Has anyone any experience of the newish generation of Windows phones? I’ve used Android for the last few years but my phone is getting slow and full so I’m considering a change.
What are the new Nokias & Win HTCs like?

You’ll make Steve Ballmer so happy, he’s been waiting for someone to buy one….

Windows phone UI is great, but they lack some of the most common apps Strava being a good example.

Don’t let that put you off though as the relative lack of popularity for the platform can mean you can get a great deal on contract.

Posting a picture on this forum with a windows phone is something I have managed once.
I think it is easier to use than an android phone fir everyday use.
Id have an iPhone if you could put in a spare battery.
When my first windows phone broke I ended up throwing it away, when my iPhone 3gs broke someone bought it for £90 on eBay.

Got a very cheap contract one for my son and I’m impressed – typing is better than on an iPhone. Very easy device to use.
If I didn’t have the iPhone through work, I’d get one in a heartbeat, especially as you can get them for £7 a month.

Love mine (Lumia 925).

Highly recommended, awesome camera, no shortage of apps, offline navigation, and it has Wordament and Contre Jour.

The offline navigation and OS mapping was the deciding factor in my decision (Nokia 820) but the fantastic UI is a definite bonus, so much more pleasant to use than Android. Great battery life as well.
Camera is ace with lots of free photo apps, free access to Nokia music so plenty of free music to listen to as well.

OP if I where you I’d stick with Android (FYI I am on Apple so no bias towards Android). There is a very real chance 2 years from now Windows/Nokia won’t be in the phone business. If you don’t care about the latest phone buy a 1 or 2 year old android phone (e.g. Samsung or similar), perhaps one with expandable memory.

Where are they £7 a month?

Love mine (lumia 800-Winphone 7.8) gutted the other day when it fell out of my camelbak at the cash machine ,SMACK on to Yorkshire paving and one knackered screen.

Have managed to replace the screen (which was dead easy undo 2xtiny torx screws,pry old screen out remove two leads and reverse to fit new screen)

However although the phone works perfectly the replacement screen a generic Chinese one off ebay is not as good quality so I’m going to use it as a excuse to get a newer Windows Phone.

Definetly wont be changing to Android or Jesusphone.

920 here, I like it. It’s simple and powerful, but less customisable than Android.

However I do like people working on my OS for me and sending me updates. I’ve had it four months, had one update, got another coming soon apparently.

The problem with Android is that each manufacturer and network seem to have to build new updates separately, and the amount of work that requires means you often don’t get them or get them really late.

I may be chopping my iPhone 5 in for a 925 shortly, as a possible business move to Windows 8 end to end.

Outlook client is excellent, Office onboard is handy, Lync client is killer.. even the £90 520 does all this on a smaller screen. Add offline satnav and the devices themselves being much improved (design and content) and it’s looking like a great package.

Nokia tablets in various format look decent too, but it comes down to ecosystem – if the apps arrive (I’ve heard 90 – 200 thousand claimed in the Windows Store) it’s going to be the 3rd way, and I can see a lot of buy in from Blackberry refugees (corporates) over the next few months driving this.

EDIT: forgot, they have a sd slot for media only use, which seems quite a neat solution.

Molgrips is right re Android fragmentation. Its a real pain.

I got roped into a Nokia testing program a while back for the work, which meant I had a 925 a bit earlier than most…its still being used by me as its a great phone/device.

+: Good battery life, good hardware and display, great camera, integrates well with an MS environment.
-: Some common apps are missing (Strava, as mentioned, though good replacements are out there), the constant updates is a bit too Windows-ish, occasional random reboots (which now seems to have been patched).

Ive just swapped my 2 year old Android phone with a mate in the office for his cheapo Windows Lumia 520 (cue laughs).

Seriously though, Nokia do make a nicely built phone and the interface is really good. Mine has good battery life and the apps seem to do most of the stuff I want. I’m happy. Oh and the Nokia SatNav seems great too.

