Related
General WP7 question
Im an Android user at present, rooted Desire (gingerbread)
Very much liked the U.I of WP7 when having a quick 5 min' play in an o2 shop
ive not ruled out WP7 for my next phone but know nothing about the state of current Modding for the Devices
is Unlocking the same as Rooting ? ie Custom Roms, rooted only apps, framework tweaks etc
if not, how is it different? what does it offer ?
Sorry for the potentialy Dumbarse question but im not down with any WP7 info at present
Cheers
we don't have an unlock
the unlock refers to the ability to sideload programs and not go through windows marketplace using a windeveloper hack from chevron...
The unlock is not related to custom roms - imho you really don't need them nearly as much on windows phone 7. One thing you have to realize about custom roms is that while you're given an os on a device, it doesn't work out of the box. Both windows mobile and android suffered from this and a custom rom was necessary to just get some basic things to function more smoothly to create a better experience.
Windows phone deviates from that because all you have to do is turn it on and most of the UX/UI components work out of the box and creates an unbelievable experience. So at the current state, the only custom rom I have seen is on the hd7 and mozart, and those are rom transplants by ansar - not completely the same as a custom rom.
If you think you need a custom rom to live by, don't get windows phone. But if you truly want to try an OS that just works and works well, I suggest testing the device. You won't go back to android after you test the device.
Great respose
thanks for the info
For sure, i do love my Android but i find that i keep on changing stuff for not much other reason than i just can.
As mentioned, i was indeed impressed with the UI on the phone i tried...if only briefly
its a shame i couldnt get one to trial for a month to see how i got along with it, thats life i guess
i might well take the plunge on WP7 as my current contract runs out at the end of march
One or two last thing to anybody that cares to respond
so stuff like email and SMS/MMS, are you locked in to using the Out of the box app/client or are there others available in the Market ? ....indeed, you might not need to use anything different form the preloaded stuff, im just curious
and one last thing, Anyone having moved from android to WP7, you happy? anything you particularly miss ?
thanks for the above answer again
cheers
Chris
InspectorFrost said:
and one last thing, Anyone having moved from android to WP7, you happy? anything you particularly miss ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, at the moment there is only the default built in app for this. However, in a similar vein to the above; there just isn't a need either. The keyboard is awesome (far better than any other - be it Windows Mobile or Android - I've tried) and it's a simple threaded SMS system.
I had Android on my HD2 (so admittedly not a native build). The only things I miss are a couple of the apps (but I can live without them and they'll probably end up having sister apps on WP7 eventually) and the USB functionality (but I know plenty of people here will argue with me over that). Am I happy? Yes! (Small grumble about the update situation, but it's a thousand times better than WM or Android).
Casey
Thanks, Man
the preinstalled sms manager for wp7 has suited my needs really well. It sms...I can see smilies. It's threaded. That's all I really need for my interests.
Now as far as migrating from android, I did but I didn't like android so much. I used it for smsing but that was about it. Android has a plethora of programs to suit user interests, but by in large, many just. plain. suck.
That's not to say that wp7 programs suck, because some do. But in terms of productivity, I found a bit more with windows phone. I think the only program I really REALLY miss is skyscape because I am a clinical psych student and I use that on a daily basis. Adjusting to no skyscape is horrible
and one last thing, Anyone having moved from android to WP7, you happy? anything you particularly miss ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I moved from android, and while I do miss some functionality (that will come in time with updates), overall I'm very happy. The UI is vastly superior, and feels like a more polished professional product as opposed to one stitched together, if that makes sense. Android was very functional, but never felt totally complete in its design. This led to a less than great overall interaction experience. But I will reiterate; the functionality/settings options are VERY BASIC SO FAR.
wp7 not only feels more solid, but you can see the quality of app design already far surpass anything on Android. The way you flow through information is quite refreshing to the linear/up-down style based on computer desktops we are used to. Email & Music player are also bar none on mobile platforms in my opinion. Still a few things need to be added for outlook support, but overall I am very impressed with these two features.
You will also notice that its the only other platform with the responsiveness that iOS has. Feels very fluid, and there is no delay in pinch to zoom features on maps/browser ect. The voice commands are very good as well (voice to open apps, browse, call people ect).
Social integration of Facebook (and twitter come Mango update later this year) is top notch. No other platform has anything like this and its really handy. I don't even use Facebook much, but I thoroughly enjoy how easy it is to catch up on people's doings and get back to more important tasks.
Things I miss are more in depth functionality and settings choices. I miss the official google voice app, custom sms/mms apps & IM apps. I also miss smart dialing, which most smart phones come with as standard. Smart dialing will no doubt be incorporated in an update, but this should have been done from the get go imo. Once we get socket support later this year, IM and sms app replacements will come. Most of the needed apps are available, from shazam to netflix to news apps to flixster to translators ect. The google voice and smart dialing features are the big ones for me. GoVoice works pretty good for Google Voice access, but since no socket support yet, the notifications have to be pushed from a 3rd party server.
There are more apps available on Android, but just like when I was on Android and the iPhone had more apps, thats not all that matters. There are some you will miss, but I can do without most of them until more developers come over the wp7.
