Nokia Lumia 1020 wireless charging case and camera grip case – Review

With every good phone there should exist a decent selection of official accessories. You know the sort, well made, nice colours and with features not found in third party accessories. The official Nokia Lumia 1020 cases are just that. I’ve got them both and here is my review showing you how they work and hopefully helping you make a purchasing decision. Starting with the slightly less interesting of the two the wireless charging shell.

Nokia Lumia 1020 wireless charging shell

I’m a recent convert to wireless charging, I now prefer my new devices to have it built in and if not at least to have a wireless charging accessory. Luckily for me the Lumia 1020 has a shell that you can clip on and joy of joys it comes in yellow.

Good Points

Available in the same nice coloursQi compatibleFill outs the camera hump a bitAll ports accessible

Bad Points

Not much protection offeredBit flimsy and creakyA bit costly

Design

The wireless charging case follows a similar design to the previous shells for devices like the Lumia 720 or the Lumia 925. It basically just clips over each one of the corners and to remove it’s just the reverse, it is really easy to fit and remove. The case feels just as nice at the Lumia 1020 itself and if anything it makes the whole package feel better as the protruding lense is evened out by the thickness of the wireless charging part.

It’s not all good though, the shell doesn’t really offer any protection at all, it protects the back from scratches and a section of each corner, face down or sideways drops and your asking for trouble. At the end of the day it’s just really for enabling wireless charging and a little bit of protection.

In Use

In use the wireless charging shell is pretty easy to use, slip the shell on and place your phone onto one of the nice Nokia charging pads I’ve got. That’s it really, the shell does easily come off and it doesn’t obscure any of the ports or sockets.

Nokia Lumia 1020 Camera grip

The Lumia 1020 Camera grip created some varying emotions within me when it was announced, varying from, “whoa that’s cool” right through to “whoa that’s stupid”. I knew I’d eventually have to buy one to see how it would fair in real life. So here it is, my review starting of course with my good and bad points.

Good Points

Really great ideaExtra battery powerExtra grip helps with one handed modeTwo stage shutter button helps with focusing

Bad Points

Makes using the Lumia as a phone feel oddTripod screw placement oddSlightly fiddling to removeSlightly overpricedSpeaker obscured when in use

Design

The Lumia 1020 camera grip is an odd looking piece of kit for a phone case, for a piece of plastic that makes your Lumia 1020 feel even more like a camera then it’s perfectly normal. Once you’ve figured out how to fit it is a really damn good idea and it feels really good in the hand, as long as you don’t try to use it as a phone.

The hump houses a 1020 mAh battery pack, a new shutter button, a tripod mount, a battery gauge and the charging socket.

In Use

In use the Lumia Camera grip is pretty good, there are three things that it’s good at. The first is the battery pack, it’s only 1020 mAh so don’t expect huge battery life, but it’s still quite handy to have on hand. The second good thing about the case is the fact that it allows you to easily take shots with one hand, the camera grip really lets you get a good grip. The third thing is how the shutter button makes it easy to do a half press to focus and then fully press to snap the shot. When I have the grip attached I’m always on the look out for something to capture.

Of course there are bad points to the camera grip, such as trying to remove is quite fiddly, the speaker on the bottom of the Lumia is obscured, using it as a phone with the grip on just feels odd and when you connect it to a tripod it’s all a little lopsided.

Conclusion

Overall the cases both have a purpose and they both do it well, although both do have niggling design quirks, like the speaker being obscured on the camera grip and the lack of screen protection on the charging shell. However the facts that they are official accessories that fit perfectly, they are the correct colour and they are extremely well made, all override and slight niggles over the design.

I got the Camera Grip from Amazon who seemed cheapest at the time, the wireless charging shell has now also dropped below £20 on Amazon as well.

Lumia 2520 announced by Nokia

The Lumia 2520, the first Windows tablet from Nokia, has today been announced. Here in the UK there’s only one place to get it, and that’s through John Lewis from December 4th. The tablet includes 4G connectivity, a full HD 1920×1080 10.1? screen, 2.2GHz quad-core CPU, 11 hours of battery life and 4 colours – a glossy white or red plus a matt-finished black or cyan.

