iPhone alternative

[MRU]

I am working on a tiny screen and eyesight is bad after 30+ years of working on computers.

More reason to go for the Lumia 1520 then

 

[Adamsappel]

Actually for everything you listed the Nokia 1520 is actually best of a bunch despite you saying you don't need a phablet.

It has the best screen for sunlight readability and I have had practically every flagship phone of last year.

Full office productivity and importantly - the bigger screen HELPs with office productivity.

Has 32gb storage with a micro SD for more.

Battery life is great

Call quality and signal reception is better than all Android handsets I've owned.

Has full local sync with PC & Mac

And as for camera - it's simply one of the best on the market in a smartphone.


So yes it's bigger than a normal phone, but seriously after a couple weeks of using it - you adapt and don't think of it as being bigger. It is amazing how quickly you adapt to a bigger phone, and for everything else you actually need in a handset - the lumia 1520 hands down offers you 100% of what you listed as priorities.

Sure you can go to android, but often syncing solutions are shocking to macs, and it's just as much embedded in cloud infrastructure as Apple. Sure you can get office compatible solutions - but you don't get OFFICE. Sure you get a good camera - but the Nokia is likewise one of the best out there. As for durability, the polycarbonate shell off the Lumia 1520 feels more rugged and durable than S4, Note 3, LG G2, HTC One.

So you are going to have to compromise on something, if your priorities are based on importance and Office comparability and easy sync with computers including macs, then maybe a compromise on screen size is better than trading off on any of the other things such as sunlight readability, camera, syncability (seriously android manufactuers software on macs suck balls).


I honestly would go for the Lumia 1520, it's not as big as it seems - you adapt far quicker than you expect, and you never know it may save you from having to buy a tablet....


Or simply wait for the Nokia 930 to be announced, it should share a lot of similaritys with the 1520 but be smaller.

Yes, thank you for this. I had a look at the Lumia's and also Blackberry and, in all fairness, even peeked at some Android phones. Lumia 1020 and 1520 seem to be good and I like them both. If they are half as good as my older ones were, this can only be good stuff.

Careful how you comment as "sucking balls" could be perceived as "indecent" by some.

Lumia 1520……how does that fit into a pocket?

----------

More reason to go for the Lumia 1520 then

Hahahaha so true! If my eyeglasses go missing, I need to find it so that I can search for it. I understand the black background on some Lumia's work well in bright light conditions. I live where we have some of the highest sunshine averages per day on the planet.

 

[Dr McKay]

You want a larger screen but the 6 inch in the 1520 is overkill? How about the 1020? That has MS office on it, being a windows phone.

 

[Adamsappel]

More reason to go for the Lumia 1520 then

I'd say take a look at Samsun's new S5 or the Note 3 if you want a larger phone.

Mike, I have "used" a few Samsungs in the store and liked the experience. My concerns are that my data may be at risk due to vulnerabilities and malware. I am not a keen apps user so I could be safe® Android has some 2,000 malwares lurking around and even approved apps in the past were bad - Google once had to remove well over four hundred thousand of them……


However, I have had excellent service from Nokia before so anything else has to be good. Blackberry's security is so tight that some countries have banned it; that is why I would give it a closer look as well.

----------

You want a larger screen but the 6 inch in the 1520 is overkill? How about the 1020? That has MS office on it, being a windows phone.

1020 has been a strong favourite and, the relative who gave me the iPhone, wanted to "force" me to use Apple. Teenagers in the house…… I even said beforehand that I wanted a 1020.


When we get new phones, it will also dictate whether we stay with Mac or migrate back to Windows. I like both but, for now, there is more freedom on Windows than Mac. And I love features such as FileHistory on Windows 8/8.1

----------

And you could then pair if off with Nokia's Windows tab, the 2520, I believe.

2520, you say? I am so into the Apple orchard right now that said Windows tablet went unnoticed. That is where I could then do more of the computing bit as well. I just need all on my phone for those periods where one doesn't have a computer around. My initial plan was iPhone + iPad + Macbook Pro 15" (and with a 27" display at my office.)

