Questions about WP8 (thinking about coming from Android)

[Florin Anghel]

sharpinator I suppose you were reffering to me..
First relax and try to be polite, second:
For your consideration I'm not blind, I use the built in app (what sense is to use the fb app when you already have what's needed?) therefor no lag on pinch to zoom. I have the fb app installed just in case something is wrong with MS services but that didn't happen so far.
Btw on Android FB sucks so hard that you want to quit using it (and I saw some die hard fans doing that just because the android fb app is utterly laggy)

 

[eric12341]

Battery life on my 8X is excellent especially since coming from an HD7 with my HD7 I had to bring my charger along or carry around a portable charger. With my 8X I can now leave without those things and be sure that I can make it home without needing a charge. Some work days and a few outings I've been on have confirmed that. Since getting my 8X I have seen one random reboot and one freeze but that was before installing portico. There is one bug with the 8X that's a little annoying and that's with the sound sometimes being routed through the processor instead of the amp but I'm sure that'll be fixed over time.

 

[tk-093]

Looks like Nokia Drive Beta is out for non Nokia devices as of today: Nokia Drive+ Beta | Windows Phone Apps+Games Store (United States)

I'm a ******, and I love WP8, but currently I popped my SIM back into my GS3. Part of the reason is I support our Good Mobile Messaging environment and as there is no client on WP8, I feel like i need to use a device with the client on. (We are testing out pure ActiveSync to help lessen our use of Good.) I probably spend 95% of my forum time in this forum other then the Android one, because even though I'm using Android... I still fricken hate it.

I'm hoping for a super amazing 8.1 update announcment with all kinds of goodies because I really want WP8 to make it.

Personally, if I were you, and if your device is still doing ok. I would wait to see what comes of the rumored Verizon high-end Nokia device. That's the one I would go for.

 

[MarcMaiden]

Thanks again for all the replies

my galaxy nexus is about to die so I need a new phone asap. I am going to buy out of contract and thanks to Nokia today, I'm going to get the 8x -now to find one in the limited edition Verizon gray and green ��

 

[a5cent]

Yep, looks like Nokia and MS just solved your TBT nav problem today. ;-)

Pretty nifty.

 

[tk-093]

Thanks again for all the replies

my galaxy nexus is about to die so I need a new phone asap. I am going to buy out of contract and thanks to Nokia today, I'm going to get the 8x -now to find one in the limited edition Verizon gray and green ��

Cool. Not to make it anymore difficult, but since you're buying out of contract, you may want to think about the 822. I really like it and I don't mind the lesser resolution screen at all (especially when you consider that my other device is a GS3 with a really nice big screen.) The only reason I mention the 822 is you can probably find it a lot cheaper then the 8x and with that extra $$ you save, you might feel better about upgrading to the next big Windows device that comes out this spring/summer.

Either way, welcome!

 

[lippidp]

Wait 'till MWC. Something new will be announced for Verizon. I think that is good advice for both you and your GF, if you can wait...

Sure, then wait another few months for whatever they unveil to actually launch. Then wait another few weeks or months for updates to make said device stable and useable.

 

[iainmann]

And Nokia Drive sat nav app now released for ALL WP8 phones so HTC now more of a goer:

IJSMblog: Windows Phone news and apps: Microsoft releases Nokia Drive app for ALL Windows Phone 8 users

 

[a5cent]

Sure, then wait another few months for whatever they unveil to actually launch. Then wait another few weeks or months for updates to make said device stable and useable.

1) He was on Verizon
2) He liked the 920
3) He liked the 8x smaller format
4) He wanted a TBT nav app (only available on Lumia when that comment was made)
5) MWC is just a month away, when just such a device will be announced

I think the OP has every right to get that information. What he does with it is his choice.

Too dense to understand that point?

 

[sharpinator]

Well with the news about nokia drive I take my comment back about there being no decent navigation apps! That was great timing. To the person who I said "You must be blind"to I'm not really being rude It was kind of sarcastic. I did specifically say the facebook app and not the built in app so I thought you were denying lag. Android facebook really isn't that laggy and it has WAY more functionality. I plan on sticking with my windows phone for a while so hopefully I'll see some updates. They just really need to sort the apps out. I really really like windows phone! Please developers sort your apps out. The apps need to be more advanced like the ios and android apps.

 

[apinkel]

I've got an atrix 2 (my 3rd android), an iphone 4s and a Lumia 820. The lumia is my daily driver.

I find WP8 to be mid-way between ios and android. It's stable, polished and smooth like ios but more flexible. It's not as flexible as android but it's been more stable and polished (although to be fair I don't have a jellybean device).

Things I like on WP8... the UI design, the smoothness, the stability, the text and email apps (calendar is OK but nothing to write home about), picture auto-upload to skydrive. I'm in the minority here but IMO it has the best notification system of the three major platforms. I live in the midwest and travel thru rural areas where on device maps are really nice to have so nokia drive is also a big plus for me.

Things that are not so great... volume control is too limited (ios does this best IMO... it just works the way you think it should while android is so flexible it can make something that should be simple complicated). Limited app selection... no good voip/sip client, limited google apps. Some obscure, yet seemingly basic things are also still missing in WP8... support for telecom codecs which renders many pbx voicemail messages unplayable, enterprise support is still a work in progress.

Battery life is better than my atrix 2 but not as good as my iphone 4s. I can make it two days of light to medium use on a charge.