Nokia have added some exclusive apps, including Nokia Video Director to edit video and “Dragons Adventure” – a DreamWorks game ideal for the family.

Powered by Windows RT 8.1, there’s a 6.7 megapixel auto-focus Zeiss-optics camera at the back (with a f1.9 apeture) plus a 2 megapixel wide-angle front camera. It has 2GB RAM, 32GB of internal memory, a microSD card and SkyDrive cloud storage with free global Nokia HERE Maps. Price? Well, from Wednesday John Lewis will be off-loading these for £399.99 and you can add a Nokia Power Keyboard case (adding another 5 hours of battery life plus 2 full-size USB ports) for another £149.95.

More details below. What do you guys reckon? Will you be buying one?

The Nokia Lumia 2520 – exclusively available from John Lewis

Nokia Lumia 2520 – keeping you connected and letting you do more on the go

Thursday 28th November 2013 - London, UK – Nokia today announced that the Nokia Lumia 2520, the company’s first Windows tablet, will be available exclusively through The John Lewis Partnership from December 4th. Priced at only £399.99, the Lumia 2520 features 4G connectivity, a stunning 10.1” full HD display, quad core chipset, multiple colour choices, 11 hours of battery life and super-fast-charging capabilities.

“In a market of me-too products, the Nokia Lumia 2520 stands out from the crowd with its unique Lumia design, great hardware and exclusive software experiences,” said Conor Pierce, Nokia’s General Manager for the UK & Ireland. “The Nokia Lumia 2520 is the first truly connected tablet and we look forward to working with John Lewis to bring this amazing connected experience to their customers.”

Premium Design Meets Maximum Function

The Lumia 2520 builds on the beautiful Lumia design and comes in a number of stunning colours, including a gloss finished red and a beautiful black silk finish. The Lumia 2520 is designed to work anywhere as it sports a bright 10.1-inch full HD display giving the best outdoor and indoor readability possible. Also, for the first time, ZEISS optics appears on a tablet alongside Nokia’s highly praised camera applications. The Lumia 2520 has a 6.7 megapixel rear camera with f1.9 aperture, providing great low-light images, and also features a 2 megapixel front-facing camera for high quality video calls. Concerns about power are a thing of the past, as the Lumia 2520 provides up to 11 hours of battery life during video playback and has support for fast-charging; giving you up to 80% charge in just one hour.

Harry Boughton, junior buyer for tablets and telecoms says, “We’re very excited to announce the launch of the Nokia Lumia 2520 tablet exclusive to John Lewis. We have seen a continuing demand for tablets, selling one every 15 seconds, and we think the addition of this tablet to our range will appeal to customers looking to do more than surf the web. It comes with the Microsoft Windows 8 operating system and Microsoft Office is pre-installed, making it ideal for customers who use Excel, Word, PowerPoint or Outlook. It is also 4G enabled so customers can use super-fast mobile broadband to always stay connected.”

Unique and Connected Lumia Tablet Experiences

The Lumia 2520 also comes with a number of unique software experiences that are exclusive to the Lumia family, including the excellent “Dragons Adventure” application, developed in partnership with DreamWorks Animation. Working together with the HERE Maps and LiveSight applications it offers a unique augmented reality experience, Dragons Adventure simply turns every journey into a “How to Train Your Dragon” themed experience.

Nokia Storyteller reinvents the way you relive your stories. Built into the Lumia 2520, it automatically compiles your pictures into a single timeline with great HERE maps integration – including images from Facebook, SkyDrive, Picasa, Flickr and even your Lumia smartphone. The Lumia Share application also allows your Lumia smartphone to interact with your Lumia 2520 and view all your images within Storyteller, simply connecting via inbuilt NFC.

