Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Windows Phone 8.1 Update Is Now Live! (Vid of Cortana vs Siri vs Google Now added)

tbayrgs said:
Seeing as your sig shows you own one, figured I'd ask for your opinion on the Lumia 1020. I used Windows Phone back in the 7-7.5 days and liked it quite a bit, was considering picking up a newer device to see what's changed. As it won't be my daily driver, I don't need top end spec'd hardware but figured I'd like to focus (no pun intended) on the feature I'd probably use the most--the camera. I can pick one up for about $250-275--wondered if you thought there's value to be had with that device at that price point. Also, any significant flaws/drawbacks that caught your attention.
Click to expand...

$250 for the 1020 is worth it in my opinion (I assume that is off-contract and unlocked price from someone?)
Anyway, the 1020 will fit the bill. Just remember that the specs are no longer top of the line. Only 1gb of ram and a slower CPU compared to the 1520 or 930, but that 41mp camera is really nice. You can zoom in to great detail on pics. Amazing zoom in of the photo. Only thing I don't like about Windows is that by default it won't let you email or share the raw image size. You have to use a 3rd party app to do that.
My wife has made the 1020 her primary phone, so she has it all the time now. That's why I'm having to pick up the 930 when it gets released.
 
Lloydbm41 said:
$250 for the 1020 is worth it in my opinion (I assume that is off-contract and unlocked price from someone?)
Anyway, the 1020 will fit the bill. Just remember that the specs are no longer top of the line. Only 1gb of ram and a slower CPU compared to the 1520 or 930, but that 41mp camera is really nice. You can zoom in to great detail on pics. Amazing zoom in of the photo. Only thing I don't like about Windows is that by default it won't let you email or share the raw image size. You have to use a 3rd party app to do that.
My wife has made the 1020 her primary phone, so she has it all the time now. That's why I'm having to pick up the 930 when it gets released.
Click to expand...
I've read that the 1020 camera is pretty slow to activate and snap multiple shots, is that your experience too? And would you rate the 1520 camera pretty much on par with the 1020 one for someone who doesn't need to do exteme zooming or cropping, i.e. is happy with a sharp photo displayed on say a 15" retina Macbook screen?
 
Lloydbm41 said:
$250 for the 1020 is worth it in my opinion (I assume that is off-contract and unlocked price from someone?)
Anyway, the 1020 will fit the bill. Just remember that the specs are no longer top of the line. Only 1gb of ram and a slower CPU compared to the 1520 or 930, but that 41mp camera is really nice. You can zoom in to great detail on pics. Amazing zoom in of the photo. Only thing I don't like about Windows is that by default it won't let you email or share the raw image size. You have to use a 3rd party app to do that.
My wife has made the 1020 her primary phone, so she has it all the time now. That's why I'm having to pick up the 930 when it gets released.
Click to expand...

The 1020 has 2gb of ram ;)
 
Lloydbm41 said:
$250 for the 1020 is worth it in my opinion (I assume that is off-contract and unlocked price from someone?)
Anyway, the 1020 will fit the bill. Just remember that the specs are no longer top of the line. Only 1gb of ram and a slower CPU compared to the 1520 or 930, but that 41mp camera is really nice. You can zoom in to great detail on pics. Amazing zoom in of the photo. Only thing I don't like about Windows is that by default it won't let you email or share the raw image size. You have to use a 3rd party app to do that.
My wife has made the 1020 her primary phone, so she has it all the time now. That's why I'm having to pick up the 930 when it gets released.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply.

Yes, it would be off-contract (though locked to AT&T--fine as they're my carrier). I'm not concerned about the older CPU as I won't be doing anything particularly taxing, though I do believe it has 2 GB of RAM (a couple of reviews I read and GSMArena both specify 2 GB).

Again, appreciate the feedback--think I'm going to pull the trigger. :D
 
Oohara said:
I've read that the 1020 camera is pretty slow to activate and snap multiple shots, is that your experience too? And would you rate the 1520 camera pretty much on par with the 1020 one for someone who doesn't need to do exteme zooming or cropping, i.e. is happy with a sharp photo displayed on say a 15" retina Macbook screen?
Click to expand...

Yeah the 1020 is slow enough to process image after you snapped an image, but to be honest in my own brief try of the device it wasn't that bad (around 2-3 seconds) and considering the 41mp image.

There is no burst mode on the 1520 either despite it's faster CPU.

If at the end of the day you predominately end up looking at the 5mp image for sharing the 1520 will likely capture similar photo to the 1020, but if your looking at the full res image and want to zoom in the 1020 still beats it...

Biggest issue with the 1520 is it's size... Despite being used to phablets it's still that bit too big.

I too am going to go down from the 1520 to the 930 when it arrives here, or indeed may end up waiting for the 1020's successor with a much faster processor and a 5" screen....
 
MacRumorUser said:
Yeah the 1020 is slow enough to process image after you snapped an image, but to be honest in my own brief try of the device it wasn't that bad (around 2-3 seconds) and considering the 41mp image.

