Oh yeah, we're there. My Lumia 520 only cost $100, and I find Windows Phone 8.1 to be delightful on it. The new android offerings look even better.

They look pretty but it appears to be reverting back to pale grey text on a white background, thereby making it impossible to read. Is this some nostalgic reversion back to poor contrast screens like old Psions or the cheap Palm Pilots when the battery ran down or something?

It's unreadable.