The Lumia 2520 also sees the introduction of Nokia Video Director, a new video editing software that lets you get even more creative with videos captured on both the Nokia Lumia 2520 and companion Lumia smartphones. Shoot a video on your Lumia smartphone, share with the Lumia 2520 and edit it with predefined templates on your tablet.

With industry-leading HERE Maps, the Lumia 2520 is the only tablet with true offline map support for a fast and reliable maps experience. The Lumia 2520 also includes an exclusive version of Nokia Mix Radio preinstalled, providing a super-rich music discovery experience.

Stay Connected, Getting More Done On the Go

With the Lumia 2520 not only do you get great battery life, you also have the full Microsoft Outlook experience, making it easy to finish off your pending mails no matter where you are. With Microsoft Office built in, you can view and edit your Word, Excel and PowerPoint files on the move, while keeping the original formatting. Back up documents to free and secure cloud storage via SkyDrive to pick up where you left off, using any device.

Nokia Lumia 2520 will go on sale at The John Lewis Partnership on Wednesday 4th December and will be priced at £399.99. In addition, the Nokia Power Keyboard Case, giving you an additional 5hrs of battery life and two full size USB 2.0 ports, will be available from John Lewis in the coming weeks and will be priced at £149.95.

10.1” 1080p full HD (1920×1080) AH-IPS Capacitive? Multi-Touch Display, High Brightness with Low Reflectance for the best outdoor readability, Gorilla Glass 28000mAh battery with up to 11 hours of video playback (up to 16 hours with Nokia Power Keyboard)2.2GHz Quad Core Snapdragon 800 by Qualcomm6.7MP Auto Focus ZEISS optics with f1.9 aperture2GB RAM, 32 GB internal user memory, micro SD card support up to 32GB, SkyDrive cloud storage

Windows Phone goes big – Vodafone launch Nokia Lumia 1520 in Black

Vodafone have launched the Nokia 1520 in black today, a full 3 days before Nokia’s initial statement suggested.

This monstrous beast is the biggest Windows Phone ever, sporting a massive 6? full HD display. You think the handset’s too big? You should see the price! If you want to be the proud owner of the Lumia 1529, then it’s cost you from £52 per month on a 24 month contract plus £19 up front!

Aside from an epic phone with a 20MP PureView camera and a 2.2GHz quad core Snapdragon 800 processor, what do you get for your £1,267 then? Unlimited texts and minutes, plus 4GB per month data. You can, of course, lower the monthly cost by paying more up front. There are no pay as you go prices currently.

Source – Vodafone

***UPDATE***

It seems Vodafone were a little hasty in putting that link live. It’s actually launching tomorrow (6th December), as per Nokia’s original statement!

Here’s a reminder of the specs and a nice video that Nokia made.

Operating System: Windows Phone 8 with the latest updatesNetworks: GSM/EDGE: 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz; WCDMA: 850, 900, 1900, 2100 MHz; ROW LTE: 1, 3, 7, 8, 20; USA LTE: 2, 4, 5, 7, 17; HSPA+: DL 42 Mbps (Cat 24) / UL 11.5 Mbps (Cat 7)Speed: LTE 150/50 mbps, DC-HSPA 42mbpsMemory: 2GB RAM, 32 GB internal user memory; 7 GB SkyDrive cloud storage, micro SD card support up to 64GBDisplay: 6-inch full HD 1080p LCD , ClearBlack, High Brightness Mode, Sunlight readability, Super sensitive touch for glove and nail usage, Gorilla Glass 2Processor: 2.2GHz Quad Core Qualcomm Snapdragon 800Primary camera: PureView 20-megapixel Auto Focus ZEISS optics with Optical Image Stabilization (OIS), 2x lossless zoom, oversampling technology, dual LED flash, 1080p @ 30 fps full HD video with optical image stabilizationSecondary Camera: HD 1.2-megapixel wide angleSize & weight: 162.8 x 85.4 x 8.7mm (volumetric). Weight: 209gConnectivity: NFC, A-GPS+GLONASS, WLAN (2.4/5Ghz) a/b/g/n/ac, µUSB, BT 4.0 LE, Accelerometer, Proximity sensor, Magnetometer, Gyroscope, Ambient Light SensorBattery: 3400 mAh (integrated) with built-in wireless charging (Qi compatible)Audio: Rich Recording with four microphones; Wideband Voice and multi-microphone noise reduction with four microphones; Dolby(R) Headphone, Graphic equalizer, Audio leveling; FM radio