There is no burst mode on the 1520 either despite it's faster CPU.

If at the end of the day you predominately end up looking at the 5mp image for sharing the 1520 will likely capture similar photo to the 1020, but if your looking at the full res image and want to zoom in the 1020 still beats it...

Biggest issue with the 1520 is it's size... Despite being used to phablets it's still that bit too big.

I too am going to go down from the 1520 to the 930 when it arrives here, or indeed may end up waiting for the 1020's successor with a much faster processor and a 5" screen....
Click to expand...
Hmm... then the 1020 probably isn't for me, as I get frustrated already with the snapping speed of the Note 2.

Also no burst mode on the 1520 is a surprise. Maybe coming in a future update?

I'm totally hooked on phablets for productivity now so I think at least I just have to give the 1520 a try :) Those corners are a bit counterproductive but maybe the screen real estate makes putting up with the un-pocketability worth it.

Another reason for having the maximum size screen is the size of that keyboard on WP....man, I so hope they release an update where it becomes possible to resize it. That lovely screen size gives such a great overview of Word documents etc, but then the keyboard eats about half the screen when you begin to edit.....on smaller phones it must leave really very little overview over the document with the keyboard up.
 
Oohara said:
Hmm... then the 1020 probably isn't for me, as I get frustrated already with the snapping speed of the Note 2.

Also no burst mode on the 1520 is a surprise. Maybe coming in a future update?
Click to expand...

No burst mode on the 1520? I used it today.
 

Attachments

  • wp_ss_20140417_0001.jpg
    wp_ss_20140417_0001.jpg
    107.5 KB · Views: 84
Lloydbm41 said:
No burst mode on the 1520? I used it today.
Click to expand...

Where is it? All I have is smart sequence? :(



Edit... Nevermind I see it now. It's in the standard Camera app. I've actually never used that app, there some nice options in there.

I have only used Nokia Pro app in mine.
 
Last edited:
I stopped at the Microsoft store when I was at the mall tonight and one of the employees had Windows 8.1 on their Icon and gave me the quick tour. It seems like a nice improvement, but I didn't get to play around with it or try Cortana myself since I don't think that said employee would really want a stranger poking around looking at things on their phone. I made the suggestion that they should put 8.1 on one of the display phones so people could play around with it. I think it would be a good idea.

I also read somewhere earlier that the 930 may not be coming to the US for a while. Isn't it ironic that today you're different if you chose Windows? Be a rebel and chose a Windows phone! Who woulda thunk it! :D
 
Windows Phone 8.1 looks way more versatile and powerful than previous iterations.

I like it.
 
AppleScruff1 said:
I stopped at the Microsoft store when I was at the mall tonight and one of the employees had Windows 8.1 on their Icon and gave me the quick tour. It seems like a nice improvement, but I didn't get to play around with it or try Cortana myself since I don't think that said employee would really want a stranger poking around looking at things on their phone. I made the suggestion that they should put 8.1 on one of the display phones so people could play around with it. I think it would be a good idea.

I also read somewhere earlier that the 930 may not be coming to the US for a while. Isn't it ironic that today you're different if you chose Windows? Be a rebel and chose a Windows phone! Who woulda thunk it! :D
Click to expand...

I don't think they are allowed to put 8.1 on their floor models, since it hasn't been officially released to the public yet. But at least one of the guys working there had it installed and you could see it first hand.
And I hope you aren't right about the 930 not coming to the U.S. anytime soon. That would suck. :(
 
Lloydbm41 said:
I don't think they are allowed to put 8.1 on their floor models, since it hasn't been officially released to the public yet. But at least one of the guys working there had it installed and you could see it first hand.
And I hope you aren't right about the 930 not coming to the U.S. anytime soon. That would suck. :(
Click to expand...

This is where I read about the 930 not coming to the US for a while, third paragraph.
http://www.engadget.com/2014/04/02/nokia-lumia-930-hands-on/

You're probably right about them not being allowed to install it on the display phones. The only drawback that I see for the Windows phone is the lack of some apps like banks, Dunkin Doniuts, Smartpay, etc. The major apps seem to bet there, but there are so many others that aren't and I think it's really a shame. I think it is a very good mobile OS, especially with the 8.1 update. It is a viable alternative to Android and iOS, but the lack of some of those apps do hurt it, IMO. And it does not get equal treatment at the AT&T and Verizon stores. They don't even mention it if you go in and play dumb. In this area, they seem to steer you straight to Samsung. I was at a Verizon corporate store a few days after the HTC M8 was released which was a week or so before the Galaxy S5 went on sale. I asked what was the newest phone and the rep pointed to the dummy S5 and said it would be out in a week or so, never mentioning the M8 a few phones away that came out a few days earlier. I asked about the Icon and he said Windows phones didn't sell. They must get the best commissions on Samsung phones.
 
