Nokia Lumia 900 review: Europass
Introduction
It took the Nokia Lumia 900 just a few days to top the US sales charts and see delighted handshakes quickly turn into group hugs, as Nokia, Microsoft and AT&T, which carries it exclusively stateside, were busy celebrating the flagship's performance in recent months.
The Lumia 900 has finally made the trip across the pond but it's not the return home it must've dreamed of. Not quite the triumphant welcome from thousands flocking to retail outlets and carriers. Yes, there's a big question mark hanging over the global version of the Nokia Lumia 900. The news that Windows Phone 8 is out of reach has taken the shine off its appeal. But its character is intact - and the Lumia 900 has enough of that to spare.
Nokia Lumia 900 official photos
A big, quality screen, fluid and stylish OS and premium build are all sprinkled with Nokia's magic in a package that's made to impress. We've been there already - and we don't mean the review we have of the Lumia 900 for AT&T. After all, it's a Lumia 800 all over again, only the screen got bigger. And yet, we are delighted to meet this smartphone again - and we'll give it that, it looks stunning in white.
You'll also be happy to know that this time around we're putting the Lumia 900 to all our usual tests. AT&T's Lumia 900 was reviewed away from the office but this one will not simply walk in and out of our labs without getting a taste of our torture routine.
Key features
- Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE support
- Quad-band 3G with 42 Mbps HSDPA and 5.7 Mbps HSUPA support
- 4.3" 16M-color AMOLED capacitive touchscreen of 480 x 800 pixel resolution
- Scratch resistant Gorilla glass display with anti-glare polarizer
- 8 megapixel autofocus camera with dual LED flash, 720p@27fps video recording and fast f/2.2 lens
- 1MP front camera
- Windows Phone 7.5 OS (Mango), upgradeable to WP 7.8
- 1.4GHz Scorpion CPU, Adreno 205 GPU, Qualcomm APQ8055 chipset, 512MB of RAM
- Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n
- Non-painted polycarbonate unibody
- GPS receiver with A-GPS support and free lifetime voice-guided navigation
- Digital compass
- 16GB of on-board storage
- Active noise cancellation with a dedicated mic
- Built-in accelerometer and proximity sensor
- Standard 3.5 mm audio jack; FM Radio with RDS
- microUSB port
- Bluetooth v2.1 with A2DP and EDR
- Impressively deep and coherent SNS integration throughout the interface
Main disadvantages
- Won't get WP 8
- No USB mass storage (Zune only file management and sync)
- No native video calls
- Non-user-replaceable battery
- No memory card slot (and no 64GB version like the N9)
- microSIM card slot
- No native DivX/XviD support, videos have to be transcoded by Zune
The newly announced Windows Phone 8 has given us plenty to look forward to, but a WP8 upgrade is not on the cards for the Nokia Lumia 900. WP 7.8 is coming later this year to all compatible single-core devices and it will be the last update they are about to get. Both Nokia and Microsoft promise to continue the support though they will most likely be focusing their efforts on multiple-core WP8 smartphones.
Nokia Lumia 900 live pictures
But don't close the page on the Lumia 900 just yet. The Windows Phone experience is impressive even on single-core chipsets and the OS is beautifully simple and charmingly social. The proprietary apps are a major lift too - Nokia Reading was recently added to the familiar Drive, Maps and Music.
It will be a while before the new WP8 devices start hitting the market, so the Nokia Lumia 900 will be the Windows Phone flagship for a good few months. With a shadow always looming over it, the Lumia 900 will stand tall or fall short. But it won't go unnoticed.
Nokia Lumia 710 review: Smack in the middle
Introduction
Nokia Lumia 710 has a tall task at hand. The second brainchild of the Nokia- Microsoft partnership is the budget-friendly option in the lineup. It will try to entice first time smartphone buyers, while battling the Windows Phone establishment in the face of HTC and Samsung.
While the upscale Nokia Lumia 800 is clearly the object of more attention for its impressive build and superior features, the Lumia 710 is expected to sell in bigger numbers and perhaps bring higher profits. From a business perspective, the smartphone is even more important than its flagship sibling.
Nokia Lumia 710 official photos
Just don't take the budget reference to Nokia Lumia 710 at face value. Because of Microsoft's strict hardware requirements for the Windows Phone platform, the smartphone has the same 1.4GHz Scorpion CPU and 512MB of RAM as the Lumia 800, therefore promising identically smooth handling. In order to maintain the budget status and keep the price down, Nokia Lumia 710 has less built-in memory, an LCD screen instead of AMOLED, and a 5MP camera. Its design is less ambitious than the flagship's, but the Lumia 710 is still solidly built, even if not as good looking.
