Lumia 920

[team illucid]

I picked up the Nokia Lumia 920 today running Windows Phone 8.

Beautiful device in the hand. Nice and weighty, actually feels like something you have paid good money for.
Decent 4G speed (Telstra).
Battery life is hard to tell, but already better than my Galaxy Nexus.
Fast - apps open in half the amount of time of WP 7.5.
Smooth - buttery smooth when going through the screen/s.
Crystal clear HD audio calls.
Camera produces better results than my Galaxy Nexus, but not as fast at taking the shot.
Video I haven't used - but this YouTube clip is awesome (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vaCJJeBCCWM&feature=player_embedded)
Apps - everyone's fave bashing point - well, I use about 20 core apps, all are covered - but if you want some specific goat herding combined with mayan farting app, better stick to Android or iOS :)
Speakers are really quite good for a mobile phone - stereo speakers outputting through the bottom of the device.
4.5" screen is actually useable outside (in the sunshine) - I have NEVER found a phone that is comfortable to use outside due to the glare - this one actually works.
No motion blur when watching movies - apparently it is the fastest screen in the world (refresh) and certainly is noticeable watching a quick movie this arvo.

All up - a great phone, and pretty reasonable at only $696.00.

[Devil CV8]

I've asked my Telstra mobility specialist for 2 evaluation units once they get released on the 27th. Should tie in well with the windows 8 poc that is being undertaken.

[macca_779]

Heavy is good now. Wtf


Sent from my iPhone 5 using Tapatalk

[macca33]

Interesting and timely thread. I'm keen on the Nokia Lumia 920 to replace my N900 and this makes me now want to investigate further. :thumbsup:

cheers

[whiteknight2211]

I picked up the Nokia Lumia 920 today running Windows Phone 8.

Beautiful device in the hand. Nice and weighty, actually feels like something you have paid good money for.
Decent 4G speed (Telstra).
Battery life is hard to tell, but already better than my Galaxy Nexus.
Fast - apps open in half the amount of time of WP 7.5.
Smooth - buttery smooth when going through the screen/s.
Crystal clear HD audio calls.
Camera produces better results than my Galaxy Nexus, but not as fast at taking the shot.
Video I haven't used - but this YouTube clip is awesome (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vaCJJeBCCWM&feature=player_embedded)
Apps - everyone's fave bashing point - well, I use about 20 core apps, all are covered - but if you want some specific goat herding combined with mayan farting app, better stick to Android or iOS :)
Speakers are really quite good for a mobile phone - stereo speakers outputting through the bottom of the device.
4.5" screen is actually useable outside (in the sunshine) - I have NEVER found a phone that is comfortable to use outside due to the glare - this one actually works.
No motion blur when watching movies - apparently it is the fastest screen in the world (refresh) and certainly is noticeable watching a quick movie this arvo.

All up - a great phone, and pretty reasonable at only $696.00.

Where did you buy it from? How do you find the weight distribution? Does it get hot in 4G mode or when you're talking on it? I have the HTC One XL because it's a Telstra Blue Tick phone so comments on signal quality/strength would be good to hear.

Have you had a chance to do a 4G LTE test yet?

[team illucid]

Heavy is good now. Wtf


Sent from my iPhone 5 using Tapatalk

I am an adult male, I can lift a 180g phone.

[team illucid]

Where did you buy it from? How do you find the weight distribution? Does it get hot in 4G mode or when you're talking on it? I have the HTC One XL because it's a Telstra Blue Tick phone so comments on signal quality/strength would be good to hear.

Have you had a chance to do a 4G LTE test yet?

Got it from Allphones.

Signal quality seems as good as anything else I have used in the past 12 months. Spent an hour on 4G this afternoon .. it was warmer, but not uncomfortably so. It has not warmed up during the 15 odd calls I have made (only one went beyond 10 minutes).

I haven't done a specific speed test, but it pulled down a couple of 3 MB photos in about the same time as my Telstra 4G modem, so IMO is as good as I am used to.

Weight distribution is top fine.

[team illucid]

Where did you buy it from? How do you find the weight distribution? Does it get hot in 4G mode or when you're talking on it? I have the HTC One XL because it's a Telstra Blue Tick phone so comments on signal quality/strength would be good to hear.

Have you had a chance to do a 4G LTE test yet?

Got it from Allphones.