Nokia Camera update adds RAW DNG file support for the Lumia 1020 and 1520

A few weeks ago in Abu Dhabi Nokia announced real DNG file format support for the Lumia 1020 and 1520. Today they’ve pushed out the update to enable that, so if you really like to fiddle with your images then your going to be happy.

But there is a catch, you’ll need the as yet unreleased Nokia Black update.

In the meantime you can update the app anyway, wishing you could output RAW files.

Windows Phone Store Link – Nokia Camera

Underwater for more than three months, Nokia Lumia continues to work

Drop your phone in a lake and, well, you’re pretty much stuffed. However, Roger Nilsson found his Nokia Lumia again some three and a bit months later.

There it was, jammed between two rocks at low tide. Roger snapped a picture of it and sent his story to the Nokia Sweden Facebook page. He tells us that…

I took it home and started to clean it as best I could, (there were) shells and sh*t on (the) display, green goo around the entire phone and some other stuff. (I) let it dry on a radiator and then I put the charger cable in..

Imagine my surprise when it boots up as usual! Everything works just like before, the camera is great, battery life is two days and so on.

Now, this is a phone which isn’t sold as being waterproof, and to retrieve if after so long then have it work perfectly – well, that’s something quite surprising indeed.

My time with the Nokia Lumia 1020

The Nokia Lumia 1020 is an amazing camera, that in the right hands can take some truly stunning photos and it can easily replace your point and shoot. But at what cost? Does Windows Phone support the Lumia 1020 enough? From the day I first saw the leak of what the Lumia 1020 was going to look like I knew I was going to have to get hold of one to play with. It is currently at the pinnacle of Windows Phone hardware and it is arguably at the pinnacle of mobile photography hardware as well.

I’ve been using the Nokia Lumia 1020 for about a month now, carrying it around when I would normally have took a normal camera with me. I even took it to a device launch to see how it would cope in place of my normal camera. As Dan reviewed the Lumia 1020 a few weeks ago this article is basically a roundup of the good and bad points and some sample photos.

First of all if you’ve been living under a rock for the last few months here is what the Lumia 1020 looks like, I’ve placed it next to my Lumia 925 for size purposes:

The phone part of the Lumia 1020

Firstly I want to talk about the phone itself and Windows Phone in general. The Lumia 1020 is currently the highest spec Windows Phone device, with more RAM than all the rest and a camera miles ahead of the closest competitor. I always felt that Nokia pushed the release of the Lumia 1020 to compete against the 2013 lineup of Android and iOS devices. I always felt that what comes next will truly be the Windows Phone device to beat the competition.

So what am I talking about?

Well, for months we have been hearing how the next Windows Phone update (update 3) will enable quad core processors and 1080p screens. Well can you for a second imagine that Nokia won’t release a newer version of the Lumia 1020 when the update is publicly available? With a 5? screen and with a better processor the updated Lumia 1020 would be a force to be reckoned with.

Back in the real world though, it’s my imagination of what will come next that held me back from actually buying one. Yes you should live life for the day and expect the unexpected, but for the money that is being asked for the Lumia 1020 I wanted more.

Windows Phone has matured quite a bit over the last year, a lot of apps have been released for the OS and a lot of third party apps have been released to cover the big name apps that haven’t been released. It all makes it quite fiddly, take Cloud storage for instance, I have accounts with Dropbox, Google Drive, SkyDrive, Box and Sugarsync. Of those only two have official apps, only one supports auto upload of photos and that’s SkyDrive. It’s great for Windows Phone, but try and use it on another platform and you’ll pull all of your hair out. If I wanted to say use a third party Dropbox app instead I’m hindered by the limitations of the app, due to API restrictions in the OS.

