Linus Reviews HTC One M8 for Windows

By theyarecomingforyou,
in Windows Phone/Mobile

 Share Followers 0

Recommended Posts

theyarecomingforyou
Posted

 

All in all this phone baffles me a bit. It's a phone for no-one. I understand that some people have a thing for supporting the market underdog and are willing to work around numerous inconveniences to do it or have specific complaints about Google and Apple that would cause them to want to avoid using the services of both those companies, and for you there's high-end Windows phones, like the One M8 for Windows. For everyone else there's stuff out there that's just plain more functional and easier to use and in the case of the One M8 also exactly the same price, so the conclusion pretty much writes itself here.

  • Like 2
Link to post
Share on other sites
+E.Worm Jimmy
  • Subscriber¹
Posted

holy crap.  this review highlight all that is wrong with WP

 

i love windows.... but they just did not create an appealing OS for phone.  

was it their fault, or the fact they were too late, and too sucky, so no developer support...

 

does not matter.  actually, i am kidding... MS messed up big. unfortunately..  

i was thinking of buying WP for the longest time.  but it was just never appealing overall.

 

 

i WOULD LOVE TO LOVE WP.   but overall, it still does not provide what i expect of it (not just apps... OS functionality)

Link to post
Share on other sites
Draconian Guppy
Posted

There's no youtube app on windows phone?

Link to post
Share on other sites
+E.Worm Jimmy
  • Subscriber¹
Posted

this guy is so un-objective that  is quite humorous.

un-objective....

   

 

 

can you name points why it is?

 

 

everything i have heard from actual users points to me that WP is way behind, not only in developer support, but in basic usability.  

as a long time MS fan, i am disappointed, but i am not going to dismiss the points as humorous. i find them mostly upsetting.. as i expected much better of them!

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites
Praetor
Posted

it's still a big problem the lack of high profile apps in the store and some of the ones that exist aren't official.

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites
theyarecomingforyou
  • Author
Posted

this guy is so un-objective that  is quite humorous.

If you have a specific issue with the review then please share it but broad, unsubstantiated statements like yours contribute nothing to the discussion.

 

I like Linus, as he calls it how he sees it. This review pretty much sums up the problems with Windows Phone right now, which is that Android and iOS devices just do everything better. I didn't realise that Windows Phone doesn't support third-party keyboards, which is annoying as I love Swype - I've tried other keyboards but their swiping and predictions just aren't as good.

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites
Dot Matrix
Posted

There's no youtube app on windows phone?

Yes, there are. But since Google is being a bully, the official app might as well not even exist.

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites
theyarecomingforyou
  • Author
Posted

Yes, there are. But since Google is being a bully, the official app might as well not even exist.

I haven't been keeping up with all the details. What exactly has Google done to make YouTube bad on Windows Phone or to act as a 'bully'? I see the app has terrible user reviews on the Windows Store.

Link to post
Share on other sites
siah1214
Posted

Apparently I'm no one.

I would fall into the enthusiast category, however, I love my Lumia 928.  I've used Android on tablets, iOS on tablets and iPod touches, and webOS, and of those, Windows phone will always be my favorite. It's always been the least frustrating, most enjoyable, "Just works" experience. My iPod usually "just worked" (other than some build quality issues that are neither here nor there for this discussion), however, I hate the way the homescreen works, it's just way too limiting.  My 928's homescreen is full of folders of tiles of stuff I care about, the app drawer is vastly superior to Android's (seriously, an icon grid is the WORST layout imaginable, the list is infinitely more functional and easy to use), the UI is beautiful (and yes, most mobile OSs are beautiful these days but Windows Phone's has been the most coherent for me), and it works great with MS services that I'm invested in. 

 

 

Who's it for? It's for someone that wants a "just works" experience that also wants more flexibility than iOS and doesn't care about stuff like loading ROMs onto Android phones. It's for people that want a fast, beautiful OS that runs on the lowest and highest end hardware.  Most of the apps people care about are actually there, either first party or third party alternative (which are usually fantastic and sometimes even better than the official apps on other platforms), the average person probably doesn't care about pebble or niche apps like that. 