Signal quality seems as good as anything else I have used in the past 12 months. Spent an hour on 4G this afternoon .. it was warmer, but not uncomfortably so. It has not warmed up during the 15 odd calls I have made (only one went beyond 10 minutes).

I haven't done a specific speed test, but it pulled down a couple of 3 MB photos in about the same time as my Telstra 4G modem, so IMO is as good as I am used to.

Weight distribution is top fine.

[white lie]

Does it actually use 4G to make calls? You can get HD audio on regular 3G/HSDPA+ so it wouldn't surprise me if it switched back if there's no benefit

[team illucid]

Does it actually use 4G to make calls? You can get HD audio on regular 3G/HSDPA+ so it wouldn't surprise me if it switched back if there's no benefit

4g is for data, calls are being routed to 3g to preserve the 3g network. At least that is the Telstra explanation I have been given.

[macca_779]

I am an adult male, I can lift a 180g phone.

This guy if tuff as

http://utahrepro.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/first-wireless-phonemotorola-dynatac-8000x.jpg


Sent from my iPhone 5 using Tapatalk

[team illucid]

This guy if tuff as


Sent from my iPhone 5 using Tapatalk

If only he had an iPhone huh, he would be awesome.

Now go and Troll elsewhere.

[planetdavo]

Re the comments about weight being a negative, I remember the times when everyone wanted a smaller and smaller phone, and anyone with a big @rse phone was living in a cave.
Then, a brand brought out a phone with a huge size body again...but with a touch screen, and the rest as they say is history...
Not everyone wants a big sized smart phone, nor do they all want a lightweight phone that easily falls out of pockets and easily breaks touch screens.
We all have choices to suit our needs out in phone land...and we should all be thankful for that. :yup:

[Party Pete]

I will be interested to see how you find it over some time, especially battery life. I have to say that the weight concerns me, not when holding it in my hand but when it is flapping around in my pocket. Not enough to put me off completely though.

[team illucid]

Re the comments about weight being a negative, I remember the times when everyone wanted a smaller and smaller phone, and anyone with a big @rse phone was living in a cave.
Then, a brand brought out a phone with a huge size body again...but with a touch screen, and the rest as they say is history...
Not everyone wants a big sized smart phone, nor do they all want a lightweight phone that easily falls out of pockets and easily breaks touch screens.
We all have choices to suit our needs out in phone land...and we should all be thankful for that. :yup:

Sadly most of the comments are by people that have never even held the device, others by fruity fansites with a bone to pick. It is a big phone, but doesnt feel like a big phone if that makes any sense. It is well balanced like a nice fighting knife (for those of us bladers) or like a good german cooking knife. After almost a week, the weight doesnt even enter my mind.

[team illucid]

I will be interested to see how you find it over some time, especially battery life. I have to say that the weight concerns me, not when holding it in my hand but when it is flapping around in my pocket. Not enough to put me off completely though.

Currently getting a day and a half out of it with everything turned on which is reasonable.

In my suit pocket it is noticeable that it is there, but my pants aren't baggy enough to allow for flapping around. It moves around as I walk, but hardly different than the Titan it replaced.

[whiteknight2211]

Currently getting a day and a half out of it with everything turned on which is reasonable.

In my suit pocket it is noticeable that it is there, but my pants aren't baggy enough to allow for flapping around. It moves around as I walk, but hardly different than the Titan it replaced.

it got the better of me Kurt... I now have one too...

[team illucid]

it got the better of me Kurt... I now have one too...

Good on you Chris.

We now have two in the house as the wife wanted one to replace her Galaxy Nexus.

You were lucky to find one - most stores are having such a hard time to get stock in and keep it. My local Telstra gets 4-6 units every couple of days and they sell within the day. Local HN have 141 backorders and cant keep up with demand.

[Jonesy40]

Good on you Chris.

We now have two in the house as the wife wanted one to replace her Galaxy Nexus.

You were lucky to find one - most stores are having such a hard time to get stock in and keep it. My local Telstra gets 4-6 units every couple of days and they sell within the day. Local HN have 141 backorders and cant keep up with demand.

i have been informed by someone that works for Nokia that telstra should have good levels of stock by the 14/12/2012

[team illucid]

Hopefully they will get more stock before Christmas - they were caught with their pants down for the global demand this phone has stirred up (Nokia I mean, not Telstra).