 

[LeLee092]

Tell your girlfriend not to worry..
Me and my (at the time) boyfriend were big android users.. I'm especially really into social media like instagram/spotify/twitter/facebook/tumblr/pinterest
Finally my mytouch 4g died one me, and kinda on a whim i ended up getting the 8x, the price was right and I really liked the OS.
I havent regretted my decision at all! I do still miss Instagram, but metrogram will do for now, and I found really good third party app for almost everything, youtube=metrotube, twitter=rowi, tumblr=blueprints, pinterest=pinspiration
Everything is done a lot more seamless, and the if you really spend the time to personalize it the OS is a lot better than Android IMO, perfect medium between way to boring and simple iPhone, and way to customized whats-all-this-tech-stuff that android is (never moded my android or did any of those 'fun' stuff with it so i dont really care for it)

 

[MarcMaiden]

Tell your girlfriend not to worry..
Me and my (at the time) boyfriend were big android users.. I'm especially really into social media like instagram/spotify/twitter/facebook/tumblr/pinterest
Finally my mytouch 4g died one me, and kinda on a whim i ended up getting the 8x, the price was right and I really liked the OS.
I havent regretted my decision at all! I do still miss Instagram, but metrogram will do for now, and I found really good third party app for almost everything, youtube=metrotube, twitter=rowi, tumblr=blueprints, pinterest=pinspiration
Everything is done a lot more seamless, and the if you really spend the time to personalize it the OS is a lot better than Android IMO, perfect medium between way to boring and simple iPhone, and way to customized whats-all-this-tech-stuff that android is (never moded my android or did any of those 'fun' stuff with it so i dont really care for it)

Thanks for this, I will show my girlfriend this - (helped me, too) I think I'd miss instagram as well, but I spent more time looking at pictures than posting them anyways

 

[MarcMaiden]

Thanks for the suggestions about waiting for MWC/ getting the cheaper phone

I can't trust Verizon here - If I wait for the high end Lumia - chances are it'll come with an ugly Verizon tramp stamp - I want to experience windows phone with the high end, not the low end (even though there might not be much of a difference). I'm going with the 8x (a local used phone reseller sells them for $300 like new) and if something that really blows my mind comes out that I have to have...I have an upgrade for.

My theory is that this 6 month exclusivity will end, Verizon will get the 920 (or there version of it) and then AT&T will own the new rumored EOS Nokia launching later this year.

anyways, I'll relay this info to my girlfriend and hopefully she'll follow me

 

[aubreyq]

Thanks for the suggestions about waiting for MWC/ getting the cheaper phone

I can't trust Verizon here - If I wait for the high end Lumia - chances are it'll come with an ugly Verizon tramp stamp - I want to experience windows phone with the high end, not the low end (even though there might not be much of a difference). I'm going with the 8x (a local used phone reseller sells them for $300 like new) and if something that really blows my mind comes out that I have to have...I have an upgrade for.

My theory is that this 6 month exclusivity will end, Verizon will get the 920 (or there version of it) and then AT&T will own the new rumored EOS Nokia launching later this year.

anyways, I'll relay this info to my girlfriend and hopefully she'll follow me

Well today you can get the Samsung Odyssey on Verizon for $50 but that's not a high end phone. Oh, and it comes with TWO hideous tramp stamps.

 

[ryker002]

Windows Phone is a good choice to go with, I believe Android is faltering, and soon enough when people just like you keep switching to Windows Phone the market share will go up and apps will be developed for Windows Phone.
The Nokia Navigation app is amazing, and as stated before I do not believe that facebook on Windows Phone is slow at all... and on the contrary a lot faster then androids.

 

[halimaw96]

Where is everyone getting the notion that android is faltering? The last time I checked it had over 75% of the global smartphone market.

 

[a5cent]

Where is everyone getting the notion that android is faltering? The last time I checked it had over 75% of the global smartphone market.

I think those are predictions about Android's future. They certainly can't be based on Android's current market share.

I'm not ready to say Android is faltering, but I do see a huge hole in their flank. The high end Android devices of the world aren't that important in terms of market share. They serve primarily as high margin products to bolster Samsung's profits. Market share is achieved by the sub $200 devices. WP isn't quite their yet, but it is getting close. When Chinese manufacturers start flooding Eastern Europe, Russia and Asia with cheap low end WP devices, that is when I expect Android to surrender a good chunk of market share to WP. The way Android is setup, it simply has no chance of offering a competitive user experience that can match WP's at such low price levels.

That is my prediction. I'm not sure where other's see holes in Androids defence.

 

[sharpinator]

You can dream! Android isn't faltering and I apply my favourite phrase "What goes up must come down" to lots of things in life and I think that's what is happening or will happen with android. They can't really get any more market share, they'll just lose some. Same happened to iphones before android blew up. iPhones were the pinnacle of smartphones until android phones gained traction. I remember my mum saying that "They reckon that android will overtake iphones in the next couple of years" My mum being an iphone fan doubted that when the end of that year android overtook iphones! Operating systems can grow very quickly but I just don't know with windows phone. I think windows phone might just be the new blackberry sitting at a comfortable third place.

 

[MarcMaiden]

Yeah I definitely don't see Android falling anytime soon - I still have a soft spot for Android - I just think Google needs to sort out it's issues with the Carriers and the OEMs before I can consider coming back.

The most beautiful thing I have ever seen on any phone is on my HTC 8x- at the signal bar, it says "lte" not 4g, not verizon, no carrier branding nothing - just lte - and that my friends is a beautiful thing.