The Beanster Blog

Ever since my Lumia 535 got stolen, I have been slumming it with the Lumia 532. I had my eye on the Lumia 650 but unfortunately, Microsoft decided to bail on mobiles for now, and as per the Microsoft Store in SM Megamall, the device would not be sold locally. Both the Lumia 950 and 950XL were very tempting but out of my budget range. Bummer. I still preferred to use Windows 10 Mobile for work and initially I tried to order it via Microsoft's US Store but they don't accept credit cards issued in the Philippines. So I hit eBay and actually got the device including shipping at a lower price, all in I spent less than 9000Php for this device. For the price, the device looks and feels great! Microsoft Lumia 650 in hand Specs: Microsoft Lumia 650 (MSFT website) I got it in black and opted for the Dual SIM variant. It takes nano size SIM cards there's no need for adapters on this one. Like my previous Lumias, it has a microSD expansion slot, I have a 16Gb card in at the ...

Last Sunday, I was lamenting that my Lumia wasn't getting software updates (I regularly check using Phone update in settings). Which was why I was playing with my XiaoMi RedMi 1S (now on MIUI7, it started on MIUI5) which was getting updates almost every other week. My girlfriend remarked about my Lumia. Which prompted me to do some googling on the preview build. As I've written almost a year ago I wasn't too pleased with the earlier builds and had to do a restore . Anyway in my googling I found out that my Lumia 535 had a Windows 10 upgrade but the funny thing is you had to download another app (very similar to the desktop version of the OS) to get the upgrade. My question is why not just push the upgrade via the regular phone update built in to Windows phone 8.1 like what Android or iOS? I did a hard reset (and wiped my SD card too) before updating using the Windows 10 Upgrade Advisor App (available on the Microsoft App Store, search for it on your phone) it took a...

Earlier this month I bought another Lumia 535 Dual SIM, that brings my total to three (3) devices of the same model. My first unit I gave to my mom while her iPhone 6 is out for repairs My second unit I gave to my colleague, I bricked my redmi 1s which he was using so I had to give him the Lumia. My third unit is for me. Even if I've revived the redmi 1s, I'm not going back to android because of the contact email bug with exchange. It has been a nightmare going over contacts and correcting errors periodically. I just don't have the time for it. I was supposed to purchase a Lumia 640 LTE Dual SIM but those are smart exclusive and I hate getting phones from carriers. So it's back to the 535, it's not a flagship phone but it suites my work needs and it's very affordable. MSFT writing off the Nokia purchase is kinda disheartening... I hope Satya Nadela doesn't get rid of WindowsPhone / Windows Mobile completely. Since this is a work phone I am a little...

THIS IS A TECHNICAL PREVIEW, BUGS ARE A PART OF IT. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO INSTALL THIS FIRMWARE IF YOU ARE FAINT OF HEART, OR IF YOUR DEVICE IS MISSION CRITICAL. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED. Windows Phone 10 Tech Preview Updated while I was sleeping As a member of the Windows Insider Program , I was able to get the 1st release of Windows 10 Tech Preview for my Microsoft Lumia 535 Dual SIM. In retrospect I shouldn't have enabled automatic updates with the TP. I knew it was going to be buggy but I guess curiosity got the better of me as it always does with new versions of an OS (I play around with Windows 10 Tech Preview for PCs, iOS firmware betas, and OSX betas)  The 1st tech preview is very buggy if your device is mission critical please do not install it. That being said I am very pleased that Microsoft is going with a wider release on Windows Phone 10.  So as I am typing this I am using the Windows Phone Recovery Tool to rollback to 8.1  waiting for th...

If you're a returning reader you know that I was heavy into PocketPC / Windows Mobile before jumping to iOS & Android. I have been having issues with the RedMi 1S messaging app always crashing, and I have always been curious on how far Microsoft has come after they reset their mobile device program. So the prodigal user returns...  A ( few days) few weeks ago I decided to purchase a Microsoft Lumia 535 Dual SIM. Yes, you read that correctly: Microsoft Lumia, not Nokia. Product page: http://www.microsoft.com/en/mobile/phone/lumia535-dual-sim/ The orange color was not in stock so I went with boring black. Price ₱ 5,990.00 (US$ 133).  The display is 5in with a resolution of qHD (960 x 540), IPS LCD, all in all it’s ok. The finish feels plasticky and slippery. I suggest you get a case, speaking of cases, I can't find any in both Greenhills and Megamall. Goes the same for screen protectors, so I had to get stuff from eBay, which will take up to a month or more to arrive....