[C4B]

I'll be interested to hear your longer term impressions (eg: is there anything that annoys you, what are the best things about it etc.)

I feel that Apple is running out of tricks up their sleeve, but after trying an SIII (which seems to be the pinnacle of Droid options..... Let down!) I'm kinda pinning my hopes that W8 might be the way forward from an ecosystem perspective.

[macca_779]

I'll be interested to hear your longer term impressions (eg: is there anything that annoys you, what are the best things about it etc.)

I feel that Apple is running out of tricks up their sleeve, but after trying an SIII (which seems to be the pinnacle of Droid options..... Let down!) I'm kinda pinning my hopes that W8 might be the way forward from an ecosystem perspective.

I played with a 920 at a telstra shop the other day as a mate was getting his iphone 5.

I really did go in there open minded, but it just didn't click for me. They still feel cheap in the hand and while I think the tile interface is a great feature it just didn't feel intuitive to navigate. Took me ages to find settings on the bloody thing too trying to get rid of that bing shite and setup up a hotspot

[team illucid]

I'll be interested to hear your longer term impressions (eg: is there anything that annoys you, what are the best things about it etc.)

I feel that Apple is running out of tricks up their sleeve, but after trying an SIII (which seems to be the pinnacle of Droid options..... Let down!) I'm kinda pinning my hopes that W8 might be the way forward from an ecosystem perspective.

well, I have been using WP since it launched, through the NoDo debacle, through the Mango update and now into WP8.

What annoys me the most, is the basic things that phones should do (customised SMS tones, profiles for auto silence, work etc) are just not there. Even when it first launched and there was no cop and paste etc - it was unforgiveable that it would happen in a modern era phone.

App support has been lacking - and it still is to a fair degree. There are a lot of niche apps for iOS that WP will get to, but is just not yet there. It is very much a tale of reversed fortunes - when the iPhone first launched against Windows Mobile, people complained about the same thing - not many apps, basic features missing etc. But it was different and it had something about it that drew people towards the experience.

I think WP has actually "made it" to a certain degree - it is not there 100% but has a lot of excellent signs ... 1500 devs a day are signing up to the WP8 dev program, devs are making more money per download than on iOS or Android (usually because WP cost more than their iOS/Android counterparts), 130000 apps and rising, better hardware allowed.

In 2 years, it will be a very different Mobile environment.

As for the SG3, I believe the Galaxy Nexus to be a better Android experience - the SG3 is a spec monster, but not the pinnacle it is made out to be.

[team illucid]

I played with a 920 at a telstra shop the other day as a mate was getting his iphone 5.

I really did go in there open minded, but it just didn't click for me. They still feel cheap in the hand and while I think the tile interface is a great feature it just didn't feel intuitive to navigate. Took me ages to find settings on the bloody thing too trying to get rid of that bing shite and setup up a hotspot

Nothing is intuitive. The iPhone was just as hard to learn coming from Windows Mobile. The same going from Apple to a Blackberry, and then Blackberry to Android. Everything is learned, the curve to do so makes us think that something is more intuitive to use over another device.

Interesting comment about feeling cheap. I remember when I got my hands on the iPhone 4 and thought wow - this feels like a quality phone. The 920 is the only device since the iPhone 4 to make me feel the same way.

Bing is a shite for sure, but seems to work well enough. I would prefer to be able to set my own search engine - I doubt that it will ever be possible (at least in the browser you can specify Google or Bing)

[C4B]

well, I have been using WP since it launched, through the NoDo debacle, through the Mango update and now into WP8.

What annoys me the most, is the basic things that phones should do (customised SMS tones, profiles for auto silence, work etc) are just not there. Even when it first launched and there was no cop and paste etc - it was unforgiveable that it would happen in a modern era phone.

App support has been lacking - and it still is to a fair degree. There are a lot of niche apps for iOS that WP will get to, but is just not yet there. It is very much a tale of reversed fortunes - when the iPhone first launched against Windows Mobile, people complained about the same thing - not many apps, basic features missing etc. But it was different and it had something about it that drew people towards the experience.

I think WP has actually "made it" to a certain degree - it is not there 100% but has a lot of excellent signs ... 1500 devs a day are signing up to the WP8 dev program, devs are making more money per download than on iOS or Android (usually because WP cost more than their iOS/Android counterparts), 130000 apps and rising, better hardware allowed.

In 2 years, it will be a very different Mobile environment.