AppleScruff1 said:
This is where I read about the 930 not coming to the US for a while, third paragraph.
http://www.engadget.com/2014/04/02/nokia-lumia-930-hands-on/

You're probably right about them not being allowed to install it on the display phones. The only drawback that I see for the Windows phone is the lack of some apps like banks, Dunkin Doniuts, Smartpay, etc. The major apps seem to bet there, but there are so many others that aren't and I think it's really a shame. I think it is a very good mobile OS, especially with the 8.1 update. It is a viable alternative to Android and iOS, but the lack of some of those apps do hurt it, IMO. And it does not get equal treatment at the AT&T and Verizon stores. They don't even mention it if you go in and play dumb. In this area, they seem to steer you straight to Samsung. I was at a Verizon corporate store a few days after the HTC M8 was released which was a week or so before the Galaxy S5 went on sale. I asked what was the newest phone and the rep pointed to the dummy S5 and said it would be out in a week or so, never mentioning the M8 a few phones away that came out a few days earlier. I asked about the Icon and he said Windows phones didn't sell. They must get the best commissions on Samsung phones.
Click to expand...

Yep, I have run into the same issue at AT&T stores. They push iPhone and Samsung.
And what you are saying about the lack of apps is true, but I have actually watched it change over the past few months. Seems as though more and more developers are finally adding WP apps into the store. Hopefully, now that developing for Windows and Windows Phone uses the same developer tools and a majority of the code, not to mention same pricing across all Windows Platforms, we'll see more and more apps from places like Dunkin Donuts, banks, etc...
Gotta love the underdog. :)
 
This is really making me want to try a W8 phone for the first time! I played around with the Nokia Icon but just could not pull the trigger. But I might have to pick up a Lumia 1020 or 1520 just to try W8! I wish the Lumia line had an SD card slot to save all the great camera shots.....
 
jamezr said:
This is really making me want to try a W8 phone for the first time! I played around with the Nokia Icon but just could not pull the trigger. But I might have to pick up a Lumia 1020 or 1520 just to try W8! I wish the Lumia line had an SD card slot to save all the great camera shots.....
Click to expand...

1520 has an SD card slot, and as of 8.1, you can even download apps onto it now!
1020 does not have the SD card slot. :(
 
AppleScruff1 said:
Thanks for the link, I'll check it out. I need a new phone and I'm being totally open minded about it. I have been on Verizon for about 12 years, but I am also looking into AT&T. Tonight was the first time I took a long look at a Windows phone and that was because I read this thread yesterday. Windows phones get no love from the Verizon and AT&T stores-ditto for HTC, they seem to steer you straight to Samsung around here. And everyone else wants an iPhone.

I'll have to read about the 930. What size is it? I know the 1520 is really big, that is why I liked the size of the Icon. There's a Microsoft store near me too so I can go there too for any questions that I may have.
Click to expand...

Check out the Samsung Ativ SE when you look at phones. I played with one in a Verizon store the other day and it's pretty nice. The camera isn't as good as the Icon and it won't have the exclusive Nokia apps, but it looks good and isn't as bulky as the Icon.
 
Just scored a brand new lumia 928 for 50 bucks! :eek: can't wait to try out windows phone 8.1. i had an 8x and hated it so we'll see what they have improved on.
 

Attachments

  • photo 1-3.JPG
    photo 1-3.JPG
    1.2 MB · Views: 81
  • photo 2-3.JPG
    photo 2-3.JPG
    2.6 MB · Views: 76
studIOS5 said:
Just scored a brand new lumia 928 for 50 bucks! :eek: can't wait to try out windows phone 8.1. i had an 8x and hated it so we'll see what they have improved on.
Click to expand...

That is a really nice phone you got and I think you will be pleasantly surprised by Windows Phone 8.1! There aren't any more gapping holes in the platform that Android and iOS have enjoyed for years. All that is left is to get more 1st party app developers to build their apps into the store. 3rd party apps are there for things like Dropbox, 4square, and others, but it isn't the same to me.

Still, I think you are going to love the phone!
 
Lloydbm41 said:
That is a really nice phone you got and I think you will be pleasantly surprised by Windows Phone 8.1! There aren't any more gapping holes in the platform that Android and iOS have enjoyed for years. All that is left is to get more 1st party app developers to build their apps into the store. 3rd party apps are there for things like Dropbox, 4square, and others, but it isn't the same to me.

Still, I think you are going to love the phone!
Click to expand...

Theres no reason for me to get rid of it obviously when I only paid 50 bucks for it:D so I know its here to stay. I have an iPhone 5c that i will keep around and likely switch between the lumia and the iPhone. Seems like the camera on this lumia is quite a bit better, based on initial impressions, than my 5c especially in low light and indoor shots. Gonna download 8.1 dev preview tonight!
 
Went to the Microsoft store today and not a single phone had 8.1.

AT&T store phones had no updates either.

Very annoying. Looking forward to trying it for myself.
 
Technarchy said:
Went to the Microsoft store today and not a single phone had 8.1.

AT&T store phones had no updates either.

Very annoying. Looking forward to trying it for myself.
Click to expand...

Its at the developer preview stage. MS had said it would be rolling it out in a month or two.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back