As a long time iOS and Android user, using a Windows Phone is like visiting another country. Getting from one place to another seems hard, and sometimes I feel like I’m lost. But at the same time, everything looks new, different, and beautiful.
Actually, the Nokia Lumia 820 is a truly beautiful phone inside out. It has a cool design and is packed with an impressive camera and a 1.5 GHz dual-core processor.
Here’s a quick peek of the Nokia Lumia 820 specs:
- 4.3 ” display size
- WVGA (800 x 480) resolution, AMOLED Technology
- 8.7 MP rear facing camera with LED flash
- Dual-core 1.5 GHz (Qualcomm Snapdragon™ S4 )
- 1 GB RAM
- Supports up to 64 GB MicroSD
Design
The Nokia Lumia 820 is one hip-looking phone. It almost looks like a music player rather than a phone. With the monotonous black and white smartphones in the market, its colorful design is definitely a head turner. It is available in red, yellow, blue, magenta, gray, white, and black.
Holding the phone with one hand feels heavier compared to other smartphones like the S3 Mini. But this is actually a good thing. Holding it feels more secure.
The screen also doesn’t look too big or too small with its 4.3” display. Texting is easy with one hand, but the screen is not too small either when watching a movie or playing a game.
Speed
With its 1.5 GHz processor, I was pretty impressed with the Nokia Lumia 820’s performance when it comes to speed. It’s very responsive. The overall experience was smooth and seamless. Even when playing games like Royal Revolt, there were no lags or technical hiccups.
Interface
One of the strengths of Windows Phone 8 is its interface. It’s simple and efficient. I love the seamless flow when switching from the home page to the other apps. You can also easily access the last app by pressing the back button. When you hold the back button, it will show you all the apps you’re currently using.
I especially love using the Dark Theme. With the black background, the colorful live tiles, which you can easily customize, looks very attractive.
Apps
A cool-looking phone needs awesome apps in order to make it even cooler. Right off the box, the Nokia Lumia 820 comes with an Office, OneNote, Smart Shoot, and Creative Studio.
Smart Shoot allows your camera to take multiple shots in one go. After that, it asks you to flick through the different shots and you can choose the best one. This feature can be handy if you’re taking photos of moving objects–like when you’re in concerts or when you want to take the cutest photo of your very active pet.
Now, it’s quite a different story when downloading apps from Windows Store. Although the number of apps is definitely on the rise, it still lacks the many popular and useful apps (like Flipboard and Pocket) that are available in Google Play Store and Apple’s App store.
But this is not going to be a problem if you mostly use your phone for Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. There are plenty of apps that can support your needs for taking selfies or pictures of what you had for dinner. 🙂
You can even connect your social media accounts under the Me live tile. For example, you don’t have to go to the Facebook app in order to post a new status update.
Camera
Taking photos outdoors is great! Photos look crisp and Instagram-ready even without effects. But if you like to apply filters, the built-in Creative Studio app will easily do the job for you. What’s cool about this app is you can see all the available filters at the same time.
On the other hand, taking photos indoors is not as good as the photos taken outdoors. Depending on the lighting, some photos can be a bit grainy.
Battery Life
Most of the smartphones and tablets we’ve used over the years usually perform poorly when it comes to battery life. I’m not saying that Nokia Lumia 820’s battery life is impressive, but it definitely performs better. At least in the way I used it.
Within a 24-hour period, I only have to charge it once. I used it for call, text, social media, and games. The battery would have drained a lot faster if I played a lot of movies. But for normal day-to-day use, charging once a day isn’t bad at all.
Pros
- Cool design
- Fast performance
- Screen looks amazing
- Great camera
Cons
- Lack of apps in Windows Store
- Hard-to-open casing
If you’re an Android or iOS user, there will be a bit of learning curve when using Windows Phone 8. But if you’re looking to buy your first smartphone, you won’t have any problems adapting to this OS.
All in all, the Nokia Lumia 820 is a flexible mobile device. It looks fabulous, it works fast, and it can do everything you need from a mobile gadget.
