Nokia Lumia 1520 review: Finnish fable

The Nokia Lumia 1520 is just like the rest of the premium Lumia smartphones we've seen, but bigger and faster. The advanced imaging and the custom app selection by Nokia will make the difference against Android phablets, with the Snapdragon 800 making sure the Finn won't feel outgunned. Sounds like a promise for the best experience yet on Windows Phone.

A few months ago Nokia was in the headlines for what seemed the wrongest of reasons to people who fondly remembered the Finns from their glory days. Voices were rising once again above the lamenting choir, about what might have been had Nokia gone with Android instead.

Oh well, we're well past the what-ifs and should-haves. And no, it's not because Microsoft's check has already been written. Nokia's first phabet has crossed into what was, until now, a strictly Android territory. And not just average droids either, but some of the biggest, meanest species of Android we have seen.

   
Nokia Lumia 1520 official photos

The Nokia Lumia 1520 didn't just tip-toe in, looking over its shoulder. Armed with a PureView camera, a 1080p display and a quad-core Snapdragon 800, the Finnish giant entered with a bang!

The latest GDR3 version of Windows Phone finally has support for quad-core Krait processors and Full HD displays. There's an attempt too, to make better use of the size and resolution by adding an extra column of contents across the interface. It was about time Microsoft brought the platform back in the hardware race and we are delighted to finally meet the first Windows Phone to aim for the pole position.

Key features

• Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE support
• Quad-band 3G with 42 Mbps HSDPA and 5.7 Mbps HSUPA support
• Penta-band LTE Cat4 support, 150Mbps downlink, 50Mbps uplink
• 6.0" 16M-color ClearBlack IPS CLD capacitive touchscreen of 1920 x 1080 pixels; Corning Gorilla Glass 3; Nokia Glance
• 20MP PureView sensor (15MP effective), 1/2.5" sensor size, ZEISS lens, Optical Image Stabilization, dual-LED flash
• 1080p@30fps video recording; 2x lossless digital zoom
• 1.3MP front-facing camera
• Windows Phone 8 GDR3 OS with Nokia Black
• 2.2GHz quad-core Krait 400 CPU, Adreno 330 GPU, Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 chipset, 2GB of RAM
• Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band
• GPS receiver with A-GPS and GLONASS support
• Free lifetime worldwide voice-guided navigation
• 32GB of inbuilt storage
• microSD card slot, up to 64GB
• Active noise cancellation with a dedicated mic
• Wireless charging with optional accessories
• Built-in accelerometer, gyroscope and proximity sensor
• Standard 3.5 mm audio jack
• microUSB port
• Bluetooth v4.0 with A2DP and file transfers
• SNS integration
• Xbox Live integration and Xbox management
• NFC support
• Digital compass
• Nokia Music
• FM radio

Main disadvantages

• Screen has average sunlight legibility
• Non-user-replaceable battery
• No system-wide file manager
• No lockscreen shortcuts

At first glance the Lumia 1520 looks like a magnified Lumia 1020 - it has the same design and build, only without the camera hump. The trademark unibody is the right bit more impressive at that size, while the PureView camera has lost some of its sensor area and half of its pixels, but hopefully kept the amazing image quality.

Nokia's Lumia Black update isn't bringing as many new features as Amber, while the GDR3 version mostly makes sure the OS would happily accommodate the new chipset and screen resolution. Users will perhaps have to wait for the 8.1 update for a notification center (hopefully) and a file manager (not too likely) among other things.

  

Motorola Moto G review: Google delivering affordable

Introduction

Having spent the best part of two years cleaning the Motorola pipeline of products conceived before the takeover, Google finally has a shop with its name on it. And it's not afraid to use it to challenge some of the old habits and experienced players in the smartphone game.

  
Motorola Moto G official photos

The Moto X was the first to set on a crusade to prove that high-end smartphones go beyond the number of cores and pixels. Now we have the Moto G on a mission to let everyone know that affordability doesn't necessarily imply crippled functionality. The Moto X was unusual enough to be reasonably successful despite its hefty price tag. The Moto G, on the other hand, is priced to move quickly and will be keeping the competition on their toes.

