Lumia 950/950XL flagships design - like it or not?

[mariusmuntean]

windos 10 is a beta OS even on PC, but some refuse to admit it, some fanboys...on mobile yes, win10 is the worst that could happen, slow, very slow, apps are not even half baked, store app is a total joke, groove music is again a fail, and the 3rd party apps most of them, were updated over a year ago, with worse quality than the same apps on ios and android.
I was really looking forward to windows 10 when they announced it, but after testing it on my last wp device, 1520, up to build 10512, I have to say it's a terrible experince, 8.1 was simply flying on my 1520, everything was working as I wanted, but 10...so close to launch date and it still works like an alpha OS. I have heard many thoughts at my workplace about this subject, no one is xcited about either windows 10 mobile or these so called flagships...here people are using s6, s6 edge, iphones, xperia phones...they will upgrade but for sure not to these...and about windows 10 PC, MS made the best thing launching it )) this way more will love windows 8.1 )

 

[neelagopi]

Where are your statistics on inferior storage? Moto X Style has a microSD card slot and has an option for 64GB of in-built storage?twice that of the 950/XL.
Where are your test pictures showing how it's an inferior camera? Yes, we assume that our beloved 'Nokia' PureView camera will be far superior and it certainly seems that way with OIS and superior camera software, but we can't say until the devices are released.
The processor is only inferior to the 950 XL, and that is only in sheer power.
Where are your statistics on the inferior RAM? They have the same amount of RAM. Is one faster than the other? Please, show me the numbers.
Are you referring to the IPS LCD display of the Moto X? Surely not the resolution, since they're QHD (all three are, the Moto X Style, Lumia 950 and 950 XL). It's a matter of opinion whether or not AMOLED is superior to IPS LCD and we have yet to see the OLED displays of either Microsoft flagship in action so how could we possibly say they're better? They might very well be (I believe when properly calibrated an OLED display is far better than a comparative LCD display), but we can't possibly say for certain.

I don't disbelieve you at all. I just fail to see how this list makes for a compelling argument when you've yet to provide any evidence or statistics on it. Please do and I'll change my perspective. Thank you, sir.

In terms display, just by looking at IPS LCD or OLED we cannot say which is superior: You need to know color gamut, brightness, outdoor view-ability, resolution, refresh-rate etc. Generally premium phones or flag-ships have higher color-gamut coverage, higher contrast ratio, very bright (higher nits). For ex: Lumia 635 and 1520 both has IPS LCD, but 1520 is one the best screen available when it was released (probably best).

Display contributes to major amount of the phone price... also higher resolution costs significantly higher... HD to QHD is a significant boost in ppi, smaller pixels lead to more manufacturing defects, which leads to lower-yield, hence higher price...

I assume (correct me if am wrong) MotoX is a budget/mid-range phone like Lumia 830, and Lumia 950 is a flagship... I am very positive, that we can expect a superior display in Lumia 950 compared to Moto-X, not just in terms of resolution but also color-gamut coverage, contrast-ratio, brightness, and added goodies like high-sensitive touch, enhance outdoor-display (like in Lumia 1520).

Generally speaking LCD produces realistic colors, OLED kind of saturate colors (you can always change color settings in Lumia), but OLED have very good contrast-ratio and OLED tend to look better on windows tile-like UI... LCD might be good for movies (true-colors) and OLED for games (these are all dependent on personal-taste).. blacks are just amazing on OLED screens, because they are pitch blacks (0nit brightness)

bottom line: Not all LCDs are better than OLED/AMOLED and vice-versa... its the all other things that make one display better than others

 

[ko_smo]

I'm still hoping for a big time surprise from Microsoft re L950 and L950XL looks, the one even Evan Blass could not leak. But, yeah, I know that I'm living in an imagination.

 

[peachy001]

There can't be much left to reveal.

 

[3earnhardt3]

The phones look like a 1520 and a 928 had a set of fraternal twins. It is bland and yet non-intrusive as well. I am skipping this generation of phones for now, still holding out for the Surface Phone or a Galaxy Edge with W10.

 

[lbp775]

32gb is a nice place to start off especially with so many cloud services adding additional storage elsewhere. however it would still be nice to see a place for an SD card.
USB c is nice unfortunately the S6 + and the S6 Edge + are still using micro USB and Apple is still using it's lightning charger. Will the general public be inclined to go to a device that has it's own charger for the time being?