As far as games go, the quality is beyond both Android and the iPhone in my opinion. However, there aren't nearly as many available (yet). You are seeing more and more big time developers either making, or announcing movement over the wp7 though so this will quickly change. The quality of the xbox live games is great, and the platform is definitely designed to also be a future gaming powerhouse. I can't wait till I can control my windows media center and xbox/kinect with my phone.
wp7 is in its early stages so just be ready to accept that the tinkering you are used to will be much more limited here, as will the overall control options you have. But you will quickly learn that the base structure of this platform is beyond what the others deliver (of coarse whether you like the UI is preference), and as this platform matures, the quality of the interface & app development and user interaction will be much more pleasant than what Android offered(s).
As far as unlocking, you CAN still unlock with the chevron program. This allows you to tinker with the registry to change the look/colors of the UI, control of volumes ect and of coarse enables things like file managers & custom ringtones. Head to www.touchxperience.com to see what the main phone manager for unlocked phones is up to.
For day to day use, my wp7 is more appealing to me (even with some missing functionality). Its hard to go back to the style of layout that iOS, Android ect all have in common; although I do keep my N1 around for times when I need the hotspot feature.
dtboos said:
Social integration of Facebook (and twitter come NoDo update in the next week) is top notch. No other platform has anything like this and its really handy. I don't even use Facebook much, but I thoroughly enjoy how easy it is to catch up on people's doings and get back to more important tasks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
just a correction here, twitter integration is coming in the mango update, not the NoDo update.
The Gate Keeper said:
just a correction here, twitter integration is coming in the mango update, not the NoDo update.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I stand corrected.
@dtboos
Great post, thank you
All the above sounds like stuff i can deal with
Shazam...a quality app that i use tons, glad thats there
facebook im not on so im not bothered with that, and as for Mail/sms clients, i can live with stock so long as the work well
The Major sticking point at the moment for me (having dug around the net a little) is the API limitations that dont seem to allow for Messengers, im a big fan of Whatsapp and (out of choice) wouldnt really wanna be without it.
Hope MS are going to amend this in the (very) near future, as im sure this will persuade a raft of people on to their platform
Again, thanks for the above posts, most informative
Cheers
Chris
InspectorFrost said:
All the above sounds like stuff i can deal with
Shazam...a quality app that i use tons, glad thats there
facebook im not on so im not bothered with that, and as for Mail/sms clients, i can live with stock so long as the work well
The Major sticking point at the moment for me (having dug around the net a little) is the API limitations that dont seem to allow for Messengers, im a big fan of Whatsapp and (out of choice) wouldnt really wanna be without it.
Hope MS are going to amend this in the (very) near future, as im sure this will persuade a raft of people on to their platform
Again, thanks for the above posts, most informative
Cheers
Chris
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't have a link available right now, but I remember an interview with one of the head developers on wp7 saying that socket support is #2 or 3 on the developer requested features list, and they will definitely be implementing this sooner rather than later.
They know socket support is wanted and needed, and with that will come IM clients ect.
yea, i believe we will be hearing about socket support at the MIX 2011 conference.
I have been considering switching to WP7 for a while. The reviews and coverage of Mango have been very positive and I think Microsoft's take on the mobile OS is a nice departure from the iOS model. Also, the lack of an iPhone 5 announcement today pretty much sealed the deal for me in terms of deciding to jump ship. However, I have a few questions that I was hoping some users could answer that have moved from an iPhone to Mango.
Music - How does Zune manage syncing of files, ratings, playlists, etc between your computer and device compared to itunes and iOS?
Pictures - How about syncing photos? I read about the skydrive options, but how about syncing from your computer and storing them directly on the device? I read that photos taken with your phone don't sync as the full size to skydrive, is this still the case? Can you control which folder they are synced with?
Google services - Overall I think the iPhone does a good job handling google servies. Has anyone run into issues syncing with google contacts, such as contact photos, addresses, etc. I also heavily use google voice for sms and with jailbreaking it integrates fairly well with the iphone messaging interface. Is this possible on WP7? I read that their is a program that brings some functionality, but do google voice number sms messages show up in the WP7 messaging feeds?
Email - Both my work exchange account and gmail work fairly well in terms of push support. Also, delete = archiving in gmail (as I prefer), ability to sync sent folders, drafts, etc. are all very well handled. Does WP7 perform as well with gmail and have similar options? How well does it handle push and keeping your device synced with the email servers?
Apps - Are there similar apps such as the iPhone's Remote or a way to control the music running our your desktop? How about programs that Hippo remote or apps that can turn the device into a mouse/trackpad to control a computer on your local network?
File syncing - With skydrive can you store files locally or sync files from the 5GBs of live mesh storage? Similar to how dropbox on the iphone allows you to store some dropbox folders locally so you don't always need internet access.
Anyone have any comments about things they really miss when they switched from iOS to WP7?
Thanks a bunch
Dont do it, their are no apps or good games for WP7 and nothing on the horizon either.
Big Developers are exhausted and they just want to concentrate on Iphone and Android market.