I love the tiles, and if you hate them, you can turn them into icons with a few taps, and you can have the nice hideous grid you've always dreamed for. 

 

Btw as far as google integration goes, if you're completely married to Gmail, Gdocs, gcalendar, etc. then maybe it's not the phone for you. I used to be but switched over after I got my first Windows Phone (an HTC trophy back when Nodo was cool)

And I don't miss anything from it.

 

Anyway, this is all opinion, which is all that Linus has to offer as well. Everyone's needs are different, one size does not fit all, and neither Android nor iOS fit me. WP8.1 is the best alternative. 


I haven't been keeping up with all the details. What exactly has Google done to make YouTube bad on Windows Phone or to act as a 'bully'? I see the app has terrible user reviews on the Windows Store.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/05/24/microsoft_pulls_youtube_winphone_app/

 

TL:DR Microsoft made a gorgeous youtube app for WP8.  Google issued a takedown notice, Microsoft made changes that they asked for and republished, Google proceeds to make up ###### and issue another takedown notice, Microsoft caves and reverts to the terrible previous app.  Google are ######.

  • Like 5
Link to post
Share on other sites
sanctified
  • Veteran
Posted

Serious question, due my ignorance. Why MS relies on companies to make apps like youtube? As far as I know HTML5 is mature and responsive enough to act like an app inside a wrapper. Surely any modern mobile OS can take advantage of that, right? I think that's what Firefox OS is trying to do. In that way, the web is your appstore.

Link to post
Share on other sites
adrynalyne
Posted

If you have a specific issue with the review then please share it but broad, unsubstantiated statements like yours contribute nothing to the discussion.

 

I like Linus, as he calls it how he sees it. This review pretty much sums up the problems with Windows Phone right now, which is that Android and iOS devices just do everything better. I didn't realise that Windows Phone doesn't support third-party keyboards, which is annoying as I love Swype - I've tried other keyboards but their swiping and predictions just aren't as good.

Therein lies the problem.  He calls it as HE sees it, not everyone else.

 

I rather see an unbiased review, not some twit telling everyone who a phone is for(or in this case not for).

Serious question, due my ignorance. Why MS relies on companies to make apps like youtube? As far as I know HTML5 is mature and responsive enough to act like an app inside a wrapper. Surely any modern mobile OS can take advantage of that, right? I think that's what Firefox OS is trying to do. In that way, the web is your appstore.

Google is being an ass and has killed off Microsoft's attempts with takedown requests.  I think there were at least two attempts by MS, if memory serves.

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites
sanctified
  • Veteran
Posted

Google is being an ass and has killed off Microsoft's attempts with takedown requests.

 

How so? HTML5 is public. An html5 version of youtube in an app is no different from opening youtube.com inside Mobile Internet Explorer? That sounds quite unreasonable from Google's part.

Link to post
Share on other sites
adrynalyne
Posted

How so? HTML5 is public. An html5 version of youtube in an app is no different from opening youtube.com inside Mobile Internet Explorer? That sounds quite unreasonable from Google's part.

HTML5 is, the API is not, at least not in the way HTML5 is.

 

Google has also shut down webview versions too, I think.

 

Which, webview versions blow anyway.

Link to post
Share on other sites
sanctified
  • Veteran
Posted

HTML5 is, the API is not, at least not in the way HTML5 is.

 

I see. That's crazy. Unbelievable how the three big companies sometimes seem more interested in tripping each other than to offer us better solutions.

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites
eddman
Posted

"It's a phone for NO ONE"

 

Yes, well done. Very objective. /s

 

How is the lack of some apps an OS' fault? Sure, WP would be a no go for those who want a specific app that is missing, but not all people are the same.

Google apps? Ask google why they are missing.

 

He dislikes the keyboard yet there are reviews where they actually like it. Subjective.

IINM, text prediction learns over time and gets much faster.

He says he mistyped letters. Well, no surprise there. He's not used to it.

Auto correct, auto fill, etc. take space? How else can they be shown then?