Nokia Lumia 710 official photos
Key features
- Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE support
- Quad-band 3G with 14.4 Mbps HSDPA and 5.7 Mbps HSUPA support
- 3.7" 16M-color ClearBlack LCD capacitive touchscreen with WVGA resolution
- Scratch resistant Gorilla glass display cover
- 5 megapixel autofocus camera with dual LED flash, 720p video recording
- Windows Phone 7.5 OS (Mango)
- 1.4GHz Scorpion CPU, Adreno 205 GPU, Qualcomm MSM8255 chipset, 512MB of RAM
- Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n
- GPS receiver with A-GPS support and free lifetime voice-guided navigation
- Digital compass
- 8GB on-board storage
- Active noise cancellation with a dedicated mic
- Built-in accelerometer and proximity sensor
- Standard 3.5 mm audio jack; FM Radio with RDS
- microUSB port
- Bluetooth v2.1 with A2DP and EDR
- Deep and coherent SNS integration throughout the interface
Main disadvantages
- LCD display's quality is questionable
- No Flash or Silverlight support in browser
- No USB mass storage (file management and sync pass only through Zune)
- No video calls and no front-facing camera either
- No memory card slot
- microSIM card slot
- No native DivX/XviD support, videos have to be Zune-transcoded
- Disappointing audio quality
- Unimpressive battery life
The level of equipment sets the Nokia Lumia 710 on a collision course with two major rivals in the Windows Phone realm - the Samsung Omnia W/Focus Flash and HTC Radar. The Finnish offering however, has a few exclusive software tricks up its sleeve, which are expected to give it a slight edge over its rivals. The most prominent of course, being Nokia Drive - the exclusive and free lifetime navigation service.
As far as hardware goes, the three devices are almost identical, save for the screen technology and choice of finish.
Nokia Lumia 710 live photos
As always, we are going to continue our encounter with Nokia Lumia 710 with an unboxing, followed by the design and build quality overview.
Nokia Lumia 710 live photos
Nokia Lumia 800 review
The Lumia 800 was Nokia’s first Windows Phone and it’s a nice one. Borrowing its design from the ill-fated N9, it’s the first phase of Nokia’s attempt to modernize itself and revive its dying smartphone market share in the United States and Europe. Unfortunately, it’s not available in the United States, except as an expensive unlocked phone. None of the US carriers have decided to subsidize it, instead waiting for the similar, larger Lumia 900, which is likely coming out in April. But if you have the means, the 800 is an option. Here’s what we thought of the first of many non-Symbian smartphones from Nokia.
Feel
The Lumia 800 both looks and feels like a classic Nokia device, and I mean that in a good way. Nokia has made mistake after mistake, but at its best, it delivered solid devices with a subtle, but signature flair to them and the 800 continues this trend. It’s a good looking phone, but is made with better materials than most other devices in its class as well. It has a rounded, metal unibody shell (no battery access) with a flat top and bottom. Like many Nokia devices, the ports have also been covered up for aesthetics, though we’re not quite sure it’s really necessary to cover up a Micro USB port these days, especially since most people end up charging their phones as often as they’re using them. The placement of the power button below the volume button (starboard side of the phone) is also odd, though it isn’t any harder to press.
We’ll save too much description, as you can clearly see the phone in the pictures above. We found that it handles fairly well, though we’re looking forward to the larger 4.7-inch Lumia 900. The 800 is a bit small for a touch-only device with a 3.7-inch screen (though still larger than the 3.5-inch iPhone). For its size though, it works and operates quite well. The placement of the main speaker on the bottom of the phone is also nice. Most smartphones seem to place their main speakers on the back, leading to muffling or muting every time you set your phone on a pillow or soft object. Samsung is especially guilty in this area.
(Note: We had a very difficult time getting our Lumia 800 to charge on multiple occasions. It didn’t like chargers that weren’t Nokia branded and remained fickle under all circumstances. We believe this was a glitch with our unit, but if you experience similar issues, return your device immediately.)
Screen
The Lumia 800′s screen is one of its best qualities. It’s made out of Gorilla Glass and actually bends over the edges of the phone a bit. Better than that though, Nokia has opted for a Super AMOLED screen, which is far more vivid and colorful than LCD. One of AMOLED’s best qualities is that when displaying black, the screen pixels actually turn off, meaning it can also display much deeper blacks than LCD. The big blocks and solid colors of Windows Phone are well suited to AMOLED. The resolution is a bit lower than some devices at 480×800 pixels, but it works alright considering the smaller 3.7-inch size of the phone.
Operating System
Like all new Nokia smartphones, the Lumia 800 runs on Windows Phone 7.5 (Mango) and is not modified. Though Google allows Android manufacturers to toy with the look and feel of its interface, Microsoft has locked down Windows Phones so that they all operate the same. The Nokia phones have some custom apps and a nice Nokia blue color to their tiles, but the experience is mostly the same.
