OT:Smart Phones

[Teal]

F*ck Google. The WP8 is, in he opinion of one who has used all three major OS's, vastly superior. Faster, more streamlined, and just plain easier to use. The Lumia 920 is worlds better than any phone I've ever used, and the WP OS is great, even without the idiot google people acting like grade school bullies and pulling support. I switched everything over to outlook when google pulled this latest stunt. Nary a bump in the road. Google is going to find out that they're not as "too big to fail" as they think.

[dbdynsty25]

No drawbacks other than size as far as I'm concerned. If you're cool with that, you have one of the most technically advanced phones on the market to date, so just enjoy it. Spooky just sold his Galaxy S3 for one so he can probably share some notes (haha get it) w/ you as well. It's a fantastic phone for sure. Except for that horrendous Verizon logo they stuck on the home button. WTF? Corporate branding at it's worst. LOL.

[TCrouch]

LOL thanks, man. I don't know 1/10th of the crap you know about these phones and whatnot, so that makes me feel better

[dbdynsty25]

F*ck Google. The WP8 is, in he opinion of one who has used all three major OS's, vastly superior.

You act like you're the only person who's used all three major OS's...are you? My HTC 8X would prove I'm at least in the conversation. I use EVERY OS before I start spouting off about this and that because I want to be informed and give my opinion knowing all of the details. You're making it out like I am an Android fanboy and I live and die by them. I don't. I've got my iPads, Macbooks, etc and my Windows machine...all have their pluses and minuses. The only area where Android is superior to me is phones.

Even though I got my 8X for free, I'd still rather pay the 350 bucks and use the Nexus 4 to it's left every day of the week. Didn't you say a few years back that you tried a couple android devices but none were top of the line? I might be mistaken about who that was but someone around here told me that. I think you'd be surprised at how far the OS has come since then...and unless you're using a Nexus device, then you're not really using Android as it's meant to be used (without carrier and manufacturer bloatware and modifications). I really doubt you've used a Nexus class device. Because if you had, I would think your opinion would be different. And I definitely like the 8x better than the 920, tho the camera on the 920 is absolutely unbelievable.

[Teal]

I didn't say what I said to 'disqualify' you or anyone else; only to 'qualify' myself. I've used 'em all...the OS's, that is. Even toyed around with the Nexus stuff. I'm just not into it. And iPhones are overrated pieces of crap, in my opinion. Great out of the gate several years ago, but it's just the same ol' same ol', year in and year out, and the hardware is just garbage.

The Nexus IS nice, I'll give it that, but Android, altogether, just doesn't do anything for me. I was very tempted by the HTC 8X when my wife and I upgraded, actually. It's an extremely nice phone-very light, very thin, some good stuff going on under the hood. But the 920 is, for my money, the best phone I've ever owned. For certain, the camera, as you mentioned, is top notch stuff, and the newest update to the hardware made it even moreso, making photos and videos even sharper than they already were.

I was all on board for an iPhone 4 a couple years ago; it was the only thing I'd even consider. But my wife talked me into the WP7, because her miserly, budget-analyst self saw the introductory deal and wanted us to get those phones. So I caved. It took me a couple weeks to get my head around the OS, because it was so drastically different from the iWhatever and the Droid stuff. But, after I learned what WP was trying to do, and how it was doing it...I was hooked. I still go into the stores and play around with the newest revisions of the other OS's and their phones, and the Android devices, some of them are really, really nice. I just hate the OS. I MUCH prefer the WP8 OS over any of it, mostly because I like the integration of so many things into a simplified system, and I don't really need nearly as many apps to do the things I like to do, which admittedly, is pretty much twitter, facebook, and photography stuff...oh, and I still use it for a phone...lol.

As far as Google is concerned, if I weren't already preferring the WP8 and my 920 over anything I've seen from Droid, their shenanigans of late would've pushed me away anyway. But, I must admit, I was never really using much of their stuff to begin with, other than an email account and some GDocs, which I can still do quite well, and will continue to be able to. Wasn't that into all the other Google integration, but, like I said before, I've switched over to Outlook, use Bing, and have not blinked an eye over the change. I just don't see Google being all that big a deal, other than the brand and the known name. It's been great over the years, but I think they might just be getting a little too big for their britches with this last bunch of nonsense, and I certainly think they they think a little too much of themselves.