As for the SG3, I believe the Galaxy Nexus to be a better Android experience - the SG3 is a spec monster, but not the pinnacle it is made out to be.

Sounds very similar to W7 in a lot of ways. I've still got a HTC running W7 that i bought soon after 7 came out and I probably would have jumped ship back then were it not for a couple of issues.

1. The Bluetooth simply wouldn't reliably work with my car. You could pair it and it would work once, twice, maybe even 10 times and then it would shit itself and you'd have to go through the whole process again.
2. There were a few key Apps which weren't available on W7 at the time which I used for work purposes.

Be interesting to see how things pan out for W8.

[C4B]

Nothing is intuitive. The iPhone was just as hard to learn coming from Windows Mobile. The same going from Apple to a Blackberry, and then Blackberry to Android. Everything is learned, the curve to do so makes us think that something is more intuitive to use over another device.

So true. I remember going from a Treo 750 (and had had a long list of Windows phones before that) and the iPhone felt like a toy.

The thing that I hated the most about it was there was no way you could turn off push based on the time of day. I was so used to being able to set my phone to push emails (exchange) based on the time of day and even the day itself. You also used to be able to set all your call forward settings and numbers on the phone. With the iPhone you could only forward or not forward..... Still annoys me to this day.

[macca_779]

Nothing is intuitive. The iPhone was just as hard to learn coming from Windows Mobile. The same going from Apple to a Blackberry, and then Blackberry to Android. Everything is learned, the curve to do so makes us think that something is more intuitive to use over another device.

Interesting comment about feeling cheap. I remember when I got my hands on the iPhone 4 and thought wow - this feels like a quality phone. The 920 is the only device since the iPhone 4 to make me feel the same way.

Bing is a shite for sure, but seems to work well enough. I would prefer to be able to set my own search engine - I doubt that it will ever be possible (at least in the browser you can specify Google or Bing)

Its a shame too because the hardware specs themselves are very good. The OS while not bad, just isn't as mature as it must be if it wants to be competitive.

I did strongly consider one prior to getting my iphone 5. Alas the lack of maturity meant I wasn't willing to go backwards from and established OS just yet.

I've now ditched Windows as my primary PC in favour of OSX. Still have a server on Win 7 that I can access from my Mac.

The learning curve to OSX has been sharp although having iOS for some time now has helped I still find myself googling how to do so and so for mac from time to time. But I'm glad I made the switch as just like iOS it really shows how well the hardware and software work together.

So now that I've transitions pretty much fully to Apple (Airport is the last device I lack). Its going to take a massive shift in the fold for me to get out of this extremely well integrated ecosystem. That integration will be impossible for google as they simply don't have the range of products to do it.

Microsoft will be the ones to challenge Apple here. Things like the Surface, WP8 and XBOX are where they can do it. The PC is the cracker where the hardware is not controlled by Microsoft. Hardware compatibility and chasing drivers all over the shop has always been a bug bear of mine especially with new hardware (windows update just doesn't cut it)

In a few years time when WP8 has matured and Windows 8 is established and carries mature hardware I may move back.. But its going to be a hard sell to go back to the dark side

[team illucid]

Its going to take a massive shift in the fold for me to get out of this extremely well integrated ecosystem.

That is the funny thing ... you obviously left the Windows ecosystem to go to Apple, and the Windows ecosystem has always worked better than anything Apple has offered, but you had to choose wisely.

Apple pioneered the "easy" ecosystem - one choice, take it or leave it. Sony tried, but could never muster enough market share, MS failed because whilst it could be done, it actually required user skill to make it work. They are finally changing tact, and it is becoming much easier, but they are taking away choice in some circumstances, which is not a good thing.

Google - like it or not, they are an ecosystem of their own. Their products are good enough that I can move fairly seamlessly between Windows and Google for email/contacts/calendaring and apps in the space of the 30-60 minutes. And the kids like Android. Neither of my kids will touch an Apple product, but they are happy with their SG2 and Nexus phones. Apple is having to share its hipster image with the grey nomads as nans and pops buy iPads and iPhones, and the younger kids are resenting it (naturally).

Back on track - Numbers after Xmas will be really interesting to see just how well the 920 has sold considering it is still impossible to get consistent stock globally. HN are several thousands behind in deliveries to pre-ordered customers, not to mention how many thousands are waiting for their Telstra stock.