Pre-installed apps
As usual, there are a few Microsoft apps like Internet Explorer 9, Xbox Live, Bing Maps, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote, but Nokia is also developing a number of custom apps for its Windows Phones. Nokia Maps, Nokia Transport, and Nokia Drive, leverage the company’s solid mapping technology, which was one of the major reasons Microsoft made the partnership with Nokia in the first place. The Apple Iphone still doesn’t have a free turn-by-turn navigation app, putting Nokia phones right under Android when it comes to mapping (Google’s turn-by-turn is free and arguably the best). A free music streaming app, and an app that recommends other…apps are also included with others likely already available. Nokia is the only Windows Phone manufacturer that is aggressively providing custom software for its phones.
Specs
Don’t expect to be impressed with the specifications. Microsoft has locked down Windows Phone specs, so they’re all very similar. The Lumia 800 has a 1.4GHz single-core Qualcomm MSM8255 processor, 512MB of RAM, 16GB of internal storage (no microSD), Bluetooth 2.1, an audio jack, GPS, common features like an accelerometer, and an 8MP rear camera.
Camera
Nokia is known for its cameras, and the Lumia 800 is no different. Though it isn’t better than the iPhone 4S camera or some of the best HTC cameras, the 800 stands out as one of the better devices to snap a photo with. It can take 8-megapixel images and record 720p video and Nokia boasts that it features dual-LED flash, Carl Zeiss optics, and an F 2.2 aperture. Basically, that means it snaps faster photos than some cameras. We tested it against the Galaxy Nexus and found it kept up in most situations, but not all. In low light and indoor photos, it falls a bit short. We also could not get the camera to focus while taking video, making all of our videos extremely blurry. Hopefully this was another glitch in our unit, or else most of your videos will look like Barbara Walters special reports.
Also, if you’re in need of a front-facing camera, however, steer clear. The Lumia 800 doesn’t have one.
Voice and data
We tested the 800 on T-Mobile’s network, but since it’s an unlocked GSM device here in the United States, it will run on networks like AT&T and T-Mobile. However, to buy it you’ll have to go to Nokia.com or other retailers of unlocked devices and pay full price (currently $500). No carrier is subsidizing the phone at this time. Voice calls came through just fine on the phone and those we spoke with sounded as clear as cell phones get on the other end of the line as well. Data speeds will depend on your carrier, but this device cannot attain high-speed HSPA+ 3G or 4G LTE, so it won’t be cruising.
Battery Life
A 1450mAh battery powers the 800 and is inaccessible, much like the iPhone. Nokia claims the phone will get 9.5 hours of talk time and 6.5 hours of video playback. This is a little higher than what we were experiencing, but we didn’t have trouble making it through a day without a charge. This is partially due to Windows Phone, which is kind on batteries. Overall, the battery life should neither offend nor impress you.
Conclusion
The Lumia 800 is one of the best Windows Phones available. It’s a charmer to look at and feels good to hold as well. It also comes with a nice suite of useful Nokia apps, which help it bridge the gap with Android when it comes to turn-by-turn directions and mapping. There are some downsides, like a lack of a front-facing camera, blurry video recording, and a camera that doesn’t impress as much as Nokia boasts, but overall it’s one of the best Windows Phones around. That is, if you count it as around at all. The Lumia 800 is only available as an unlocked phone for $500 in the US. Sadly, that may be it’s biggest weakness.
Highs
- Vivid AMOLED screen
- Solid design and curved glass
- Good custom apps
- Windows Phone 7.5 UI is easy to use
Lows
- No front-facing camera
- No microSD
- Single-core processor
- Poor video quality
- No HSPA+ or 4G support
- Unlocked in the US
Review: Nokia Lumia 720
Ever since the Finnish company decided to join forces with Microsoft, Nokia has been steadily releasing a slew of Windows Phones into the market covering various price points. We have seen devices like the Lumia 920 and the Lumia 820 in the past, which took care of the high-end of the market and phones such as the Lumia 520 and the Lumia 620, which are covering the low-end.
Today we have the Lumia 720 with us, which sits bang in the middle of Nokia’s Lumia range and is a mid-range device with enough features to attract those who don’t want to spend too much but want something more than a budget device. Let’s see how well it performs.
Design
Nokia has history of making great looking and the Lumia 720 is no different. The phone takes on the appearance of the more expensive Lumia 920 and looks really good, particularly the red version pictured here. Unlike some of the other Lumia models, the 720 has a unibody construction and the polycarbonate on the back fuses effortlessly with the glass on the front.
The front has the Gorilla Glass 2 stretching from top to bottom and housing the display roughly in the middle. As with the previous Lumia phones, there is a sizable bezel around the screen, particularly below with the three keys, and it does tend to make the display look smaller than it is. Above the display are the earpiece and the front facing camera.
On the right, the phone has the volume control keys, power keys and two-step camera shutter key. Having the power key on the side instead of the top is convenient but having it on same side as the volume keys means you often end up pressing one when you want the other. Having it on the other side would have reduced the confusion.