Says the keyboard takes too much space, but it's about half the page, pretty much the same as android. Then he says there's the new swype style keyboard but he dismisses it because... he doesn't use it and doesn't care. Subjective much?

 

He picks on the UI. Again, very subjective. Some like how it looks, some don't.

 

Not being able to back out of an email, initiated from the notification center, into the inbox; this is a good criticism. A design oversight, I suppose.

Lack of T9 dialing; this is also a good point, but he acts like it's the be-all when it comes to dialing and that its absence somehow breaks the whole thing. There are other ways, like pinning contacts to the home page and there is a speed dial page too. Stock android didn't have it either, until kitkat 4.4.

 

He was corrected on saying it lacked folder support; just shows he doesn't even properly investigate what he's reviewing.

 

The most popular, and perhaps, the best third party youtube app, metrotube, is free. Yes, it says $0.99, but actually in the description it says *Unlimited & unrestricted free trial!*. He didn't care to read that either.

 

He says battery life is good and even lasted two days, but then says it probably lasted that much because he DIDN'T ACTUALLY USE IT THAT MUCH. Was he even using this thing during the review period?

 

As for draft emails not showing; Could it be a sync protocol limitation? For example, outlook.com drafts don't show because EAS protocol lacks draft syncing. The same thing happens in office 2013 too. Very stupid limitation. Don't know about gmail though.

 

It seems that he just does not like WP and actively looks for flaws to nitpick upon.

 

I'm surprised he didn't mention the settings page, which is a bit unorganized, or that it's not possible to dismiss notification individually. You can either clear all or clear a group of them.

 

The video should be titled "Why I still dislike WP".

  • Like 6
Link to post
Share on other sites
Dot Matrix
Posted

Unbelievable how the three big companies sometimes seem more interested in tripping each other than to offer us better solutions.

Indeed.

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites
siah1214
Posted

Oh yes, on the topic of dialing: Either set up speed dial, pin the contacts to your start screen, or just tell Cortana to call that person. Seriously, learn the phone you're reviewing.

  • Like 5
Link to post
Share on other sites
sanctified
  • Veteran
Posted

I understand the learning curve. But that something the reviewers should help us with, not surrender to it like the rest of us. I admit I don't like Windows Phone much, but it's an amazing OS. The phone my mother learned to use the quickest is her trusty Lumia 520.

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites
adrynalyne
Posted

I see. That's crazy. Unbelievable how the three big companies sometimes seem more interested in tripping each other than to offer us better solutions.

Yeah, its a bunch of petty crap.

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites
Stoffel
Posted

I see. That's crazy. Unbelievable how the three big companies sometimes seem more interested in tripping each other than to offer us better solutions.

 

For once we can't blame MS for this one, they have all their main apps available on all 3 platforms.

Often the rivaling platforms get new features before the Windows platform

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites
tsupersonic
Posted

I think his review is pretty spot on, and it is nice to see good hardware on WP. I'd love to see MS overcome challenges and be a true competitor to iOS & Android. 

  • Like 4
Link to post
Share on other sites
Draconian Guppy
Posted

Yes, there are. But since Google is being a bully, the official app might as well not even exist.

So no "official" app then?

Link to post
Share on other sites
DrainTheSw4mp
Posted

Just so you know, you can play Youtube videos flawlessly using Internet Explorer, don't see the need for an app. Also, WP8.1 brought an excellent built in swype-like keyboard.

  • Like 3
Link to post
Share on other sites
notchinese
Posted

There's no youtube app on windows phone?

 

 

There are multiple free youtube apps that are amazing. I use myTube, which IMO is the best 2nd Youtube app available on any platform (Hyper for Youtube on Windows 8 is the best IMO)

Link to post
Share on other sites
This topic is now closed to further replies.
 Share
Followers 0
Go to topic listing

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    No registered users viewing this page.

