Windows Phone 8.1 Review
by Anand Lal Shimpi on April 14, 2014 10:00 PM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- Microsoft
- Mobile
- windows phone
- Windows Phone 8.1
Word Flow Keyboard with Shape Writing Support
The keyboard in WP8.1 gets a pretty big update with the addition of shape writing support. Similar to Swype, SwiftKey Flow and other systems on Android, instead of tapping individual letters on the Word Flow keyboard you can now trace a path over the same letters to form a word. Instead of tapping out A-N-A-N-D, shape writing allows me to start with my finger on A, trace down and to the right to hit N, trace back to hit A, go down/to the right again to hit N, and then drag my thumb/finger one last time to the left and land on the D key before finally lifting off.
Although new to Windows Phone, shape writing has been around for years on other platforms including Android. The implementation on WP8.1 is excellent however. Shape writing does a great job of leveraging Windows Phone’s predictive text engine. I found that right off the bat I made almost no mistakes while shape writing on WP8.1’s Word Flow keyboard. I could just draw on the screen with my thumb without ever having to look to make sure what I was typing was correct. The only times shape writing didn’t work for me were if I was trying to spell a word that wasn’t yet in the dictionary, or if I was trying to use a contraction that wasn’t immediately obvious (e.g. it’s vs. its). The Word Flow keyboard is extremely quick at adding corrections to its database, so most mistakes happen one time only.
As far as performance goes, I’m still faster at two thumb typing than I am with shape writing. Compared to me typing with a single thumb however, shape writing is substantially quicker. I went through a simple one line typing test several times in all three configurations and recorded my average typing speed on the Nokia Lumia Icon WP8.1 dev preview device:
| Windows Phone 8.1 Word Flow Keyboard Typing Speed | ||||||
| One Handed | One Handed Shape Writing | Two Handed | ||||
| Typing Rate (Higher is Better) | ~41 wpm | ~51 wpm | ~60 wpm | |||
With Windows Phone 8, Microsoft added emoji support to the Word Flow keyboard. In WP8.1, emojis are part of the predictive text engine. If you type a word that has an emoji associate with it, you’ll see the emoji in the suggestion bar. Draw out a word with shape writing and the next suggestion will be the emoji representing that word (if one exists).
Autocorrect suggestions still won’t appear if you’re typing too quickly. If you’re typing above ~45 wpm you won’t see any suggestions. Drop below that point and they’ll populate in the suggestions bar.
Camera UI
The Camera UI in Windows Phone 8.1 sees a significant set of updates. Like Action Center, there are five customizable buttons directly on the camera UI. By default you get access to the camera roll, front facing camera, scenes, lenses and flash settings without first going into the overflow menu. Every single one of those buttons is customizable though.
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There’s a new low resolution (1080p) burst mode that will capture 15 frames and allow you to save all or only the ones that you want. Unsaved frames are automatically deleted after a customizable period of time (7 days by default) or can be removed manually.
The improvements to the camera UI are nice but on devices like Nokia’s Lumia Icon you’re going to be using Nokia’s Camera app instead, making the enhancements more useful on lower end devices.
Calendar
I won’t spend too much time on the updated Calendar app other than to say that the new week view is awesome:
You get a glance at what you’re doing every day of the week, as well as a tiny view of the month as a whole. Swipe to the right to look at next week, and the week after that. Week view in WP8.1’s calendar app is probably one of the most useful things to me personally on any mobile platform. If you’re Apple or a player in the Android space: copy this feature.
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D1RTYD1Z619 - Monday, April 14, 2014 - link
Owning a Windows Phone, Windows Phone 8 to be exact, has been the worst purchase of my life. The OS is such a huge piece of crap with many features missing that are included in Android. I will never buy or recommend a Windows Phone ever again.Myrandex - Tuesday, April 15, 2014 - link
Sorry about your experience. My wife and I both own WP 8 devices and are quite satisfied with them. I have an Android tablet too and I don't really feel like I am missing out of too many features compared to it. I don't have a file explorer on my phone, but I haven't been itching for one frequently either (in either platform). I had an iPhone prior (it was my work phone) and I enjoy this much better. Plus the camera continues to amaze me.cditty - Tuesday, April 15, 2014 - link
I have a Lumia Icon which was a replacement for the M8 version of HTC's One. The camera on a phone is a big deal to me (I take tons of pictures of my daughter). The M8 was a sleek phone, but that camera just doesn't cut it.I took the plunge on the 8.1 developer update (since it's free and it's the RTM bits). I am extremely happy with this phone now. I would say at this stage, I prefer it to Android. The Nokia camera app is fantastic and I got to keep it with the developer update.
