Discussion
I'm in the market for both a Surface and a new phone as I've become increasingly frustrated with my Ipad 2 and Iphone 4. I use the ipad daily for internet browsing but I have found myself choosing to use the laptop more and more (and thats slow). The iphone gets used to call, text, satnav, whatsapp and take the odd crap picture, but thats about it. It's just slow in general and especially crap for browsing the internet, don't get me started on poor wifi signal. The Surface would replace both the ipad and the laptop, which I think it would perform those tasks well without question even though they should really have LTE option to truly replace a tablet, which is why I have held off purchasing one thus far.
On the phone side of things, I fancy a change from the iphone and really don't get on with Android. My only other real choice is windows. It will be very interesting to see how the Windows phones interacts with the Surface within the windows 10 ecosystem. Depending on the timing (contract runs out in September) I may end up with a cheapy Lumia to test it or wait for the flagship models to come out (940 I think).
On the phone side of things, I fancy a change from the iphone and really don't get on with Android. My only other real choice is windows. It will be very interesting to see how the Windows phones interacts with the Surface within the windows 10 ecosystem. Depending on the timing (contract runs out in September) I may end up with a cheapy Lumia to test it or wait for the flagship models to come out (940 I think).
ash73 said:
I recently got a cheapo Lumia 530 just to have a play with, and I like the OS except for a couple of things; there are no bluetooth drivers for Windows (unbelievable for a Windows phone) so you have to use the usb cable, and the (very nice) home-screen doesn't auto-rotate. The physical screen has awful viewing angles too, but I expect the high end phones are better.
I have no idea where you got the nugget I've emphasised in bold, or why you would make that sort of thing up. It certainly isn't true.Windows Phone is great, especially at the low end where Android, frankly, sucks. Microsoft really got the small screen UI right, though admittedly most people people didn't 'get' it. The secret is: "press Start, then App". And then they tried to push that UI onto the desktop, but that's another story.
ash73 said:
458bhp said:
It will be very interesting to see how the Windows phones interacts with the Surface within the windows 10 ecosystem. Depending on the timing (contract runs out in September) I may end up with a cheapy Lumia to test it or wait for the flagship models to come out (940 I think).
I recently got a cheapo Lumia 530 just to have a play with, and I like the OS except for a couple of things; there are no bluetooth drivers for Windows (unbelievable for a Windows phone) so you have to use the usb cable, and the (very nice) home-screen doesn't auto-rotate. The physical screen has awful viewing angles too, but I expect the high end phones are better.Have a look here:
http://www.microsoft.com/en-gb/mobile/phone/lumia5...
Either you have a copy, or you need to have a better look in the settings. for some unknown reason the settings page isn't in alphabetical order!
ash73 said:
omg I know it's got bluetooth. Unbelievable 
It can even do bluetooth file transfer! Now that's a new one 
.I do agree with the above statements, until recently Android was pretty poor at the really low budget (though, tbh, nobody else did it). After the onslaught of decent <150 WP, the Moto G really, really stepped up the game. At the < 100 quid level though, WP would still be my pick. Or just up the budget if possible to a 520/620/Moto G.
As for the surface, if my laptop needs replacement it'll be a very serious contenter. Needs to be at least 13" though, and even that I find cramped to work on all day, but it's a good compromise towards portability.
Another thing, I now have a 150 quid Lenovo laptop that I'm using for a couple of weeks, it frikkin amazing tbh. The laptop form factor is just so much better for my use (sofa browsing -> LAPtop), where I always struggled with the Surface I've tried (pro 2). Not to mention regular tablets, can't get on with them at all anymore and for me they've been all but eliminated by small ultraportables (incl surface) on the one hand and bigger phones on the other.
JontyR said:
Cheers 
It should suit my needs perfectly....but can people please stop telling me how great they are, at least until they take their hit in price
OK, I don't get them. It should suit my needs perfectly....but can people please stop telling me how great they are, at least until they take their hit in price
-Heavy
-Poorly designed USB ports that are not flat
-Poorly design flip out stand, feels plasticky and very easy to knock down (especially in a meeting room with a few people on the same table)
-Expensive
Just don't see the reason you'd get one over another brand or normal lightweight laptop.
ZesPak said:
I do agree with the above statements, until recently Android was pretty poor at the really low budget (though, tbh, nobody else did it). After the onslaught of decent <150 WP, the Moto G really, really stepped up the game. At the < 100 quid level though, WP would still be my pick. Or just up the budget if possible to a 520/620/Moto G.
My Z3 is with Sony for repair at the moment and I needed a cheap 4G phone so I bought the Lumia 635 and I'm really enjoying the Windows Phone experience. It feels fresh and for a phone that cost £70 including £20 top up it is amazing.ash73 said:
grumbledoak said:
I have no idea where you got the nugget I've emphasised in bold, or why you would make that sort of thing up. It certainly isn't true.