On top is the 3.5mm headphone jack. Since the phone has a unibody design, the card slots are on the outside, with the micro SIM slot on top and microSD slot on the left, both operated using the provided tool. On the bottom is the micro USB port.
On the back is the 5 megapixel camera with an LED flash. A secondary microphone can be seen just above the flash. Near the bottom are the connectors for the snap-on wireless charging cover and loudspeaker. The snap-on cover is a separately sold accessory and not part of the standard equipment. It adds extra size and bulk to the phone, not to mention makes it look worse, for the convenience of wireless charging.
The hardware has a nice feel and fits well in your hand. The matte red unit we received looked nice but was a tad slippery, which was exacerbated by the curvy body. The phone, however, feels rock solid despite the plastic construction and should be able to take a few drops without any issues.
Overall the design and build of the Lumia 720 are very impressive and although it is only a mid-range device it has a premium feel to it that surpasses that of many expensive phones.
Display
The Lumia 720 has a 4.3-inch, 800 x 480 resolution ClearBlack LCD. The ClearBlack technology improves outdoor visibility by employing a polarizing filter that makes the display easier to see even under direct sunlight.
The 720 also uses a couple of software tweaks to improve the visibility under bright light by changing the color and brightness of the panel. The image no longer looks natural but if you’re just trying to look at text or a map under sunlight then it shouldn’t be too much of an issue.
Lastly, the Lumia 720 also employs the super-sensitive touch that we first saw on the Lumia 920. Once enabled, this lets you use the touchscreen even through gloves or pretty much anything, for that matter.
Speaking of image quality, the display on the Lumia 720 is actually quite good. The colors, brightness, contrast, viewing angles and sunlight legibility are all impressive. Only issue is the WVGA resolution, which makes some of the fonts look rough, especially while scrolling. Still, for most parts the display on the Lumia 720 is quite satisfactory.
Hardware, Software and Performance
The Lumia 720 runs on a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 MSM8227 SoC with a 1GHz dual-core Krait CPU and Adreno 305 GPU. In terms if memory, it has 512MB of RAM and 8GB of storage space, out of which only about 3GB is available to the user. You’ll be glad to know then that the phone also has a microSD card slot. In terms of connectivity, the phone has 3G/HSPA, Bluetooth 3.0, Wi-Fi 802.11ab/g/n, NFC, A-GPS and GLONASS.
The software is the same old Windows Phone 8. Released over a year ago now, the OS is already starting to feel long in the tooth and Microsoft’s glacial pace at updating it isn’t helping matters. In its current version, Windows Phone would have been great four years ago but feels severely out of touch with what’s going on in the rest of the smartphone world. Whatever is the next version it couldn’t come soon enough.
Beyond the core operating system, Nokia has usual has installed its own range of apps and service. There is the excellent Nokia Here maps application, along with turn-by-turn voice navigation with Nokia Drive. Then there is the Nokia Music service for free streaming of Indian and international music, Cinemagraph for taking pictures with moving elements, Panorama for, well, panorama shots, Smart Shoot that takes multiple shots and lets you choose the best one, and a couple of others. Nokia has also installed a few third party apps, such as BIGFLIX, BookMyShow, Cosmopolitan, Hike, TripAdvisor and Zomato. As usual, you can choose to uninstall all of these, if you wish.
Nokia’s applications are what set their Windows Phone devices apart from everyone else’s (that and the fact that every else seems to have pretty much given up at this point). Nokia does a good job of making up for Microsoft’s inadequacies to quite an extent.
Unfortunately, Nokia can’t make up for everything and as before, Windows Phone still lags behind when it comes to third party apps. It’s disappointing that even after three years this is still an issue but that’s just how it is. If you’re not a big app or games person and only need the basic apps to get through your day, you should be fine. More demanding users would still be advised to look at iOS or Android.
In terms of performance, the Lumia 720 is in line with other Windows Phone devices. The UI is as smooth as ever, although occasionally it would hiccup in odd places. The menu in the camera app, for example, always lagged every time it was brought up.
As with other Lumia phones, the 720 comes with additional options in the Settings menu, such as for the display and network settings. These are not part of the core OS and added separately by Nokia through. Due to this, there is a distinct lag when you open them, complete with a loading screen. On surface, they look like any other settings item so the lag is likely to confuse an average user who doesn’t know what Nokia has been up to. It would be better if Nokia works on making the integration more seamless by getting rid of the loading screens.
The Lumia 720 comes with 512MB of RAM, which other than making a handful of apps incompatible with the device also makes it easy to run out of memory during multitasking. It’s not difficult to choke the phone by running a few apps in the background while web browsing. This usually results in the phone either closing the apps or closing browser tabs.
Performance in gaming is a mixed bag. In certain games such as Temple Run there was noticeable lag whereas Asphalt 7: Heat worked fine. It really depends upon the developers and how they optimize their apps. Unfortunately, most of them don’t really bother, which negatively affects the overall gaming performance.
