New to Windows Phone

[guitarman715]

First off, I am new to this forum. My name is Chad and I am a Systems Administrator. I have been in IT for about 10 years. I work mainly on Windows platforms.

So with this being said, of course I took the plunge to try out the new Windows 10 OS on my work laptop. I have been using it for a few months now and I think it is the best OS Microsoft has come out with thus far. This led me into interest with the Windows Phone 10. After research I decided to pull the trigger on a Nokia Icon and sell my LG G3 with android

When it comes in (today!), should I go ahead and load the tech preview on, or should I use Windows 8 phone for a few weeks before upgrading? I understand there will be bugs and such, and me being a techie I can either deal with it or find work arounds, but if you guys suggest that I stay on 8 to get used to the new OS first then I may just do that.

Thanks!

 

[anon(7901790)]

Welcome to the Darkside!

Based on the reviews in the http://forums.windowscentral.com/nokia-lumia-icon/358896-windows-10-lumia-icon.html#post3162894 forum, I'm holding off for at least another build or two.

Windows 10 Mobile is getting there. Since it isn't due to be released until sometime this fall, it's not quite ready yet. Although it seems to have come a long way in the last couple builds.

You'll find that WP8.1/Denim is a really good OS/firmware combo.

Of course, you being an IT guy, moving to Windows 10 Mobile might be right up your alley. Your feed back on it would be greatly appreciated by everybody.

 

[mary beth hale]

Hi and welcome, Chad! I have the 930(international version of the Icon). Fabulous phone! I am running the 10 preview on my 930 without issue and loving it. Be sure to check the Icon threads for anything specific to you. As long as you are comfortable using the Windows Phone or Lumia recovery tools to roll back to 8.1, don't see any reason not to give the 10 preview a try. See you around.

 

[guitarman715]

Thanks for the input! It is sounding like it wouldn't be a bad idea to go ahead and jump into Windows 10 right away! Of course that is what my techie heart desires! LOL but what my tech heart desires is not always smartest decision, like when I ran windows 10 way to early on my work PC and it was more of a pain to work with than there were new features.


gernerttl,
I will provide feedback on the forum from my switch to android to windows, as well as windows 10 as a whole whenever I do load it on there.

mary,
That sounds very promising! I look forward to getting the Icon, the reviews I have read on it are great. Also, I am comfratable with having to reload an OS on my phone, that is no biggie. I have loaded custom ROMs on my android devices before which requires a lot more tinkering to get it to work, so that part doesn't bother me at all.

 

[mary beth hale]

I've custom rom'd as well and using the recovery tool is a breeze compared to that. Really hope you enjoy using your Icon. That's what's important.

 

[Rich215]

Welcome guitarman !

I would recommend you setup with current Denim 8.1 and use that for at least 1 week. Get and idea about where windows mobile is now as a solid OS on the phone, then upgrade to Win10 alpha/beta 10166 and beyond after that. It's no big deal to go back to 8.1, but you might not want to if the current 10 build is acceptable.

I say this only because it will be your only phone....? I have 2 icons and have the luxury of having both ready when wanted/needed. I rely on my phone for business and at times get only minor frustrations with the current build of 10166 Win 10. It is definitely workable as a daily driver, you just have to be able to get by without worrying about glitches or some things always not working when you need.....mainly like notifications and some apps not working. Sometimes things work and sometimes they dont.....and it's why i feel this 10166 is not a beta yet.

But having your abilities and mental acceptances of "work-a-rounds".....I would think you wont have any problems using Win10 as your main phone for basic phone uses.

 

[guitarman715]

So it came in, and I went ahead and loaded Windows 10. So far I'm impressed! For the Nokia, so far I am most impressed with the display and camera. Even though the pixel count is not as high as my G3, the screen blows it away. The Nokia is so much more rich and bright, it makes the G3s screen looked washed out.

For Windows 10, I like how fluid everything is compared to Android. Not really sure why I havn't switched before now, being I like Windows so much. I am still in the process of setting everything up and using Windows phone so I do not have a lot of input quite yet.

 

[Chris Mooney]

just cross your fingers that devs come through with porting over apps. I LOVE my windows phone but really want the OS to be seen as an equal to the big 2....and that means apps. Jumping to windows 10 was probably a good idea because you won't get use to 8.1 design....it's a little different in 10. Please up date with your impressions coming from Android...I'm always curious how people like the Windows OS

 

[guitarman715]

So after having Windows 10 mobile for a few months now, I decided now would be a good time to provide an update.

The big disappointing news for me is, the new Lumia phones will only be on AT&T. This is absolutely a deal breaker for me because AT&T sucks in my area, and I am still under contract with Verizon until late 2016, and besides all that, I really like my Verizon coverage. I really like phablet style phones, and while the Icon has been fine for size, I do prefer bigger, and it does not appear I will be getting that anytime soon on Verizon.

With all this being said, I will likely be switching back to Android. I think Microsoft is really killing the Windows platform with limiting to only AT&T and GSM phones. I also think the lack of a x86 or x64 Windows phone is really hurting. If they would make a phone like that, offer it at numerous carriers, people would be beating the doors down for Windows phones! The whole contiuum thing is cool, but I do not see it being as popular as they want it to be if x86 and x64 are not offered. Being able to use your phone on a bigger screen really isn't all that big of a deal, but being able to use your phone like a full blown computer is a big deal, and maybe it is coming in the future. If so, I will diffidently switch back to the Windows Platform (if offered through Verizon).

Now, for my thoughts on Windows 10 mobile, I think it is a great start for a mobile OS. I know it is still under development, but I do see so many problems that I am not confident they all will fixed before release. Here are some of the problems that I have -

-Facebook App is terrible, it does not update properly, will show me stuff from days ago, won't upload my pictures properly, the list goes on
-Edge browser constantly gives me problems. I try to use it as a work around for the Facebook app, and sometimes it won't load comments, or it will crash. Edge also crashes on other websites, or doesn't load. Endless problems with Edge.
-Maps are not reliable, I have had several instances where I had to call my wife so she could give me directions from Google maps because the maps app was trying to take me over an hour out of the way
-The camera will crash from time to time, and is not reliable. I have had to reboot my phone sometimes just to get the camera to work again.
-Photos app will crash
-Sometimes I do not receive notifications when I get new text messages
-The messaging app will crash randomly
-Other small annoying issues, wont spend all day on stuff that might likely be fixed before release
-Last but not least, lack of apps, but that should improve

I know alot of this has to do with a beta build, but with the above combined with what I mentioned about the carrier selections for upcoming phones, the negatives have piled on too high for me. In my personal opinion, Android is not as fluent and user friendly of an OS, but it does all of the things above reliably. I hope I do not discourage anyone from going with Windows phone, if you are on AT&T, then I say if you like what you see give it a shot. Microsoft has a lot of potential with the OS, especially if x86 and x64 versions are offered in the future.

 

[shawnmos]

Most (or all) of those issues should be fixed by the final release. I have none of those issues on 8.1.

As for the new phones only being on AT&T, I think that was just a rumor. At the very least you should be able to buy an unlocked model from the microsoft store. It may be GSM only though but it's possible they will release a CDMA version. Time will tell.