Best Windows Phone, Verizon

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

What's the best Windows phone out on Verizon's network? I like the Lumina 1020 but I would rather wait for the next Snapdragon chip to come out to a WP. I think its the 800 on the 1020. Heard good things about the 805

 

[bearxor]

For Verizon, its the Lumia Icon or the HTC One M8 Windows Phone.

If camera is important, go Icon. Otherwise, its a toss up between the two.

 

[gmaster456]

I personally would go with the M8. The camera isn't the best out there but it is certainly serviceable. But both are great phone.

 

[quikah]

What's the best Windows phone out on Verizon's network? I like the Lumina 1020 but I would rather wait for the next Snapdragon chip to come out to a WP. I think its the 800 on the 1020. Heard good things about the 805

1020 has an S4, which is why it is so slow snapping pictures and needs an update badly.

As others said, Icon if you want a good camera, m8 if camera isn't that important.

 

[Imaginer]

The main distinct noticeable differences as a smartphone for me...

If you want a removable battery and a microSD card slot, there is the Samsung ATIV SE.

The Icon, doesn't have either (save for the dedicated camera button and best camera of the three mentioned in this thread).

The HTC M8 Windows device has a microSD card support up to 128GB, versus the 64GB of the ATIV SE. No removable battery, No camera button.

I wouldn't be too worried about the SOC, as all three I believe perform well.

A shame that there is not a phone that has all three aspects I would like (camera button, microSD support, removable battery) along with a decent display (720p is acceptable or 1080p) or a decent camera that handles all types of lighting.

 

[Crono]

Lumia Icon. I have one right now (white one) and it's the best Windows Phone overall. I had the 1520 before on AT&T and it's size was slightly annoying, if nice for stuff where screen "real estate" is important). Only drawback is the lack of microSD, but for my own purposes 32GB is fine. I think the speakers on the Icon are not quite as loud as the 1520's, but I no longer have the 1520 (cracked the screen when I accidentally dropped it ) to do a side-by-side comparison. The Icon is acceptably loud, though, I've just been spoiled by the 1520 and HTC One (M7 and M8).

The One (M8) is also a strong contender. I had the Android version of it and loved it for the body, speakers, and display. The Icon is no slouch, though, it has a gorgeous AMOLED display and the body is excellent. I don't no why some reviewers have said the Icon's design is plain - I'd say it's elegant; I much prefer the matte back and very subtle curve to the glossy 1520, which was slippery. The flat aluminum sides make it look a bit boxy and iPhone-like, but I don't think that's a negative.

I agree with Imaginer about the SoC. Everything so far is fast enough and smooth. Haven't got around to putting 8.1 update on it yet, though. I also haven't had the Icon long enough to test the camera, but so far it seems to be on par with the 1520, which is better than the One. The One isn't bad, but it and it's predecessor always seemed to only do better in low light and macro shots than its Android brethren - for everything else it was acceptable, but not as good as the other flagship phones. The Icon, on the other hand, is worth getting for the camera if image quality matters. Only the 1020 and the iPhone 5S are better with any consistency.

I *may* end up selling this phone when a new PureView successor to the 1020 comes out if it has an appreciably better camera, but for now I really love this phone.

 

[Deeko]

The HTC One M8 is a beautiful phone. Very well built, removable memory, great audio. However, the Lumia Icon has a much better camera. Depends on what's more important to you.

 

[notposting]

Yeah, they are all compromises at this point. Don't forget wireless charging on the Icon. I believe both the Samsung and HTC have IR control though as a feature.

For me, the dedicated camera button, pictures with a lot more data available for tweaking after the fact, and wireless charging tipped the field.

Well, also the fact that I got my Icon free for an upgrade and kept my unlimited data, and ordered a couple days before the W8 launched.

 

[pantsaregood]

Verizon also has the Samsung ATIV SE, which is pretty much a Galaxy S5 running Windows Phone. Snapdragon 800, 2GB of RAM.

The Snapdragon 801 and 805 are better than the 800, but they certainly aren't a generational leap. I'd take the Lumia Icon over the other two because it is more likely to remain up-to-date. As far as hardware goes, they're all extremely powerful.

 

[rockyct]

The M8 is a very nice looking phone and the microSD slot is sure a plus, but I'd go for the Icon. Once you have an awesome camera with a dedicated button, you never want to go back. The exclusive Nokia apps used to tip the balance easily to a Nokia phone but apps like Drive + are on all Windows Phones now. World downloadable maps are amazing. My sister has the Nokia 928 and she went to London/Italy/Paris and download all the maps ahead of time. They worked great at she didn't even bother to buy a European SIM while she was there.