Multimedia
The Lumia 720 has a 6.7 megapixel camera, which is a rather odd resolution to have. The main attraction is the camera aperture, which at f/1.9 is the widest on a mobile phone camera till date. What this should result in is some good low-light photography and shallow depth of field.
In terms of image quality, the Lumia 720 acquits itself quite well. Nokia is one of the best around when it comes to camera quality but it’s good to see the expertise trickle down to mid-range offerings as well. The images from the 720 are fairly detailed and noise-free with natural colors and sharpness. The large aperture doesn’t really result in a particularly shallow depth of field compared to phones with smaller apertures but then that is expected from such a small lens.
In lowlight, the camera once again delivers impressive results, with genuinely usable images, helped no doubt by the wide aperture allowing more light in than on most camera phones. Of course, the aperture alone can’t do much, so it’s good that Nokia has paired the optics with a good sensor as well. Low light images look pretty decent and have a surprisingly low-amount of noise.
Videos were once again quite good. The phone records 720p videos, which, other than the usual wobble associated with a lack of stabilization of any kind, were sharp and smooth.
The audio video performance is on par with other Windows Phone devices. The music player still won’t let you play FLAC files and the video player cannot play anything other than MP3, that too without subtitle support. This barebones experience may have made sense back in 2007 when the iPhone was announced but not anymore. The fact that you don’t even have decent apps to make up for this functionality makes things worse.
The audio quality of the 720 is pretty good, both through the headphones as well as the loudspeaker. The single loudspeaker, despite its position is pretty loud even if you keep it on a surface. The headphone output can be altered as Nokia bundles an equalizer app within the main settings although it’s best to leave them disabled. Nokia also bundles a pair of earphones with the phone but they have to be perhaps the worse I’ve ever heard and don’t ever deserve to be taken out of the box.
Battery Life
The Lumia 720 has a non-removable 2,000mAh battery. The battery size is the same as the one in the Lumia 920 and even bigger than what HTC provides with the 8X. Considering the slower processor, this has a profound effect on battery life. With regular usage, the Lumia 720 could get about two days of battery life, which has become incredibly rare these days. Even with heavy usage you’d still get over a day of usage, which is still pretty awesome.
Verdict
There is a lot to like in the Lumia 720. The design is absolutely gorgeous and good enough to make you want to buy the phone on that merit alone. The display is also pretty good, despite the lower resolution. The camera is impressive, both indoors and outdoors and the battery life is outstanding.
It’s not without its flaws, however. The first is Windows Phone 8, which is no longer a competitive operating system. It lags behind iOS and Android in both features as well as third party applications. Unless Microsoft gets its game together and releases some significant updates it is bound to fade into obscurity.
Secondly, at Rs. 17,999, the Lumia 720 is quite expensive. You are paying nearly twice over the Lumia 520 and not getting a lot in return. Priced below Rs. 15,000, the Lumia 720 would have been easier to recommend but not so much at the current price.
All things considered, if you’re someone who doesn’t use a lot of apps and manage to find a good deal, the Lumia 720 is a fine device and one of the best mid-range smartphones on the market today. Others are advised to look elsewhere.
Review: Nokia Lumia 720
Today we have the Lumia 720 with us, which sits bang in the middle of Nokia’s Lumia range and is a mid-range device with enough features to attract those who don’t want to spend too much but want something more than a budget device. Let’s see how well it performs.
Design
Nokia has history of making great looking and the Lumia 720 is no different. The phone takes on the appearance of the more expensive Lumia 920 and looks really good, particularly the red version pictured here. Unlike some of the other Lumia models, the 720 has a unibody construction and the polycarbonate on the back fuses effortlessly with the glass on the front.
The front has the Gorilla Glass 2 stretching from top to bottom and housing the display roughly in the middle. As with the previous Lumia phones, there is a sizable bezel around the screen, particularly below with the three keys, and it does tend to make the display look smaller than it is. Above the display are the earpiece and the front facing camera.
On the right, the phone has the volume control keys, power keys and two-step camera shutter key. Having the power key on the side instead of the top is convenient but having it on same side as the volume keys means you often end up pressing one when you want the other. Having it on the other side would have reduced the confusion.
On top is the 3.5mm headphone jack. Since the phone has a unibody design, the card slots are on the outside, with the micro SIM slot on top and microSD slot on the left, both operated using the provided tool. On the bottom is the micro USB port.
On the back is the 5 megapixel camera with an LED flash. A secondary microphone can be seen just above the flash. Near the bottom are the connectors for the snap-on wireless charging cover and loudspeaker. The snap-on cover is a separately sold accessory and not part of the standard equipment. It adds extra size and bulk to the phone, not to mention makes it look worse, for the convenience of wireless charging.
The hardware has a nice feel and fits well in your hand. The matte red unit we received looked nice but was a tad slippery, which was exacerbated by the curvy body. The phone, however, feels rock solid despite the plastic construction and should be able to take a few drops without any issues.