Not that it will get complacent because of it, like most of the smartphones priced at around the same level do. The Motorola Moto G will bend over backwards to serve you properly and its list of features stretches far longer than most in this price range.

Key features

• Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE; quad-band UMTS/HSPA support
• 4.5" 16M-color 720p IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen with 326ppi pixel density; Gorilla Glass 3
• Android OS v4.3 Jelly Bean with Android 4.4 update reportedly coming as soon as January 2014
• Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 chipset with quad-core 1.2GHz Cortex-A7 CPU; Adreno 305 GPU
• 5 MP autofocus camera with LED flash
• 720p video recording @ 30fps with HDR, continuous autofocus and stereo sound
• 1.3 MP front-facing camera
• Wi-Fi b/g/n; Wi-Fi Hotspot
• GPS with A-GPS; GLONASS
• 8/16GB of built-in storage; 1GB of RAM
• microUSB port with USB host
• Bluetooth v4.0 LE
• Standard 3.5 mm audio jack
• Ambient light; accelerometer; proximity sensors
• Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic
• 50GB of free Google Drive storage
• 2,070 mAh battery
• Excellent speaker loudness

Main disadvantages

• Limited non-expandable storage
• Non user-removable battery
• Questionable camera image quality, limited camera settings

It's abundantly clear that the Motorola Moto G ticks way more boxes than a smartphone of its standing is expected to. Some might argue that it's a luxurious strategy that can only be employed because Google will make profit off software services and not the actual hardware. Well, from a user's perspective (and that's the only one we care about) this point is irrelevant as all that matters is what you are getting for your money. At least on paper, the Moto G is plenty of smartphone for the price.

Some corners needed to be cut of course, but since Motorola could afford to give up immediate profits, the hardware didn't take as bad of a hit as it normally would have. We get a base-level chipset of course, but it's of the latest Qualcomm lineup and it should do just fine paired with a 720p screen. And since it requires less power and there's a smaller screen here, Motorola might easily get away with the smaller battery. The unmatched body customization options of Moto X are gone too, but the (very cheaply) replaceable back covers still let you add your personal touch to the smartphone. A well rounded package indeed.

  
The Motorola Moto G at ours

Or is it? You see, being able to sell subsidized hardware might sound like a manufacturer's dream, but it's not all roses. Because when you mostly rely on the software to bring in the profits, you have to make sure your services are attractive. So the microSD card slot got the axe in hope that you'll fall back to cloud storage for most of your multimedia needs. The default skinned Android UI (or launcher, as it's technically called) also isn't the most functional around, so you might have to add a feature or two via third party apps.

LG G Flex review: Future to CURVE

Introduction

With so many flagship "plus ones" out there, it's refreshing to see something truly revolutionary. The LG G Flex is curved like a Beckham free kick and has a flexible screen and battery, along with a unique self-healing coating on the back.

   
LG G Flex official images

The LG G Flex is curved top to bottom and, as the name suggests, it can flex. It's not bendable like rubber, you have to really put some muscle to it. It's quite impressive all the same, as nothing about phones is flexible, not the screen glass, not the screen itself, nor the motherboard or battery. Oh well, they didn't use to be.

Key features

• Unique curved design
• Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE support; CDMA and 1xEV-DO
• Quad-band 3G with HSPA; Penta-band LTE Cat. 4
• 6" 16M-color 720p curved POLED capacitive touchscreen; Gorilla glass
• Android OS v4.2.2 Jelly Bean; LG Optimus UI
• Quad-core 2.26 GHz Krait 400 CPU, 2 GB RAM, Adreno 330 GPU, Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 chipset
• 13 MP autofocus camera with LED flash, geo-tagging, Intelligent Auto, Time catch shot, smart shutter and VR panoramas
• 1080p video recording @ 60fps with continuous autofocus and stereo sound; HDR mode, Dual recording, optical image stabilization
• 2.1 MP front-facing camera, 1080p video recording
• 32GB of built-in storage, 24GB user-available
• microUSB port, USB host support, USB on-the-go, SlimPort TV-out
• Bluetooth v4.0
• NFC
• Wi-Fi a/b/g/n/ac, Wi-Fi Direct and DLNA
• GPS with A-GPS, GLONASS
• Standard 3.5 mm audio jack
• Stereo FM radio with RDS
• Voice commands
• Multi-tasking with Dual Window, mini-apps with optional transparency (QSlide)
• Accelerometer and proximity sensor
• Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic
• Non-replaceable 3,500mAh Li-Po battery
• IR emitter for remote control of home appliances