[C4B]

The funny thing is, as much as I've owned every model of every iPhone and iPad, I don't find the Mac anything special. I've got a Macbook Air i7 with the 256MB SSD and as much as I've tried to like it, the Apple desktop operating system still leaves me totally cold. I've got it sitting on the desk next to me and I haven't even fired it up for probably a fortnight.

Then again, with things like Evernote, Dropbox, Skydrive and Exchange, my syncing between desktop and mobile devices is pretty much platform independent.

[whiteknight2211]

I am finding the phone quite good to use, for some things it feels better than the iPhone although closing open applications could be done in a better fashion.

When I bought the 920, the Allphones store I first went too told me they had none - I asked if this was due to them being hard to come by or being hugely popular, she replied they'd been walking out of the store far faster than they could get them in. It's good to see Nokia gaining some traction and I probably got very lucky in the fact there was a black one to look at.

It is heavier than my HTC One XL but it feels better in the hand so the trade off feels justified. I've got the matt finish black phone and it doesn't look cheap which is good considering it's all made of plastic.

I'm happy I don't have to deal with the Android update debacle, whether or not it is the fault of the manufacturer to me doesn't reduce the frustration of paying for a high-end smart phone that doesn't get the latest updates in a timely fashion.

I know that Apps are always a hot topic, but I have found a few that I normally use (QANTAS, Aust Post, banking) and I find them to be just as functional as any on iOS/Android phone - I certainly am a fan of the QANTAS app though. The navigation software was quite substantial and performed flawlessely driving around Adelaide on the weekend. One additional feature I was satisfied with was the fact I can delete the bloatware that came from Nokia if I so choose.

Setting the phone up was probably the easiest I have encountered, the Lumia had an app pre-installed that extracted all contacts over Bluetooth from my old phone.

The small annoyance I have with the phone (as team illucid indicated) is that I can't really set up silent/quiet profiles as I would on other phones. I hate phones when their is a silent mode that vibrates and makes more sound than if it had just rung.

I don't really have any huge complaints with the phone - I don't get hung up on the fact theirs no SD card slot, I feel that all mobile storage has to be managed especially when storing videos and 32GB is heaps for a phone.

[Party Pete]

Is that a day and a half using 4G? For better or worse I bought the iphone 5 on the weekend and the obvious thing I have noticed is that the battery life is terrible if you let LTE/4G turned on. Going back to 3G puts the battery life back into the same sort of range as the iphone 4.

As a slight digression, I switched to osx almost 3 years ago after my second rubbish experience with Windows Vista. That was with Snow Leopard. Since then Apple has updated OSX to Lion and now Mountain Lion and each one has slowed down my slightly aging Mac, proving that Apple doesn't always get it right either. Conversely I have Windows 7 on a 1 year old computer and it works a treat. It seems that all software companies have good and bad moments.

[whiteknight2211]

Is that a day and a half using 4G? For better or worse I bought the iphone 5 on the weekend and the obvious thing I have noticed is that the battery life is terrible if you let LTE/4G turned on. Going back to 3G puts the battery life back into the same sort of range as the iphone 4.

As a slight digression, I switched to osx almost 3 years ago after my second rubbish experience with Windows Vista. That was with Snow Leopard. Since then Apple has updated OSX to Lion and now Mountain Lion and each one has slowed down my slightly aging Mac, proving that Apple doesn't always get it right either. Conversely I have Windows 7 on a 1 year old computer and it works a treat. It seems that all software companies have good and bad moments.

I have used LTE on three phones now, a Sumsung Galaxy S2 4G, HTC One XL and now the Lumia 920 - LTE sucks the battery on all three.

I do remember that when 3G first came out that battery life was also terrible, I guess the production process for the chips is not as mature as the rest of the hardware within phones - this is probably further evident in how much hotter these phones have gotten with LTE on.

I remember being in Brisbane using LTE/WiFi hotspot simultaneously and even with the charger on the battery still couldn't keep up.

[Woodchukka]

Software can make a difference to battery life as well. Maybe they need some fine tuning there as well?

[whiteknight2211]

Software can make a difference to battery life as well. Maybe they need some fine tuning there as well?

I'm sure there must be room for optimisation but I do see that LTE is switched off during calls for power which to me indicates it's a battery hog.

Has anyone with a battery monitor app and LTE checked out the battery usage?