Overall the design and build of the Lumia 720 are very impressive and although it is only a mid-range device it has a premium feel to it that surpasses that of many expensive phones.
Display
The Lumia 720 has a 4.3-inch, 800 x 480 resolution ClearBlack LCD. The ClearBlack technology improves outdoor visibility by employing a polarizing filter that makes the display easier to see even under direct sunlight.
The 720 also uses a couple of software tweaks to improve the visibility under bright light by changing the color and brightness of the panel. The image no longer looks natural but if you’re just trying to look at text or a map under sunlight then it shouldn’t be too much of an issue.
Lastly, the Lumia 720 also employs the super-sensitive touch that we first saw on the Lumia 920. Once enabled, this lets you use the touchscreen even through gloves or pretty much anything, for that matter.
Speaking of image quality, the display on the Lumia 720 is actually quite good. The colors, brightness, contrast, viewing angles and sunlight legibility are all impressive. Only issue is the WVGA resolution, which makes some of the fonts look rough, especially while scrolling. Still, for most parts the display on the Lumia 720 is quite satisfactory.
Hardware, Software and Performance
The Lumia 720 runs on a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 MSM8227 SoC with a 1GHz dual-core Krait CPU and Adreno 305 GPU. In terms if memory, it has 512MB of RAM and 8GB of storage space, out of which only about 3GB is available to the user. You’ll be glad to know then that the phone also has a microSD card slot. In terms of connectivity, the phone has 3G/HSPA, Bluetooth 3.0, Wi-Fi 802.11ab/g/n, NFC, A-GPS and GLONASS.
The software is the same old Windows Phone 8. Released over a year ago now, the OS is already starting to feel long in the tooth and Microsoft’s glacial pace at updating it isn’t helping matters. In its current version, Windows Phone would have been great four years ago but feels severely out of touch with what’s going on in the rest of the smartphone world. Whatever is the next version it couldn’t come soon enough.
Beyond the core operating system, Nokia has usual has installed its own range of apps and service. There is the excellent Nokia Here maps application, along with turn-by-turn voice navigation with Nokia Drive. Then there is the Nokia Music service for free streaming of Indian and international music, Cinemagraph for taking pictures with moving elements, Panorama for, well, panorama shots, Smart Shoot that takes multiple shots and lets you choose the best one, and a couple of others. Nokia has also installed a few third party apps, such as BIGFLIX, BookMyShow, Cosmopolitan, Hike, TripAdvisor and Zomato. As usual, you can choose to uninstall all of these, if you wish.
Nokia’s applications are what set their Windows Phone devices apart from everyone else’s (that and the fact that every else seems to have pretty much given up at this point). Nokia does a good job of making up for Microsoft’s inadequacies to quite an extent.
Unfortunately, Nokia can’t make up for everything and as before, Windows Phone still lags behind when it comes to third party apps. It’s disappointing that even after three years this is still an issue but that’s just how it is. If you’re not a big app or games person and only need the basic apps to get through your day, you should be fine. More demanding users would still be advised to look at iOS or Android.
In terms of performance, the Lumia 720 is in line with other Windows Phone devices. The UI is as smooth as ever, although occasionally it would hiccup in odd places. The menu in the camera app, for example, always lagged every time it was brought up.
As with other Lumia phones, the 720 comes with additional options in the Settings menu, such as for the display and network settings. These are not part of the core OS and added separately by Nokia through. Due to this, there is a distinct lag when you open them, complete with a loading screen. On surface, they look like any other settings item so the lag is likely to confuse an average user who doesn’t know what Nokia has been up to. It would be better if Nokia works on making the integration more seamless by getting rid of the loading screens.
The Lumia 720 comes with 512MB of RAM, which other than making a handful of apps incompatible with the device also makes it easy to run out of memory during multitasking. It’s not difficult to choke the phone by running a few apps in the background while web browsing. This usually results in the phone either closing the apps or closing browser tabs.
Performance in gaming is a mixed bag. In certain games such as Temple Run there was noticeable lag whereas Asphalt 7: Heat worked fine. It really depends upon the developers and how they optimize their apps. Unfortunately, most of them don’t really bother, which negatively affects the overall gaming performance.
Multimedia
The Lumia 720 has a 6.7 megapixel camera, which is a rather odd resolution to have. The main attraction is the camera aperture, which at f/1.9 is the widest on a mobile phone camera till date. What this should result in is some good low-light photography and shallow depth of field.
In terms of image quality, the Lumia 720 acquits itself quite well. Nokia is one of the best around when it comes to camera quality but it’s good to see the expertise trickle down to mid-range offerings as well. The images from the 720 are fairly detailed and noise-free with natural colors and sharpness. The large aperture doesn’t really result in a particularly shallow depth of field compared to phones with smaller apertures but then that is expected from such a small lens.
