Will Nokia Lumia 1020 shake up the smartphone market?

Nokia's latest in the Lumia range -- the Lumia 1020 -- may well shake up the smartphone market if it gets its pricing right, writes Himanshu Juneja.

Nokia: The brand which brings back the memories of sturdy phone built quality and the ubiquitous presence of the phone in nearly every pocket. But
that was the case till the early 2000s. Of late, the scene has changed a lot and Nokia has lost much ground to other players.

The Nokia Lumia 1020 seems to be an attempt from Nokia to catch up, if not a whole lot then at least to make a decent effort at that.

Specs

• Display: 4.5-inch PureMotion HD Amoled screen
• Processor: 1.5GHz dual-core
• RAM: 2GB
• Storage: 32GB, no memory card slot
• Battery: 2,000mAh

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Build and design

There was no doubt that Nokia possessed the know how of making a phone strikingly good; one look at the Lumia 1020 and you are again assured of that
fact.

Built ridiculously thin, especially when you consider the dimensions of the PureView model last year released, this phone exudes premium touch and feel.

The sore point will be the bulge on the backside, which may be is unavoidable given the fact that this phone is coming with a considerable large sensor.

The screen which has been provided is lavish at 4.5", and works well outdoors and the clarity is also decent, but to be providing a 41 MP camera on a device and not bringing out a Full HD screen to see the pictures you clicked is just, well... blasphemy.

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OS

The phone runs the Windows Phone 8, and comes with few apps to make your photography experience worthwhile.

For starts, the phone comes with 3 different apps, all for photography purposes -- Windows Phone 8 app, Nokia Smart Camera, and the Nokia Pro Camera.

You can fiddle with them and choose which ones satisfy the shutterbug's creativity in you.

A neat trick Nokia implemented is the bringing of a manual focus for the user to fiddle with via just sliding the camera button sideways. After bringing the option up, setting of the focal length by just sliding your finger around seemed like a good feature.

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Camera

Coming with a Carl Zeiss wide angle lens and the new Optical Image Stabilisation this time (consisting of little motors and ball bearings) the tecnology definitely does a stellar job.

The hardware seems to have been ably looked into. The phone's cam is duly supported with a Xenon Flash AND an LED flash as well. Seems like Nokia has gone the full distance here in an effort to bring out the best results.

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Picture and video quality

A 41 MP cam, Optical Image Stabilisation, the dual flash system, proven track record of Nokia... well, the ingredients were certainly there and the results are staggering as well, in a good way, that is.

The phone delivers two shots for an image. One measures 38 MP, and the other 5 MP. Seems like Nokia has the concerns of the users in mind who would like to upload the pics on their social media website on an ASAP basis.

The phone delivers stunning pictures with brilliant details in the 38 MP picture. The pics also can be zoomed to a very high level, and unless you swoop down to extremely grass root levels, you won't find the grainy stuff.

You also have the option to quickly review your pics by simply pressing the little icon on the top left, something which really sounds logical given the fact you have a quality snapper at your disposal.

Nokia indeed has wowed with the product here.

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The post processing time taken by the phone is noticeable, but in its defense, a file size of about 12-15 MB will take some time to be rendered and saved.

If Nokia Lumai 1020's picture quality is great, the video quality is not far behind either. It deserves it own special mention. The details captured while you video capture a scene are stunning as well.

You can zoom in to check out the details and grab the bragging rights there and then itself.

The phone seems to be a brilliant option for people who want to have a high class snapper at their disposal in the form of a phone.

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Accessories

The Nokia 1020 can be accessorised by separately purchasing few add ons.

Something which people will need is the spare battery. The bundled/default 2000 mAh battery may not last longer if you are a shutter-happy photographer. It will then be a good idea to bump up the juice from the bundled/default 2000mAh to the more heavy duty 3020mAh from the Nokia Store and then experiment with your creativity.

Another interesting piece of attachment on the offer is the Grip which adds, as the name suggests, a grip on to the phone, turning it into a more Camera looking device. Given the chance that photography enthusiasts will be picking this up, Nokia has added this nifty feature after due thought.

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Verdict

Pros

The sales of the regular point and shoot has generally plummeted globally, and with the trend of uploading the pics instantly from the phone itself by today's users, it seems Nokia is trying to cash in on the trend by coming out with a device which is more camera feature heavy than mobile phone rich.

The build quality from the Nokia stable was never an issue and this phone isn't an exception either.

Good amount of RAM meant the phone was nippy and performed nicely. The pic/video quality is fantastic and no doubt will wow the people who want to capture their day to day precious moments in full glory.

One can see the phone being picked esp by people who want to have a high grade snapper while still maintaining that it's just a mobile. Even the die hard photo enthusiast will lean towards this phone as it will provide a backup resource in tricky situations.

Available accessories provides a boost to the phone's chances of becoming a hit.

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Cons

There is no doubt that Nokia is going to keep taking a hit for its Windows platform OS till we see some stunning and user-friendly apps coming out for the consumers to choose from in droves. We certainly can hope that that happens soon. Essential apps are there, but options is never a bad thing.

Apart from that, the fixed memory on the phone doesnt really go down well. 32GB really isn't the kind of capacity which will make the prospective buyer cringe right at the beginning, but combine that with other dicey attributes like non-rich app market, WP OS, non full HD screen and only 2000mAh battery and one does get a feeling that there are lots of factors to be wary of. Certainly something which doesn't bode well for the sale of Nokia Lumia 1020.

As for the final nail, the post processing time taken by the phone is noticeable as well. In its defense, a file size of about 12-15 MB will take some time to be rendered, but the time doesn't go unnoticed. Nokia would do well to avoid pricing it anywhere more than Rs 45,000, else the phone will become an easily ignored commodity.

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Competition

The Lumia 1020 is pitted directly against the Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom in terms of photography as the Zoom will be a lot cheaper than whatever price Lumia 1020 is released for as a given.

Straightaway, the Zoom loses out on the really awkward design. Not only is the S4 Zoom difficult to carry around, the hardware difference between the two phones is also telling; Nokia Lumia 1020 is definitely the superior one.

Ultimately, in a price sensitive market like India, it will come down to price really, as going by the indication what the Lumia 1020 will be released for, the Zoom S4 will be more economically enticing.

But will consumer overlook the glaring differences.? The chances really look bleak for the Samsung phone.

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