  • Similar Content

    • Surface Pro 7+ gets its first round of firmware and driver updates
      By indospot
      Surface Pro 7+ gets its first round of firmware and driver updates
      by João Carrasqueira

      Microsoft introduced the Surface Pro 7+ a couple of weeks ago, being a relatively small upgrade over the existing Surface Pro 7. Now, the company has added the device to the Surface update history page, and there's already a set of firmware and driver updates available.

      The updates are dated back to January 20, but the changelog has only now been posted, so we get an idea of the improvements included with them. This batch includes four different updates, but they're mostly focused on addressing issues with the display, as well as improving performance. Here's the full list:

      Windows Update History Name Device Manager Name Update Surface - HIDClass - 160.146.4.0 Surface TCON device -Human Interface Devices Resolves screen refresh issues.

      Surface - Monitor - 6.12.139.0 Surface Panel - Monitor Resolves the adaptive brightness issue.

      Surface – Firmware – 10.24.139.0 Surface System Aggregator – Firmware Improves the power and graphics performance; resolves the USB-C issue. Surface - HIDClass - 160.146.3.0 Surface TCON device -Human Interface Devices (For LTE Advanced) Resolves screen refresh issues. Microsoft doesn't list any known issues with the Surface Pro 7+ after these updates. The updates should be installed automatically eventually, but if you'd rather not wait, you can check for updates manually in the Settings app. You'll need to be running Windows 10 version 20H2, the October 2020 Update, in order to get the updates. This shouldn't be much of a problem since the Surface Pro 7+ likely already ships with this version installed out of the box.

      While the Surface Pro 7+ is branded as a minor refresh, it does get its own separate sets of updates, since there are some significant hardware changes on the inside. If you have a regular Surface Pro 7, a batch of updates was released a couple of weeks ago with general security and stability fixes.

    • Xbox Live now has 100 million active monthly users, Game Pass has 18 million subscribers
      By silverscholar
      Xbox Live now has 100 million active monthly users, Game Pass has 18 million subscribers
      by Sylvester Addo



      Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella announced the earnings for the second quarter of the firm's 2021 fiscal year today, which show that the company brought in $43.1 billion in revenue spurred by gaming, office and the cloud.

      The demand for gaming saw Xbox earnings go up by 51 percent. This also includes Xbox content and services such as Xbox Live and Xbox Game Pass, which saw an increase of 40 percent in revenue. The company also recorded a few firsts; exceeding $2 billion in revenue from third-party titles and surpassing $5 billion in gaming revenue for the first time.

      Microsoft also shared that the Xbox Series X and Series S launch was the most successful in its history, with "the most devices ever sold in a launch month".

      Nadella announced that Xbox Live now has more than 100 million monthly active users and Xbox Game Pass has 18 million subscribers. This shows Xbox Game Pass growing by about eight million subscribers in under a year with the company announcing it had over 10 million subscribers in April last year.

      The growth can be attributed to the company's transformation of gameplay with cloud gaming being an example. Another significant factor is the ongoing COVID-19 situation in which people have found themselves spending more time at home, relying on digital forms of entertainment.



    • Microsoft earnings: $43.1B revenue driven by Office, gaming, and the cloud
      By Rich Woods
      Microsoft earnings: $43.1B revenue driven by Office, gaming, and the cloud
      by Rich Woods

      Today, Microsoft published its quarterly earnings report, this time for the second quarter of its 2021 fiscal year, or the fourth quarter of the 2020 calendar year. The firm brought in an impressive $43.1B in revenue, a 17% (15% in constant currency) growth year-over-year. Operating income was $17.9B, a 29% (26% CC) increase, and net income was $15.5B, a 33% (29% CC) increase.

      $43.1 billion in revenue is broken up into three categories. Productivity and Business Processes made $13.4B, a 13% (11% CC) growth year-over-year, Intelligent Cloud made $14.6B in revenue, a 23% (22% CC) increase, and More Personal Computing made $15.1, a 17% (15% CC) increase in revenue YoY.

      First up is Productivity and Business Processes, which includes things like Office, LinkedIn, and Dynamics. Office Commercial products and cloud services revenue grew by 11% (9% CC), and that's against a strong year last year. That includes 21% (20% CC) growth in Office 365 Commercial revenue, while seat growth is up 15%. Non-cloud Office Commercial products declined by 26% (27% CC).