Only little apps you find in WP7 are by like little individuals using Windows developer tool from their home and making a dollar app for pinning a tile or another RSS reader. Most of the present apps are exactly the same, doing the same thing with just different names and icon.
You will regret it, Iphone 4S has already beaten most highend WP7 device with their Siri and Camera.. I would suggest wait for Iphone 5 and migrate their.. WP7 right now is not a recommended buy, seeing the present dead Marketplace.. you can swipe and marvel at the metro interface and shi* but thats pretty much it.. you will get bored of it in one month and realize you have reached a deadend with nothing to install, no option to further improvise and utilize your phone beyond listening to music or switching from one app to another which all does the same thing ..
Windows phone has some better apps now but not everything i really like my windows phone but you are going to have to try mango to decide
Oh c'mon are you kidding me purple11? Android has the worst quality apps out there.
Zune does a good job with media management but a pretty bad job with app management. Synching media is as simple as dragging it from the library to the device icon. There is also wifi sync and the ability to download podcasts over wifi/cellular connections.
I believe Skydrive syncs to a folder called Skydrive Camera Roll and it still does resize images.
Regarding Google services, it does a good job with contacts, calendar, and email. I'm not really too familiar with how it does with google voice.
Regarding file syncing, you can save images and documents to the phone from skydrive.
The main thing you need to be aware of when switching is that the marketplace is still young. Some of us (Purple11 for example) don't really have the early adopter mindset and expect a brand new platform to have all of the apps that a four year old one does.
z33dev33l said:
Oh c'mon are you kidding me purple11? Android has the worst quality apps out there.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Really?
Do you have anything like this for WP7? :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMMPDSkk7Ao
Or even on the horizon? No..
Big companies like Gameloft are not even considering developing games for WP7. Its a fact.. Microsoft Game Studios can only make little one hour games .. or some guy from russia ripping games from Nokia from year 1999 and bringing it to WP7 as free add supported tiny little game.. thats it..
Professional developers and corporations whose business is developing apps and games for mobile platforms are not even considering WP7 to introduce their products here..
http://www.gameloft.com/
We can wait.. but I think this wait will prolong till the launch of W8 Tablets atleast.. and thats a long time.. we will see Iphone 6 by than.. and Ipad 5.
Microsoft doesn't have the support that comes with being the market leader in cell phones and nets you iOS's scraps. Instead, they have a number of developers developing for Xbox live and now windows 8, both of which offer an easy port to wp7. Given the new APIs the possibilities are endless as to what we'll see over the course of the next few months. While it's not quite up to par with that game graphics-wise, even small time developers are releasing games like "Sword of Rapier" which, while in beta, is an excellent live action RPG. Of course then there are games like ilomilo that are infinitely more polished and smooth than modern combat.
Hi OP,for me...I agree with Purple11
IMHO, it is not worth the switch now. Or you will be ended up with regrets.
in regards to your question about google voice,there is no free app can do this. Unless you buy the app.
Honestly,zune is better than itunes in term of music and video management. However, the downside is you can't manage your apps or transfer documents directly to the apps on your phone.
I suggest that you should go for iphone 4s at this moment,if you are still interested in windows phone. Come back here when windows phone 8 is available.
TANKFARM said:
I have been considering switching to WP7 for a while. The reviews and coverage of Mango have been very positive and I think Microsoft's take on the mobile OS is a nice departure from the iOS model. Also, the lack of an iPhone 5 announcement today pretty much sealed the deal for me in terms of deciding to jump ship. However, I have a few questions that I was hoping some users could answer that have moved from an iPhone to Mango.
Music - How does Zune manage syncing of files, ratings, playlists, etc between your computer and device compared to itunes and iOS?
Pictures - How about syncing photos? I read about the skydrive options, but how about syncing from your computer and storing them directly on the device? I read that photos taken with your phone don't sync as the full size to skydrive, is this still the case? Can you control which folder they are synced with?
Google services - Overall I think the iPhone does a good job handling google servies. Has anyone run into issues syncing with google contacts, such as contact photos, addresses, etc. I also heavily use google voice for sms and with jailbreaking it integrates fairly well with the iphone messaging interface. Is this possible on WP7? I read that their is a program that brings some functionality, but do google voice number sms messages show up in the WP7 messaging feeds?
Email - Both my work exchange account and gmail work fairly well in terms of push support. Also, delete = archiving in gmail (as I prefer), ability to sync sent folders, drafts, etc. are all very well handled. Does WP7 perform as well with gmail and have similar options? How well does it handle push and keeping your device synced with the email servers?
Apps - Are there similar apps such as the iPhone's Remote or a way to control the music running our your desktop? How about programs that Hippo remote or apps that can turn the device into a mouse/trackpad to control a computer on your local network?
File syncing - With skydrive can you store files locally or sync files from the 5GBs of live mesh storage? Similar to how dropbox on the iphone allows you to store some dropbox folders locally so you don't always need internet access.
Anyone have any comments about things they really miss when they switched from iOS to WP7?
