Best Windows phone as a Media player WiFi device?

sprtfan

New member
Oct 9, 2013
143
0
0
Visit site
Not sure if this is the right place or if I'm just over thinking it, but wanted to see what would be a good choice to get for a Windows phone to be used as a media player/camera/WiFi device? I'd get a Nokia 521 that has been on sale for $19 but I'm not in the right area to be able to get it. At $50 for a 521, a lot over other options start to look better for just a little more money. It will be used as camera, games, calendar, and media player for the most part. Would getting a 521 still be a good choice or should I try to find something with more ram since it will be used some for games? Would the HTC 8x or something from one of the newer makers like BLU be a better fit? I might be able to pick up a Nokia 928 used for $100. Would that be the obvious choice if still available? Thanks
 

RumoredNow

New member
Nov 12, 2012
18,134
0
0
Visit site
Since you state Camera as part of your desired use, you will probably want to get 8MP and flash out of a device. 1GB RAM would also help.

I assume you aren't going to activate the phone onto a network and also that latest and greatest software is not a priority...

How about one of these: Nokia Lumia 822 - Full phone specifications

worldspy99 has two of them, both mint, one black/one white, VZW but GSM unlocked, each with Incipio case - on sale in the Marketplace. Either one $95

Check 'em out - might fit the bill perfectly, especially as they take a microSD card.
http://forums.windowscentral.com/ma...-wts-unlocked-mint-nokia-lumia-822-black.html
http://forums.windowscentral.com/ma...8554-unlocked-mint-nokia-lumia-822-white.html
 

anon(123856)

New member
Feb 9, 2013
945
0
0
Visit site
Agreed on the 822. It's quick enough, got a decent camera and has SD card support. Plus wireless charging if you have the required backshell. Yes, I have an 822. :grin:
 

sprtfan

New member
Oct 9, 2013
143
0
0
Visit site
Thanks, I'll check those out. I picked up some extra wireless chargers when AT&T had them on clearance so that would be a plus. I might end up going with the Nokia 928 if I go the used route since the price will be about the same and it has wireless charging built in. I was hoping to get by cheaper and was trying to figure out a way to get the 521 from metropc for $19 but don't think that will work out. I also saw I can pick up a Huawei w1 pretty cheap from ebay also. The camera wouldn't be as good but would probably be good enough. Thanks for the help
 

worldspy99

New member
Nov 10, 2013
21,301
0
0
Visit site
Thanks, I'll check those out. I picked up some extra wireless chargers when AT&T had them on clearance so that would be a plus. I might end up going with the Nokia 928 if I go the used route since the price will be about the same and it has wireless charging built in. I was hoping to get by cheaper and was trying to figure out a way to get the 521 from metropc for $19 but don't think that will work out. I also saw I can pick up a Huawei w1 pretty cheap from ebay also. The camera wouldn't be as good but would probably be good enough. Thanks for the help

The black phone comes with a new wireless charging back, if you are interested. I might be able to find a SD card somewhere which I can their in as well if you are interested.
 

AnubhavSingh

New member
Sep 11, 2013
17
0
0
Visit site
According to me, Lumia720 is the best one. Has dolby, pure black screen, micro SD card, is not too big in size, camera is decent too. And its prices too must have gone low due to launch (or soon to) of 730/735.
 

anon(123856)

New member
Feb 9, 2013
945
0
0
Visit site
Thanks, I'll check those out. I picked up some extra wireless chargers when AT&T had them on clearance so that would be a plus. I might end up going with the Nokia 928 if I go the used route since the price will be about the same and it has wireless charging built in. I was hoping to get by cheaper and was trying to figure out a way to get the 521 from metropc for $19 but don't think that will work out. I also saw I can pick up a Huawei w1 pretty cheap from ebay also. The camera wouldn't be as good but would probably be good enough. Thanks for the help
I have a 520 that I picked up for $39.00 but I wouldn't recommend a 512 MB device after playing with the it. Get something a little bigger with 1 GB of ram. a 928 would certainly do the job.
 

sprtfan

New member
Oct 9, 2013
143
0
0
Visit site
Thanks for all the ideas and I'll think about the 822 since I think it would work well. Just to add more detail, it would be a gift for my 11 year old and she may need phone service in the future and I'd want to go with a prepaid option. Most of the cheap prepaid options I've seen for Verizon phones will not work with an LTE phone and the ones that do, are to expensive. I may look into getting something that will work with AT&T so I could use H2O or a similar MVNO. This could change if PagePlus or Selectel start letting LTE phones on their plans though I guess. I have a 2 months to figure it out and hopefully some more info will come out about LTE on PagePlus or Selectel by then.
 

sprtfan

New member
Oct 9, 2013
143
0
0
Visit site
I don't have a great grasp of what works and does not work. Since the Nokia 822 is GSM unlocked, does that mean it would work on H2O or any other AT&T MVNO? Would there be any draw backs using it vs a AT&T branded phone on a AT&T MVNO?
 

