Questions about WP8 (thinking about coming from Android)

[MarcMaiden]

Hi all,

My girlfriend and I are long time Android users...well I am (I actually used to own an HTC Surround for a while)

First off, why am I thinking about switching? Well, I have been kind of bored with Android, I think Verizon is most to blame, I could get the Droid DNA (I like the design and hardware) but it's full of bloat, and sense is dated. I have been ROMing since the OG Droid and frankly, I'm tired of it. My girlfriend wants to come to WP8 because she likes the simplified experience - though she might be a bit more oblivious to what she might miss out on which is why I am here.

I am on Verizon (so naturally the 8x is my choice) and she is on AT&T (I want her to go Lumia 920 but I think she is leaning to the 8x)

I already know that the core app experience (mail, calendar, texting, browsing, performance) is great - That, I have no problems with.

I guess you can call this an "App" thread - but I need to ask these questions to make sure I am making the right choices.

Let's assume I get the HTC 8x (which seems to be lacking some of the important features the Lumia has)

What do I do for turn by turn navigation? (App choices)

How has your experience been with WP8? Did you switch from Android?

How is the battery life in general?

How is the Microsoft Wallet experience?

Do you experience reboots/crashes/freezes?

Is there anything you miss from Android that there is no equivalent for?

Thanks for your help,
This is more for my Girlfriend than myself - I think I'd be happy with Windows phone 8 considering that I own a Surface, W8 desktop, and Xbox 360 - converting wont be too difficult, but my girlfriend is a bit different, she is still looking for her ecosystem - and I rather have her stay with Google than go back to Apple.

 

[tekhna]

I still use my GS3 80% of the time. If you're tied into the Google ecosystem, don't bother. And if there are apps you or your girlfriend need that aren't on WP, don't bother. Who knows how long it'll be 'til they arrive. I wish I could recommend WP, but given the dismal couple months since launch, I simply can't.

 

[TK2011]

tekhna, looking at your post history, you seem to spend an awful lot of time here for someone who has very negative opinion of WP8.

 

[Aleksandr Gurmeza]

I have a lumia 810 for TMO, and its great. all my family has android, and im happy i dont. wp8 is so simple unlike the clutter that android has. i suggest you go with the lumia instead, it has many excusive apps that other wp8 dont have. like nokia music, which you can listen to music without ANY ads. nokia maps which is probably the best navigation for a phone. i personally never had an android, i had a nokia c6-01 before a symbian phone. i also never had any freezing or reboots. i havent used wallet yet,(im broke haha) battery life IS FASNTASTIC, i could go a day from 7am to 11pm with like 25% left on mod-heavy usage. like games, internet, texting emailing, fb, radio. there is gMAPS in the app store if you like google maps the best. anyways i hope you do get a wp8 as it is a fantastic phone. im in love with mine. remember that wp8 doesnt have all the apps that are on ios and adroid YET(i think) XD

 

[freestaterocker]

tekhna, looking at your post history, you seem to spend an awful lot of time here for someone who has very negative opinion of WP8.

Agree wholeheartedly. I've been reading posts like this from tekhna for over a year. It's getting really old...

 

[sharpinator]

Completely agree with tekhna. The google ecosystem is hard to break. I've been an android user for over 2 years and I'm on my 3rd Android phone (HTC One S) I've always owned HTC devices. My one s needs to be repaired at the moment so it's broken but I do own an 8x and I must say as an android enthusiast the operating system is great but it's just not there yet and may not ever be for me. Personally I would stick with android if I were you. The 8x is a fantastic looking phone and if you use your phone like a blackberry, get the 8x I mean as a phone it's pretty good but if you actually use it for more than that I would stick with android.