Thanks a bunch
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have an Ipad and an Ipod Touch as well as an HD7 so I will try to answer your questions as best I can
1) Syncing Music - Zune does as good a job as itunes for this IMO, playlists, ratings etc. all sync and I much prefer the look and feel of the Zune interface, bear in mind though that (as far as I know) 16Gb is the most storage being suppiled on any WP7 device ATM (unless you are prepared to try and put in your own SD card which can be diffiicult and is only an option where SD cards are used)
2) Pictures taken with the phone camera are still downsied, you can have multiple folders on skydrive. Photos uploaded to skydrive from the PC can be uploaded at original size
3) Google services work just fine for me, I do not use GV so cannor comment on that.
4) There are over 30,000 apps for WP7 ATM, amongst them are many good quality ones. Yes there are apps that do full PC remote desktop control, PC media player control and my favorite Media Buddy which allows me to control my windows 7 Media Centre functionality from anywhere including scheduling recordings and watching recordings streamed to my phone.
5) File syncing, there are all sorts of options here with Office 365 and share point etc. although perhaps someone else can give you a better answer to your question.
Other points I would consider in your position are:
That Siri thing on Iphone looks pretty good, WP7 has something similar but not as full featured as Siri - will that be important?
You will not get a Retina display type resolution on current WP7
You can get HUGE screens on WP7 (Great for me with my bad eyesight!)
You will be different if you get WP7 everyone has an iphone (because it is good) currently, few have WP7
z33dev33l said:
Microsoft doesn't have the support that comes with being the market leader in cell phones and nets you iOS's scraps. Instead, they have a number of developers developing for Xbox live and now windows 8, both of which offer an easy port to wp7. Given the new APIs the possibilities are endless as to what we'll see over the course of the next few months. While it's not quite up to par with that game graphics-wise, even small time developers are releasing games like "Sword of Rapier" which, while in beta, is an excellent live action RPG. Of course then there are games like ilomilo that are infinitely more polished and smooth than modern combat.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agree with you,games can be easily port to the WP7. before hand, we need better processor with better graphic ability. If not, the endless possibilities of api and how easy to port a game would be useless...
what you are saying is something like, you have the crysis 2 game, but you using a tegra 2 device. So,whats the point of having the game?you can't play it.
Even the strongest wp7 device out there,HTC titan still using 8255chipset with adreno 205. It is totally no match to iphone 4s A5. A5 graphic power is about twice of the power of samsung galaxy s2 exynos chipset mali400. Can't imagine when A5 compare with qualcomm 8255.
So,stick with iOS for this moment is a better choice. What is attracting you now is only the metro ui of WP7. If you insist want to try WP7 out. Please ask someone with the phone,allow you to play with it for 1day and do your everyday tasks first. Play with demo unit is not enough,because the metro ui will pull you deeper.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/4760/arms-mali400-mp4-is-the-fastest-smartphone-gpufor-now
TANKFARM said:
Music - How does Zune manage syncing of files, ratings, playlists, etc between your computer and device compared to itunes and iOS?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I find Zune quite limited compared to iTunes. The biggest problem is that it doesn't respect episode numbers in the meta-data; so any podcasts or audiobooks I transfer from iTunes to my WP7 phone appear out of order (listed alphabetically by file-name?).
The other issue is that the WP7 media player is pretty poor. It doesn't feature audio-scrubbing, so you can't jump around inside audio-books, and it doesn't support lyrics. For these reasons I still have to carry around my ipod.
TANKFARM said:
Google services - Overall I think the iPhone does a good job handling google servies. Has anyone run into issues syncing with google contacts, such as contact photos, addresses, etc. I also heavily use google voice for sms and with jailbreaking it integrates fairly well with the iphone messaging interface. Is this possible on WP7? I read that their is a program that brings some functionality, but do google voice number sms messages show up in the WP7 messaging feeds?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Google contacts sync fine, but other than that WP7 is all bing, no google. The worst part is the Bing Map app, which is barely functional in most regions of the world. No native google voice support, though there are a few apps that can handle it, but they won't integrate into the WP7 OS. Honestly if you're heavily invested in the google eco-system then you're better off going with Android.
sylau90 said:
Agree with you,games can be easily port to the WP7. before hand, we need better processor with better graphic ability. If not, the endless possibilities of api and how easy to port a game would be useless...
what you are saying is something like, you have the crysis 2 game, but you using a tegra 2 device. So,whats the point of having the game?you can't play it.
Even the strongest wp7 device out there,HTC titan still using 8255chipset with adreno 205. It is totally no match to iphone 4s A5. A5 graphic power is about twice of the power of samsung galaxy s2 exynos chipset mali400. Can't imagine when A5 compare with qualcomm 8255.
So,stick with iOS for this moment is a better choice. What is attracting you now is only the metro ui of WP7. If you insist want to try WP7 out. Please ask someone with the phone,allow you to play with it for 1day and do your everyday tasks first. Play with demo unit is not enough,because the metro ui will pull you deeper.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/4760/arms-mali400-mp4-is-the-fastest-smartphone-gpufor-now
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well not everyone plays intense games on their phone i use my focus for time consuming fun games but i use my quad core computer with 2gb graphics for intense gaming so your purposes for getting the iphone 4s or wp7 varies
sylau90 said:
Agree with you,games can be easily port to the WP7. before hand, we need better processor with better graphic ability. If not, the endless possibilities of api and how easy to port a game would be useless...
what you are saying is something like, you have the crysis 2 game, but you using a tegra 2 device. So,whats the point of having the game?you can't play it.