This example exists across the whole Windows Phone OS, you want to do something and the solution usually exists, but it is normally a compromise. I’m sick of compromising with Windows Phone, I just want things to work the way I want, not how Microsoft or Nokia want.

The camera part of the Lumia 1020

The camera on the Lumia 1020 at first seems amazing, then you learn how to use the default camera app “Nokia Pro Cam”. Shortly after it becomes annoying, you play about using the normal Windows Phone camera and “Nokia Smart Cam” then you get annoyed with them both. Then you settle back into using Nokia Pro Cam again and you start to like the whole set up.

I found the Nokia Lumia 1020 to be great at landscape shots, great at detailed pictures, awkward at taking Macro shots, great at low light and pretty damn good at everything else. I’m used to the camera in the Nokia Lumia 925 where I know I can quickly get it out and get the shot I want quickly and with a minimum of fuss. With the Lumia 1020 you can have as much or as little fuss as you want. I guess it depends on what sort of photographer you are, if you’re used to setting up a DSLR then you’ll not mind a little faffing with the 1020.

The Nokia Pro Cam app is quite a powerful app, allowing you to change various settings before capturing the moment.

You can adjust exposure time, ISO, Focus, White Balance, Shutter delay and Exposure. Which truly does allow you to create an image that’s special, I only really scratched the surface of what is possible in terms of decent pictures. The 1020 takes a high res original and then creates two versions, a 5 MP version that you can access and also the original that’s sort of hidden away in the background. When viewing the 5 MP shot you can tap the “Captured with Nokia Pro Cam” text and it will load you into the original high res shot, allowing you to reframe the image and save it, the new saved image replaces the previous image in the Photo Hub. It’s a bit fiddly but you soon work out what’s what.

The original high resolution version of the image file isn’t accessible via the photo hub. So if you want to backup, view or email the picture you need to connect the phone to your PC. I get why Nokia have done this, but I always had the feeling that something special was always hidden away. Another slightly annoying thing with the Pro Cam is the ever so slight delay between taking pictures. It’s a couple of seconds at most, so if you’re wanting quick fire photos consider the Smart Cam or the normal Windows Phone Camera app.

The Nokia Smart Cam allows you to take burst mode photos, whereby the camera takes a load of photos in quick succession in a lower resolution and it allows you to create some really unique pictures. As shown below with the demo image bundled with Smart Cam. It functions similarly to Pro Cam, in that you can go back and change the image at a later date.

Here are some sample images I’ve taken on my daily wandering around. No fancy settings were used in the taking of these, just using the Pro Cam and auto focus.

Conclusion

I’ll end this article in the same way as I started it, the Nokia Lumia 1020 is an amazing camera. See what I did there? As good as the Nokia supplied software is I do feel like it could be so much better.

It’s only me being picky with the OS and the inner workings that limit my excitement about the Lumia 1020. For a photography enthusiast that wants to take some great pictures on the move then this will be an ideal phone, combine it with the camera grip and a tripod and they’ll be happy.

Personally I think I’m going to see what Nokia release in a few months as the Lumia 1020s successor, the prospect of a higher resolution screen and a better CPU makes me reluctant about the 1020.

Nokia Lumia 1020 – Review

With a lot of people now taking more and more photos on their mobile phones, a decent camera has become something we all look to have.

Until now, the megapixel race hit a wall around the 13 megapixel mark. To be honest this resolution is really good for a mobile phone, however Nokia made the world sit up and listen when they announced the 808 PureView and it’s 41 megapixel camera. Trouble was, running the dying Symbian OS, it was never going to take off.

Sony have just released their Z1 with an impressive 20.7 megapixel camera, but Nokia are never one to be upstaged with this, the brand new Lumia 1020. It runs on the latest Windows Phone OS and also packing a camera anyone would be envious of.

 

A 41 megapixel sensor allows for some stunning detail, paired with an LED light to help video and a bright Xenon flash for taking photos where a flash is needed, the Lumia 1020 seems to have it all covered.