If Microsoft has a soft spot, the most glaring has been their advertising, which has gotten considerably better with the advent of WP8 and the Surface stuff. They've really started taking the gloves off vs. iPhone, and I'm glad to see them actually going 'after' the competition rather than just talking up their stuff. It's really about time, and I think it's going to start paying off...at least with the phones. The tablets? Who knows? But I'm getting the big dog Surface when they come out, for darn sure.

Really, to each his own, but I love what I've experienced out of what Microsoft is both doing, and what I see them trying to do, and I, after seeing and toying with all that has been offered elsewhere, think that WP8 is superior for what I want out of a smartphone. You seem to really dig the droid stuff, and I have no problem with that. But I DO think that the WP8 deserves a much better rap than it often gets in this thread, and so I, seemingly being the lone voice of dissent in here might feel I need to shout a little louder over the din to be heard. I'm just a very happy consumer.

[TCrouch]

Dude...I LOVE THIS PHONE. If for no other reason than this...got an app that does this in iRacing, all the SimBin games, and all the ISI games (not my pic, but it's the same app):



It has shift light LEDs that go across, as well as all pertinent information that would normally be on your monitors in the various touch screens on the phone. Ridiculous.

I can't tell you how much it changed my race rig overnight. The bigger screen allowed me to mount it directly onto my wheel housing, and zoom my camera in the cockpit in further to get more windshield view. I had no idea I could do sh*t like this with a phone, but no way I'm ditching my Note II now

[DivotMaker]

And iPhones are overrated pieces of crap, in my opinion. Great out of the gate several years ago, but it's just the same ol' same ol', year in and year out, and the hardware is just garbage.

iOS same ol, same ol every year, agreed. No innovation. Hardware is just garbage? Nope, can't say I agree.

[jLp vAkEr0]

Dude...I LOVE THIS PHONE. If for no other reason than this...got an app that does this in iRacing, all the SimBin games, and all the ISI games (not my pic, but it's the same app):



It has shift light LEDs that go across, as well as all pertinent information that would normally be on your monitors in the various touch screens on the phone. Ridiculous.

I can't tell you how much it changed my race rig overnight. The bigger screen allowed me to mount it directly onto my wheel housing, and zoom my camera in the cockpit in further to get more windshield view. I had no idea I could do sh*t like this with a phone, but no way I'm ditching my Note II now

Lol, that looks pretty cool.

Btw, the only phone right now that I'd get over my Nexus 4 is the Note 2.

It's just a bad ass piece of tech.

[Teal]

And iPhones are overrated pieces of crap, in my opinion. Great out of the gate several years ago, but it's just the same ol' same ol', year in and year out, and the hardware is just garbage.

iOS same ol, same ol every year, agreed. No innovation. Hardware is just garbage? Nope, can't say I agree.

Well, then, the hardware is also the same ol', same ol, every year, it seems. Really, innovation? Not from Apple, not anymore. Garbage just because you're stuck with whatever Apple itself does. Of course, whomever would adopt the iOS would be stuck with that, so...

[DivotMaker]

And iPhones are overrated pieces of crap, in my opinion. Great out of the gate several years ago, but it's just the same ol' same ol', year in and year out, and the hardware is just garbage.

iOS same ol, same ol every year, agreed. No innovation. Hardware is just garbage? Nope, can't say I agree.

Well, then, the hardware is also the same ol', same ol, every year, it seems. Really, innovation? Not from Apple, not anymore. Garbage just because you're stuck with whatever Apple itself does. Of course, whomever would adopt the iOS would be stuck with that, so...

No, the hardware is solid year in and year out and iPhone 5 is no exception. Not sure what you are arguing about, but I simply disagreed with your comments that iPhone hardware is "garbage", but agree that iOS is NOT innovative and indeed stagnant, yet is serves my purposes for a cell phone. C'est la vie.....

[dbdynsty25]

Dude...I LOVE THIS PHONE. If for no other reason than this...got an app that does this in iRacing, all the SimBin games, and all the ISI games (not my pic, but it's the same app):

Damn...I didn't even know you could do that. Haha. That's ridiculously cool.

[Teal]

No, the hardware is solid year in and year out and iPhone 5 is no exception. Not sure what you are arguing about, but I simply disagreed with your comments that iPhone hardware is "garbage", but agree that iOS is NOT innovative and indeed stagnant, yet is serves my purposes for a cell phone. C'est la vie.....

The iPhone is just stale to me...I mean the 5 is just a longer 4s for the most part. Like it if you want-that's fine, but it's just not my cup of tea. There's just very little innovation universally with the thing, is all.