      Office Consumer products and cloud services revenue is up 7% (6% CC) YoY, and that includes a 28% increase in subscribers to 47.5 million. LinkedIn revenue is up 23% (22% CC), with sessions growing by 30%. Finally, Dynamics products and cloud services revenue is up 21% (18% CC), including a Dynamics 365 cloud revenue increase of 39% (37% CC).

      Next up is Intelligent Cloud, which is mostly about Azure. Server products and cloud services grew by an impressive 26% (24% CC), driven by 50% (48% CC) increase in Azure revenue. On-prem server products even grew, with revenue up 4% (3% CC), helped by the end of support of Windows Server 2008. Enterprise Mobileity installed base grew by 29% to 163 million seats, and Enterprise Services grew 5% (4% CC).

      Finally, More Personal Computing includes all of the fun bits like Windows, Surface, and Xbox. Windows OEM revenue only grew by 1%, thanks to a strong quarter last year due to the end of support of Windows 7. That includes a 9% decline in Windows OEM Pro revenue, and a 24% increase in Windows OEM non-Pro revenue. Windows Commercial products and cloud services revenuew grew by 10% (8% CC).

      Surface revenue is up 3% (1% CC), and Microsoft didn't say anything about why that's good or bad, although it's worth noting that there's been a high demand for personal computers this year thanks to people working from home. Search advertising revenue is up 2% (1% CC).

      Finally, gaming revenue is up 51% (50% CC), including an 86% increase in hardware revenue thanks to the launch of the Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S. It also includes a 40% (38% CC) increase in Xbox content and services revenue, thanks to both third- and first-party titles, and Xbox Game Pass.

    • Azure Availability Zones in the South Central U.S. datacenter region now generally available
      By Hamza Jawad
      Azure Availability Zones in the South Central U.S. datacenter region now generally available
      by Hamza Jawad



      Yesterday, Microsoft previewed a new cloud deployment model based on the Azure Resource Manager. A few days earlier, meanwhile, the tech giant announced that it would be holding a free Azure Quantum Developer workshop on February 2.

      Today, in a further cloud-related announcement, Microsoft has unveiled the general availability of new Azure Availability Zones for the South Central U.S. region.

      For those who are unaware, Azure Availability Zones work as physical locations that contain one or more datacenters utilizing independent power, cooling, and networking systems. Built within Azure regions, the main purpose of these zones is to persevere as an alternative in the case of datacenter failures. A service level agreement (SLA) of 99.99% virtual machine uptime further complements their functionality.

      With increased resiliency for the Azure South Central U.S. region through this introduction, the new Availability Zones provide the following key features:

      Microsoft is confident that its customers for the aforementioned region will now be able to experienced increased service availability, further data storage protection, and additional fault tolerance against datacenter failures.

    • Microsoft releases a new Windows Feature Experience Pack with screen snipping improvements
      By Rich Woods
      Microsoft releases a new Windows Feature Experience Pack with screen snipping improvements
      by Rich Woods



      Back in November, Microsoft finally explained what a Windows Feature Experience Pack is, as it had been spotted inside Windows for some time. It's a way to deliver new features without delivering a new build, and today, Windows Insiders on the Beta channel are getting Windows Feature Experience Pack 120.2212.2020.0.

      This new Windows Feature Experience Pack (presumably, this incredibly long name isn't the final name of the product) doesn't have much in the way of new features, but it's meant to improve the reliability of the screen snipping experience. Part of how that's happening is removing the ability to paste a screen snip into a folder in File Explorer.

      The reason that's being removed is because there was an issue that was filed by Windows Insiders, and the team is planning to add the feature back at some point.

      In order to get today's Windows Feature Experience Pack, you'll need to be on the Beta channel and on build 19042.662 or higher. It will arrive via Windows Update, just like all other updates. Microsoft also noted that it plans to deliver more significant Windows Feature Experience Packs, and it plans to release them more often. At some point, it's going to be part of the normal servicing process.