Many thanks to our friends at Nokia Connects who were kind enough to provide us with the Lumia 1020 to review

So, onto the specs….

Windows Phone 8.04.5 inch display with 1280 x 768 resolution41 Megapixel Camera (with LED and Xenon flash)DC-HSDPA 42Mb/sLTE 100Mb/s1.5Ghz Dual-Core ProcessorBluetooth, WiFi & GPS32GB Storage with MicroSD slot for more2,000mAh Battery

Looking at the top there’s the Nokia logo, a front facing camera and the earpiece for your calls.

The front facing camera is 1.2 megapixels and can record in 720p video.  The real use for this second camera is for video calls, especially over Skype as that is built into the phone. Microsoft, after all, own Skype now.

The screen is a a nice size at 4.5 inches with a resolution of 768 x 1280 pixels. Not too large and not to small. Plus, with the Clear Black Display and PureMotion HD+ technology, the screen works well in sunlight. The screen also has Gorilla Glass 3 protection, making it strong as well as very usable.

At the bottom part of the device you have the normal Windows Phone capitative keys seen on all phones. These are for going back a step with the back arrow, a Windows button to take you back to the main screen at any time and finally a search button with quick access to Bing. This is for normal searching plus location, music and barcode scanning.

On the back is the highlight of the device and what everyone will be talking about.  A Massive 41….. yes 41 megapixel sensor for taking some amazing photos.

The lens does stick out from the rest of the phone due to the technology needed to pack in all those pixels, but it is no-where near as bad as found on the Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom and does rather add to the overall design.

When it comes to the camera, Nokia have thought of everything.

The PureView technology in the sensor not only gets a massive amount of information captured due to the 41 megapixels, it also is great for low light conditions, something we also found on the Lumia 925.

But not only that, it comes with an LED light for helping to focus, also for low light video to help bump up the lighting.

Even better, Nokia even included a Xenon flash which is something I have loved on previous Nokia phones such as the N8 and the 808 PureView.  This Xenon flash makes all the difference in poor lighting conditions and helps you capture some amazing photos.

The only other part worth noting on the back is the two little dots near the bottom. This is so you can attach a wireless charging case to the back and be able to use a wide range of wireless charges on the market including the speaker by JBL.

When you add on a wireless charging case, you will also notice that it makes the back of the phone flat as the extra bulk of the case matches the camera lens so it will sit flat on a desk.

 

 

 

At the bottom is the microUSB port right in the centre. There is also a large speakerphone grill to the right hand side which is very loud and still keeps really good audio quality even at maximum volume.

Then on the left is something I was so happy to see included.  A lanyard / wrist strap loop so you can make sure your Lumia 1020 is safe at all times.

I was recently in New York with a Lumia 925 as my camera. when I was on the top of the tour bus I was always concerned that the phone would drop whilst leaning over the edge. The loop on the 1020 means that this isn’t a concern..

Great thinking from Nokia and another reason this is a camera flagship.

At the top there is the 3.5m headset jack right in the middle.  The supplied headset is very good and gives some very good audio quality when listening to music on the go, however you may want to use your own headset instead and this is perfectly fine as it is universal.

On the left op top is where you pop the pin in the hole to get the SIM tray out.  The Lumia 1020 takes a Micro SIM so you may need to speak to your network and arrange a SIM swap before you are able to use this, especially if you have a normal large or a nano-SIM at the moment.

On the right up top is the noise cancelling microphone which helps improve call quality, it is also used to record stereo sound when recording a video.

 

The left side is blank with no buttons anywhere to be seen, these are all on the right hand side of the device

On the right side you have at the top volume up and down buttons, then in the middle is the power button also used to lock the phone when in your pocket and wake up again

At the bottom is the dedicated camera shutterm, which you would expect to see in a camera flagship these days.

Final Thoughts

I will be honest in that I have not been the biggest fan of Windows Phone in the past. I have made it no secret that I would love Nokia hardware on the Android OS. However, with that not looking to be a reality any time soon, I embraced Windows Phone and was actually impressed.