[Teal]

Dude...I LOVE THIS PHONE. If for no other reason than this...got an app that does this in iRacing, all the SimBin games, and all the ISI games (not my pic, but it's the same app):

Damn...I didn't even know you could do that. Haha. That's ridiculously cool.

Leave it to Terry to figure that out...

[Aristo]

Dude...I LOVE THIS PHONE. If for no other reason than this...got an app that does this in iRacing, all the SimBin games, and all the ISI games (not my pic, but it's the same app):

Damn...I didn't even know you could do that. Haha. That's ridiculously cool.

That is pretty awesome, and it really is the direction the next generation of gaming is going. I messed with some SmartGlass via my WP7 phone and my iPad, and it's not there yet. But I suspect the next Xbox s going to be feeding thank ind of info for Forza games. Hopefully Microsoft continues to push SmartGlass to all platforms. If they try to limit it to the Surface, it will destroy innovation in the market.

That said, I'm in th same boat with Teal on WP8, and even the Surface. My mom brought her Surface in town with her, and I really liked it. I don't think I am interested in the "big dog" version, though. I have no desire to replace my laptop with a tablet. Give me the tablet version, and I'll use my Macbook (which I plan to upgrade to a MB Air) for my laptop needs.

But for phones, I'm going to have to get a feel for the 920, as I hate the size. But it would be nice to have a camera phone that actually rocks. Also, I've been using the Quantum because I like the slide out keyboard. But I'm looking forward to losing that heft. So a bigger screen to type on my feel more necessary than it did before.

[Spooky]

DB/anybody who knows...

Is there any major drawback to the Note 2 other than its mammoth size? I actually dig the bigger-than-a-phone, smaller-than-a-tablet size of it, for some reason. Looking at videos and pictures on it was pretty crazy, and the 4G in my area is fast as hell. We took a trip to Verizon yesterday and were looking at upgrades, and by the end of the day we walked out with Note 2s for myself, my wife, and mom. Sharing stuff among them with that S-beam is kind of crazy, with the motion gestures and whatnot.

But naturally, all of my coworkers and friends are all slobbering over the iPhone, and looked at me with shock and/or disgust that I'd get anything other than an iPhone. I don't do a ton of s*** on my phone, and I had no tablet, so I sort of got it to be the do-all device for me. It seems like it would fit that bill pretty well, but I have 14 days to change my mind

Sorry TC - never saw this post. So it looks as if you took the plunge...

I absolutely LOVE mine. I had the original Note and it had quirks that were remedied by the S3, so I went with that. But I sorely missed the larger screen so I sold that for the Note 2 and haven't looked back at all. By far the best phone I've ever owned. It has taken all of the best things from the Note and S3, improved upon them, added JellyBean and more.

[Teal]

Dude...I LOVE THIS PHONE. If for no other reason than this...got an app that does this in iRacing, all the SimBin games, and all the ISI games (not my pic, but it's the same app):

Damn...I didn't even know you could do that. Haha. That's ridiculously cool.

That is pretty awesome, and it really is the direction the next generation of gaming is going. I messed with some SmartGlass via my WP7 phone and my iPad, and it's not there yet. But I suspect the next Xbox s going to be feeding thank ind of info for Forza games. Hopefully Microsoft continues to push SmartGlass to all platforms. If they try to limit it to the Surface, it will destroy innovation in the market.

That said, I'm in th same boat with Teal on WP8, and even the Surface. My mom brought her Surface in town with her, and I really liked it. I don't think I am interested in the "big dog" version, though. I have no desire to replace my laptop with a tablet. Give me the tablet version, and I'll use my Macbook (which I plan to upgrade to a MB Air) for my laptop needs.

But for phones, I'm going to have to get a feel for the 920, as I hate the size. But it would be nice to have a camera phone that actually rocks. Also, I've been using the Quantum because I like the slide out keyboard. But I'm looking forward to losing that heft. So a bigger screen to type on my feel more necessary than it did before.

I had the Samsung Focus (yep, the old original) and the 920 dwarfs it. That said, after about a month with the new phone, I don't even think about the size anymore. In fact, I still have the Focus (so my kids can play games and take pictures), and it actually feels too SMALL to me now. BUT if you just can't get used to the size, get an 820, or an HTC 8X. However, my wife also had a slide out keyboard on WP7, and she switched to the 920 without a hitch. If you're with Verizon, get the Nokia 822...it's a smaller phone.

Another solution to getting around the size of the 920...go hold a Galaxy Note 2 for a little while...lol

[dbdynsty25]

Oh god, please do not buy the 822 on Verizon. Garbage garbage garbage. And that's before we even get to the OS.