Thanks for the good suggestion.

 

[MRU]

Hahahaha so true! If my eyeglasses go missing, I need to find it so that I can search for it. I understand the black background on some Lumia's work well in bright light conditions. I live where we have some of the highest sunshine averages per day on the planet.

It's actually whatever coating and screen technology combined on the 1520 that gives it fantastic outdoor screen readability. There are videos of 1020 & 1520 compared outdoors and the 1520 has vastly superior readability despite both having similar black enclosures.

Compared to my Note 3 the 1520 is much clearer outdoors. Battery life is about the same between them.

 

[Adamsappel]

Compared to my Note 3 the 1520 is much clearer outdoors. Battery life is about the same between them.

Now that is something good to know! I will go have a look at the 1520's then and also the 2520 as a tablet, which means my next laptop don't have to be small for travel but rather a nice big 17" or 18" sitting on my desk mostly. Alienware has nice big ones that will help with mine eyesight. And it comes with a 3-year onsite hardware warranty as well.

----------

In fact, if you are adamantly against syncing via cloud solutions, I'd stay away from Android altogether as optimal syncing solutions are done via the cloud--syncing locally via software provided by device OEMs are pretty awful.

All that being said, and not knowing what's available to you in your country, I'd suggest a Nokia--maybe the 1020. You claim availability of apps doesn't matter, you need Office functionality, seem to prefer robust plastic builds, also seem to place some emphasis on camera quality, and have good history using Nokia's in the past--check mark in all those. I haven't used a WP in a while but I believe it offers local syncing with a computer.

And you could then pair if off with Nokia's Windows tab, the 2520, I believe.

1020+2520=sweet!!

Android sync, just out of curiosity, are the 3rd party apps also that bad? I know people are somewhat wary of KIES but I found some here: http://www.syncdroid.net

 

[tbayrgs]

1020+2520=sweet!!

Android sync, just out of curiosity, are the 3rd party apps also that bad? I know people are somewhat wary of KIES but I found some here: http://www.syncdroid.net

Something I didn't previously mention regarding the 2520--just be aware it's running Windows 8 RT, not full Window 8. Basically this just means that you won't be able to run any legacy Windows software, only what's available on the Windows Marketplace.

Regarding third party Android syncing solutions, I've never pursued syncing calendar, contacts, notes, etc locally with my computer, always used a cloud based mechanism for this data, so I cannot comment on their viability. I've used a handful to transfer music, video, and other files and they work great (Airdroid was probably my favorite).

 

[Adamsappel]

Something I didn't previously mention regarding the 2520--just be aware it's running Windows 8 RT, not full Window 8. Basically this just means that you won't be able to run any legacy Windows software, only what's available on the Windows Marketplace.

Regarding third party Android syncing solutions, I've never pursued syncing calendar, contacts, notes, etc locally with my computer, always used a cloud based mechanism for this data, so I cannot comment on their viability. I've used a handful to transfer music, video, and other files and they work great (Airdroid was probably my favorite).

I have never in my life touched RT. It seems that there are tablets running genuine Windows 8/8.1 so I will also research that a bit.

Where cloud is available, I also am used to using it. The biggest issue for me is that LTE/4G is not everywhere, then HSDPA and the lesser 3G also are evasive in my neck of the woods. To sync large amounts of data through GPRS/Edge is practically impossible. I am using large files which can also cost a fortune to send to and fro as data here is really unaffordable. In the past, when data transferred amounted to a few hundred KB or even a couple of MB's, we no deal with individual files bigger than 1GB.

 

[tbayrgs]

Well it looks like Apple must've heard all of your rants.

Next Version of iTunes Restores Local Contact and Calendar Syncing

 

[MRU]

Well it looks like Apple must've heard all of your rants.

Next Version of iTunes Restores Local Contact and Calendar Syncing

Solved and cheaper than buying a new phone