There is not much I can mark the 1020 down on, even if trying really hard to nit-pick on things.  32GB of internal storage is a large amount for a phone (64GB if you join on O2), even with the large image sizes and with online storage this should still be plenty for you to have space left over.

The battery easily lasted a day with some camera use, and if you want to really try out the camera there is a special grip case you can purchase to make the camera experience even better and add extra battery power.

The screen is perfect even in sunlight thanks to some clever technology.  Some phones I have used in the past made it hard to see the screen in direct sunlight, the Lumia 1020 does not have that problem and is one of the best for using in the sun.

The crown jewel… the 41 megapixel camera complete with Zeiss optics. LED flash for video and a powerful Xenon flash for use in poor lighting conditions.

Add all of that with the professional ‘Nokia Pro Cam’ software for taking full control of the camera settings, and you have a serious piece of kit in your pocket that can replace a digital camera.

Whilst I may never learn to enjoy the OS as much as I do Android, the package offered by the Lumia 1020 is far too good to pass it up and it is so good I would easily consider switching to it.

I enjoy taking photos on a phone but have been more of a point and shoot person in the past. However, since having the Lumia 1020 I have been experimenting with the settings. You do have to hold it still for the perfect night shot, but it has got me into photography more than I ever was, and this is all on my mobile phone!

Nokia have really pulled something special out of the bag with the 1020 and for that I must applaud everyone involved in making this special phone.

With a lot of people now taking more and more photos on their mobile phones, a decent camera has become something we all look to have. Until now, the megapixel race hit a wall around the 13 megapixel mark. To be honest this resolution is really good for a mobile phone, however Nokia made the world sit up and listen when they announced the 808 PureView and it's 41 megapixel camera. Trouble was, running the dying Symbian OS, it was never going to take off. Sony have just released their Z1 with an impressive 20.7 megapixel camera, but Nokia are never one to be upstaged with this, the brand new Lumia 1020. It runs on the latest Windows Phone OS and also packing a camera anyone would be envious of. A 41 megapixel sensor allows for some stunning detail, paired with an LED light to help video and a bright Xenon flash for taking photos where a flash is needed, the Lumia 1020 seems to have it all covered. Many thanks to our friends at Nokia Connects who were kind enough to provide us with the Lumia 1020 to review So, onto the specs.... Windows Phone 8.0 4.5 inch display with 1280 x 768 resolution 41 Megapixel Camera (with LED and Xenon flash) DC-HSDPA 42Mb/s LTE 100Mb/s 1.5Ghz Dual-Core Processor Bluetooth, WiFi & GPS 32GB Storage with MicroSD slot for more 2,000mAh Battery Looking at the top there's the Nokia logo, a front facing camera and the earpiece for your calls. The front facing camera is 1.2 megapixels and can record in 720p video.  The real use for this second camera is for video calls, especially over Skype as that is built into the phone. Microsoft, after all, own Skype now. The screen is a a nice size at 4.5 inches with a resolution of 768 x 1280 pixels. Not too large and not to small. Plus, with the Clear Black Display and PureMotion HD+ technology, the screen works well in sunlight. The screen also has Gorilla Glass 3 protection, making it strong as well as very usable. At the bottom part of the device you have the normal Windows Phone capitative keys seen on all phones. These are for going back a step with the back arrow, a Windows button to take you back to the main screen at any time and finally a search button with quick access to Bing. This is for normal searching plus location, music and barcode scanning. On the back is the highlight of the device and what everyone will be talking about.  A Massive 41..... yes 41 megapixel sensor for taking some amazing photos. The lens does stick out from the rest of the phone due to the technology needed to pack in all those pixels, but it is no-where near as bad as found on the Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom and does rather add to the overall design. When it comes to the camera, Nokia have thought of everything. The PureView technology in…

Adidas launches miCoach app for Nokia Lumia smartphones

Today, Nokia and Adidas have announced the launch of a new app by Adidas, called miCoach and it’s a fitness app for Nokia Lumia devices.

