]

That was an excellent suggestion, which I took, thank you.

Glad my suggestion was helpful.

The cameras on both took great photos of the security device attached to the phones lol, but the M8 was definitely faster in the camera department. I didn't think I really cared about the camera, but looking at the Pureview again made me realize how great the photos were on my Icon, even though it was comparatively slow after coming from an HTC DNA.

I hate that the phones are locked down the way they are. I've often thought the should put the phones in cases like jewelry at a jewelry store where you can only see one at a time, but actually hold it. You can't really get a feel for a phone with that security thing in the way.

That aside, I agree the camera on the HTC is fast but that the pictures aren't as good. I bought it thinking that for me the quality will be good enough. I have a trip coming up soon where it'll get a workout, so we'll see how I feel after that.

Rumor had it that T-Mob is supposedly getting the 830. If they do, I may just hold off.

It was the fact it's a rumor that made me hold off. The other thing is the pricing they put on it at AT&T. I'm assuming TMO's would be similar and I think it's a bit high priced for a mid range phone. Despite that, If they had it I probably would have gotten it. The pluses outweigh the minuses: the camera, replaceable battery, Lumia display, lower price than the M8 (even if the 830 would be a little overpriced). Problem is it's still a rumor.

Since I'm on the jump program, I am hoping I'll have at least an announcement of the Windows 10 phones by the time my six months (perhaps actual phones if I'm lucky) is up so I went for the M8. If there are no appealing Windows 10 phones headed to TMO announced by the time I can jump, maybe they'll have an 830 or I'll just hold on to the M8 for a bit longer.

Tough decision, I know. I took the "it's only six months" approach under the assumption I'll have options then or more shortly thereafter.

 

[Nogitsune Micah]

That was an excellent suggestion, which I took, thank you. Now I'm struggling even more!! They had the M8 sitting right next to the 830, so I was doing side by side comparisons of those 2 phones plus my 635.

Man the 830 has a beautiful display. The M8 display looked dim and washed out compared to it. As far as speed, while I know it's the same processor as my 635, the 830 seemed to keep up with the M8 on opening apps, files etc. where my 635 was still 'resuming' when I compared it to the M8. I suppose the extra RAM helps with that. Some apps opened faster, but the difference was negligible. I think you would need a CPU intensive app running for the differences to really come out, which are rarely installed on the demo units.

The cameras on both took great photos of the security device attached to the phones lol, but the M8 was definitely faster in the camera department. I didn't think I really cared about the camera, but looking at the Pureview again made me realize how great the photos were on my Icon, even though it was comparatively slow after coming from an HTC DNA.

Rumor had it that T-Mob is supposedly getting the 830. If they do, I may just hold off. I say this today, but knowing myself the way I do, tomorrow I may say screw it and just go get the M8!! Decisions decisions......

We have an830 and m8 in house and for thanksgiving my phone died(1520) so we had to rely on the other two. Hands down the 830 beat the m8 hold off as it sounds like you would rather have the 830 over the m8 anyway. No point settling

 

[tgp]

Hands down the 830 beat the m8

Aw come on Superboy; we know you by now! Let me reword this for you:

Hands down the Lumia beat the non-Lumia

 

[jdballard]

We have an830 and m8 in house and for thanksgiving my phone died(1520) so we had to rely on the other two. Hands down the 830 beat the m8 hold off as it sounds like you would rather have the 830 over the m8 anyway. No point settling

Except that the 830 isn't available on TMO - at least yet, and I believe ajb1965 is on TMO...

 

[Nogitsune Micah]

Aw come on Superboy; we know you by now! Let me reword this for you:

Hands down the Lumia beat the non-Lumia

The iPhone 6+ also best it as well so Lumia really has nothing to do with it lol. It's just sub par compared to the others

My brother is making me take it back

 

[crash0330]

I've had my M8 for windows for 5 days now, was using a Lumia 1020 before this, I gotta say the brightness lot eh screen I feel like it's better then the 1020, might be because of the higher resolution, but pictures do look better in the M8 then the 1020.
I also like the higher sound output of the M8, however I do miss the equalizer on the 1020.
And I know most mock the M8 for it's camera performance, and sorry but it is for a reason, the M8 camera is no were near comparable to the 1020.
Since I do like taking pictures, I might go back to a Lumia either a 1020 or a 1520.

 

[fatclue_98]

After thinking about it long and hard, I went to AT&T and exchanged my 1520 for the M8. My reasons are unusual because of the way I use my devices. I've mentioned on other threads that CM Scanner is my most important app and I use the dog**** out of it. The phantom touch issue has caused me enough grief but none like when I use this app. As much as people have ragged on this device for its camera, myself included, I find it odd that macros are actually better than on the 1520. The other feature that I never gave too much thought to is the front facing speakers. I always set the phone on my lap with the speakerphone on and wow, what a difference! I guess the devil is indeed in the details.