Apps
As far as apps go I think this is one of the biggest downfalls of windows phone 8. Apps are just too simple for example the twitter app doesn't show you if you have new followers or whether someone has retweeted or favourited your tweet. Now this might not mean a lot to some people but it's basic bloody functionality! That's like not being able to like a status on facebook. The facebook app is also very simple and when viewing photos it can be very laggy. Pinch to zoom is NOT smooth on the facebook app. You wanted to know about navigation on 8x and If I'm honest there aren't any decent turn by turn navigation apps for it yet and that sucks, so what if nokia phones have nokia drive. There shouldn't be that kind of exclusivity for something that is standard in all android phones (Google maps navigation) You can't beat google maps navigation. It is simply the best navigation app by far. the youtube app cannot be beaten on android. The gmail app can not be beaten on android, there are alternatives to these apps on wp8 but they aren't the real deal and you can feel that all the time you are using these substitute apps.

OS
The OS is smooth and fast and it looks very nice, the facebook integration with the os is fantastic and your contacts can be linked up effortlessly, android doesn't come close to this. Lag doesn't seem to be an issue in windows phone although it isn't 100 percent perfect as others say. There can still be the occasional lag especially in the built in music app which is rubbish in my opinion.

To conclude I think if you are tied up in the google ecosystem and you like customisation, stick with android. If you want something new then get a windows phone. I didn't buy my phone I got given it as a gift so therefore I can be completely honest with myself about how much I think it's worth and I certainly don't think a windows phone 8 devices are worth anywhere near the price they are selling for. In my own case I have noticed since I've had the 8x as my daily driver I've picked it up much less than my HTC One S (android) phone so that to me speaks volumes about what operating system I naturally prefer. Having no wallpaper gets really boring as well. I know some people will completely disagree with me as this is a windows phone forum and that's completely understandable. I'm just giving my own personal opinion oh and Battery life is extremely average at best. I'd say even If I barely use my 8x it drains within a day so if you are going down the 8x route you need to understand that battery life is pretty rubbish.

edit: I don't know why you guys are getting annoyed with the other guy just because he says he prefers his S3. I'd say his opinion is just as valid as everyone else's if not a little more valid than someone who has never had an android phone.

 

[Florin Anghel]

Well..I have an HTC 8X and I'm very pleased with it. The battery lasts 24h with mid to heavy usage but you have to disable some things that I'm pretty sure you'll do too.
Regarding apps well it depends how much you care for twitter cause wp8 its more fb oriented. I dont see the lagging in pinch too zoom on photos in fb and they look good too.
You have games/apps but it all depends if you want instagram instead of a normal editing photo app, and if u dont have it u cant live without it. Stuff like that.

 

[a5cent]

What do I do for turn by turn navigation? (App choices).

If TBT navigation is important, than go with a Lumia device. ND (Nokia Drive) is the defacto standard for navigation on WP which will become more important going forward. One weak spot ND has is information on businesses in the U.S... Google maps simply has much more of it, but ND will definitely get you to wherever you want to go.

Navigon is currently the only serious competitor ($50 for U.S. maps)

A Lumia 920 is really only a must if she is into photography and video.

If you aren't in a hurry, consider waiting for news from MWC. It isn't too far off at this point.

 

[tekhna]

tekhna, looking at your post history, you seem to spend an awful lot of time here for someone who has very negative opinion of WP8.

Shooting the messenger much?
I'm pretty platform-agnostic now after getting burned by WebOS. I refuse to be a ****** of any system; I've got my GS3, an iPhone 4, a Lumia 820 and a Palm Pre sitting here, and there are things that I love about each of them, but they've all got limitations and drawbacks. All I know is that it really sucked sitting around with my totally useless, but absolutely gorgeous Palm Pre running WebOS.
If we're suggesting someone buy a phone in the US, they're not just buying a phone, we're suggesting they buy into an ecosystem for 2 years. Maybe I've just gotten gun-shy after being burned by WebOS, but how can you in all honesty recommend an OS that lost market share during a holiday season after a major launch of a new version of WP by multiple OEM partners?
I'm not at all hostile to Windows Phone, but buying into Windows Phone now is taking a real chance that you're left with the short end of the stick. If you're fine with that, then cool, you'll love Windows Phone and I hope you enjoy it and that it takes off. If not, wait 6 months and see. Then buy in if it seems like the situation is improving.