In lowlight, the camera once again delivers impressive results, with genuinely usable images, helped no doubt by the wide aperture allowing more light in than on most camera phones. Of course, the aperture alone can’t do much, so it’s good that Nokia has paired the optics with a good sensor as well. Low light images look pretty decent and have a surprisingly low-amount of noise.
Videos were once again quite good. The phone records 720p videos, which, other than the usual wobble associated with a lack of stabilization of any kind, were sharp and smooth.
The audio video performance is on par with other Windows Phone devices. The music player still won’t let you play FLAC files and the video player cannot play anything other than MP3, that too without subtitle support. This barebones experience may have made sense back in 2007 when the iPhone was announced but not anymore. The fact that you don’t even have decent apps to make up for this functionality makes things worse.
The audio quality of the 720 is pretty good, both through the headphones as well as the loudspeaker. The single loudspeaker, despite its position is pretty loud even if you keep it on a surface. The headphone output can be altered as Nokia bundles an equalizer app within the main settings although it’s best to leave them disabled. Nokia also bundles a pair of earphones with the phone but they have to be perhaps the worse I’ve ever heard and don’t ever deserve to be taken out of the box.
Battery Life
The Lumia 720 has a non-removable 2,000mAh battery. The battery size is the same as the one in the Lumia 920 and even bigger than what HTC provides with the 8X. Considering the slower processor, this has a profound effect on battery life. With regular usage, the Lumia 720 could get about two days of battery life, which has become incredibly rare these days. Even with heavy usage you’d still get over a day of usage, which is still pretty awesome.
Verdict
There is a lot to like in the Lumia 720. The design is absolutely gorgeous and good enough to make you want to buy the phone on that merit alone. The display is also pretty good, despite the lower resolution. The camera is impressive, both indoors and outdoors and the battery life is outstanding.
It’s not without its flaws, however. The first is Windows Phone 8, which is no longer a competitive operating system. It lags behind iOS and Android in both features as well as third party applications. Unless Microsoft gets its game together and releases some significant updates it is bound to fade into obscurity.
Secondly, at Rs. 17,999, the Lumia 720 is quite expensive. You are paying nearly twice over the Lumia 520 and not getting a lot in return. Priced below Rs. 15,000, the Lumia 720 would have been easier to recommend but not so much at the current price.
All things considered, if you’re someone who doesn’t use a lot of apps and manage to find a good deal, the Lumia 720 is a fine device and one of the best mid-range smartphones on the market today. Others are advised to look elsewhere.
Nokia Lumia 520 review
7/10
WIRED RATING
WIRED
Good build quality, decent screen, same processor as more expensive Lumias, good range of Nokia add-ons, expandable storage, low priceTIRED
Camera's only so-so, no front-facing camera, Windows Marketplace still playing catch-up with rivalsPRICE
£100
Nokia's Lumia series has been setting a pretty high standard for smartphones recently. The 520 is cheapest of the bunch, but it still manages to pack in a lot for a budget smartphone, in part thanks to the Windows Phone 8 operating system.
It's on sale now for around £100.
Design
The 520 looks similar to other Lumias with its gently curving sides and flat face covered entirely by a single sheet of scratch-resistant glass (not Corning Gorilla Glass on this budget model though). Unlike pricier Lumias like the 720 the polycarbonate cover isn't fixed and you can pull it off to change the battery and access microSIM and microSD memory cards.
The 520 looks similar to other Lumias with its gently curving sides and flat face covered entirely by a single sheet of scratch-resistant glass (not Corning Gorilla Glass on this budget model though). Unlike pricier Lumias like the 720 the polycarbonate cover isn't fixed and you can pull it off to change the battery and access microSIM and microSD memory cards.
While those pricier Lumias are often available in different colours, the 520's removable back cover means you can change the colour with your mood for a lot less than it costs to change your phone -- you can choose between black, white, red, blue and yellow. And with the ability to change the colour scheme of the Windows Phone 8 operating system, you can switch that to match or clash with your cover too.
The four-inch screen is a little smaller than the one on the 720 but it offers the same resolution -- 800x480 pixels, which since it's a smaller screen actually offers a slightly higher resolution of 235 pixels per inch (the 720's 4.3-inch screen offers 217 ppi). You won't notice too much of a difference, but it's nice to know, and even if the screen isn't up there with the best, it's still gloriously bright, sharp and vibrant with rich colours and deep blacks -- certainly better than it has a right to be at this price. Also like those more expensive Lumias you can adjust the sensitivity of the touchscreen, so you can work it with a fingernail or while you're wearing gloves.
Features and performance
One of the standout points of the 520 is that it comes with the same dual-core 1GHz processor backed by 512MB as you'll find on both the more expensive 620 and 720 models. Admittedly, it doesn't have the same sort of oomph as the big quad-core powerhouses, but operation is smooth, with only a hint of delay when opening apps. Web pages display quickly without jerkiness and HD games like Asphalt 7 Heat work perfectly well too. It delivered an Antutu performance benchmark rating of 6,595, which puts it slightly behind some other dual-core Windows devices like the Lumia 720 and the HTC Windows 8S.