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

So the Icon seems to be the one for me. There are a few apps I'd miss like COL reminder, Palmary Weather, No Crop (instagram) Game of Stocks. Will the Icon get Windows 9 ?

EDIT: Oh, I see WP has Gas Buddy - not that important of an app but I use it. How does Facebook run on the Icon? It destroys my Droid Bionic. How do I know? When I uninstall the app and disable it the phone runs perfect.

Oh a big one is the Verizon Backup contacts system. I'm guessing it will have that?

 

[TripleThreatTLT]

Personally I would avoid the Icon. I owned a 928 and thought I would love the Icon so I got one this weekend, talked my wife into it as well. Wifi signal strength is such a joke it had to get returned. I put 8.1 developer preview on mine which was apparently a bad idea because then it kept getting crazy hot. Even after everything was installed and the phone was restarted it would heat up while web browsing. My wifes which didn't have 8.1 never really got too hot, but her Wifi was still god awful.

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

Personally I would avoid the Icon. I owned a 928 and thought I would love the Icon so I got one this weekend, talked my wife into it as well. Wifi signal strength is such a joke it had to get returned. I put 8.1 developer preview on mine which was apparently a bad idea because then it kept getting crazy hot. Even after everything was installed and the phone was restarted it would heat up while web browsing. My wifes which didn't have 8.1 never really got too hot, but her Wifi was still god awful.

Any other issues?

 

[notposting]

I haven't noticed a problem with the wifi, but certainly saw reports that it can be an issue. I have never used the Verizon Backup system, why wouldn't you just sync Google/Microsoft/etc to the phone?

I will say the 928 absolutely destroys the Icon in very low light though. f/2.0 vs f/2.4 and much higher pixel density = less light collected. Not sure how the M8 compares, unfortunately.

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

Is the difference that much to notice? Everytime I went with a P&S that claimed better low light performance I couldn't notice. Not that I'm an authority on low level light peformance, I just want a great camera on my phone. Better than the iPhone 5 if that's possible.

I'm trying to totally get away from Google/Android

 

[bearxor]

I will say the 928 absolutely destroys the Icon in very low light though. f/2.0 vs f/2.4 and much higher pixel density = less light collected. Not sure how the M8 compares, unfortunately.

I didn't really believe you so I went to dpreview to check it out.

They don't have the Icon in their comparisons, but they do have the 1520, which uses the same camera.

You are correct, there is a noticeable difference in low light quality between the two camera.

But, the 928 has so much noise. The image from the 1520 is way better even if it is a little darker.

Quality comparison can be done here:
http://connect.dpreview.com/post/6973057172/samsung-galaxy-s5-camera-review?page=10

But I took just a few snaps from the darker part of the image to post here.

I think I'd take the Icon/1520 camera over the 928's.

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

^agree

 

[TripleThreatTLT]

No I didn't really have any other issues. I did get a blue screen when updating it though. That was rather depressing. Restarted it though and it seemed ok.

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

Do any apps in the Icon feel sluggish? My Droid Bionic comes back to life when I uninstall all facebook updates and disable it

 

[quikah]

I have a Lumia 925 which is older than the Icon.

I haven't noticed any apps behaving badly on it. Facebook is fine, though the current one is a bit wonky (doesn't show photos/links when friends like them, just shows that they liked something). Supposedly the beta app fixes this, though I haven't tried it as I don't use facebook much. Don't use Messenger.

 

[Ravynmagi]

I like my Lumia Icon I got on Verizon. It's got a great looking AMOLED screen, I like how the glass slopes down on the sides. And the metal frame looks and feels good to hold, gives the phone a very high quality feel. I like have the two stage dedicated camera button. And it the camera is flush with the back, cameras that jut out bug me a little.

I completely forgot Samsung still made Windows phones, didn't realize the Ativ SE existed.

I might have considered the M8 for Windows, had it existed when I bought my Icon. I think the front facing speakers would have been nice. But I'd also be concerned about the Ultrapixel camera. I don't take a lot of pictures, but when I do, I'd prefer they not suck.

Unfortunately I never could find the apps to really help me stop using my Android phones (Note 3/Nexus 5). So my Icon doesn't get much use.

 

[Crono]

AnandTech's Lumia 930 (effectively the same as the Icon, but for the other networks) is out.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/8441/nokia-lumia-930-review