Samsung's answer to the Nokia 808 Pureview

48 megapixel monster! ;)

A Quick Friday Funny

Nokia Lumia 800 - Two Months On

Little over two months have passed since I started using the Nokia Lumia 800 so it’s about time I wrote a follow up to my previous article. Usually I’m the kind of person that gets bored with a phone very quickly or starts to get annoyed when little issues start stacking up, fortunately this isn’t the case with this phone.

It’s been quite an interesting learning experience with the Lumia getting to know it’s features and foibles and have extremely enjoyed it. I can safely say now that it’s the phone I’ve enjoyed the most in recent years and hope to continue using the Windows Phone (WP) operating systems on Nokia hardware for the foreseeable future.  In recent years I’ve tried Meego, Symbian, Android (eclair-honeycomb), iOS and found that WP suits me the best overall. Many throw complaints at WP saying it’s missing this or lacking that but I’d say it’s better than the sum of its parts and has a great future ahead of it.

The single most stand-out feature for me is still the speed, everything is just so quick and responsive which really does make the user experience enjoyable. I believe it’s this that’s responsible for why I feel so positively about the device after extended use. I used to be a fan of multiple home screens but now when going back to devices with them they just seem cluttered, guess I’ve become a fan of the minimalistic metro design on WP without realising it. I really do love how the design is used on many apps too, makes them instantly recognisable and easy to use.

Most of my gripes still stand but they've faded and I’m enjoying the positives that the Lumia has to over way more than the negatives.  Since my last article a major update was released and I now get improved battery life which is always a bonus! Hopefully we’ll see more tweaks and fixes from both Nokia and Microsoft to make the Lumia even better. The only app that’s really given me any trouble is spotify, it can be quite unstable at times and is in need of a major update, hope this happens soon.

I’ve given the camera quite a work out over the last couple of months and whilst not the best it’s certainly possible to get some good results from it, you can find some samples lower down. It’s been enjoyable using silly apps such as face swap and face mask too, great for having a bit of harmless fun at others expense!

After two months would I still recommend the Lumia 800 to friends and family? The answer is still a massive YES! In fact one of my work mates recently bought one and loves it, says it’s her best phone ever. Many others I’ve shown it to like it and would consider it, or its successor when their contract is due for renewal.  Me, I’ll be sticking with it until Nokia release a Lumia with a truly N8 beating camera comes along!

Testing out the macro mode using lego, that was my excuse anyway!

Don't ask, all good fun ;)

Our rabbit, "Rocket" digging in the snow, loves the stuff!

Fat cat "Robbie" taking over the sofa as usual.

Early cold morning walk.

Late afternoon stroll past the reservoir. 

Nokia CC-1031 Lumia 800 Soft Case Review

It's great that Nokia gives us a free case in the box with the Lumia 800 but what if you fancy something a bit more colourful? If that's you then you will want to check out Nokia's range of coloured cases.

Many people that have already purchased the Nokia Lumia 800 will be familiar with this case as it's identical to the one included in the box, except that this one is red.

The soft cases offer better protection than the hard CC-3032 case that I recently reviewed plus you get the reassurance that they are easier to grip and harder to drop.  The downside is that more of the phone is covered so less of the Lumia 800's beautiful design can be seen. It's hard to show on pictures but the colours used on these cases really are striking, bright but also deep and have a real quality look to them.  After normal usage picking up normal dirt and grease the colours do start to fade but a quick clean and they are back to looking their best again.

I would strongly recommend these cases to anyone that likes the case included with the Lumia 800 but would prefer a splash of colour to make their phone stand out in the crowd. I purchased my red case from amazon for just under £10, other colours are available such as green, cyan, magenta and black.  There's also a white version of the case but at the moment they seem to be limited to promotional packs that some retailers are giving away with the Lumia 800.

Any questions about the case? Feel free to leave them in the comments section below the images.

Nokia CC-3032 Lumia 800 Hard Case Review

Recently I purchased a Cyan Nokia Hard Case CC-3032 for my Lumia 800 and thought i'd share my thoughts on this product with you. The first thing that struck me is that it doesn't look like the pictures of it that you find on online stores or Nokia's sites, it looks so much better. To make it look realistic i've had to take most of these pictures without using the camera's flash as the case is very glossy.

The case is made from good quality smooth plastic that's nice to hold and look at. It has a glossy finish and the colour is very striking, it really stands out in the crowd. It's also slightly transparent so when the case is on the phone it ends up a little darker making it a nice shade of blue on my black Lumia. It doesn't give you the sure grip or all round protection that the case included with the Lumia 800 does but it does add a lot of style. Using the case makes the phone as slippery as using the phone without a case and as expected it's a bit of a fingerprint magnet.

