When Apple ran into issues with the iPhone 4 and “Antennagate”, even Consumer Reports refusal to recommend the phone didn’t slow down the adoption rate of the device. It sold, and it sold well.
Now it looks like Nokia and Microsoft may be having the same bit of luck. Sure there were some initial issues with the Lumia 900 and connectivity. Issues like… For some, it just would not connect*. However that doesn’t seem to have slowed the popularity of the phone. A quick look at AT&T Wireless’ smartphone offerings shows the device out of stock. I can only imagine the two companies are pinching themselves.
Sure, Nokia coming clean about the issue, effectively making the device free in the initial weeks of it being on the market and releasing the software fix early than expected didn’t hurt but still, when a phone with widely publicized issues still sells out it suggests the device is a winner. And now that the software patch IS out, things can only go up from here.
The Lumia 900 is a nice phone… A VERY nice phone, and Windows Phone is an excellent operating system. The combination of the two makes for a powerhouse device that, at least in its initial week, is more than a bit popular. And it makes me wonder if Microsoft, despite being late for the game, just may begin to make the case for their operating system over, say, Android.
*Judie has a Nokia 900, and she has had no issues. If you have one, what has your experience been?
I just picked one up. I never experienced the data issue, but I also upgraded pretty much straight out of the box. I had two issues – one self-inflicted, the other not.
1. I’ve used WP for a while and had > 100 apps to reinstall. This is not a fun process for the platform as I can’t just click some buttons and tell it to go. I have to manually reinstall everything on the phone. The “Reinstaller” app helps, but you still have to install one by one. 🙁
2. My phone had an odd hardware glitch. Vibrate worked well on day one, but quit this morning. I exchanged with no issues, but have never seen the vibrate function die like that. The exchange was pretty quick and painless – just odd that there was an issue so quickly. If it repeats with the new 900, I’ll say something more about it, but I’m treating it as a bad unit for now, not a complete phone model failure.
I get the feeling I may be contacting MS as well to remove older phones from my device list. They sadly came across as Samsung i917’s – all of them. I can’t tell which was mine, which my wife’s, and which my wife’s replacement unit. That’s a little frustrating, but hasn’t stopped me from installing apps. on my new phone.
Congrats on the phone. Let us know how you like it??
Sent from my iPad
Overall – it’s pretty good so far. The vibration issue was odd, but hopefully a one-time deal. It’s been working since the swap and if that continues for a couple of days, I’m probably good.
One FYI for anyone else getting the phone – uninstall the Tango that comes installed from the Nokia center and install the GA version. Apparently the one that comes with the phone only works on wireless, not 3G/4G/LTE. The one in the main marketplace works with all.
Only other possible oddity would be that my 2-3GB of apps (estimated based on overall app size) seems to be taking up 6GB on my phone – with no additional data loaded. That’s bizarre, but I could have bad estimates, the estimates could be just download size, not install size, or it could be some caching of the installer alongside the app. I had an extra SD card in my Focus so didn’t pay that a lot of attention. With the slightly smaller 16GB (13GB usable) in the Nokia it’s a bit more noticeable.
The feeling of the phone is pretty good overall. I think it was a pretty good choice with the “free after rebate” pricing. Just wish I could have kept my 200 text/month allowance. 🙁
BIG push by AT&T on the 900. While at the AT&T store, I saw posters, cards, and every employee had a 900 T-Shirt. It was also the first phone on display in the store. BIG push.
Talked to an AT&T store employee over the weekend and he said they all had Lumia 900’s to play with for a little while. They are trying to make it as successful as they can.
Between this push and the Verizon store trying to convince Carly’s Sarah not to get an iPhone I am seeing the seeds of some backlash from carriers toward Apple.
Sent from my iPad
They did that? I am wondering if it’s because of the iPhone 5 rumors?? Then again, maybe they aren’t pushing it because they can’t load crapware on it? That doesn’t make sense though as my Galaxy Nexus hardly has any on it. It only had VZNavigator and I just uninstalled it. Yeah it let me do that! 🙂
Yes they did. Post coming soon.
I hope the momentum continues. Makes a nice change to see Nokia doing well in the States, and I’m SO bored of Android this Android that iPhone the other. Keep it up! 🙂
I’m not bored of Android….but I am bored of not having that many choices. It’s only been Android, iPhone and every one else for about 3-4 years now.
As Carly pointed out, carriers are pushing Android as they see them as vast revenue enhancements by loadnig crapware, defaulting to not using Google Maps, and so on.
When the iPhone came out, ‘feature phones’ were total carrier crap-fests … and there was hope that new smartphones would continue to wrest control from carriers … but Android is a DREAM for carriers!
So my hope for Nokia and MS is to help add more balance to things – since I see them taking more share from Android than iPhone … it just might work!
SO glad I went Nexus…but enough of me blathering about it. I will be prepping a post tonight on my decision (or lack thereof….).
It’s true! The Lumia is a very nice phone. In fact, I know of at least three people who have picked up one up since talking to them about mine.
I agree with Peter about App reinstallation, kind of tedious if you have to do it manually. I hope a decent backup solution akin to the old SPB Backup or Resco Backup in the days of Windows Mobile/PPC gets put into the market, assuming one doesn’t already exist.
I do really wish there was a way to do automatic screencaps the way my iPad, Touchpad and PlayBook. Okay, they’re tablets, and to be fair my Android Captivate initially had to be rooted to allow screencap write permissions. Silly to have to dev unlock the phone to do this.
By the way, even Steve Wozniak was looking at picking up a Lumia 900 recently: http://tinyurl.com/c9l2w59
I DID look at the Lumia 900 and it IS nice. I just have too much invested in Android in apps I’ve bought and they don’t have it on Verizon.