Main disadvantages

• Screen has low ppi, issues
• Rather large device even for a phablet
• No optical image stabilization for the camera
• The hardware controls at the back take some time getting used to
• No microSD slot
• Non-replaceable battery

LG leaned on its component manufacturing skills and created a Plastic OLED (POLED) screen that's flexible (more so than the G Flex itself). The next step is a curved, flexible Lithium Polymer battery (a world first). Despite its odd shape and 8.7mm thickness of the phone, the battery has a respectable 3,500mAh capacity.

The screen measures the massive 6", but the curve of the device helps the ergonomics. While it impresses with size and flexibility, the screen has only 720p resolution (245ppi). Here's hoping that the new technology makes up for the lacking density.

While flexible screens and batteries might become more popular with wearable devices (say a smartwatch that wraps around your wrist), the next trick might become standard for all sorts of devices - the coating on the back can heal itself if scratched. This will put an end to all the silly cases and protectors that just make phones thick and ugly.

   
LG G Flex in our office

Beyond the breaking news, the LG G Flex is just the phablet version of the LG G2 with a Snapdragon 800 chipset, 13MP camera (no OIS though), Optimus UI gestures and updated multitasking (with a split-screen option). It even has the trademark hardware controls on the back. The Optimus G Pro is getting a little old and small and the LG Vu 3 is a niche product with its 4:3 screen, so another phablet is a welcome addition to LG's fleet.

Sony Xperia C review: Cash and carry

The China-bound Sony Xperia C could be the right opportunity to smuggle some big-screened, quad-core goodness into markets where those things usually fetch a high price. It's certainly the right size too. Five-inchers don't necessarily have to come with high-end price tags. There's demand for affordable options too, which the Xperia C isn't the first to address. Sony has obviously been watching the Samsung Galaxy Grand, while HTC and LG aren't indifferent either.

So, the Sony Xperia C has dual-SIM support, which is almost a must-have in the markets Sony's interested in, a massive 5-inch display and a quad-core processor. So far, so good.

  
Sony Xperia C official pictures

It is the company's first smartphone powered by a MediaTek chipset. Sony has so far always opted for either Snapdragons or (when the company still existed) ST Ericsson but, with China being the primary target market, it had little choice really. The latest MediaTek chips support both dual-SIM and quad-core processors, and they are light on the wallet too.

Affordability is, of course, an important reason, considering Asian markets are teeming with sub-$200 quad-core droids and competition is fierce. The likes of Lenovo, Micromax, Xolo, and many more, are ready to offer a big enough screen and decent feature set on a bargain.

What this means is the Sony Xperia C should be preparing for a full-scale war. Let's check the ammo:

Key features

• Tri-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE and dual-band HSPA support
• Dual SIM, dual stand-by support
• 42.2 Mbps HSDPA and 11.5 Mbps HSUPA
• 5.0" 16M-color TFT capacitive touchscreen of qHD resolution (540 x 960 pixels) at 220ppi
• Android OS v4.2.2 Jelly Bean
• Quad-core 1.2 GHz Cortex-A7 CPU, PowerVR SGX544 GPU, MTK MT6589 chipset
• 1 GB of RAM
• 4 GB of built-in storage (2 GB user available)
• microSD slot (cards up to 32GB supported)
• 8 MP autofocus camera, single LED flashlight, geo-tagging, touch focus, HDR, hardware shutter key; VGA front-facing camera
• 1080p @ 30fps video capture
• Wi-Fi b/g/n, Wi-Fi hotspot
• Bluetooth 4.0 with A2DP
• GPS with A-GPS
• Accelerometer, ambient light and proximity sensor
• Standard 3.5 mm audio jack; Walkman music player with many audio enhancements
• Stereo FM radio with RDS
• microUSB port (charging)
• Built-in LED strip provides a breathing light and notification light
• 2,390mAh Li-Ion battery, non-replaceable

