The Windows Phone 8 – The Easiest to Use Interface If You Ask Me #WindowsChampions

The Windows Phone 8 – The Easiest to Use Interface If You Ask Me

By: Ashley

It always seem like things happen all at once. Your appliances all break down at the same time, or everyone gets a cold bug, or, like what just happened with my family, everyone’s phone fizzles out at the same time. That just happened to my mom. I should start out by saying that my mom is a pretty young mom to have a kid as old as I am! She’s in her late forties and had being a Droid for a couple of years. A couple of months ago, it started to act up: missing text messages, not receiving phone calls, the normal “phone dying” symptoms. That’s when I got the call.

“Don’t you have a Windows phone?” my mom called and asked me. I was happy to say that yes I had enjoyed my Windows 7 phone for awhile. (Granted I was also in the phone market because my OWN phone was starting to fizzle out, but that’s a whole different story…) She started to ask me questions about how they worked and what I liked and didn’t like. The first thing I told her was that it was an extremely intuitive phone. While I haven’t personally owned a Win8 Phone, I know that the operating system Microsoft uses on their phones is super user friendly. I love how everything you want is right there on the home screen. With both iPhones and Droids, getting to your contacts and seeing updates from your closest friends and family members is a multi-step process. With a Windows 8 phone, it’s all right there.

I would actually go so far as to say, there is no other phone that allows you the high level of personalization that Win8 Phones do. You can have a ton of apps and programs on your phone but only fill your home screen with those you need regularly.

A few of the things that I didn’t like about my old Windows 7 phone have actually been fixed and upgraded. The camera on the new Windows 8 phone (Nokia Lumina 822) 8MP Auto Focus Rear–Facing camera with Carl Zeiss Tessar® Lens and Dual–LED Flash. There’s also now front facing camera! Now, I’ll be able to let my son Skype with his “Granny” using the phone! With links to SkyDrive, Hot Spot capabilities, and SO much more, I can honestly say that the Windows 8 Phones are something I can (and have) recommended to friends and family.

It’s true that Microsoft is still working to build a stronger ecosystem with social apps, and I’m really hoping they get there. After doing some browsing through the apps available, and having spent a lot of time with my own Win7 phone, there are still enough apps to do what you need to do.

It’s been almost a month now, and my mom is pretty in love with her Windows8 Nokia Lumina 822. Now I just need to get her to come visit so I can play with it!

More about the Windows 8 Nokia Lumina 822 from Verizon:

Camera

• 8MP Auto Focus Rear–Facing camera with Carl Zeiss Tessar® Lens and Dual–LED Flash (3264 x 2448 for 4:3 mode; 3552 x 2000 for 16:9 mode)
• Wide angle lens f/2.2, 26mm – 16:9 28mm – 4:3, 1/3.2” camera sensor
• 1.2MP Front facing camera: f/2.4; Still images (1280×960)
• Camera Formats: Animated GIF, BMP,GIF, PNG, JPEG,TIFF
• Smart Shoot, Panorama, & Cinemagraph Lenses available via download from the Windows Phone Store
• Photo Sharing: Facebook, Twitter, SkyDrive, and more

Video

• Video Playback: Video Codes: H.263, MPEG–4, H.264, VC1. Containers: 3GP, 3G2, WMV, M4V, MOVFile. Formats/Containers: MP4, M4V, M4A, 3Gp/3G2, WMV
• Rear–Facing camcorder – HD capture up to 1080p @ 30 fps
• Front–Facing camcorder – HD capture up to 720p @ 30 fps

Music

• Create and manage playlists
• Formats supported: MP3, WMA, WAV, 3GPP, 3GPP2, AAC, AAC+, Enhanced AAC
• Headset: 3.5mm audio jack
• Nokia Music and Mix Radio gives you subscription–free streaming and offline listening