This is definitely a case for people that want to add a bit of style and colour rather than those wanting protection as it leaves a lot of the phone exposed. That being the case it does show off the Lumia 800's great looks more than other official cases. So if you are looking for a case that really shows your phone off then this is the perfect product for you!

Many stores are selling this case for around £20 but can be found much cheaper if you shop around. I picked it up for £10.61 in total from Amazon, it's also available in Silver, Black and Magenta.

Any questions about the case? Feel free to leave them in the comments section below the images.

Nokia DC-20 Universal Dual USB Car Charger

This week I purchased a Nokia DC-20 Universal Dual USB Car Charger as I needed a new one with a higher output (1000mA). After looking around this one had the specs I was looking for and the price too (£10 on Amazon UK). It has two ports that can both give the full output so you can charge any two USB powered gadgets at the same time.

There's not much you can say about a car charger other than it works well, is well presented and very good value! I would strongly recommend it to anyone that needs one, not just Nokia users.

Nokia's product link for the DC-20: http://europe.nokia.com/find-products/accessories/car-and-navigation/car-chargers/nokia-dual-usb-car-charger-dc-20

My Nokia Lumia 800 Likes & Dislikes

This article is a list of my personal likes and dislikes so far of the Noka Lumia 800 after using it as my main phone for a few days.  In general i'm really enjoying the device so far and finding it great to use as an every day device.  

Many of my opinions are most likely influenced by the N9 i've been using (and enjoying) for the last month or so.

Likes

Keyboard - I've used many on screen qwerty keyboards on many operating systems (Meego, Symbian, Android and iOS) but so far the Windows Phone keyboard has to be my favourite.  It has good prediction, correction and i'm finding myself being able to type faster and more accurately than any of the others, even the 3rd party ones I used to use on my large screened android phone.

Calendar on lockscreen - It's a very simple feature but being able to see my next recent calendar entry on the lockscreen is a welcome touch.

Speed - The Lumia is fast, not spotted any lag, pauses or freezes with it yet, it's just always silky smooth. This really adds to the overall user experience.

User interface - At first I wasn't a fan of the tiles but found they've grown on me very quickly. The whole UI is a joy to use and is just so simple to get to grips with. Love the transitions between screens and apps which along with subtle design touches really adds to the experience.

Apps - The windows phone marketplace seems to be developing at a rapid pace now with a great selection of apps and games available. Many of the well known and popular apps from other platforms are now available. So far i've found most of what i've wanted and really enjoyed the way those apps look and work.

Camera button - I've really missed not having a physical camera button on the N9 so am really glad that the decided to put one on the Lumia 800.  I like the way that the camera launches if you hold the button in whilst the phone is locked, makes it quick and easy.

Xbox Live - I've never been much of a mobile gamer but have been an Xbox360 gamer since day one so being able to earn achievements for mobile games is an incentive to play them. Being able to message Xbox live friends through the phone is a good feature as I hate using the Xbox's on screen keyboard! 

Music controls - The music controls on the lock screen and on the volume box are very useful, gives just enough information and control without looking cluttered. It's great that they also work with the spotify app which is a very welcome touch.

Dislikes

Lack of notification light - This has to be the thing that annoys me the most, if i've been away from the phone the only way I can tell if I have a message is to press the lock button and look for the message icon.  It would be great if they could implement something in the future such as flashing the windows button or even a sleep screen icon, like on the N9.

No sleeping screen clock - One of the features I love about the N9 is the clock that's always on the sleeping screen but uses little power. I really miss not having the option to do that on the Lumia 800.

No double tap to wake - Being able to double tap the screen to wake it is another feature I miss from the N9. It's quite amusing how many times i've tapped the Lumia before realising that it doesn't have that feature.

Track skip controls don't work - I listen to music using the Nokia BH-111 Stereo Bluetooth headset and so far i've been unable to get the track skip controls on the headset to work.  The play/pause button does work so hopefully track skip will work in future. 

Wi-fi switching off when screen off - I don't like the way wi-fi switches off whenever the screen is off, would much prefer that it stayed on so that emails and other push notifications used wi-fi rather than my data allowance. It reconnects quickly when the screen is unlocked but would like the option to keep it on.

Game prices - When compared to other platforms the prices of some games is pretty high. Hopefully as more people buy windows phones the prices will come down as the market becomes more competitive. 

Conclusion

So far my likes outweigh my dislikes and most of what I dislike is pretty minor. It's going to be interesting to see how Nokia and Microsoft develop the operating system in future but so far it's very good. I intend to use the Lumia as my primary device over the next month to see how it suits me in the long term. At the moment I do recommend the Lumia to anyone that wants a fast, easy to use, great looking phone.