Even the strongest wp7 device out there,HTC titan still using 8255chipset with adreno 205. It is totally no match to iphone 4s A5. A5 graphic power is about twice of the power of samsung galaxy s2 exynos chipset mali400. Can't imagine when A5 compare with qualcomm 8255.
So,stick with iOS for this moment is a better choice. What is attracting you now is only the metro ui of WP7. If you insist want to try WP7 out. Please ask someone with the phone,allow you to play with it for 1day and do your everyday tasks first. Play with demo unit is not enough,because the metro ui will pull you deeper.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/4760/arms-mali400-mp4-is-the-fastest-smartphone-gpufor-now
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you're saying it can't play the single most demanding PC game ever... Duh... 1ghz is easily powerful enough to play many other games even with the 1ghz processor. Not to mention crysis isn't a windows 8 app and they'd have to re-write it from scratch to make it as such. Windows 8 apps and games are similar to those on our cell phones and will work in part like the ipads apps do. Regardless, from what's been said it looks as though Microsoft may be setting aside some finances to finance a game by Epic studios (makers of infinity blade and gears of war) for windows phone and That I want to see.
lovenokia said:
Well not everyone plays intense games on their phone i use my focus for time consuming fun games but i use my quad core computer with 2gb graphics for intense gaming so your purposes for getting the iphone 4s or wp7 varies
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well not everyone uses Office files on phone either, not everyone uses MMS either.. but OP is switching from one smartphone to other.. and when he is buying a smartphone its better to inform him that WP7 not a smartphone.. a shiny wrapper outside, with nothing inside.. not a smartphone just a fecking walkman.. thats it.
Purple11 said:
Well not everyone uses Office files on phone either, not everyone uses MMS either.. but OP is switching from one smartphone to other.. and when he is buying a smartphone its better to inform him that WP7 not a smartphone.. a shiny wrapper outside, with nothing inside.. not a smartphone just a fecking walkman.. thats it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Now your trolling, how the f*** is wp not a smartphone(you've got to be on something to think that)? a walkman seriously? wp has alot of potential and could overthrow ios in a few years. pretty much your describing wp as a piece of s*** which it is the exact opposite
sylau90 said:
Even the strongest wp7 device out there,HTC titan still using 8255chipset with adreno 205. It is totally no match to iphone 4s A5. A5 graphic power is about twice of the power of samsung galaxy s2 exynos chipset mali400. Can't imagine when A5 compare with qualcomm 8255.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's not really a hardware thing; it's an OS issue. XNA for WP7 still doesn't support custom shaders, which puts it behind the graphical capabilities of even the iPhone 3GS.
This is a big issue and is preventing any really great games being ported to the platform.
Purple11 said:
Well not everyone uses Office files on phone either, not everyone uses MMS either.. but OP is switching from one smartphone to other.. and when he is buying a smartphone its better to inform him that WP7 not a smartphone.. a shiny wrapper outside, with nothing inside.. not a smartphone just a fecking walkman.. thats it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yea,correct...I just try my best to give OP a fair view about WP7.
Just to add in,there plenty of developers have stop updating their apps for ages,for example: bird song(twitter client), board express for Tapatalk(the only forum app in the marketplace) and etc...
Again,stick with the iphone for this moment,at least until windows phone 8 is released.
TANKFARM said:
...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You failed to mention what your current iOS device is. If your running the iPhone4 then there is little reason to switch. However anything older and your good to go.
When it comes to peoples opinions on here, take them with a grain of salt. Users like "Purple11" have no insight to what a Windows Phone is. They are usually blinded by marketing ploys and what their best friend has to say.
Windows Phone is great if you need a phone that allows you to accomplish things fast. I can do things much faster on a WP7 then Android or iOS. And yes, I have owned them all.
Does that mean they suck? Of course not. Each cater to a different demographic. iPhones are excellent media phones. Great for music and movies, as well as excelling in the games department. WP7 is about communication. You interact with people and services in greater detail as well as getting the speed boost I mentioned before hand. This includes the very well working Facebook and Twitter integration as well as the "needs improvement" LIVE.
WP is young and needs time to develop. Hopefully not to much time considering we are all ridiculously impatient. Try each phone extensively. If a friend has one, give it a go. Just make sure the phone is up to date.
Oh and last I checked a phone was meant to be a communication device. Just saying.
sylau90 said:
Yea,correct...I just try my best to give OP a fair view about WP7.
Just to add in,there plenty of developers have stop updating their apps for ages,for example: bird song(twitter client), board express for Tapatalk(the only forum app in the marketplace) and etc...
