My experience of my phone for my vacation

hardywang

New member
May 15, 2012
173
0
0
Visit site
I just came back from my travelling in Cuba and I used my Lumia 950XL all around to help me with my trip. Now I want to say something about my experience. I used phone primarily for following interests:

Taking photos
I used much more phone camera comparing with my preview phone, the image quality is superior in general. But I did encounter some other glitches.
  • Camera button won?t unlock the screen. This actually started to happen a bit while before my vacation. After I pressed the camera button I had to double tap the screen to use the camera app. I am on insider preview slow ring, not sure one of the upgrade screwed something. To me the camera button is a killer feature, but now it is half useless. It still has the issue as of today.
  • There are many times after I took the first picture and the screen was still on, the phone wouldn?t able to focus or react to the shutter button until almost 1 minute later. It does not happen all the time but quite frequently.

Offline map
I downloaded offline map before my trip. The GPS could be locked fast, I can find myself on the map easily. But the map data source isn?t very helpful. My wife brought her iPad with maps.me offline map downloaded, it proved to be FAR MORE useful than Bing map. With the amount of details (restaurants, points of interest, banks, super markets and so on) it almost made Bing map useless other than GPS navigation. I visited online Bing map to check the places I visited in Cuba it is the same result, other than street name there is nothing more. Google online map is also better than Bing map.
BTW, there is a new neighbour not too far from my home, it is 2 years old but it does not show up in Bing map properly.

Tracking my activities by using GPS
About 1 year ago when I still used BLU Win HD (Windows mobile 8.1) I used Caledos Runner app while I was climbing Kilimanjaro. I still used the same app on my Lumia 950XL, but I still have exactly the same issue. I don?t know it is bug from the app or the phone. What I tried to do is to record the GPS coordinates of all the places I been to.
I usually turned on the app to start tracking in the morning until I completed the day. But the recording results showed too many missed spots (there could be hours between 2 locations on GPS file). I used to the app to record 1 entire day?s activities but the GPX file probably only contained less than 100 coordinates. I tried another app ?GPS Hiking Mate 10?, the result is similar. It leads me to think all these apps probably rely on the OS to get data, somehow the OS stopped GPS functions from time to time.
Back to my home when I have cell/data services these apps never fail me. But once I was out of my service area (air plane mode or not), the problem appeared.

Other observations
My phone usually is very stable at home, but on my trip it had unexpected restart almost every day. It looks like it happened more often after I used the camera app.
 

plasmid_uk

New member
Jul 18, 2013
39
0
0
Visit site
I have the same problem with my 950 with the camera not unlocking the screen and then becoming stuck. The camera button only seems to work when the glance screen is on, the problem is when the glance screen is off because the sensor is covered. I think turning off the glance screen completely is the best temporary fix here.

Maps - Data is from HERE maps, you'll find more data available in more popular cities. Microsoft have just collaborated with HERE, Tom Tom and someone else to improve map data globally but these changes take time.

Can't answer the rest I'm afraid.
 

EspHack

New member
Jun 11, 2013
1,279
0
0
Visit site
I have the same problem with my 950 with the camera not unlocking the screen and then becoming stuck. The camera button only seems to work when the glance screen is on, the problem is when the glance screen is off because the sensor is covered. I think turning off the glance screen completely is the best temporary fix here.

Maps - Data is from HERE maps, you'll find more data available in more popular cities. Microsoft have just collaborated with HERE, Tom Tom and someone else to improve map data globally but these changes take time.

Can't answer the rest I'm afraid.

both glance and the "hold camera button to launch from standby" actions can be disabled by blocking the proximity sensor, if your phone is still in the pocket it will not respond to the camera button, you can disable that, there's an option somewhere that states something like "prevent accidental button pressing" turn it off and it will work as you want, but your phone might wake up inside your pocket, that thing is tied to DTTW I think
 

Tejas Javery

New member
Mar 19, 2014
366
0
0
Visit site
Make sure that option in the camera settings that says "prevent accidentally camera launch"is ticked off. If it is on, then obviously you had that issue. Let me know if it was on or off. I have been where you are, so I know. It is a silly solution. Just check it and tell me. Camera button is flawless.
Originally posted by hardywang
I just came back from my travelling in Cuba and I used my Lumia 950XL all around to help me with my trip. Now I want to say something about my experience. I used phone primarily for following interests:

Taking photos
I used much more phone camera comparing with my preview phone, the image quality is superior in general. But I did encounter some other glitches.
* Camera button won?t unlock the screen. This actually started to happen a bit while before my vacation. After I pressed the camera button I had to double tap the screen to use the camera app. I am on insider preview slow ring, not sure one of the upgrade screwed something. To me the camera button is a killer feature, but now it is half useless. It still has the issue as of today.

* There are many times after I took the first picture and the screen was still on, the phone wouldn?t able to focus or react to the shutter button until almost 1 minute later. It does not happen all the time but quite frequently.


Offline map
I downloaded offline map before my trip. The GPS could be locked fast, I can find myself on the map easily. But the map data source isn?t very helpful. My wife brought her iPad with maps.me offline map downloaded, it proved to be FAR MORE useful than Bing map. With the amount of details (restaurants, points of interest, banks, super markets and so on) it almost made Bing map useless other than GPS navigation. I visited online Bing map to check the places I visited in Cuba it is the same result, other than street name there is nothing more. Google online map is also better than Bing map.
BTW, there is a new neighbour not too far from my home, it is 2 years old but it does not show up in Bing map properly.