One of the standout points of the 520 is that it comes with the same dual-core 1GHz processor backed by 512MB as you'll find on both the more expensive 620 and 720 models. Admittedly, it doesn't have the same sort of oomph as the big quad-core powerhouses, but operation is smooth, with only a hint of delay when opening apps. Web pages display quickly without jerkiness and HD games like Asphalt 7 Heat work perfectly well too. It delivered an Antutu performance benchmark rating of 6,595, which puts it slightly behind some other dual-core Windows devices like the Lumia 720 and the HTC Windows 8S.
Windows Phone 8 is bedding in nicely as an operating system, and once you get used to its tile-based interface it's very easy to find your way around and to customise. You can now adjust the size of the tiles and some are dynamic, so the Weather tile will give you the basics without having to press it, and People shows a constantly shifting mosaic of your contacts' profile pictures. They're not as detailed as some of the Android widgets but then they show a lot more than Apple's icons -- it's a neat compromise between the two.
Apps and software
The Windows Marketplace is improving, even though it lags well behind its rivals in terms of sheer numbers. Still, you'll find many favourites there including Spotify, Netflix and Skype. However, downloading apps may not always be as easy as it is with more expensive handsets -- the Wi-Fi aerial is noticeably less powerful than the one on the Lumia 720 for instance.
The Windows Marketplace is improving, even though it lags well behind its rivals in terms of sheer numbers. Still, you'll find many favourites there including Spotify, Netflix and Skype. However, downloading apps may not always be as easy as it is with more expensive handsets -- the Wi-Fi aerial is noticeably less powerful than the one on the Lumia 720 for instance.
Nokia has added much of its usual fleet of extras as standard, including HERE Maps with its range of views including standard, satellite, public transport and traffic maps. You can download maps for free and use them with HERE Drive turn-by-turn satnav, even when you don't have a Wi-Fi or network connection -- only for UK and Ireland though, you'll need to splash for a higher-up Lumia to get the international maps for free. There's no sign of the nifty City Lens app which shows local businesses and points of interest displayed on your camera's viewfinder -- you'll need the 620 or higher for that.Nokia Music is all here though, with free downloadable playlists of ad-free popular tunes (up to 14 hours) and the Microsoft Office suite lets you create and edit Word and Excel documents.
Camera quality
The five-megapixel camera is the same as the one on the 620, if a notch or two below the 6.7 megapixel number on the 720. It has autofocus, an LED flash and a large F2.4 aperture to let in more light but it does without the Carl Zeiss Tessar lens that appears on more expensive Lumias from the 720 up. You can however add any of the Lenses that Nokia makes available to beef-up its camera offering. These are downloadable pieces of software that add extra functionality such as Panorama for wide-view shots, Cinemagraph, which allows you to add moving elements to still pictures, and Bing Vision, which lets you scan barcodes and QR codes as well as books, CDs and DVDs.
The five-megapixel camera is the same as the one on the 620, if a notch or two below the 6.7 megapixel number on the 720. It has autofocus, an LED flash and a large F2.4 aperture to let in more light but it does without the Carl Zeiss Tessar lens that appears on more expensive Lumias from the 720 up. You can however add any of the Lenses that Nokia makes available to beef-up its camera offering. These are downloadable pieces of software that add extra functionality such as Panorama for wide-view shots, Cinemagraph, which allows you to add moving elements to still pictures, and Bing Vision, which lets you scan barcodes and QR codes as well as books, CDs and DVDs.
Picture quality's pretty good considering the spec, and it's perfectly good enough for quick snaps when you're out and about. The video camera drops the resolution to 640x480 pixels but there's no front-facing camera, which could be a deal-breaker if you like to make video calls -- if that's what you're into you'll need to step up to the 620 or beyond.
There's 8GB of memory on board as standard, but you can add up to 64GB via microSD card if you feel the need.
The battery's not as powerful as the fixed models on the more expensive models and it won't provide the same length of performance. Still, you'll get at least a day's normal use out of it, which puts it on a par with plenty of more expensive handsets.
Conclusion
It has a fine screen, a fast processor and like other Lumias it's built to last. If you want to try Windows, but don't want to risk too much cash, the 520 will give you the flavour without the expense and deliver just as good a performance as some of its more expensive cousins. In fact, if you're not too fussed about the camera (which still isn't bad) or Skype video calls it's better value for money than either the 620 or the 720.
It has a fine screen, a fast processor and like other Lumias it's built to last. If you want to try Windows, but don't want to risk too much cash, the 520 will give you the flavour without the expense and deliver just as good a performance as some of its more expensive cousins. In fact, if you're not too fussed about the camera (which still isn't bad) or Skype video calls it's better value for money than either the 620 or the 720.
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