Nokia Lumia 1520 Phone Review

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Key Features: 6-inch 1080p Full HD display; 2.2GHz quad-core processor; Windows Phone 8 operating system

Manufacturer: Nokia

The Nokia Lumia 1520 is the first Windows Phone 8 phablet and a handset that will go head-to-head with the likes of the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and Sony Xperia Z1. With a 6-inch display, the Nokia Lumia 1520 is a full 0.1-inches larger than the HTC One Max, and packs a quad-core processor in to boot.

We go hands-on with the Nokia Lumia 1520 to see if it can truly rival the existing players on the phablet scene.

On a design front, the Nokia Lumia 1520 is pretty much what we have come to expect from the Finnish phone maker. Building on the current Lumia branded range, the 1520 looks like an oversized Nokia Lumia 1020, with a polycarbonate body set to be made available in a raft of vibrant colours.

With the now familiar bright yellow Lumia colouring set for another outing, the Nokia Lumia 1520 will also be made available in matt black and white colour schemes, as well as a gloss red finish.

Lining up at just 8.7mm thick and 209g in weight, the Lumia 1520 feels comfortable in the hand despite its six-inch form. Yes, it feels large but it is not overpowering. At almost 10g lighter than the HTC One Max, the 1520’s softly curved edges mean it doesn't dig in to your palms and its reasonably light, too.

Button placement is not an issue, despite the phone’s right side being loaded with a power/sleep button, volume rocker and camera shutter. All physical controls feel sturdy, with a satisfying, and reassuringly firm action greeting every press.

The speaker grill on the phone’s lower rear edge could fall foul of being blocked by a hand if holding the device in a landscape stance in order to watch a video. This, however, is our only gripe on an otherwise highly impressive Nokia Lumia 1520's design.

The Nokia Lumia 1520’s screen isn’t just large, it’s impressive too. The first Windows Phone 8 handset to pack a 1080p Full HD display, the Nokia Lumia 1520 is taking the bit-part operating system to the mainstream, competing with the likes of the Samsung Galaxy S4 and LG G2 on a visual front.

If a 6-inch 1920 x 1080 pixel display wasn’t good enough for multimedia consumption, the 16:9 aspect ratio and 368 pixels-per-inch image density drive the video playback options home. Watching a quick HD video on the phone, the IPS panel produced fluid images with strong colours and no motion blur. We will test this further in the full review, though.

Thanks to Nokia’s ClearBlack display technology, blacks look satisfyingly black and colours, on first impressions at least, are vibrant, detailed and sharp.

The Lumia 1520’s screen is also highly responsive, tackling all the single and multi-finger gestures we could throw at it with no signs of stumbling or second-guessing. Used in both a dingy test room and in direct sunlight, the Nokia Lumia 1520’s screen was clear and easy to read, with little glare. The phone clearly benefits from a well-functioning brightness control.

While the dual-core CPUs in recent models have given the latest Lumia phones ample amounts of grunt, for the Nokia Lumia 1520, Nokia has taken things to the next level. The Nokia Lumia 1520 features a 2.2GHz quad-core snapdragon 800 processor, becoming the first Windows Phone handset to use a quad-core CPU.

Taking the Microsoft themed platform to Android rivalling levels, the Nokia Lumia 1520 performance is marked out by its impressive CPU and 2GB of RAM partnership. This specs collection is, on paper at least, on par with the likes of the Samsung Galaxy Note 3.

In practise, the Nokia Lumia 1520 felt extremely fast and responsive, allowing us to jump in and out of apps with consummate easy and not the slightest flicker of a fuss. Playing games the phone was smooth and showed no hesitation.

Although we were unable to fully test the Nokia Lumia 2520 battery life during our hands-on with the device, the phone's giant 3400mAh Lithium-Ion offering looks like a winner, giving it the edge over the HTC One Max and other leading smartphones.

As always, the Windows Phone platform is a pleasing joy to use, but one which is still undoubtedly a step or two behind Android and iOS. While the arrival of Instagram and Vine to the WP platform is a major addition, the Windows Phone marketplace is still lacking in a number of areas, an issue that will undoubtedly hold the Lumia 1520 back.

Although the Nokia Lumia 1520 camera falls someway short of the 41-megapixel offering bestowed on its Nokia Lumia 1020 sibling, the phone's 20-megapixel PureView sensor is nothing to be sniffed at. With auto focus and a Carl Zeiss lens thrown in for good measure, the Lumia 1520’s camera is a strong performer based on first use.

During our initial hands-on tests in a poorly lit demo room, the Nokia Lumia 1520's camera was responsive and yielded impressive results in challenging conditions. Although we were unable to playback images on an external screen, colours looked strong and details sharp and well-focussed.

There's a dual-LED flash, too, while a 2-megapixel front-facing camera rounds out the camera features.

The Nokia Lumia 1520 possesses a specs sheet to rival the Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and Sony Xperia Z1, and what’s more, the overall package feels bang on the mark from first use. In a market of super-sized, super-speced smartphones, the Nokia Lumia 1520 has brought the Finnish manufacturer back into the race. While we require more time with the device before we can pass final judgement, on first impressions we are highly impressed with this 6-inch beast and look forward to spending more time with the device shortly.

Stay tuned for our full Nokia Lumia 1520 review coming soon.

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