[fatclue_98]

Yeah... It was that driving down major American highways and not having signal that killed T-Mo for me. That, and having to supply my own WiFi so I could make or receive calls in my house...

Call them up and tell them your service blows and you're thinking about switching to Verizon. They'll overnight a signal booster like they did with me and your problems go away.

[HoosierDaddy]

Yeah... It was that driving down major American highways and not having signal that killed T-Mo for me. That, and having to supply my own WiFi so I could make or receive calls in my house...

On my road trips, there were a lot of T-Mobile dead zones. A lot of my miles were on back roads but even on long stretches of the Interstate Highway system, I was sometimes off the air outside towns. But I don't know how much better other carriers were. It really didn't bother me since I wasn't interested in making calls and I don't much use the phone for anything else while driving except maybe navigation and I have complete North American maps on my phone so don't need any cell service. I suppose if I had an accident I might not like it so much. So I decided not to have any.

[TunedM52]

Yep. First thing I did was connect it to my PC and check for firmware updates via WDRT, which there was. So I'm certain that it's on the latest firmware.
Ran all the updates, updated to current production ring, which I intended to keep the device on.

That was when I made my original post. Since then, I updated to release preview, still the same, then slow ring, then fast ring, hard resetting the phone each time and not restoring from any backups. No changes at all. That took a long time, but to no avail whatsoever. I've since settled on the release preview ring.

Don't get me wrong, I love the phone very much, its just that the camera does not meet my standards. In settings with good lighting, the camera is great. But it is completely useless in low-light. That's my main complaint. Another member recommended the app ProShot and I got the HDR in-app purchase and that by far has made the biggest difference. The camera still suffers badly in low-light, but it's much quicker to take photos and it has so many more features than the stock camera app.

I've been spoiled by the all my previous Lumia phones and their amazing cameras. Really took those for granted!

Here is an example of a low light setting in which my 950 (and 930, and 925), and my old iPhone 5S have absolutely no problem capturing the image.

Idol 4S using ProShot w/auto HDR


Lumia 950 using stock camera app w/auto HDR

[RumoredNow]

Call them up and tell them your service blows and you're thinking about switching to Verizon. They'll overnight a signal booster like they did with me and your problems go away.

Oh, I haven't been on T-Mo since late 2014. Before they started handing out signal boosters if I remember correctly.

It really didn't bother me since I wasn't interested in making calls and I don't much use the phone for anything else while driving except maybe navigation...

My worry was I'd need to make a call for some type of emergency and wouldn't be able to.

[HoosierDaddy]

My worry was I'd need to make a call for some type of emergency and wouldn't be able to.

But the other side of that coin is women think you're the reincarnation of Meriwether Lewis (or "The Martian" for the historically challenged) when you tell them you drive without cell service.

[nate0]

Bought mine unlocked from Microsoft online last week. Then last week of course Amazon beat their price. Good news is I paid with PayPal through Microsoft so I took it directly to the store for a return and my refund processed immediately instead of the normal 3-5 business days. The 50 dollar cheaper unlocked one coming from Amazon should arrive Wed.

[Mmazeo]

Jumped on this deal yesterday. My beloved 1520 broke about 4 months ago, and since Square Trade has no WM inventory I've been using a Galaxy Note 3. Usual Android annoyances. So with the negativity surrounding the 950 series, I had to talk myself into a return to iOS. But then I saw something about this deal, looked into the phone, and happily, yet cautiously pulled the trigger last night. Very excited to return to WM, just hoping I'm not boarding the ship while everyone else is fastening their life vests.

[RumoredNow]

Very excited to return to WM, just hoping I'm not boarding the ship while everyone else is fastening their life vests.

Welcome back. Grab a bucket and start bailing!!!

Seriously I think you are going to like this phone a lot.

Worst case scenario, Windows 10 on ARM + Windows 10 Cloud kills W10M and your device won't leap to either of those two emerging alternates. It will still function for quite some time and I see no reason for it not to have the same lifespan it would enjoy if W10M were the wave of the future. We are at a point with OneCore and UWP Apps that even in a state of abandonware W10M has more sustainable viability than Windows Phone 7 through 8.1.

[RickInFla]

Out of curiosity, on your new carrier, can you still do WiFi Calling?
Back in the WP 8.1 days, WiFi Calling was a separate app on T-Mobile branded phones, since they were one of the first carriers to offer it, so they had to develop their own app. So if you wanted WiFi Calling on T-Mobile you HAD to buy a T-Mobile branded phone. (And of course the WP selection on T-Mobile has always been very poor; lately only one model at a time.) When WP 10 came out, I understand it has a built-in generic WiFi Calling app, which will NOT work on T-Mobile. Does this mean the T-Mobile IDOL 4s still has a separate WiFi Calling app that works on T-Mobile? If so, what happened when you took your T-Mobile branded IDOL 4s to another carrier? Do you have both a T-Mobile WiFi Calling app and the built-in generic WiFi Calling, and so you now use the generic WP 10 WiFi Calling app on your new carrier?
(Sorry for any confusion; I have never really seen WP 10 yet for myself, but I wanted to buy a Lumia 650 last year, and the only option was an unlocked one, but I was told that even though WP 10 has a built-in generic WiFi Calling app, it would NOT work on T-Mobile... and so I couldn't buy it, because I need WiFi Calling, and I'm on T-Mobile.)

