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Review: Microsoft Lumia 950

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Comments (25)
  1. Leanne Swaniawski says:

    The Dock is the nearest functional equivalent to the Taskbar which you claimed Apple stole from Microsoft. Prior art says otherwise and the fact that Microsoft's "task bar" has evolved over time to more closely resemble the Dock concept, your point is moot.

  2. Dr. Christa Leannon says:

    I would stay away from this phone. The 950 is filled with bugs. The camera struggles to save photos you capture and the video it captures randomly is skipping. If you plan on using this phone to capture photos and videos for special events be warned. It will lock when saving photos and the videos will have audio and video that will be skipping.

  3. Wanda Stoltenberg says:

    I don't care this is 2 months old argument, but for the future readers, go and see "Pirates of Sillicon Valley" . Everyone copies everyone. and ESPECIALLY Apple, Do you think Macintosh with a "mouse and keyboard" just came out of the blue? Xerox invented it. Xerox also invented the first laser scanner, but, whoops! stoled by HP,IBM,Canon and… Apple!
    You might admire Apple, but quit telling yourself silly things about "Apple innovates". What was that line in the movie? "Good artists copy, Great artists steal"

  4. Kyler Kirlin says:

    Sounds like you got a defective phone. I've had the 950 for over a month with none of your issues.

  5. Mrs. Lucie Carter II says:

    The real excerpt is:

    "NeXTSTEP's user interface is considered to be refined
    and consistent.[citation needed] It introduced the idea of the Dock (carried
    through OpenStep and into today's OS X) and the Shelf."

    Notice the [citation needed]? That means that you are basing
    your argument on something that has no sources to validate.

    Also… I never mentioned the Dock (it's not a finder bar)
    nor shelf.

    Research does not mean typing something on Google and using
    uncited, unvalidated information from the first link atop the page.

  6. Melyssa Stehr says:

    "I couldn't install ".exe" files"
    Haha.

    Damn, this phone is crap!

  7. Shyanne Kub says:

    I'm not sure why I continue to beat this dead horse any further, but since you insist on pushing this debate, you should find the excerpt below from the NextStep Wikipedia entry:

    "NeXTSTEP's user interface is considered to be refined and consistent. It introduced the idea of the Dock (carried through OpenStep and into today's OS X) and the Shelf."

    As you say, "research is your friend, use it."

  8. Eino Nitzsche says:

    That is correct. And the Office 365 subs are free the first year. (not sure that was the case when you posted this)

  9. Nelda Friesen says:

    You do understand the definition of innovation right? From Webster's Dictionary "to do something in a new way : to have new ideas about how something can be done" Copying an idea or subtle changes to an existing idea is NOT innovation.

  10. Florence Schoen says:

    Another review that is missing the point. I purchased this phone a month ago, it is my first ever windows phone having used iPhone for 4+ years an Android for 3. There were good things and bad things about both platforms, but enough bad things that I decided to give windows phone a shot with the Lumia 950. I am quite impressed with this phone and the features.

    What people keep missing is that this phone is an extension of the PC experience. When you have Windows 10 on your PC and Windows 10 on your phone, it changes everything. It's no longer about a device being the center of your experience, YOU become the center of the experience. Because your phone and your PC are running variations of the same OS, it is your profile that is carried from one device to the next. Cortana is seamless across both devices…set a reminder, an appt. or whatever on one device and it carries over to the other. But it is more than that because Cortana knows about you, who you are, etc. so that knowledge is carried over between devices. Relevant notifications carry over from one device to the other. Menu systems are laid out in a similar design, look feel. Contacts are synced between devices, email is synced, calendars are synced. Full office apps like Word, Excel, PPT, an more are there. Things like OneNote and OneDrive keep everything synced. Your app library is common between devices. Images taken on phone can be automatically uploaded to OneDrive so your phone/PC are in sync. However, Msft did not jus cram a PC OS on a phone or a phone OS on a PC, each provides a unique experience but the relationship between the devices is very clear. Each version is optimized for the use case of that device.

    Yes, you can do some of these things like sync your email/calendars on other platforms, but they are still very different experiences connected by only the thinnest of threads like an exchange account. It is still is very isolated and you can feel that as though you are entering a different environment. You have to learn how your phone does things vs. your PC, different menus, different tools, different ways to get things done. It may not be hard, but it is still switching gears to manage that different environment.

    Real world example: I travel frequently and do a lot of customer presentations. I created a presentation in powerpoint on my PC, uploaded it to OneDrive. While meeting with the customer, I downloaded the presentation to my phone, used my phone to wirelessly connect to a projector (over miracast) and presented the entire presentation right from my phone and never had to pull out my laptop. My phone was an extension of my PC experience.