Get the 8X on Verizon if you insiste on WP8...that's the one I've got and the hardware is top notch.

[Teal]

And you wonder why I think you're an Android fanboy???

[dbdynsty25]

And you wonder why I think you're an Android fanboy???

Why because I advise against getting a piece of sh*t phone? Read the reviews on the 822, it's garbage. The 920 is great and so is the 8x...I simply said stay away from the damn 822. And tell my iPad 3 and my iPad mini about my Android fanboy-ism, they'd be glad to know!

[Teal]

C'mon, you're smarter than that...


"And that's before we even get to the OS."


There's not one damn thing wrong with the OS. Not one. It's a fantastic OS, it's just that you prefer the Android stuff...for reasons I can't comprehend...unless it's just because you have phones to play games and hack crap on...

[dbdynsty25]

There's not one damn thing wrong with the OS. Not one. It's a fantastic OS, it's just that you prefer the Android stuff...for reasons I can't comprehend...unless it's just because you have phones to play games and hack crap on...

We've already went over this, and clearly if WP8 was superior, more people would be using them. That's just a fact of competition, usually the best devices win. WP8 devices are not winning, not even close.

There are quite a few things wrong with WP8, most notably the notification system. If I had to pick "one damn thing that's wrong with the OS" it's that. It's horrendous and makes the phone essentially worthless to me. Yes, it pops up a little thing on the top of the screen when you get a notification, but then it disappears never to be seen again. Unless that live tile is at the top of your screen, you have no way of knowing if there is a message or an update or anything unless you find the tile or launch the app. There's no persistent reminder and for someone who relies on their phone to get work done each day, WP8 is unusable. That is a common complaint from virtually all users that have used all the various OS types and until that is rectified, I'll never be able to use it as my daily driver. I'll hang on to my 8X because I really like the hardware (and I can't in good faith sell a free phone from my sister, lol), so hopefully they can make the OS usable for me.

That is my biggest complaint and essentially the reason I cannot use a WP8 phone. That's not an opinion, that's a fact. Some people might not need notifications like that (like yourself), but I do. But that's my "one damn thing that's wrong with the OS" that you claim doesn't exist.

[RobVarak]

My only experience with WP8 was briefly travelling with a friend who used it. The GPS/Nav app was ass. Looked pretty cool otherwise, although that issue with notifications is widely criticized.

[Teal]

Nokia Drive is fantastic for navigation. As far as notifications, I've never had any issues with it.

[dbdynsty25]

Nokia Drive is fantastic for navigation. As far as notifications, I've never had any issues with it.

But that's specific to Nokia, not to WP8. Big difference. Nokia knows what they are doing for the most part even though their marketshare in the US is in the crapper. They kill it in Europe.

[Teal]

Nokia Drive is fantastic for navigation. As far as notifications, I've never had any issues with it.

But that's specific to Nokia, not to WP8. Big difference. Nokia knows what they are doing for the most part even though their marketshare in the US is in the crapper. They kill it in Europe.

I don't consider lemming mentality to be a fair assessment of an OS. (NOT accusing you of the lemming mentality, because you're one of the few who actually do some investigation, and a helluva lot more than most...lol). So the whole 'if they were better, people would be buying them' thing, especially in the US (aka The Land of the Low Information Consumer) just doesn't wash with me. I would say that the main issue is one of ingrained userbase thus far, the refusal to even consider change (no matter if the change is for the better-and that's mostly human nature), and the fact that MS's advertising has been, up until recently, pathetic, compared to the 'bright, shiny things' ads for droids and iOS stuff, is largely to blame. I have yet to show my WP8 to anyone who hasn't been very impressed; I've even had a few converts. And that's where MS needs to really start hitting it hard, and where they have been a little more aggressive, thankfully. You have an issue with Notifications; honestly, I suppose I get that, though it's not of particular issue to me, so therefore doesn't affect me. If it's as widespread an issue as you say, hopefully they will address it. But I see that issue, largely, the same way I see the whole 'Google' kerfuffle. I just don't give enough of a damn about Google for anything they do or don't do as a game changer. As it is, they're playing with a little fire right now, and they run the risk of being burned by their own hubris...at least in my opinion.

I know that Nokia Drive is native to Nokia, and that Nokia has done some great stuff. It's one reason why I love the relationship between them and WP8. As an overall OS, though, I still truly believe WP8 to be absolutely fantastic stuff...it just has to get by the low information/high 'shiny thing' crowd. I think it will.