I got it from pairing my phone with the PC and watching it fail to find 2 out of 4 bluetooth drivers. So yes it is true, I've seen it with my own eyes.If you can provide a link to the full set of bluetooth drivers for a Nokia 530 go right ahead and post them, it will be much appreciated. Good luck.
I actually like the OS on the phone, and they are really good value, but because I point out a couple of niggles you think I'm trying to slag it off, grow up.
Edited by ash73 on Tuesday 30th June 09:14
Been using mine about 6 months:
What I like:
- Powerful and great screen display
- power pack is really light to travel with
- has the work "cool" factor (I travel globally & people always comment)
- Has all the power I need for day to day work
What I don't like:
- Niggles like not finding wifi connections when moving from home to work if I don't send it to sleep)
- having to reset for 30 seconds every 3-4 weeks when overheated or some issue with a USB being in when I sent it to sleep
What I like:
- Powerful and great screen display
- power pack is really light to travel with
- has the work "cool" factor (I travel globally & people always comment)
- Has all the power I need for day to day work
What I don't like:
- Niggles like not finding wifi connections when moving from home to work if I don't send it to sleep)
- having to reset for 30 seconds every 3-4 weeks when overheated or some issue with a USB being in when I sent it to sleep
I've had to setup a couple of these recently. One thing that struck me is the ridiculously high display resolution - does anyone actually use these at the recommended resolution? Might be OK for tablet mode but it just makes everything way too small on desktop mode for anyone over the age of 20! I've tried messing around with application zoom settings and also changing the resolution but it never looks quite right.
It's this sort of issue that reinforces my preference for Apple gear, but the surface does look an otherwise fairly decent product - with a few quirks.
It's this sort of issue that reinforces my preference for Apple gear, but the surface does look an otherwise fairly decent product - with a few quirks.
Edited by Bikerjon on Tuesday 30th June 19:47
Bikerjon said:
I've had to setup a couple of these recently. One thing that struck me is the ridiculously high display resolution - does anyone actually use these at the recommended resolution? Might be OK for tablet mode but it just makes everything way too small on desktop mode for anyone over the age of 20! I've tried messing around with application zoom settings and also changing the resolution but it never looks quite right.
It's this sort of issue that reinforces my preference for Apple gear, but the surface does look an otherwise fairly decent product - with a few quirks.
Rather than wrecking your eyes with an incorrectly set LCD display, try changing the font size underIt's this sort of issue that reinforces my preference for Apple gear, but the surface does look an otherwise fairly decent product - with a few quirks.
Control Panel\Appearance and Personalisation\Display
hth
grumbledoak said:
Rather than wrecking your eyes with an incorrectly set LCD display, try changing the font size under
Control Panel\Appearance and Personalisation\Display
hth
Just tried this on a spare one I've got for someone else and setting the font size right up to the max does indeed help a lot. Some dialogues/menus still look a little small compared to others, but generally a lot better - thanks.Control Panel\Appearance and Personalisation\Display
hth
While testing this I did experiment with several other resolutions and surprised to find that the Surface actually looks OK on quite a few different ones. Normally, as you say, changing from the optimal resolution destroys the appearance.
New pro 3 model release: http://www.financialexpress.com/article/industry/t...
I7 cpu & 8GB ram for the I5/8Gb/256GB price, only downside is you have to settle with a 128Gb drive.
I7 cpu & 8GB ram for the I5/8Gb/256GB price, only downside is you have to settle with a 128Gb drive.
LeeThr said:
New pro 3 model release: http://www.financialexpress.com/article/industry/t...
I7 cpu & 8GB ram for the I5/8Gb/256GB price, only downside is you have to settle with a 128Gb drive.
So you downgrade the SSD and upgrade the CPU?I7 cpu & 8GB ram for the I5/8Gb/256GB price, only downside is you have to settle with a 128Gb drive.
Not for me.
ZesPak said:
LeeThr said:
New pro 3 model release: http://www.financialexpress.com/article/industry/t...
I7 cpu & 8GB ram for the I5/8Gb/256GB price, only downside is you have to settle with a 128Gb drive.
So you downgrade the SSD and upgrade the CPU?I7 cpu & 8GB ram for the I5/8Gb/256GB price, only downside is you have to settle with a 128Gb drive.
Not for me.
ash73 said:
Sorry for the thread diversion, 458bhp said he was considering a Windows phone and was interested in how it will integrate with Windows 10, and I commented on Windows phone / Windows integration in general as I recently bought one to have a play with. I included some details which took us a bit O/T as the Microsoft sycophants stuck their heads in the sand; still waiting for the link.
Sorry my fault! 
In other news, Surface 3 with 4G LTE is out for businesses tomorrow http://blog.surface.com/2015/07/surface-3-4g-lte-i... Hopefully when they hit retail, they won't be locked to o2.
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