    Real world example: While on a business call (over skype) on my PC, my phone rang. I hit ignore to finish my skype call. Cortana on my PC popped open a box asking me if I wanted to reply back to the caller via text. I select yes, it allowed my to type a short message saying I would call them back. I hit enter and my PC sent a text from my phone to the caller. Yes, you can now easily use your PC to send a text from your phone. Once again, the phone is an extension of the PC, not a separate experience.

    As for not feeling like a premium phone? Most people I know all put a case on their phone to protect their investment. Therefore, you are covering up the "beauty" shortly after buying the phone. So, does it really matter if it has a polycarbonate back or aluminum back? When you use your phone you are staring at the screen anyway and not the back.

    As for the lack of apps? For me, this is a don't care. I checked all the apps on my Android phone and all but 3 were available on my Windows phone. Now, I am not a big app user and only have about a dozen or two and most are productivity type stuff, so apps for travel, finance and various tools (tip calculator, scientific calculator, etc.) as well as stuff like Netflix. Missing only 3 is not that big of a deal. I do get that some people might have a high dependency on specific, niche apps and that could be a problem for them but for most, I think this is likely a non issue. Yes both Android and iPhone have larger app libraries but how many of those are cheap, crappy apps? I think the better question is, how many apps do you download and actually use on a regular basis? Are those apps available? As you state in the review, you said most of your apps were there. That was my experience as well, most of the apps I wanted and used are on the Windows phone as well.

    The phone specs are on par with every leading phone in the market. Similar CPU, Graphics, RAM, Screen Size/Resolution. So, no one can really say this is not a premium phone with any credibility in my opinion. Add in features like Memory Slot, USB Type C, Dual SIM capable, WiFi Sense, Storage Sense, Native Office Applications, Cortana, Continuum, Common User experience across PC/Phone, killer camera and more and you find you have a very, very capable device.

    Is it perfect? Of course not. Msft still has work to do. I have seen some minor bugs that appear to be addressed through some updates. But I have seen bugs on iPhone and Android as well so this is nothing new. I would like to see them do a better job of managing on screen contacts. On Android, I could group favorites, see more contacts on the screen at one time, etc. I also don't like that the camera button, volume rocker and screen on/off button are all on the same side. I find myself accidentally hitting buttons when I pick up the phone. But these are all minor compared to the value the phone experience provides when running Windows 10 on both phone and PC.

    So, overall, I am very happy with this phone and as stated, I am a first time user having switched from Android over to WinPhone. Should you consider this phone? If you are unhappy with your current phone, then I highly recommend you consider this phone, especially if you are running Win 10 on your PC.

  11. Dr. Cara Schumm says:

    Once you put it in a case, you don't see the design so the point is moot. It does not matter what is "in", ITS IN A CASE! Furthermore, are you staring at the back of your phone or the screen? My phone is a productivity tool, I don't give a rat's ass what the back cover is made of as it does not matter. I guess I am just practical that way.

  12. Lisandro Hartmann says:

    6Tag is the SHIT!

  13. Prof. Garnet Bechtelar Sr. says:

    You definitely have a place next to all generations of IPhones in an Apple museum..

  14. Godfrey Durgan MD says:

    He's an isheep blinded by the apple ecosystem. There is no help for him.

  15. Eugenia Gutkowski says:

    Apple do innovate, look at 3D Touch for the 6s and 6s Plus. It's not always about who does it first, it's about who does it right.

  16. Ms. Florence Cassin says:

    you can buy a mozo leather premium case

  17. Karelle Nikolaus says:

    horrible camera only sony is the best in all times

  18. Garry Ferry says:

    Metal is overrated for sure and should not be as big a deal everyone tries to make of it.

  19. Irving Schmeler PhD says:

    Why ? 6Tag is much better on Windows Phone than Instagram on iOS or Android !!!
    Dis you use it ?

  20. Chet O'Hara says:

    I have. You're spouting nonsense.

  21. Miss Marilou Hintz says:

    Cortana works faster than Shazam. Why would you even still have that app on a Windows phone?

  22. Jacey Robel says:

    BGR, The Verge…

  23. Hadley Labadie I says:

    Android is "winning " in a market not important enough for Apple and the iPhone us winning against Android where it matters, in the high end markets and in profits 94% of the smartphone profits to be exact. Android is fragmented and malware ridden while iOS is far more secure and polished. Need I say more why iOS is better than Android.

  24. Aida Jacobi says:

    Yes, I have used iPhone, Android and now Windows. Each has some good points and bad ones. iPhone may "win" for you but that is a purely subjective view. There is no "best" in the market. Each user defines what is "Best" for them. If you want to look at sales, then Android is KILLING iPhone. However, that does not mean that Android is "best". Stop drinking the apple cool aid.

  25. Derrick Okuneva says:

    Dont even know why i'm replying but you should know that Windows 2.0/2.1 (source of almost all those innovations) came out a full year before the version of NextStep (what you are mistakingly calling NextOS) that contained the mentionned features. Research is you friend, use it.

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