The Store description is as follows, it all sounds great, I almost want to run around nearby my work just to see if it works.

Turn your phone into a personal coach; miCoach is your smart running compagnion on Windows Phone 08. The app uses GPS and real-time voice coaching to pace you through your exercise regardless whether you are indoors or outdoors. Additionally get access to hundreds of strength & flex exercises to achieve your fitness goals. miCoach works with many adidas top athletes and coaches to offer the best in training building speed, endurance and strength. Train smarter and be faster with miCoach!

The launch of Adidas miCoach for Nokia Lumia is a significant endorsement of the Windows Phone 8 platform and brings coaching features exclusive for Nokia Lumia fitness enthusiasts. The fitness app combines several features unique to Lumia smartphones:

- Nokia Music: Complete control of your Nokia Music playlists from within the Adidas miCoach app, letting you find just the right beat to accompany your training
- Advanced Bluetooth Technology: With your Nokia Lumia 520, Lumia 620 or Lumia 720, you can be sure of exercising at the right level of intensity simply by wirelessly connecting a wearable heart rate monitor via Bluetooth SMART
- Exclusive Athlete Coaching: Exclusive voice pack from Major League Soccer star Omar Gonzalez so you can be inspired by one of the world’s greatest sportsmen while you train
- miCoach Live Tile: The top-screen miCoach live tile sets out your fitness objectives meaning you can track progress without having to even open the app, making your training program an integral part of your daily routine
- GPS-Enabled Route Tracking: HERE mapping to track your routes and share them with friends

You can get miCoach by just clicking on the link below with your device.

Windows Phone Store Link – miCoach

Lumia 1520 – More shots appear

 

It’s a phablet Jim, but not as we know it. Yes, it’s a big phone / small tablet hybrid but no, it’s not powered by Android or iOS.

Someone doesn’t seem to be shy to wave this particular 6 incher around, and this time the shots are from the China Telecommunication Equipment Certification Center… basically the FCC for China. The device is expected to arrive just in time for the festive season and the 1520 is rumoured to have a Snapdragon 800 CPU, 32GB of storage, microSD, 3400 mAh battery and 1080p screen.

Other specs include a 20 megapixel camera which operates like the 1020, producing dual shot 16 megapixel and 5 megapixel photos.

 

Now forgive me for being picky here, but if we’re going to see Windows Phone-powered phablets and tablets, shouldn’t it be called something else? Windows Mobile perhaps? ;)

Source – CTECHCN

Nokia Lumia 1020 – Unboxing

A nice package arrived via DHL this morning, it contained a handset I have been VERY excited about getting hands on time with away from a promotional stand or dark room.

That is of course the Lumia 1020 complete with massive 41 megapixel camera!

Nokia also posted it in a very special design container which you can check out for yourself in the unboxing below

Having only just unboxed it for the first time, we will be bringing you much more coverage of this amazing new camera phone over the next few weeks.

However is there any questions and of you have about the 1020?

Please ask in the comments below and I will look to answer as many as possible in an update shortly.

BARGAIN ALERT: Bag a Nokia Lumia 920 for cheap as chips……

We are always on the lookout for a bargain here at Coolsmartphone and here for your delectation is an absolute steal.

A Nokia Lumia 920 for only £220 with free shipping (and two quids worth of Clubcard points too) from Tesco Direct.

Yes, £220.  SIM free, unlocked and white in colour.

The 920 was lauded by our own James Pearce back in May and is still a very very good handset.

Have a look here for your opportunity to purchase a dirt cheap 920, what more is there to be said other than get on this one quick for they won’t last long……

An image of the Nokia Lumia 1520 leaks out

We’ve been hearing about the next generation of Windows Phone devices recently. Be it 1080p displays, extra rows of columns, Quad core CPUs etc. All exciting stuff, well now thanks to evleaks we have an actual image of the Lumia 1520.

Which has styling sort of cross between the Lumia 920 and 925. It is also meant to be nearly six inches in size.

Source – Evleaks