 

[freestaterocker]

edit: I don't know why you guys are getting annoyed with the other guy just because he says he prefers his S3. I'd say his opinion is just as valid as everyone else's if not a little more valid than someone who has never had an android phone.

You don't know why we're annoyed because you've been a member of this forum for not even 2 weeks. Tekhna is certainly entitled to his/her opinion, and even makes some valid points. I just question the point of being a forum member for a platform you don't like for over a year, if not to troll.

And FYI, I don't think there's a user here, ****** or not, who won't admit that Xbox Music on WP8 is broken. Especially compared to the smooth, consistently flawless experience that was enjoyed by users of Zune Music on WP7. Microsoft should've just put Xbox packaging on the Zune software. (phone AND PC) They screwed the pooch on that one.

Oh, and WELCOME TO WP!

 

[freestaterocker]

Shooting the messenger much?
I'm pretty platform-agnostic now after getting burned by WebOS. I refuse to be a ****** of any system; I've got my GS3, an iPhone 4, a Lumia 820 and a Palm Pre sitting here, and there are things that I love about each of them, but they've all got limitations and drawbacks. All I know is that it really sucked sitting around with my totally useless, but absolutely gorgeous Palm Pre running WebOS.
If we're suggesting someone buy a phone in the US, they're not just buying a phone, we're suggesting they buy into an ecosystem for 2 years. Maybe I've just gotten gun-shy after being burned by WebOS, but how can you in all honesty recommend an OS that lost market share during a holiday season after a major launch of a new version of WP by multiple OEM partners?
I'm not at all hostile to Windows Phone, but buying into Windows Phone now is taking a real chance that you're left with the short end of the stick. If you're fine with that, then cool, you'll love Windows Phone and I hope you enjoy it and that it takes off. If not, wait 6 months and see. Then buy in if it seems like the situation is improving.

Dude, Windows MOBILE is still lumped together. Numbers won't be accurate to trends until WM6.X dies off completely. Those numbers simply show that more Americans got rid of their old WM device than bought WP. And that smartphone adoption numbers grew faster than WP adoption.

 

[SteveISU]

If you can live with the core apps and a limited number of comparable apps seen in the play and App store, then your fine. I have both a Lumia 920 and a Note 2. Although I love WP OS the overall experience feels limited and I feel handcuffed. Notifications or lack there of is a big downfall.

With my Note 2 I don't feel I'm leaving anything at home, I can't say the same when I'm using my 920.

 

[halimaw96]

OP, seeing as you're tired of tinkering with Android then WP8 is a solid replacement. No reboot issues with mine,and so far the OS is mostly stable. However, the app situation is still a problem, no matter how much everyone says it isn't. If you have apps you can't live without, chance are they're not developed for WP8 yet or the developer is still trying to port it.

My experience with WP8 has been mixed. First off, pros:

1. Very fluid experience.
2. Live tiles are great, albeit kind of a white elephant (mentioned below)
3. Simple and beautiful interface, once you get used to it.
4. No serious issues like random resets or reboots.
5. Great exclusive apps from Nokia (Nokia Music and Nokia Drive are awesome, should be fine for turn by turn nav.)

And now for the cons:
1. Battery life on my L920 is below average. At most, I can squeeze about 15-17 hours. Add some gaming in there and this usually drops down to 12. I can definitely last a day, but I have to be careful with my usage, which I hate. Partly due to bad coding, some apps don't close and cause my phone to overheat and whatnot. Have not seen a fix for that yet.
2. Live tiles. Big battery killers, i only ever have 3 activated to save my battery.
3. It's almost too simple. Not much customizing to be had here besides those tiles. This is purely subjective, can be good or bad for you.
4. The small issues that can be easily fixed (metadata issues w/ music, no screen orientation lock, etc.)

Overall, I'd recommend it as long as you want something simple that works with no hassle. I hope you enjoy WP8!