Main disadvantages

• Low pixel-per-inch ratio
• No Mobile BRAVIA engine
• No scratch protection for the screen, Gorilla Glass or otherwise
• Limited internal storage for installing apps

The Xperia C obviously didn't remain confined within Asian boundaries as various European retailers are already shipping it at very attractive prices. It sure isn't the fastest or the most feature-rich of phones, but it sounds like a great bang for your hard-earned buck. Will that be enough to probably forgive the lower resolution screen and the other potential deal breakers?

  
Sony Xperia C live pictures

Comparison: Samsung Galaxy Note III Vs IPhone 5s

Comparison: Samsung Galaxy Note III Vs IPhone 5s

GENERAL	2G Network	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 - all models	GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 - all models
		CDMA 800 / 1900 - N9009	CDMA 800 / 1700 / 1900 / 2100 - A1533 (CDMA), A1453
	3G Network	HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100 - N9005, N9002, N9006 HSDPA 850 / 1900 / 2100 - N900W8	HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1700 / 1900 / 2100 - A1533 (GSM), A1453
		CDMA2000 1xEV-DO - N9009	CDMA2000 1xEV-DO - A1533 (CDMA), A1453 HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100 - A1457, A1530
	4G Network	LTE 800 / 850 / 900 / 1800 / 2100 / 2600 - N9005	LTE- all models
		LTE 700 / 1900 / 2100 - N900W8
	SIM	Micro-SIM	Nano-SIM
	Announced	2013, September	2013, September
	Status	Available. Released 2013, September	Available. Released 2013, September

BODY	Dimensions	151.2 x 79.2 x 8.3 mm (5.95 x 3.12 x 0.33 in)	123.8 x 58.6 x 7.6 mm (4.87 x 2.31 x 0.30 in)
	Weight	168 g (5.93 oz)	112 g (3.95 oz)
		- S Pen stylus	- 500 dpi pixel density fingerprint sensor (Touch ID)

DISPLAY	Type	Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors	LED-backlit IPS LCD, capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors
	Size	1080 x 1920 pixels, 5.7 inches (~386 ppi pixel density)	640 x 1136 pixels, 4.0 inches (~326 ppi pixel density)
	Multitouch	Yes	Yes
	Protection		Corning Gorilla Glass, oleophobic coating

SOUND	Alert types	Vibration; MP3, WAV ringtones	Vibration, proprietary ringtones
	Loudspeaker	Yes	Yes
	3.5mm jack	Yes	Yes

MEMORY	Card slot	microSD, up to 64 GB, buy memory	No
	Internal	16/32/64 GB storage, 3 GB RAM	16/32/64 GB storage, 1 GB RAM DDR3

DATA	GPRS	Yes	Yes
	EDGE	Yes	Yes
	Speed	HSDPA, 42 Mbps; HSUPA; LTE, Cat4, 50 Mbps UL, 150 Mbps DL	DC-HSDPA, 42 Mbps; HSDPA, 21 Mbps; HSUPA, 5.76 Mbps, LTE, 100 Mbps; EV-DO Rev. A, up to 3.1 Mbps
	WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band, DLNA, Wi-Fi Direct, Wi-Fi hotspot	Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, dual-band, Wi-Fi hotspot
	Bluetooth	Yes, v4.0 with A2DP, LE, EDR	Yes, v4.0 with A2DP
	NFC	Yes	No
	Infrared port	Yes	No
	USB	Yes, microUSB v3.0 (MHL 2), USB Host	Yes, v2.0

