Nokia Lumia 900 Smartphone Review
Introduction and Specifications
But the Lumia 900 represents something important for both Microsoft and Nokia: hope. The first wave of Windows Phone handsets were interesting to the hardcore tech followers, but few mainstream consumers seemed to care. By all accounts, Windows Phone 7 wasn't really ready for prime time. It was launched in time for a holiday shopping season, but it lacked the polish of iOS and Android. At launch, there was no support for threaded e-mail, no support for multiple calendars, no integrated Twitter support, and the list goes on.
But the Lumia 900 is shipping with Windows Phone 7.5, codenamed Mango. It's a far, far more robust OS. Windows Phone has matured mightily in the past 18 months, and this phone benefits greatly from that maturity. Let's look at the specifications.
|
Processor and memory |
1.4GHz single-core Snapdragon processor 1GB internal ROM, 512MB internal RAM 16 GB internal memory included (non-expandable) |
Operating System |
Windows Phone 7.5 (Mango) |
Connectivity |
LTE Band 17 (700) LTE Band 4 (1700/2100) GSM/EDGE: 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz UMTS: 850/900/1700/1900 HSDPA (21.1Mbps) / HSUPA Bluetooth 2.1+EDR Wi-Fi (802.11b/g/n) GPS with navigation capability microUSB |
Display |
4.3-inch WVGA ClearBlack OLED Screen (480x800) |
Size and weight |
5" x 2.7" x 0.45" 5.6 ounces |
Cameras and multimedia |
8 megapixel rear-facing camera with HD camcorder VGA front-facing camera Internet Explorer (no Flash support) 3.5mm headset jack |
Battery |
1830mAh Li-ion |
Availability |
Available from AT&T ($199.99 [16GB] on 2-year contract) |
In-Box Content |
Battery Charger USB Cable Stereo Headset |
You may notice that the Lumia 900 doesn't quite measure up to other superphones in the market in terms of its specifications. But there's a good reason for that. Microsoft's hardware specifications surrounding Windows Phone are rather strict, and they haven't been updated recently. There's a software limit of 800 x 480 for a screen resolution (developers are OK this; consumers looking for a qHD display are not). There's also no support for dual-core and quad-core chips just yet. But Windows Phone is a streamlined OS that doesn't necessarily need a cutting edge SoC to perform well.