RumoredNow

New member
Nov 12, 2012
18,134
0
0
Visit site
I don't have a great grasp of what works and does not work. Since the Nokia 822 is GSM unlocked, does that mean it would work on H2O or any other AT&T MVNO? Would there be any draw backs using it vs a AT&T branded phone on a AT&T MVNO?

Yep, yep. Put in a SIM from any primary or mvno and use the GSM radios (they are plural).

I'd say yes to AT&T compatibility for EDGE/3G/H+...

T-Mo might be trickier due to their oddball 1700 MHz frequency which is missing from the radios on 822. A lot would depend on what area for T-Mo compatability. Too much for reliability; the device might be stuck on EDGE too often.

LTE is probably right out for either. 822 is only showing me 700 MHz Class 13 LTE radio and that lets out both AT&T or T-Mo whose 700 would both be the wrong Class... There's the drawback.

Page Plus cellular is an mvno of Vzw and is the only one I know who will activate VZW phones onto their service, some device restrictions might apply in terms of which they will activate.
 

sprtfan

New member
Oct 9, 2013
143
0
0
Visit site
Yep, yep. Put in a SIM from any primary or mvno and use the GSM radios (they are plural).

I'd say yes to AT&T compatibility for EDGE/3G/H+...

T-Mo might be trickier due to their oddball 1700 MHz frequency which is missing from the radios on 822. A lot would depend on what area for T-Mo compatability. Too much for reliability; the device might be stuck on EDGE too often.

LTE is probably right out for either. 822 is only showing me 700 MHz Class 13 LTE radio and that lets out both AT&T or T-Mo whose 700 would both be the wrong Class... There's the drawback.

Page Plus cellular is an mvno of Vzw and is the only one I know who will activate VZW phones onto their service, some device restrictions might apply in terms of which they will activate.

I wouldn't care about high speed data since I'd probably pick a plan with very little data anyway. So it sound like the phone would be able to work with AT&T fine as long as the provider was willing to activate it on their system? I'll check with some of the potential AT&T MVNO that I might use and see if they will activate it. Thanks
 

ams963

New member
Jan 25, 2014
219
0
0
Visit site
Blu Win JR is a good phone to use as as a media player/camera/WiFi device. It's cheap and has nice set of features. I would recommend Lumia 630 is you want a little pricier one.
 

ams963

New member
Jan 25, 2014
219
0
0
Visit site
​Actually, Blu does look pretty good for a budget phone...

BLU Win JR vs. BLU Win HD - GSMArena.com
The Blu Win HD is simply gorgeous. But it's more pricier than the JR. It costs $179 and Blu Win JR is $89. The HD is similar to Lumia 630 in price. It's better than 630 except for processor chipset. It has Snapdragon 200. It excels 630 in everything else. It has 1GB ram, flash, 2MP ffc, etc.

I'm not sure of the durability and build quality of the Blu Win phones. But price and feature wise I definitely recommend them.
 

berty6294

New member
Oct 5, 2012
3,336
1
0
Visit site
I bought my brother a Lumia 520 as a media player. He absolutely loves it and ended up purchasing an Xbox Music subscription.
 

djslofstra

New member
Mar 26, 2014
103
0
0
Visit site
Since you want to use it as a camera, I would really pick a phone from the 92x range. They all have a 8.7MP Pureview camera, 2 LED flashes, Optical Image stabilization (OIS) and a bunch of Carl Zeiss lenses. The camera is really a hell lot better than the one from the 820/822, it has a HD display and it is rather fast.
Ow and it has 2 microphones for improved call quality and improved video audio in areas with a lot of different sounds.

If the camera isn't really a big deal, the 520 should do fine. ;)
 

Members online

Forum statistics

Threads
322,902
Messages
2,242,867
Members
428,004
Latest member
hetb