CAMERA	Primary	13 MP, 4128 x 3096 pixels, autofocus, LED flash	8 MP, 3264x2448 pixels, autofocus, dual-LED (True Tone) flash
	Features	Dual Shot, Simultaneous HD video and image recording, geo-tagging, touch focus, face and smile detection, image stabilization, panorama, HDR	1/3'' sensor size, 1.5 µm pixel size, simultaneous HD video and image recording, touch focus, geo-tagging, face detection, HDR panorama, HDR photo
	Video	Yes, 2160p@30fps, 1080p@60fps (N9005, N9002)/ 1080p (N9000)	Yes, 1080p@30fps, 720p@120fps, video stabilization
	Secondary	Yes, 2 MP, 1080p@30fps	Yes, 1.2 MP, 720p@30fps, face detection, FaceTime over Wi-Fi or Cellular

FEATURES	OS	Android OS, v4.3 (Jelly Bean)	iOS 7, upgradable to iOS 7.0.4
	Chipset	Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 (N9005, N9002)/ Exynos 5 Octa 5420 (N9000)	Apple A7
	CPU	Quad-core 2.3 GHz Krait 400 (N9005, N9002)/ Quad-core 1.9 GHz Cortex-A15 & quad-core 1.3 GHz Cortex-A7 (N9000)	Dual-core 1.3 GHz Cyclone (ARM v8-based)
	GPU	Adreno 330 (N9005, N9002)/ Mali-T628 MP6 (N9000)	PowerVR G6430 (quad-core graphics)
	Sensors	Accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, barometer, temperature, humidity, gesture	Accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass
	Messaging	SMS(threaded view), MMS, Email, Push Mail, IM, RSS	iMessage, SMS (threaded view), MMS, Email, Push Email
	Browser	HTML5	HTML (Safari)
	Radio	No	No
	GPS	Yes, with A-GPS support and GLONASS	Yes, with A-GPS support and GLONASS
	Java	Yes, via Java MIDP emulator	No
	Colors	Black, White, Pink, Merlot Red, Rose Gold Black, Rose Gold White	Space Gray, White/Silver, Gold
		- ANT+ support - S-Voice natural language commands and dictation - Air gestures - SNS integration - Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic - Dropbox (50 GB storage) - TV-out (via MHL A/V link) - MP4/DivX/XviD/WMV/H.264/H.263 player - MP3/WAV/eAAC+/AC3/FLAC player - Organizer - Image/video editor - Document viewer(Word, Excel, PowerPoint, PDF) - Google Search, Maps, Gmail, YouTube, Calendar, Google Talk, Picasa - Voice memo/dial/commands - Predictive text input (Swype)	- Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic - AirDrop file sharing - Siri natural language commands and dictation - iCloud cloud service - iCloud Keychain - Twitter and Facebook integration - TV-out - Maps - iBooks PDF reader - Audio/video player/editor - Organizer - Document viewer/editor ((Word, Excel, PowerPoint) - Image viewer/editor - Voice memo/dial/command - Predictive text input

BATTERY		Li-Ion 3200 mAh battery	Non-removable Li-Po 1560 mAh battery (5.92 Wh)
	Stand-by	(2G) / Up to 420 h (3G)	Up to 250 h (2G) / Up to 250 h (3G)
	Talk time	(2G) / Up to 21 h (3G)	Up to 10 h (2G) / Up to 10 h (3G)
	Music play		Up to 40 h

MISC	SAR US		1.12 W/kg (head)     1.18 W/kg (body)
	SAR EU	0.29 W/kg (head)     0.36 W/kg (body)	1.00 W/kg (head)     0.80 W/kg (body)
	Price group

TESTS	Display	Contrast ratio: Infinite (nominal) / 3.997:1 (sunlight)	Contrast ratio: 1219:1 (nominal) / 3.565:1 (sunlight)
	Loudspeaker	Voice 70dB, noise 66dB, ring 78dB	Voice 68dB, noise 66dB, ring 69dB
	Audio quality	Noise -96.5dB / Crosstalk -96.3dB	Noise -93.6dB / Crosstalk -90.3dB
	Battery life	75h endurance rating	54h endurance rating