The products launched today are pure Nokia – from their own R&D and creativity. Whether future Nokia products will reflect that style and panache is yet to be seen but there is no mistaking Nokia’s bright, uni-body, polycarbonate design.
Lumia
This is a premium brand of phones and now tablets, using premium technology with distinctive Lumia curves and colours. The range will continue to evolve but all will run Windows 8.x or later and all will share the same OS features. There will be price points that take over from its feature phone Asha range not officially sold in Australia.
Lumia Tablet 2520
Tablets are for used pleasure but we think it needs to do more so Lumia has 4G using Qualcomm’s 8974 chipset.
It is a 10.1” Windows RT 8.1 tablet with all the Lumia features.
Typical Nokia polycarbonate uni-body design – glossy red or white and matte cyan or black. It has thinned edges for better grip.
It has concentrated on outdoor readability – it has highest brightness - 650 NITS - and lowest reflection of any current tablet and uses special no glare Gorilla Glass. The comparative images were amazing when shown against competitive tablets.
It has a 6.7MP, rear camera with F1.9 Zeiss optics for low light and 2MP front. Nokia camera and Storyteller make this the best camera of any tablet.
It has an optional power keyboard for an additional 5 hours working life and two USB Ports
Price is US$499 and the keyboard is US$149. Should be in Australia before Christmas.
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Lumia 1520 – 6” 4G US$749
It has a massive 6”, 1080p screen - fitting three columns full size tiles, or six small tiles - powered by a Qualcomm S800 Snapdragon, 32GB storage, a micro SD slot for another 64GB and all the sensors found in the flagship of the series. 4G.
The camera is a 20MP Pureview with optical image stabilisation and oversampling (shooting a larger image for later editing and cropping). There is a new Nokia Camera app - smart (burst of images), pro (total control) and video mode.
It has four microphones for directional stereo – left right separation taking video capture to a new level.
The screen has the highest NITS and contrast of any current smartphone screen.
1320 6” 4G US$339
A massive 6” 720p screen. It is the biggest phablet for the lowest cost. Features include a 5MP rear camera and a Qualcomm dual core processor for enhanced battery life. This is a Yuppie phone for sure.
Lumia Update
All Windows Phone 8 Lumia owners will get the new features in new software update called Lumia Black once approved by carriers.
New Nokia Apps for Windows Phone
- Nokia Video Director - create, edit and share customized videos direct from the Lumia 2520.
- Nokia Beamer - share experiences and ideas easily and instantly with friends or colleagues by projecting your phone screen to any HTML5 enabled screen; this includes documents, maps, location details, or even the camera viewfinder.
- Nokia Storyteller - automatically integrates your pictures from your phone with HERE location information and collates a chronological picture journey on a map.
- DreamWorks Animation's Dragons Adventure - an exclusive experience for the Lumia 2520
- Instagram - the photo and video sharing community
- Papyrus and InNote - handwriting note-taking apps
- Vine - a popular video service
Qi is back
A new US$99 portable wireless charging plate - the Nokia DC-50 is compatible with Nokia Lumia devices including the Lumia 1520, Lumia 1020, Lumia 925, and Lumia 920 (and others with optional charging shells).
Opinion
I admit to using a Lumina 920 – it is my reference phone for all others I test. Despite being now two generations removed as Nokia’s flagship Windows Phone, I find it superior to 99% of the phones I test and I love the Nokia industrial design.
These phones are exceptional and add to the reasons why Windows Phone is steadily seducing the market. As stated earlier they are a result of pure Nokia R&D and I look forward to what the NokSoft merger will bring.
The tablet had to run Windows 8.1 RT and while most analysts regard RT as a faux Windows – because it does not run x86 apps – I think this portents the eventual merger of Windows Phone and RT. The inclusion of 4G support and its ability to run on ARM chipsets obviates any longer term need to have Windows Phone and RT.