Bluetooth 3.0

• Bluetooth Profiles supported: Stereo, Audio/Video Remote Control, Generic Audio/Video Distribution, Hands–free, Headset, Object Push, Phonebook Access Profile

Web

• Windows Phone Store–More than 120,000 apps choose from, with hundreds added every day
• Microsoft Internet Explorer 10 – HTML Browser
• MS Exchange, Gmail, Yahoo, AOL, Windows Live Hotmail, POP3/IMAP
• Games Hub-your on-the-go arcade. Dress up your avatar, message your Xbox friends, and see how your scores and achievements measure up.
• Music + Videos Hub- Listen to your tunes, watch videos, subscribe to podcasts, and create Smart DJ playlists based on the music you love.
• Full Suite of Nokia Apps: Nokia Drive+; Nokia Maps; Nokia City Lens; Nokia Music; Nokia App Highlights
• Preloaded Verizon Apps: Backup Assistant +, Visual Voice Mail, My Verizon Mobile, NFL Mobile

Communication

• Global Ready™
• Simultaneous Voice and Data
• Mobile Hotspot Capable (Supports up to 8 devices)
• Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n capable
• NFC – Tap and Share with other NFC–enabled devices; Tap and Pair with compatible NFC–enabled Bluetooth Accessories Speakerphone
• Speakerphone
• Text, Picture, and Video messaging with threaded feature
• Embedded ringtones, vibrate alert and silent
• Calendar, Alarm Clock, and Calculator
• Supported Languages: 50 (some via download)
• Virtually limitless contacts (limited by 16GB on–board memory)
• Assisted GPS and GLONASS
• Hearing Aid Compatibility = M3/T4
• TTY /TDD Compatible

Specifications

Dimensions

• 5.03 (H) x 2.69 (W)x 0.42 (D) inches
• Weight: 4.99 oz

Network

• CDMA1x/EV–DO Rev A, LTE/DO Rx diversity
• Global Network: GSM (850MHz, 900MHz, 1800MHz, 1900MHz), UMTS (850MHz, 900MHz, 1900MHz, 2100MHz)

Operating System

• Windows Phone 8
• •Live Tiles – Pin what matters most right on your Start screen and see everything that’s going on, as it happens
• •Live Apps – A delightful innovation that puts the information you want right on your Start screen
• •Seamless integration with other Microsoft products: Outlook, Office, OneNote, SharePoint, SkyDrive, Xbox and more
• •Rooms–easy sharing of pictures, messages, calendar and more
• •Kid’s Corner–grants your little ones access only to the apps, games, videos, and music you choose for them, so you can relax and let them play
• •Data Sense – Track your monthly data plan, use less data while browsing the web, and find Wi–Fi hotspots when you’re out and about
• •SkyDrive – With SkyDrive, your stuff goes wherever you go.
• •Security – With Windows Phone, every single app is certified by Microsoft to make sure it’s safe and ready for your to download and protect you from malware.
• •Office Hub – Work hard on the only phone that has Office Mobile built in so you can access, edit, and share Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents and OneNote notebooks with anyone

Memory / Processor

• 16GB internal memory (actual formatted capacity is less)
• Supports up to 64GB microSD card (sold separately)
• Dual core 1.5GHz processor & 1GB of RAM

Display

• 4.3”, WVGA, Nokia ClearBlack OLED Corning® Gorilla® Glass 2 display, 800×480 resolution, 24 bit, 16M colors
• Display & Touch setting enables interacting with the display with gloves

Keyboard

• Virtual Qwerty Keyboard

Battery

• 1800 mAh Li–Polymer
• Usage Time – up to 15.07 hrs OR
• Standby Time – up to 20.25 days

SAR

• Head–1.23 W/kg; Body–1.03 W/kg

MomStart is a Windows Champions Blogger.

About Ashley – Ashley is a mom, wife, sister, daughter, friend, and former teacher working to navigate through the mysterious world of Mommyia. Read more about her adventures at Momicles and follow her@Momicles2010.