Again,stick with the iphone for this moment,at least until windows phone 8 is released.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
well that is what people said before mango was out now same story again wait till wp8 i agree with your points to a certain degree but mango is quite polished and with all these new mango devices coming out that will sure get some developer attention and pour in more apps. Nokia will flood the low range markets with some cheap wp devices which will sure expose developers apps to alot more people. But if your looking for games like infinity blade then i say the iphone 4s for now but i find wp more productive for actual phone applications calling messaging checking facebook etc.
airwa1kin7 said:
When it comes to peoples opinions on here, take them with a grain of salt. Users like "Purple11" have no insight to what a Windows Phone is. They are usually blinded by marketing ploys and what their best friend has to say.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've been a full time WP7 user since June. I take issue with this statement; I'm not biased in any way, I just have a lot of issues with the phone.
airwa1kin7 said:
This includes the very well working Facebook and Twitter integration as well as the "needs improvement" LIVE.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just to point out; Facebook integration (people hub, contacts) is broken even in Mango; around 1/4 of my contacts don't show up due to their FB privacy settings. This has been an issue since the phone came out, but still no resolution in sight:
http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/...=1&msgId=4211565e-f8aa-441a-9017-3b55a93a4384
http://www.wpcentral.com/facebook-f...e-not-alone?utm_source=wpc&utm_medium=twitter
Hello there, I'm about to make the big jump from android to windows phone 7!
I love android but I hate so much of it at the same time, for instance the lack of a decent media manager, doubletwist has too many issues and a lack of features!
Regardless I'm now making the switch to the Lumia 900 thought I've got a few uncertainties I'm hoping people can clarify for me.
1)Contacts- At the moment, I love google contacts, it works so seamlessly and gmail is a pleasure to use! However switching to WP7 is going to mean I have to use live, which is alright but it's a laggy mess in comparison to gmail I find. It's a mess to work around and it keeps shoving ****ty Bing in my face! Any way I can still use gmail or at least make the whole live experience less...crap?
2)Zune- I love the zune interface, one of the main reasons I'm switching but how are updates coming along for it? It's beautiful to look at however it hasn't been updated in quiet some time and there's vital features missing, for instance a repeat button! How well does this sync with WP7, I'm hoping beautifully with my entire library and all my custom playlists? One of the main reasons I'm switching
3)Docking- no docks i'm assuming, I want iphone docking abilities but since there's no feature on microusb to output audio that's a lost cause =[ However there's talk of a microsoft dock, what's that all about anyone know?
4)Updates- with talks of WP Apollo I'm worried about when to get a phone. I really like the lumia 800 and i'm holding out for the 900 just for those extra few features like a front facing camera since my contract just finished, not to mention my HTC desire is dead hence I'm using a replacement.
In fact would you say it's even worth waiting for the 900?? Since it's really not that different!
5)Bluetooth- I presumed this was standard but I can stream music via bluetooth to bluetooth speakers right with the 800/900???? I heard people saying it wasn't capable?
6)Dual-Boot?- Any hope of dual booting android?
7Free games/apps- Android had thousands of free apps and games, how does WP7 fare in this department?
Thank you for your help!
1) WP7 can use your Google contacts, Calendar, and sync your Gmail account just fine. You need to have a Windows Live account, but you don't really ahve to do anything with it. If you already have a Xbox Live account or Zune Tag, just use that. FWIW, I personally really don't like either the Windows Live or Google web interfaces, but prefer Bing over Google for first-try searching (I'll try the other if I don't find what I want right off the bat, but I usually find what I want faster if I start with Bing).
1.1) Be aware that Bing is pretty integrated into Windows Phone, while Google is not. In fact, Google has very few apps for the phone. Although the integration with Google services like Gmail and Calendar is good, others like Talk, Voice, Docs, and G+ is not. Google has (not a huge surprise) shown very little interest in developing apps for WP7.
2) Zune gets updates every now and then. The last was just before Mango came out, call it five or six months ago. It definitely supports Repeat though, both on the phone and on the PC... As for syncing with WP7, it's very good. You can choose what types of media to automatically sync, you can manually sync anything, and yes, things like custom playlists are certainly supported. If you've added a folder to your "Libraries" in Windows, the Zune software will see it and be able to sync it. You can also manually add additional folders.
3) I don't know anything here. There's a "Dock Mode" app on HTC, but as far as I know there's no standard dock interface on WP7. All the phones use MicroUSB, but they don't put the ports in the same place or anything.
4) So far, all updates have been available for all phones. I don't know how long that'll keep up, but Mango isn't even slightly laggy on my first-gen HD7 so I expect it'll remain true for a while. The only reason to wait for a newer phone is if you want new hardware features; the software is almost entirely the same across all phones and all generations. None of that Android fragmentation, where a device may be running an obsolete major version at its release, never be brought fully up to date, and abandoned six months later while there's still a long wait on your contract.
5) WP7 can stream music to A2DP BlueTooth devices, and can use Headset profile BlueTooth as well (of course). It's a little more limited than other smartphones in terms of BlueTooth - no native support for file transfer or BT tethering, for example - but it's generally suficient and MS has added capabilities in previous updates so hopefully that will keep going.