Microsoft is onto something with the cross device apps.
mebby - Friday, April 18, 2014 - link
I replaced my iPhone 4S with a Lumia 1520. I was hesitant about getting a WP phone but once WP8 came out and there were phones with faster processors, I took the plunge. Have to say I really enjoy the 1520 and find it very useful. The area that WP8 (now WP8.1) is deficient is the internet-of-things apps. Using apps with devices like Roku, Sonos, etc. is problematic. Seems like you have to wait or deal with 3rd party apps from hobby programmers. The rest of the apps are not really an issue for me.I like the interface on WP8 and the 8.1 update (once I installed the dev preview) is like having a new phone. And I love the large screen on the 1520 though during the hotter months it is a little troublesome carrying in my jeans/pants.
It is interesting - the 1st Android phones I looked at were a piece of crap. I vowed to never buy (or look at) again. Of course Android as an OS, and the hardware, have improved dramatically over the last 4 or so years. I would consider an Android (or iOS or WP) phone when I am looking for my next phone.
LarsBars - Tuesday, April 15, 2014 - link
I would sign up for the developer preview and give 8.1 a shot.StevoLincolnite - Tuesday, April 15, 2014 - link
I have a Lumia 920 with Windows Phone 8 black and I absolutely love it.Majority of features that *I* need are available and work great.
Windows Phone is more aligned to iOS in that it's simple and easy to use, whilst power users who love to tinker should really stick to Android where you can alter the OS far more.
Romberry - Tuesday, April 15, 2014 - link
Your comment tells me nothing. Really. "A huge piece of crap" is both utterly non-descriptive and a complete overstatement. WP8 (and now 8.1) may not be your cup O' tea, but it's far from "a huge pile of crap." I moved to WP8 after a short stint with a Lumia 520 that I picked up for 60 bucks, no contract. As soon as I had Lumia Black firmware on the thing, I made the decision to move up to a slightly higher spec'd model based on the very good experience from the 520, and now that I'm in and familar with WP8/8.1, no way would I go back to competing platforms. In the low and midrange especially, there's nothing that comes close. On the high end? Can't say because I don't have a high end phone. But WP8/8.1 works very well even on that Lumia 520. Contrast and compare that to the experience of iOS users with previous gen hardware, and Android users on more platforms than I can count that never will get an update.Sorry that WP8 wasn't for you, but crap it is not.
darkich - Tuesday, April 15, 2014 - link
It was an absolute crap for me too.Used Lumia 800 as a backup for my Galaxy S3, for 3 months.
And even those short sessions with it, (while my S3 was charging over a half broken charger that i couldn't replace at a time) triggered an anxiety like sensation in me..a lifeless, horribly restricted UI, terrible browser and multitasking..not to mention the apps and..well, in my experience almost EVERYTHING about it was unbelievably inferior compared to the GS3..even the speed and stability of WP was revealed as nothing more than a myth.
Yeah it worked decently but not at all better than Android!
tiupapa - Tuesday, April 15, 2014 - link
Dude, the Windows phone 7 era was an absolute crap! Believe me, but as I got a lumia 520, at first I thought it was gonna be lumia 800 over again. . But I was wrong, the lumia 520, works 5x better than the former flagship, it was a huge gain for me that i just used my s2, just for playing games. But as a phone, and as a browser, i feel more at home with a windows phoneSivar - Tuesday, April 15, 2014 - link
It's funny, I had the opposite experience. The only electronics device I've ever despised more than the Galaxy S 3 is the Galaxy S. Samsung's hardware quality, QA, and attention to detail never fails to amaze me. The GS didn't even have a working GPS!Awkwardly placed options, random and extreme battery drain (sometimes 10+%/hr), and flakiness after a few days of power-on time that reminds me of Windows in the 90's (and this is Linux!).
Unusually delicate glass, random unexplained app deaths without error message, complete inability to disable the "low battery" warning even if it's 3AM, odd difficulty in using Gmail contacts as phone contacts. The entire thing feels like a beta.
My wife's Windows Phone, which cost quite a bit less, works absolutely flawlessly every time. Smooth animation, apps don't randomely die, battery life is excellent (though one can't reasonably compare dissimilar devices), and every app I looked for was in the store, even unusual ones like Chess By Post.
I am curious as to what, specifically, made you feel so constrained in Windows Phone.