All reports I've seen is that these phones will have 32gb + an SD card slot. Also, USB-C is where future products are headed for phones, tablets and laptops.

 

[Zachary Boddy]

The camera is NOT as good as the 1020 (20mp vs 41mp) so you can't make that claim. Also, they could add 1GB of memory and have the "best specs" if you count the camera. Many of us do NOT buy smartphones based on specs, unless there's a specific one (like the camera). We look at the entire package: responsiveness of user experience, apps, DESIGN, storage, etc. These do NOT qualify as flagships as far as I'm concerned. The specs are on par with competitors, and the camera is sub-par compared to the 1020. And Windows 10 Mobile is the worst operating system ever. I've been testing it since they made the OS available and there is simply nothing good I can say about it compared to Windows Phone 8.1. Nothing.

The megapixels do NOT make the camera. I'm just saying.

 

[Zachary Boddy]

This thread has become ridiculous and I've frankly stopped following it haha. I'll read one or two out of the 30 new posts a day and I'm good.

 

[Zachary Boddy]

In terms display, just by looking at IPS LCD or OLED we cannot say which is superior: You need to know color gamut, brightness, outdoor view-ability, resolution, refresh-rate etc. Generally premium phones or flag-ships have higher color-gamut coverage, higher contrast ratio, very bright (higher nits). For ex: Lumia 635 and 1520 both has IPS LCD, but 1520 is one the best screen available when it was released (probably best).

Display contributes to major amount of the phone price... also higher resolution costs significantly higher... HD to QHD is a significant boost in ppi, smaller pixels lead to more manufacturing defects, which leads to lower-yield, hence higher price...

I assume (correct me if am wrong) MotoX is a budget/mid-range phone like Lumia 830, and Lumia 950 is a flagship... I am very positive, that we can expect a superior display in Lumia 950 compared to Moto-X, not just in terms of resolution but also color-gamut coverage, contrast-ratio, brightness, and added goodies like high-sensitive touch, enhance outdoor-display (like in Lumia 1520).

Generally speaking LCD produces realistic colors, OLED kind of saturate colors (you can always change color settings in Lumia), but OLED have very good contrast-ratio and OLED tend to look better on windows tile-like UI... LCD might be good for movies (true-colors) and OLED for games (these are all dependent on personal-taste).. blacks are just amazing on OLED screens, because they are pitch blacks (0nit brightness)

bottom line: Not all LCDs are better than OLED/AMOLED and vice-versa... its the all other things that make one display better than others

I do know all of this already. I was just pointing out that the person I quoted in that comment was comparing the 950 XL to a similar phone without having any real numbers.
The Moto X Style is Motorola's flagship device as of now, even if it has a mid-range price.

 

[trivor]

Ok, Moto X

Inferior storage
Inferior camera
Inferior processor
Inferior RAM
Inferior screen/resolution

I'm still failing to see your argument.

And, only $399 with MotoMaker. If the new Lumias come in at $399 then we have a discussion. If they come in at $499 or better then we have an Apples-Oranges discussion because they're in a different price range. As for some of the things you label superior it's really hard to know whether it's superior or not until we have physical hardware from MS. You're basing your conclusions on rumors, not actual hardware.

 

[Zachary Boddy]

And, only $399 with MotoMaker. If the new Lumias come in at $399 then we have a discussion. If they come in at $499 or better then we have an Apples-Oranges discussion because they're in a different price range. As for some of the things you label superior it's really hard to know whether it's superior or not until we have physical hardware from MS. You're basing your conclusions on rumors, not actual hardware.

Thank you! I try to say roughly the same thing and get a pointless lecture on screen technology (my apologies to whoever tried to teach me about the differences between OLED and LCD).

 

[z33dev33l]

I work for Verizon and handle all of the newest and best. Even as such, the most inspiring design to me is that of the 1520. There is still no phone that compares to it in terms of quality to me. I think Microsoft has another real winner in these phones.

