To Upgrade? OR*Not to Upgrade? from the Onetouch Fierce XL

[Kcnewf2]

I have had the OneTouch FierceXL since I returned a note 7 in early September. I originally purchased it as a temporary device while I decided what to go to after the Note 7 fiasco. But I found I realty like the return to the Windows mobile experience after upgrading from a Nokia*520 to Galaxy S5 (22 months) to the*Note*7 (3 weeks)

I am contemplating an upgrade to the*IDOL 4S. ..

My chief complaint with the XL is slowness while browsing and changing apps plus the natural fingerprint magnet that it is.

Chiefs benefits that I envision from the upgrade*is snappier performance.

What other day to day benefits would I gain by upgrading to the Idol 4S

I am concerned about upgrading and having*a significantly*better Windows 10 mobile device come out in the next 9 to 12 month and then being "stuck" with the Idol 4S. Purchasing the 1 year old 950 or 950 XL does*not make sense to me either.

I appreciate any and all thoughts.

 

[RaRa85]

Check out the reviews on the Alcatel Idol 4S first but I would say you have everything to gain by upgrading to it. Its a wonderful flagship of a phone that gets a lot right and doesn't break the bank either. If I was a Windows Phone user on T-Mobile I would definitely get it.

 

[editguy]

Unless the Surface phone becomes a reality in the next year, you're not likely to find a better*Windows phone, unless you're looking for something business oriented like the HP Elite. I'm very satisfied with the Idol 4S. It's very responsive with apps and browsing. If you like your Fierce XL, you're going to LOVE this phone!

 

[Eric J F]

I got the Idol 4S and we kept the Fierce XL, so comparing both is easy. The two most obvious differences are the non-greasy glass and the better camera. The design and thinness are much better, too. The display is noticeably better along with the speed, but to me they're not as big an improvement as the first two. I'm very happy with the phone, except for some charging issues I'm replacing it for. Battery life seems about the same, by the way.

To be honest, from a strictly economic point of view I'm not real sure it's worth about three times the price. It isn't so much the Idol 4S is overpriced, it's more the Fierce XL is a real bargain for a sturdy, reliable phone.

 

[Kacchan]

Haha I'd sell you mine tbh. It's not a bad phone and I'm just sort of falling out of love with Microsoft ecosystem slowly.

It's easily the best windows phone I have ever owned even if it is not a lumia camera.

 

[final_fantasy781]

Check out the reviews on the Alcatel Idol 4S first but I would say you have everything to gain by upgrading to it. Its a wonderful flagship of a phone that gets a lot right and doesn't break the bank either. If I was a Windows Phone user on T-Mobile I would definitely get it.

This is what the seller at T-Mobile said, however, it's missing key apps. The only app he can throw out was Snapchat. Anyways, he was pretty happy over the Idol 4S for a lot of the reasons mentioned, plus the add-on VR, goggles and new games.

I also think it would last a lot longer than the OneTouch Fierce XL. The quality over the XL is pretty good, and will last another year. My daughter had the XL since early February of this year. It only lasted 3 months and then it needed to be reset to factory settings. Twice that happened before I replaced it with the Idol 4S.

 

[RaRa85]

Yeah I would definitely say that the Idol 4S is a good buy especially if you're tied into the ecosystem of Windows 10 and dont have to have all the latest apps on other platforms.

 

[Kcnewf2]

I have decided to hang onto the XL for now. I'm not convinced the benefits of the 4S vs the XL are worth the cost of the 4S.

However if my XL dies a premature death before the rumored 'surface phone' hits the market, I will try the 4s

 

[inC0gNi7o]

So I got the XL as a "band aid" after my old HTC 8XT died and Sprint officially abandoned windows os. I heard about the Alcatel "super phone" and my wife liked T-Mobile so I went for it. The XL was a bit slow overall and the camera is terrible but otherwise I didn't have much issue considering it was $140 outright. The Idol 4S came out sooner than I expected but I jumped on it out of concern that if it didn't do well it would disappear. I'm very impressed by the overall look and feel of the Idol 4S. It has a solid handset with a slim profile, it's super responsive, and the camera is worlds better.

Some things that baffle me between the two devices however include some apps being vastly different despite them both running the exact same os. Facebook for example is completely different on the Idol 4S compares to the Fierce XL. Also the Idol 4S has Continuum whereas the Fierce XL did not.

I am having an issue however. I've owned this phone less than a week and I'm currently troubleshooting an issue where I cannot hear anything from the earpiece. In order to hold a phone call my only option is to use speakerphone. It's such a new device that nobody has info on what, why, or how to fix. I am not thrilled about the idea of replacing a fresh out-of-the-box device a week after investing in it.

 

[mark233]

If you're not hearing anything from the earpiece, and a soft, or hard/factory reset doesn't rectify the issue you most certainly should return it for exchange. It's only been a week.