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First Impressions: Nokia's CHEAPEST Windows 8 phone

Last updated on: March 2, 2013 17:39 IST

Nokia Lumia 520 at just 139 euros or Rs 9,800 has potential to challenge its Android rivals.

You ought to be excited about the release of Nokia Lumia 520 recently at the Mobile World Congress 2013 in Barcelona. After a long wait, the Finland-headquartered beleagured phone maker finally launched the Lumia 520 and 720 to take on the competition.

These sleek phones have just hit the market and it is only just that we come out with some first impressions.

While the first impressions of most Nokia phones are good most of the times, the Lumia 520 is no exception.

We present to you the the Nokia Lumia 520.

First Impressions: Nokia's CHEAPEST Windows 8 phone

Last updated on: March 2, 2013 17:39 IST

The first impressions

We didn't expect the phone to be this good at a budget of 139 euros. This low price was good enough a reason to make us curious and find out if the manufacturer has gone for any remarkable compromises to keep the price this low.

And are we surprised?

The phone has a powerful 1GHz dual core processor beneath the casing that results in running the Windows Phone 8 very smoothly. There is no visible lag or anything that annoys the user with its performance. The apps open up so quickly that you may miss it if you blink.

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First Impressions: Nokia's CHEAPEST Windows 8 phone

Last updated on: March 2, 2013 17:39 IST

The 4-inch display with a resolution of 800 480 is pretty decent. Since Lumia 520's rivals in the market have the same screen size and higher pixels these days, Nokia should have been more careful on this front.

But then one should not expect more at this price point. So we will whine about the comparatively lower screen resolution some other time.

But the display does have some minus points -- like black appears grey on the screen. This might impact Lumia 520's sales as some mid-range Sony smartphones offer better displays for the same price point.

First Impressions: Nokia's CHEAPEST Windows 8 phone

Last updated on: March 2, 2013 17:39 IST

Another disappointing point is the RAM. With most young users wont to jumping between different apps Nokia could have offered better random memory than just 512 and made multi-tasking a smoother affair.

The touch, however, is very responsive.

You can even use it with gloves on, and it seemed to be working perfectly. Nokia has implemented their supersensitive touch technology for the Lumia smartphones.

First Impressions: Nokia's CHEAPEST Windows 8 phone

Last updated on: March 2, 2013 17:39 IST

On the make and build aspect the phone looks pretty cool. It has a curvy back which makes the phone look even better and offers an easy grip to hold it. You can change the covers; Nokia has released 5 different coloured shells for Lumia 520.

First Impressions: Nokia's CHEAPEST Windows 8 phone

Last updated on: March 2, 2013 17:39 IST

What's around the phone body?

The 3.5mm headphone jack is placed on the top. The rear facing camera shoots photos in 5MP and videos in 720p HD resolution. Sadly, there's no flash for the rear camera.

On the right, there are the volume rockers, the power key, and the camera button.

First Impressions: Nokia's CHEAPEST Windows 8 phone

Last updated on: March 2, 2013 17:39 IST

The connectivity options are standard which includes Wi-Fi, 3G, Bluetooth, GPS etc. The battery is good for a phone like this; a 1430 mAh battery offers enough juice to take your phone through your daily business.

What impressed us the most in Lumia 520 is the new wireless charging process. You just need a wireless charging cover to recharge your phone battery without any contact; pretty cool.

This phone at 139 euros has potential to challenge its Android rivals.