Oh and things that I miss from Android? I've never had one but after playing with a friend's N4, I wish they would make a Feedly and Flipboard app. Loving all the customization you can do as well.

 

[TK2011]

Just get a Lumia 920 and live with it for couple weeks. You can return it if you don't like it. There are pros and cons. Which is more important is up to you. FWIW, user satisfaction rating has been consistently higher for WP than Android. Android has caught up quite a bit lately but more people still prefer WP over Android when they experience both. Individual experiences will vary.

Just try it out is my best advice.

 

[MarcMaiden]

First of all,

Thanks for taking the time to respond to my questions.

My girlfriend and I went to check out the phones again - Man the windows phones are smooth.

Here is my issue:
I am on Verizon (and stuck on it for work) there is no Lumia (except the hideous 822) - the Navigon app is really $50? That's really disappointing, that might have been my saving grace here. My girlfriend didn't like the Lumia 920 no matter how much I tried convincing here - The 8X definitely feels better in the hands for her (smaller form factor )

 

[a5cent]

My totally unhelpful comment:
The U.S. system, where devices are tied to carriers, is really screwing you over.

My more helpful comment:
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...

 

[msdugn]

...I am on Verizon (and stuck on it for work) there is no Lumia (except the hideous 822) - the Navigon app is really $50? That's really disappointing, that might have been my saving grace here. My girlfriend didn't like the Lumia 920 no matter how much I tried convincing here - The 8X definitely feels better in the hands for her (smaller form factor )

Navigon reviews aren't that great. So, while it's one of the very few options of real turn-by-turn directions, I'd check out the reviews before I plopped down $50 for it. If you can tolerate turn-by-turn navigation without spoken prompts, GMaps Pro works for me. It gives me Google Latitude for sharing my location and pretty decent turn-by-turn directions - which include the all important biking trails Google has but WP8 doesn't (but GMaps Pro brings them back!).

The 8X is much easier to fit in a pocket or purse. And except for the better low-light camera on the Lumia 920, I'm convinced the 8X and 920 are nearly identical in features - both are great phones.

As for your previous questions, my take on them:
>> What do I do for turn by turn navigation? Bing Maps or GMaps Pro - but neither are the complete turn-by-turn solution you're probably used to from the Google world

>> How has your experience been with WP8? Did you switch from Android? Switched both my wife and myeslf from Droids. Liked them. But I love the WP8 phones much more. The WP8 phones are faster, sleeker and have an interface that gets people to stop and stare. There was an adjustment from Droid (Know what you want to do, click the right app, pick the person or object you want that app to act on, then do it) vs. WP8 (Click the object you want to act on, Do it). BUt once we realized this change in thinking, we actually started using our WP8's FASTER than our Droids.

>> How is the battery life in general? Not as good.

>> How is the Microsoft Wallet experience? Useless. Too few apps use it. It's an idea that's not being used to its fullest yet.

>> Do you experience reboots/crashes/freezes? None. And even when we choose to shut down and restart the WP8 phone, there's no annoying "DROID!" sound at boot time (huge win for me!)

>> Is there anything you miss from Android that there is no equivalent for? Yes - turn-by-turn directions and the Wi-Fi Analyzer app that allowed me to scan wireless networks and pick better channels for my own network. Other than that, not much at all. In fact, I like the 500px, CNN, 627.am and built in apps much better than the matching Droid apps.

 

[a5cent]

I agree with all of msdugn's points. I also prefer the 8x's form factor to the Lumia's. However, as I travel a lot, a good TBT nav app was more important to me. Currently nothing beats Nokia Drive on WP. If that isn't as important to you then go with the 8x... or... hint hint... wait for MWC.

 

[sharpinator]

You're blind then. It's not smooth so therefore it's laggy. If you use the built in people app for facebook then you'll see that pinch to zoom on photos is smooth as butter but the official facebook app for windows phone has laggy pinch to zoom.

 

[anon(5335899)]

Have a look at this

Also IMO if the 8X is an option I would lean towards the Lumia 820 more, or as indicated wait for MWC where some great new devices are expected.