Is lumia 640 a good phone to start with?

[downup]

Hello

I started with a Lumia 920, then a lumia 1020 and now a lumia 1520. "Changed" because i wanted first a better camera and then a better screen

Anyways my friend is a Android user but he always goes for the cheap ones like Samsung Galaxy versions for ~100$

This is his third phone and they are sooo slow after some month of using. And the battery gets worse and worse for everyday. So i asked him if he wanted to try a Lumia Phone next time and he asked for apps like skype, kik and facebook. He don't want to spend a lot of money on it and i know that a Windows Phone 8.1 phone like 520 runs as smooth as mine 1520 so i thought a Lumia 640 might be a mid-range phone.

It cost 166$ here in sweden. Not the XL version.

Is't a good starter?

 

[Laura Knotek]

How important is kik to him? http://www.windowscentral.com/kik-messenger-windows-phone-8-update-will-it-ever-happen

Sent from my Moto X using Tapatalk

 

[downup]

How important is kik to him? http://www.windowscentral.com/kik-messenger-windows-phone-8-update-will-it-ever-happen

Sent from my Moto X using Tapatalk

Is kik broken/ not supported? Might be viber or whatsapp that he use. Do they work fine

Will check tomorrow

 

[Laura Knotek]

Is kik broken/ not supported? Might be viber or whatsapp that he use. Do they work fine

Will check tomorrow

WhatsApp works. I've never used Viber, so I cannot say how well it works.

 

[anon(6078578)]

The Lumia 640 would be a great Windows Phone to start with. Just make sure he is willing to try out Windows Phone on its own merits not because you want him to be a Windows Phone user. There is a distinction The reason I say this, is that if he is fairly embedded in the Android App ecosystem, you may quickly end up with a frustrated friend if he suddenly find's he can't do what he could do before. You need to be honest and make him aware of what apps he might not have straight equivalents for etc.

 

[Manmikey]

Rgv521 makes good points.......I have just jumped over from Android and chose the lumia 640 as it represented the best value for the "latest" device, all the important things are here an HD screen, decent processor, NFC, Bluetooth 4, large battery and the latest version of windows phone operating system.

I'm finding using the windows system refreshing after 5 years of android, I am loving livetiles and battery life is staggering compared to the flagship android devices I've been used to, I have every thing turned on, NFC, bluetooth, location services and forget about it. On android I was for ever turning them on and off when needed to conserve battery.

where you should be careful tho is with apps, I've been surprised that all the apps I used before, bar 3 are available despite all the negative views of windows phone apps. The ones I couldn't find such as Nest Thermostat app have Web sites that do the job. Some ommission such as sky satellite stuff and office BBC news apps are frustrating tho but I'm already used to the alternatives.

I'm not a great user of social networks tho so your friend really needs to check out the Facebook, Instagram, etc apps to see if they meet his needs as they are often missing the latest features, if he is a big snap chat user then windows phone is not for him.

I see the lack of google services as a plus as I'm bored of the look and feel of google stuff just as I got fed up with apple ios when I left there for android.

Overall this device is remarkable value and gives you an opportunity to try out windows phone with out blowing the budget and with windows 10 round the corner there is a buzz around owning one at the moment t.

Posted via the Windows Central App for Android

 

[comicalmoodydan]

Is kik broken/ not supported? Might be viber or whatsapp that he use. Do they work fine

Will check tomorrow

I use kik on my Windows Phone, it works fine. It's just not been updated in a while but the app works fine.

 

[TwoBitWhackJob]

Switched my wife from an Android to the 640, and her biggest surprise so far has been how easy it is to get things done like uninstall an app. Instead of going in through the settings, etc, it is just "hold down your finger, then tap uninstall."

She's only semi-technical, and has figured it all out pretty easily. I think the switch from one of the other Mobile OS to Windows phone is much simpler than the other way around because of the WP intuitiveness - especially android.

As far as apps, I'm hopeful that the ease of porting from other OS to W10 will really help the ecosystem in the next few months.

 

[worldspy99]

Viber works fine on WindowsPhone.

 

[JamesDax]

Yes.

 

[Zachary Boddy]

The Microsoft Lumia 640 would be a great starter device. It's fantastic value, featuring an HD screen, a decent processor, a good sized battery, NFC, Bluetooth, a decent camera, the works.
However, if Kik is necessary to him I wouldn't suggest it. It hasn't been updated since 2012 and is very spotty on whether or not it'll work at all. Just make sure he understands the app situation and that every app he absolutely needs is here with us or at least has a good alternative.

 

[psudotechzealot]

absolutely.

 

[neodk]

Between the 635, 640, and 640 XL I would say the 640 is probably the right device amongst the three. I wish it had the camera of the XL, but then again I really like the 635's form factor. If I could have a marriage of the 635 and 640 XL and keep the same size...that would be an ideal device. After all, they are powered by the same processor sans the RAM allotment.

 

[Guytronic]

Is the lumia 640 a good phone to start with?

Of course it is.
Key thing about this model and it's availability after a long wait is the price.
Why wouldn't it be a great starter for a 100 dollar phone?

 

[downup]

. He bought the 640, and he loves it. First impression was wow.. Thumbs up another human going Windows phone! Even i was impressed about it. The screen lacked some view angle support. Hard to watch the screen from the sides. Other then that. Nice cheap phone

 

[anon(9435020)]

How well are Windows phones holding up after say 6 month use? Do they get dog slow like Android phones do?

 

[920Walker]

How well are Windows phones holding up after say 6 month use? Do they get dog slow like Android phones do?

I'm still using a Nokia 920 I bought in November 2012. It has never been slow and has never needed a force close app. I don't even think such a thing exists for WP. The Samsung Captiva I replaced with this phone was always slow and crashing. My only experience with Android and one that vowed me to never return.

 

[Charles Brown8]

How well are Windows phones holding up after say 6 month use? Do they get dog slow like Android phones do?

It's not a 640 but my icon is well over a year old and I never saw degradation of performance. Went on win10 preview this month and seems to run that acceptable for it being alpha.

 

[anon(6078578)]

I personally think they finally hit the sweet spot with this phone when you consider it's price. The Lumia 521 was a very good attempt when it came out but it had some issues, at least for me anyway, such as sunlight screen readability, battery life etc. The Lumia 640 seems like an inexpensive flagship in comparison. Sure it has an older chipset, but I'd rather that than a mediocre camera or poor display etc. but then again I am not a games player.