[p.jgordon]

Hey guys,

I'm taking my plunge into the smartphone world this sunday! I had my eyes set on the focus flash seeing at how simple it just seems. I dig the fact that it has the same processor as the focus s. I love the 3.7inch screen, because I was never a big fan of holding phones with two hands. Plus I'm coming in from a samsung shell with gophone plan.

The only thing I'm going to be having an issue with this phone is the rumored non expandable 8gb storage =/. With this in mind I was thinking perhaps another option for me would be the legendary Focus with expandable storage. I've heard excellent reviews, the only difference between them would be the lack of a ffc and faster processor.

Any suggestions??

[palandri]

I know a lot of people want 16GB and 32GB of storage space. To me 8GB is a lot of space. You can get about 220 MP3 on 1GB of space. A movie takes 300 to 600MB. Myself, I could get by with 2GB of space :D

[jimski]

I could survive on 8GB, but feel more comfortable with 16GB. Currently have 7GB free on my 16 (really 14)GB device, but could trim if I had to. About 600 songs, 600 photos and a bunch of videos. Plus about 180 games/apps. With that said, I hope all US entries have minimum 16GB.

Focus would be a good option. Just avoid build version 1.4. Still waiting for Mango and may always have trouble with updates. Version 1.3 is fine though.

Sent from my HTC Surround using Board Express

[p.jgordon]

I guess when you break down into number of songs/photos/videos 8gb sounds like a reasonable number. I also heard it comes with 25gb of free cloud storage (this at the expense of eating data plans).

I think I've decided to get the Flash as a transition into the smartphone world =)

Is it Sunday yet?

[baseballbert]

I have a focus with 16gb sd card, and love it. It is a great phone, and will be a great first WP. I like it so much, its giving me more patience to upgrade. I've only had it for a couple of months so WP is still new to me!

Mangos taste better than apples!

[red grenadine]

Would honestly buy a focus over a focus flash.

Other than the FFC I don't see a reason to purchase the latter over the former

[desmonium]

I love 3.5~4" screen, screen too large looks bad in pocket.

Also prefer the hardware button in the middle. too many accidental hits already.

[VernonEL]

Of course we all want OEMs to produce Windows Phones that have at least 16GB of storage. It will just help the OS along.

That being said, I could easily survive with only 8GB storage. My Quantum consistently has around 8 available, and I never use everything that is on it. I have only used all 16 (14) just to say I did.

Sent from my LG Quantum using Board Express

[lekhwani]

I believe focus s will come with 16GB. Nevertheless, I believe focus is much cheaper as compared to focus s.

Option 1

For one focus s $500, you can buy:

one focus $200 with 40 GB (after inserting 32 GB)

Plus

One decent Android device/phone $300
Or
One IPod touch 4g (64 GB) $300

Option 2

One focus 24 GB $200
IPod touch 4GB $175
One Android phone $125

Total cost of three = one Samsung focus.

Keep in mind both focus s and focus have 7.5

[lumic]

One focus $200 with 40 GB (after inserting 32 GB)

Plus

One decent Android device/phone $300
Or
One IPod touch 4g (64 GB) $300

What decent Android phone is $300 outright? And why would you want a 64GB iTouch after you have a 40GB Focus? Unless you're talking from a purely hypothetical sense. My opinion on the issue is to go with the original Focus, and then save up for an Apollo device. You'll love having more than 8GB. I feel so restricted by the Omnia's storage capacity.

I know a lot of people want 16GB and 32GB of storage space. To me 8GB is a lot of space. You can get about 220 MP3 on 1GB of space. A movie takes 300 to 600MB. Myself, I could get by with 2GB of space :D

What kind of bit-rate / resolution are you using? Those file-sizes sound insanely small, my music is around 9MB per song and I tried converting a video and it turned out to be 2GB.

[p.jgordon]

Samsung Omnia W – Windows Phone 7.5 handset Out Now! « Mobiles Please Blog

With this said, I'm assuming the Focus Flash will not have an expandable memory =/

[desmonium]

Samsung Omnia W – Windows Phone 7.5 handset Out Now! « Mobiles Please Blog

With this said, I'm assuming the Focus Flash will not have an expandable memory =/

Looks like "no microSD" is a standard imposed on all new WP implicitly.