6) So far, no natively WP7 devices can run Android. It's theoretically possible, but you'd need both an unlocked bootloader and a port of Android to the device's hardware. The only phone I know of that can run both WP7 and Android is the HTC HD2, and that actually comes with Windows Mobile, not WP7 *or* Android. It's also a bit old and becoming hard to buy.
7) There are many thousands of free apps, or apps with functional trial versions, in the WP7 Marketplace. That includes games. It's certainly not as vast (yet) as iOS or Android, but those platforms have huge head-starts. It's growing very rapidly. Microsoft has also put some effort into "must-have" apps and games, although generally those end up costing a few dollars. Almost all paid apps have trials, though.
Thanks for the help. =)
How is tethering as a general? I love my wi-fi hotspot on my desire. One of the BEST things about the phone. How is it on the Lumias and WP7 in general?
Didn't realise Zune had been updated(updating after this post!)
So it is definitely possible to keep my WP7 contacts synced with google? if so YAY!
Also iOS jailbreaking, android rooting. What about WP7? And as bad as it is, is there a way to install 'free' apps. Not that one ever would partake in such criminal activities, I'm just curious I guess?
Most WP7 devices offer WiFi hotspot tethering. It depends on the carrier (some disable it entirely, others charge for it) and the phone (I've heard surprising claims that the Lumia 710 doesn't permit it, even though T-Mobile US generally does - hopefully they push an update soon to fix that). Where it's supported, it works well.
The last Zune update was, as I said, months ago... but yeah, if you don't have a Repeat button you're ona very old version. The current version is 4.8.something.
Yeah, syncing contacts with Google is very easy. When I create a contact on the phone, I get the option of storing it on my Google account instead of my Live or Exchange accounts.
So far, nobody has managed to root the Lumias or install custom ROMs, but they're still quite new. Until a month or so back, the same was true of the Samsung WP7 devices (at least for custom ROMs; they were rooted months ago). I'm sure that, as the Lumias become more popular, they too will be rooted and have their bootloaders unlocked.
Discussion of piracy is quite frowned upon here on XDA-Devs. The only legit reason I can think of for a potential user to ask about it is if they're also a potential developer and are concerned about their apps being pirated. That said, there are some protections but they can be worked around. Microsoft has said they're going to start encrypting the Marketplace apps though, and that will make it much more difficult.
If you're seriously interested in dual booting, I'll have a Telstra (fully AT&T compatible) HTC HD2 available for sale as soon as Internet Sharing becomes enabled on the Lumia 800. It's a hard to find version of the phone.
Hello...
I come from old school Windows Mobile (even on a PDA as PocketPC) and pretty much used one until 2010. I kept waiting for Windows Phone 7 but the wait became too long and I decided to go Android.
I've had 3 different Android phones since 2010 and I am currently on the Samsung Skyrocket, which has been the best and most stable Android Phone I've owned. I also have an ASUS Transformer Prime with keyboard and it is a joy to use. I really do love widgets and use them heavily for my tasks, calendar and other at a glance "life notes." I also use OneNote for Android to keep notes and frequently accessed information.
I am also enjoying the Google ecosystem of Gmail, Calendar, Contacts, Reader and other services.
Despite the Tegra processor in my tablet, I don't play a lot of games and I often find that I wish I could do real work on an Android device or even play my "Good Old Games" from GOG.COM on my mobile devices.
However, I am a Microsoft guy. I have a Windows 7 main PC that serves my media to my XBOX. My laptop currently has Windows 8 release preview installed on it. So far, I am liking the ecosystem between Windows 8 and XBOX.
Which brings me to Windows Phone. I have one for work but I've not really made it mine yet. I like most of what I see. Maps do lack when compared to Google Maps and navigation. There isn't a good Google Reader app I've found yet and the YouTube app is pretty bad. However, a lot of these I could live with because I do like the Windows Phone interface and the common ecosystem it will have with Windows 8 and XBOX. I am also Zune owner (we have 3 in our family) and love the Zune player.
Android, in my opinion, is king as far as useful mobile apps and collaboration. I like file level access, apps like DropBox work seamlessly and I love the options on sharing media. But I am really wanting to move to close to one platform as I can. Kind of jarring to go between platforms.
So, all that said, I wanted to hear from other Windows Phone owners on how they like their devices. A few questions:
Will current devices like Titan II and Lumia 900 be upgradable to Windows Phone 8?
I think I will miss being able to change my own battery. If and when a battery needs to be replaced, what is the process? Can a store do it or do we mail it back in?
I'd love to make a Windows Phone my Zune replacement but being limited to 16 GB kind of stinks and I don't want to always have to stream via ZunePass. I have unlimited data but I don't want to become a "top 5%" user.
Thanks for letting me ramble...looking forward to a good discussion. Even if some of you convince me to stay Android...ha.