Here’s the Windows challenge. Someone post a picture on here using it.
Trying to copy the link on Flickr is a nightmare and impossible on photobucket.
Is there another option I can use?

I’ve done it with flickr.

Apps are not much of an issue for me either. There are some things missing but there is a lot on there.

Oh and I really like the fact that there’s a camera app with full manual control, even manual focus! Pretty nifty for a phone.

molgrips – Member

The problem with Android is that each manufacturer and network seem to have to build new updates separately, and the amount of work that requires means you often don’t get them or get them really late.

Only because they put their branded crap on them (although I’ll admit that that’s a large part of the attraction as far as the manufacturers/carriers are concerned).
If you get a Nexus device direct from google then there is no fragmentation – they all get updated to the latest version as soon as it’s released by google.

But that means £300-£400 up front doesn’t it?

EDIT blimey, just checked ebay – what looks like new Lumia 920s are £190!

I have one as a work phone, really like it. Considering a move from my iPhone when my contract comes up.

The voice of doom here, just swapped back to iPhone after using a Nokia 820 since last Xmas.
I broke my iPhone last summer and decided I didn’t need a smart phone, gave up after Xmas and bought an 820 as I wanted something diff to try and hated an android phone I was lent.

Since August I have been increasingly desperate for a new iPhone as my experience seemed to go further downhill the longer I used it.
Why:
I hated the keyboard in the end, after 6 months I was still making a huge amount of mistakes,
Apps are fairly thin on the ground and loads seem to just link you throw to their web pages.
No strava and Dropbox – although there are a fair few work rounds
Twitter has to be used via a Microsoft login workaround (wtf)
Small nightly things that used to wind me up, such as having to scroll all the way back up to the top of a web page – no hitting the top and it auto scrolls

All very first world problems, but I do like my new 5s, although the bank balance didn’t ……

Been with Android since i first used my other half’s HTC Hero years ago….it wiped the floor with the iPhone that was out at the time but didnt seem to have any where near the advertising or hype behind it.
It’s been a joy to see Android evolve and i’ve had 2 of the stock Nexus devices as well as some with manufacturer skins over the top (Samsung and HTC), its a very complete OS which is probably why i’ve starting looking around for something else to try (boredom?)…..and the Windows phones by Nokia do look very good at the moment….i’ve also seen those 920s on eBay for £200 unlocked.
Interested to hear other people’s experiences too, keep it coming….

I just bought a Nokia 520, does what it says on the tin.
Makes Calls
Sends texts
Gets on the internet
takes crap photos
Seems pretty standard for a mobile phone and at £90 why would you want to spend more ?

Now that MS own Nokia wonder why they don’t try and do a “nexus” and release a high end phone for cost(ish) – would definitely tempt some.

MS have to decide what business they’re in – are they a hardware company like Apple or a web company like Google or a software behemouth with a line in hardware – which in the consumer field doesn’t really seem to be working at the mo.

Picked up an 820 for £10/month a few months back, doesn’t matter if it’s any good for that money

The wife has a Nokia 925. We have both come from a long history of iPhones and myself using Android for work. The Windows 8 phone has been a breath of fresh air. Very natural to use with a degree of control that Apple don’t allow. The Sat Nav as mentioned is great.
The only downside is the lack of apps compared with Apple. It’s a bit like the early days of Android. The quality of the Apps on Windows 8 seems to be good without the useless junk that was available on Android in the early days.
When using it there is no lag or crashes. It has had a stronger signal to the network, wireless and 3g than my iPhone 4s to the extent that if we are searching for something whilst out the wife has found the information before I even get a browser/app open using 3G.
Integration with other Windows 8 machines is great using the Microsoft account. Much like the Apple iCloud but works much better.
When my contract ends next year I will be changing to a Nokia Windows 8 to cure my phone envy.

Er.. I have dropbox on my Nokia 820 – someone didn’t look very hard did they?

I just got a Lumia 520 for my wife and its great! I’ve been using an iPhone since 09 but though this was excellent for £17 a month.