 

[mikepalma]

The leaks on 950s leave me very disappointed. Basically just a slightly faster 930 and 1520 with no compelling premium feel. No new features that are meaningful...iris scanner who cares and live tiles please. No tap to pay for example, which is avail on a cheap Android or iPhone. None of my friends or family have even a clue that the 950s are coming and will yawn upon arrival, and I agree that it would make no sense to switch to an ecosystem that offers less features and is starving for good apps. Add the fact that MS wholeheartedly supports iOS and Android with it's best stuff, Cortana Office, Outlook so no real loss in switching to them. W10 Mobile is DOA

 

[murtaza_p]

My windows 10 mobile forces me to use Lumia Camera. I can't change it to Microsoft and have a separate tile for it. There are times when I want to use the MS one. For the most part the Lumia one is better.

View attachment 113119

agreed buddy, however for some devices the Lumia camera app altogether is omitted for some reason

 

[Tafsern]

Basically just a slightly faster 930 and 1520 with no compelling premium feel.

Basically you don't really know how they feel or how they look in real life. You just assume they lack premium feel by looking at leaks of renders.

No new features that are meaningful...iris scanner who cares and live tiles please.

How on earth is a iris scanner not useful? And without ever trying it that's your conclusion, that no one cares? And bashing live tiles, that probably makes the best home screen on a phone ever, that's hands down plain stupid.

Your whole comment just tells me that you know nothing about how Microsoft does things. Office and Cortana on other OS's is only bad if you really don't know WHY they are available there. Switch to another OS if Windows Phone really hurts you that bad. NO ONE makes you stay on Windows Phone.

 

[mariusmuntean]

Basically you don't really know how they feel or how they look in real life. You just assume they lack premium feel by looking at leaks of renders.



How on earth is a iris scanner not useful? And without ever trying it that's your conclusion, that no one cares? And bashing live tiles, that probably makes the best home screen on a phone ever, that's hands down plain stupid.

Your whole comment just tells me that you know nothing about how Microsoft does things. Office and Cortana on other OS's is only bad if you really don't know WHY they are available there. Switch to another OS if Windows Phone really hurts you that bad. NO ONE makes you stay on Windows Phone.

Iris scanner is something new, yes, but not something to be considered as a wow factor. really...continuum as well, who on earth needs to connect his phone to a tv? ) when most business people also have a netbook or a tablet, so again, not a wow factor. What is then the wow factor at these two models? Design ))? be serious, the OS? not in a thousand years, apps? no way, even MS's own apps work and look better on the other platforms. specs?, I really do remember seeing many other phones with high specs also, which btw look much better. So, again where is the wow factor? I understand you are a big fan, but it would be much more constructive not to praise things that obviously will not gather more users from other platforms.

 

[Tafsern]

Iris scanner is something new, yes, but not something to be considered as a wow factor. really...continuum as well, who on earth needs to connect his phone to a tv?

You don't even know what you are talking about. Great job!

The rest in you comment is so useless it's not even worth commenting.

 

[Zachary Boddy]

Iris scanner is something new, yes, but not something to be considered as a wow factor. really...continuum as well, who on earth needs to connect his phone to a tv? ) when most business people also have a netbook or a tablet, so again, not a wow factor. What is then the wow factor at these two models? Design ))? be serious, the OS? not in a thousand years, apps? no way, even MS's own apps work and look better on the other platforms. specs?, I really do remember seeing many other phones with high specs also, which btw look much better. So, again where is the wow factor? I understand you are a big fan, but it would be much more constructive not to praise things that obviously will not gather more users from other platforms.

You ask for constructive criticism but you don't really practice it yourself. What's the wow factor of the iPhone? Oh it's just an iPhone. Yeah it looks nice and runs nice but it doesn't have anything out of this world. In fact it's specs are paltry compared to the 950 XL. The Galaxy series? Yes, new fancy design but they don't feel great in hand and they're still running TouchWiz, and neither one of those series have microSD card support of removable batteries. Neither one have Continuum. Neither one have iris scanners (although the 950 XL doesn't have a fingerprint scanner) and all three phones have comparable performance.
And the operating system? Windows Phone is beautiful and slick and feels great to use. Yes, lack of apps, but I have everything I need so I'm happy. I use Android as well and I've customized the ever-living farts out of it and it's great but I still use my Lumia 830 before all else.

 

[MysticForce]

For me design is perfect.
I want blue one.

 

[RayaanP]

I want blue one.

I think you will be disappointed. Blue is prototype only. They may come up with diffferentskins though.