[red grenadine]

Yeah I doubt any phones going forward will have expandable memory.

Going to have to rely on the OEMs to have higher capacity variants, which as we've seen so far isn't happening

[lekhwani]

Yeah I doubt any phones going forward will have expandable memory.

Going to have to rely on the OEMs to have higher capacity variants, which as we've seen so far isn't happening

That's why i feel Samsung focus is an upgrade and the newer ones are downgrades. I don't care for 1.5 gh processors or the unhappened dual cores.

[red grenadine]

I agree. I have the focus, it's a fantastic phone.

I was really hoping for a Nokia 800 with 64GB of memory, but sadly will have to wait. I don't even know if the Focus S will be a worthwhile upgrade

[Pete C]

The Focus S will be .01 on Amazon w/contract in no time just like every other Windows Phone. I'd wait for that.

If it were not on contract the Focus S is definitely not worth paying for an upgrade, but then again I would never buy any phone off contract. However, let's not discount the upgrades the Focus S has over the Focus. The 8MP camera is a big one, non-pentile screen is worthwhile, and processor is a nice-to-have in case any 3D games actually start coming out. The screen size is an upgrade for many as well.

[p.jgordon]

So I'm basically back to square one. =/

It would help me a great deal if I knew what 8gb of storage could get me. Like, how many songs/pictures/movies/games does it equal to?

Also, would there be a noticeable difference between the Focus (1Ghz) running on Mango and the Focus Flash (1.4Ghz)???

In the end, I think my choice is going to be made on Sunday once I have both phones in front of me.

[Tjg]

I have a focus with a 8bg sd card(16 total, about 14gb total when you factor the os space in) and I've never had problems. I'm have 15-20 xbox live games installed, bout 5 yo gabba gabba episodes for my kid, 15 music albums and 300 or so pics. Mango runs buttery smooth, the os is designed to run on the processor it has. Never had a case or a screen protector, handles falls on concrete very well. Good camera, Blah Blah Blah, the original is a great phone. Skydrive makes it easier to get buy with 8gb if you realy want the Flash, But...

Windows 8 is coming soon, and with that WP8 and the Apollo devices. The best bet at this point is to buy a focus off contract, you can find one on ebay right now for around $200-$250. When the new phones come out, i'm sure the price will drop. Save the upgrade and wait for about 6 to 8 months for Apollo devices.

[baseballbert]

Exactly. Focus can be had cheap on eBay without being locked into a contract. Plus you have the option of the 40gb phone. I've got 24gb, and Im kicking myself for not getting a 32gb card.

I need a ton of space for the business I own (exercise join) because I use it as my back up jukebox when I forget my iPod. I need a wide rang if music for the different people.who come in. I also use it to show video of proper form, take videos for homework and that kind of thing.

Mangos taste better than apples!

[p.jgordon]

I have a focus with a 8bg sd card(16 total, about 14gb total when you factor the os space in) and I've never had problems. I'm have 15-20 xbox live games installed, bout 5 yo gabba gabba episodes for my kid, 15 music albums and 300 or so pics. Mango runs buttery smooth, the os is designed to run on the processor it has. Never had a case or a screen protector, handles falls on concrete very well. Good camera, Blah Blah Blah, the original is a great phone. Skydrive makes it easier to get buy with 8gb if you realy want the Flash, But...

Windows 8 is coming soon, and with that WP8 and the Apollo devices. The best bet at this point is to buy a focus off contract, you can find one on ebay right now for around $200-$250. When the new phones come out, i'm sure the price will drop. Save the upgrade and wait for about 6 to 8 months for Apollo devices.

Ok, that makes sense. BUT, I have a few questions.

If i do get it off contract/unlocked, can I stick my gophone sim card in it?

If so, what about the data plan? Post pay data plans are more affordable than prepaid data plans with ATT.

[jdevenberg]

Focus vs. Focus Flash depends on what features are important to you. If data speed, Front Camera and processing power are important, get the Flash. If screen size and Capacity are king, get the original Focus. If you want them all, get the Focus S.