[RickInFla]

Gee, I guess I'll have to jump in soon now also, since the IDOL 4s is the only WP offered by T-Mobile right now (and I need to buy a T-Mobile branded phone because I am on T-Mobile now, and I need to continue to have access to WiFi Calling). I was hoping T-Mo was going to offer the Lumia 650, but they never did.
I'm not sure I can afford to wait for the "next" T-Mo branded Windows Phone, as it may be a Surface Phone later this year, and that is expected to be a very high-end device, and so well outside my budget!
I would hate to wait and then see this $288 price disappear, and have it go back up to $350 or more!

[nate0]

Been on AT&T for over a year and have used over 5 different Windows phones from WP8 to W10M. Wifi calling has never provisioned worked or even been available on all of them while using AT&T. But that is just AT&T for ya.

[libra89]

Been on AT&T for over a year and have used over 5 different Windows phones from WP8 to W10M. Wifi calling has never provisioned worked or even been available on all of them while using AT&T. But that is just AT&T for ya.

T-Mo does the same, but for Windows Phones only that aren't their own.

[nate0]

T-Mo does the same, but for Windows Phones only that aren't their own.

Which is expected. I am still unsure why AT&T has yet to offer Wifi Calling for their own Windows phones. The Lumia 950 I used on AT&T had Enhanced LTE/HD Voice but no wifi calling.

[Sedp23]

Gee, I guess I'll have to jump in soon now also, since the IDOL 4s is the only WP offered by T-Mobile right now (and I need to buy a T-Mobile branded phone because I am on T-Mobile now, and I need to continue to have access to WiFi Calling). I was hoping T-Mo was going to offer the Lumia 650, but they never did.
I'm not sure I can afford to wait for the "next" T-Mo branded Windows Phone, as it may be a Surface Phone later this year, and that is expected to be a very high-end device, and so well outside my budget!
I would hate to wait and then see this $288 price disappear, and have it go back up to $350 or more!

Saw this over on reddit






Sent from Idol 4s

[HoosierDaddy]

Interesting. Some of us got smaller discounts over the phone. Maybe T-Mobile twitter people are more generous. Or maybe the $288 price isn't moving them fast enough.

[anon(50597)]

That's amazing, almost giving it away.
Of course we have no way to confirm its true.

Sent from mTalk on my SP4

[HoosierDaddy]

That's amazing, almost giving it away.
Of course we have no way to confirm its true.

It was on the internet so it must be true.

[anon(50597)]

It was on the internet so it must be true.

That's true. I forgot. 😄

Sent from mTalk on my SP4

[Mmazeo]

Anybody else constantly get duplicate texts?

[editguy]

Anybody else constantly get duplicate texts?

Not on this phone, but I've had it happen on other phones. At this moment, I can't remember what the solution was.

[Sedp23]

Anybody else constantly get duplicate texts?

No could be your sim card tho

Sent from Idol 4s

[fatclue_98]

Not on this phone, but I've had it happen on other phones. At this moment, I can't remember what the solution was.

From my experience it's a curious iOS-related problem. It seems iMessage doesn't play nice with other platforms. I get multiple texts anytime someone with an iPhone messages me. It doesn't happen with anybody on Android and the only person I know with a Windows phone rarely texts me. He's too old school and refuses to text unless he has to send a picture.

[eddieDOTexe]

Did anyone catch today sale? I was at the bar with my bud talking about this phone and we went on Tmobiles website and I swore we saw it for DIRT CHEAP AT around $140 or so with $6 monthly payment. And now its back up to $288.
But then again, I was at a bar..

[nate0]

Did anyone catch today sale? I was at the bar with my bud talking about this phone and we went on Tmobiles website and I swore we saw it for DIRT CHEAP AT around $140 or so with $6 monthly payment. And now its back up to $288.
But then again, I was at a bar..

You mean the one posted with bold flashing letters stating **eddieDOTexe flash sale special**...?

No, I did not see that. Joking aside, no I have not been on the internet much at all today...but given the track record it could have been T-Mobile prematurely setting up the ad.

[mryan55]

This is a good deal for anyone on T-Mobile looking for a new device. I have been using the BlackBerry DTEK60 -- based on the same reference design -- and the build quality and design is great, especially at a sub-$300 price point. Also, this is a good way to guarantee WiFi calling and Extended Range LTE (Band 12) service that the unlocked devices don't get on T-Mobile. I have 2 T-Mobile stores within a 5 minute walk of my place and haven't seen the device in stock at either, so guessing it's an online-only deal for now!