Tracking my activities by using GPS
About 1 year ago when I still used BLU Win HD (Windows mobile 8.1) I used Caledos Runner app while I was climbing Kilimanjaro. I still used the same app on my Lumia 950XL, but I still have exactly the same issue. I don?t know it is bug from the app or the phone. What I tried to do is to record the GPS coordinates of all the places I been to.
I usually turned on the app to start tracking in the morning until I completed the day. But the recording results showed too many missed spots (there could be hours between 2 locations on GPS file). I used to the app to record 1 entire day?s activities but the GPX file probably only contained less than 100 coordinates. I tried another app ?GPS Hiking Mate 10?, the result is similar. It leads me to think all these apps probably rely on the OS to get data, somehow the OS stopped GPS functions from time to time.
Back to my home when I have cell/data services these apps never fail me. But once I was out of my service area (air plane mode or not), the problem appeared.

Other observations
My phone usually is very stable at home, but on my trip it had unexpected restart almost every day. It looks like it happened more often after I used the camera app.
 

Tejas Javery

New member
Mar 19, 2014
366
0
0
Visit site
No.
Read the comment above. You need to turn the "prevent accidental camera launch" option off. Else you will have this issue.
Originally posted by plasmid_uk
I have the same problem with my 950 with the camera not unlocking the screen and then becoming stuck. The camera button only seems to work when the glance screen is on, the problem is when the glance screen is off because the sensor is covered. I think turning off the glance screen completely is the best temporary fix here.

Maps - Data is from HERE maps, you'll find more data available in more popular cities. Microsoft have just collaborated with HERE, Tom Tom and someone else to improve map data globally but these changes take time.

Can't answer the rest I'm afraid.
 

plasmid_uk

New member
Jul 18, 2013
39
0
0
Visit site
No.
Read the comment above. You need to turn the "prevent accidental camera launch" option off. Else you will have this issue.

Ok, tried that and it works - HOWEVER...I found a new problem with launching the camera from the lock screen.

After blocking the proximity sensor so that Glance is "Off", and turning off "Prevent accidental camera launch", I pressed the camera button fully to launch the camera which works at first. Then I repeated this 10 times in a row and the camera launches with a black screen. All the camera functions are visible but there is no image displayed.

So, clearly still problems surrounding opening the camera from the get-go.
 

hardywang

New member
May 15, 2012
173
0
0
Visit site
Make sure that option in the camera settings that says "prevent accidentally camera launch"is ticked off. If it is on, then obviously you had that issue. Let me know if it was on or off. I have been where you are, so I know. It is a silly solution. Just check it and tell me. Camera button is flawless.

No, I had the "prevent accidentally camera launch" option on for all the time. It worked well until recently.
 

Tejas Javery

New member
Mar 19, 2014
366
0
0
Visit site
if you tick it off, then only it will work properly. the thing is when you keep that option on, and if your fingers cover the sensors on the phone, the phone thinks it is in the pocket, as no light enters the sensors. and hence at times, it doesn't work. so if you tick it off, it will work flawlessly, every single time.
No, I had the "prevent accidentally camera launch" option on for all the time. It worked well until recently.
 

Tejas Javery

New member
Mar 19, 2014
366
0
0
Visit site
I am glad it did work. but the issue that you talked about is not actually a big issue. I mean not if you look at it practically. I am not siding with Microsoft on this, but just saying that practically you wont need to open your camera 10 times in a row fast. one or two times is fine, ten times is a lot.
but if you had done all the attempts with more than 5 seconds gap within every attempt, and then saw this problem, then it is surely bad. I tried doing what you did and it worked flawlessly every single time on my phone. so perhaps it is a problem with only your phone.
also, I have observed that, interestingly, if I remove the lock from the lock screen, and then launch the camera app a few times in a row, it works better. if I have the lock on, there is a slight delay in loading of camera the fifth or sixth time.

Ok, tried that and it works - HOWEVER...I found a new problem with launching the camera from the lock screen.

After blocking the proximity sensor so that Glance is "Off", and turning off "Prevent accidental camera launch", I pressed the camera button fully to launch the camera which works at first. Then I repeated this 10 times in a row and the camera launches with a black screen. All the camera functions are visible but there is no image displayed.

So, clearly still problems surrounding opening the camera from the get-go.
 

hardywang

New member
May 15, 2012
173
0
0
Visit site
if you tick it off, then only it will work properly. the thing is when you keep that option on, and if your fingers cover the sensors on the phone, the phone thinks it is in the pocket, as no light enters the sensors. and hence at times, it doesn't work. so if you tick it off, it will work flawlessly, every single time.

I technically waited for couple of seconds for the glance screen on, and make sure nothing covers the proximity sensor but the camera button still cannot unlock the screen.

Isn't it a bug?
 

astondg

New member
Jan 7, 2013
409
0
0
Visit site
I technically waited for couple of seconds for the glance screen on, and make sure nothing covers the proximity sensor but the camera button still cannot unlock the screen.

Isn't it a bug?

I have a lot of instability with the camera on my 950 (running Release Preivew build). Sometimes the camera won't start (even when I'm careful about where I put fingers r.e. the proximity sensor), sometimes I'll get the black screen you describe, sometimes the phone will just restart.

The photos can be great but it's a frustrating experience.
 

Tejas Javery

New member
Mar 19, 2014
366
0
0
Visit site
I have never used insiders on Lumia 950xl, so perhaps, it works perfectly.

I have a lot of instability with the camera on my 950 (running Release Preivew build). Sometimes the camera won't start (even when I'm careful about where I put fingers r.e. the proximity sensor), sometimes I'll get the black screen you describe, sometimes the phone will just restart.

The photos can be great but it's a frustrating experience.
 

Members online

Forum statistics

Threads
322,915
Messages
2,242,889
Members
428,004
Latest member
hetb