I wouldn't get too comfy with Zune as it looks like it will be replaced with X-Box Music, It is very difficult coming from a platform which is so customisable to WP7 which is quite closed, No doubt you are aware of the limitations associated with WP7 so I wont bore you with the details, I initially came from using Symbian to Windows mobile 6.1 then 6.5 and now WP7.5, I did find it difficult at first as I was so used to changing backgrounds and checking my files in File Manager etc but now I must admit I don't really miss any of that and am happy having a phone which does not need any tinkering, I find I use my phone less now and only use it when it counts, Before it was a cure for boredom having lots of things to change and I don't miss flashing ROMs or installing CABs,I am not really a heavy business user but my phone keeps my appointments at hand and syncs with my contacts and calender and makes phone calls believe it or not I love the simplicity that I can update where I am and what I am doing with just a couple of swipes, I use Nokia Maps which I find very adequate and Nokia Drive is superb and Free, The way I look at WP7 is that it is an OS in its infancy which will grow and get stronger.
AndyFZ1S said:
I wouldn't get too comfy with Zune as it looks like it will be replaced with X-Box Music, It is very difficult coming from a platform which is so customisable to WP7 which is quite closed, No doubt you are aware of the limitations associated with WP7 so I wont bore you with the details, I initially came from using Symbian to Windows mobile 6.1 then 6.5 and now WP7.5, I did find it difficult at first as I was so used to changing backgrounds and checking my files in File Manager etc but now I must admit I don't really miss any of that and am happy having a phone which does not need any tinkering, I find I use my phone less now and only use it when it counts, Before it was a cure for boredom having lots of things to change and I don't miss flashing ROMs or installing CABs,I am not really a heavy business user but my phone keeps my appointments at hand and syncs with my contacts and calender and makes phone calls believe it or not I love the simplicity that I can update where I am and what I am doing with just a couple of swipes, I use Nokia Maps which I find very adequate and Nokia Drive is superb and Free, The way I look at WP7 is that it is an OS in its infancy which will grow and get stronger.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great reply. I use ZunePass to get the music I want and keep the 10 songs a month. It plays very nicely with my Windows Media Center extender on the XBOX as well.
I am OK with less customization as long as I get USEFUL apps. My most useful apps on Android are a caleder widget, syncing with google tasks, Cozi (has a killer grocery list app), OneNote, Google Reader. I use those the most. There are apps to replace those on Windows Phone and I'll try them out on my work phone. I am sure they may not be AS good but they could prove passable.
I am OK not changing backgrounds and such.
Really, I am more fascinated with Windows 8 tablets than anything else and just kind of want my phone on a like ecosystem. The trick is seeing if I could live with the changes. And the frustrating fact nothing comes higher than 16 GB and can't change battery (Titan II or Lumua 900).
It seems they are all going that way with the non removable batteries, It is a pain but I look at it this way, Most batteries can be charged/discharged up to a 1000 times, Taking into account not many people keep their phones for two years you would have lets say 1000 days usage before any severe battery degradation, That is just a theoretical view of course and I am going on standard rechargeable batteries but it makes me feel a little better about it.
Try and stick with it and do try the replacement Apps, Hopefully it won't be too much of a painful transition for you.
Interesting
I would recomend you look at the recent breakthrough in Titan (1), I came to winphone from 6.5 and now with the recent HSPL breakthrough it is like the good old days again
Mark
Can alternate Android Launchers (Nova) be used on an Windows phone?
No
rockky said:
Can alternate Android Launchers (Nova) be used on an Windows phone?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why would you even consider committing such a henious crime against such a beautiful device.. there has been dozens upon dozens of web posts, forum threads and websites asking this question, which is the same reason you cannot put Android or WP8 onto an Apple. IOS and WP8 are closed and protected platforms
You cannot put Android or any of its components (Launchers and such Android excrement) on to a Windows phone.
Buy an Android phone and get the WP8 Launcher from the Play Store.. the New HTC M8s look nice, naff camera, but good phone..
Hope that helps
yes - sorta...
Yes, you can get alternate launchers, sorta.
For many years I used Android and had many alternate launchers to used depending on my mood, place, work, battery life, etc. Now on my 1020 I have a couple of Android style launchers, iPhone launchers, and a Blackberry launcher. All work fine and allow my to do most basic taskes.
Now for the "sorta..." part: As mentioned earlier, WP8 is a closed platform. These other launchers are actually just apps running on top of WP8, and are not actually replacing the tiles. Functionality is limited and basic. They all offer a chance to pay for an upgrade for more functionality, but I don't yet know what functionality they will add. Thankfully, unlike Google, Microsoft DOES accept my Paypal account so I will be finding out, but just haven't done so yet. I assume I will have access in the app drawer to all the apps installed on my Windows Phone, but I doubt I will be able to add new "shortcuts" to the "homescreen" or change the given wallpaper. But who knows, like I said, I will try it & get back to you.
Not sure how to correctly add a link to the WP store or anything, but just search for Android, iPhone, or Blackberry and you should find something. Also, something else to keep in mind here is that 8.1 will be out soon. Having played around with a Lumia 930 with 8.1 for about a month now I can say it will offer more options to customize your homescreen tiles, and it's pretty cool. It would be nice is they offered a choice of homescreen configurations maybe, one for work and one for home. But first and much more importantly they need to work on multiple Skype logins for work and home, as it is now I am stuck with my "friend" skype on my phone and need to carry around a second phone for my work Skype.
I know it's not exactly what you were looking for but I hope it at least helps a little. Have a great day!
:good: