At last Nokia did what we have been thinking it will do for years: brought out a tablet. Yes, Nokia is expanding its line-up of Windows phones introducing its first tablet the Lumina 2520. Lumina 2520 Windows tablet that is made of glossy polycarbonate comes in four various colors such as black, white, cyan and red. The colorful body is the key differentiating factor that places Nokia Lumina 2520 ahead of its competitors, as you cannot find such a variety of colors among any of its rivals.
The Lumina 2520 has 615 grams weight, which is average considering its size, even though you may feel a little unbalanced and uncomfortable when you hold it in one hand. But, the rounded edges of the device can compensate the unpleasant experience in handling. The device with length of 267 mm and breadth of 168 mm has a thickness of 8.9 millimeters, which is more than acceptable, cannot impress the users. The sides of Lumina 2520 are rich with numerous buttons and ports. The power and volume keys as well as the slots for Micro SIM cards and Micro SD cards are placed on the top side. On the left side, you can see the 3.5 millimeter headphone jack and the charging port, while the HDMI output and the full-sized USB 3.0 port are positioned on the right side.
Display
Nokia presents a beautiful as well as impressive 10.1 inch IPS touch screen to the Lumina 2520 Windows tablet with a resolution of 1920x 1080 pixels. Even though the device cannot beat the iPad’s Retina display, it’s adequate ppi can satisfy the needs of most tablet users. The highest brightness output (650 nits while other have 300) and low reflectivity (under 6%) together makes the Lumina possible to retain its legibility even when exposed to broad daylight. Its reflective nature is higher in general use, but the tablet is proving to be one of the hardest devices to photograph with the glossy Gorilla Glass 2.
Keyboard
Lumina 2520 Windows tablet comes with a keyboard called the Nokia Power Keyboard. It has lots of clicking magnets to turn the device into something approaching a laptop at times. The Nokia Power Keyboard, which is attached to the tablet with a port located at the bottom side, adds a touch pad and two extra USB ports as well as protects the tablet from scratches while it is not in use. Besides getting a laptop-like experience, the power keyboard can also add 5 hours battery to your device that gives you 16 hours on the go. You can hold it upright at a stand angle using the magnet in the folio, which is ideal for working on the lap or table.
Camera
The Lumina 2520 Windows tablet possesses a 6.7 MP main camera which has autofocus and an aperture of f/1.9, but lacks LED light. The absence of LED light makes the device not apt to use in low-light situations. However, you can use it as long as there is sufficient light around and capture videos at 1080p resolution. The front-facing camera of 2 MP located at the right side above the tablet’s screen makes you able for video chats over Skype or causal self-portrait with its wide angle.
Processor and memory
The Lumina is powered by one of the most capable ARM-based CoCs called Snapdragon 800 that is backed by 2GB of RAM. No matter, whether it is playing a heavy video game, working on a PowerPoint presentation or watching a 1080p movie, the CPU can provide plenty of processing punch for any task and can reach speeds of up to 2.2 GHz. Even though Nokia Lumina 2520 offers 32GB of on-board storage, the operating system occupies quite a lot space and it will result in less user-available storage. However, a microSD card slot on the device helps for memory expansion on the cheap. It also offers 7GB complementary cloud-based storage, thanks to SkyDrive.
Connectivity
LTE radio is one of the features that the Nokia Lumina 2520 has to stand out with. Even though it won’t allow you to make phone calls or anything like that, it can connect you to a wireless carrier’s 3G/4G LTE network as long as the device supports its bands and frequencies. As the GPS radio on board works with GLONASS, the accuracy is improved in areas with poor signal. Besides, other essential connectivity options such as Wi-Fi, NFC and Bluetooth 4.0 are also present.
Operating system
The Lumina 2520 tablet comes running Microsoft’s Windows 8.1 RT, which is a paired-down version of the operating system. It runs on devices with ARM processors, which is a type of processor commonly used in mobile phones. Nokia says that the Windows 8.1 RT wakes up from sleep faster, improves battery life and helps keep the tablet thinner, since an x86 processor required to run Windows 8.1 RT is thicker than an ARM processor.
The Windows 8.1 RT makes the device share the tile-based interface of the phone software and can run various apps designed for Windows tablets. As the tablet is running RT, it comes with the full suite of Microsoft Office for free. It has other Microsoft apps like SkyDrive, Xbox Music and Mail preinstalled. Besides, there are some Nokia own apps like Nokia Camera that combines Pro Cam and Smart Cam features into one app to take motion shots and fine-tune the camera settings simultaneously. Video Director, another app from Nokia makes you able to edit individual clips and combine them together into a longer movie. You can add title screens, music, sound effects and design elements. Battery life: It is a quite admitted fact that the battery life of a tablet may vary depending up on what it is used for. However, the inbuilt 8000 mAh battery of Nokia Lumina 2520 tablet can claim an 11 hours of continuous video playback, which is quite a lot. Instead of Micro-USB, Lumina 2520 uses a property charger with a feature called fast charging. With this, you can charge the battery of your device quickly, if you are in rush. For example, you will get 50% charge in 30 minutes and 80% in an hour.
Advantages and disadvantages
Just like all other tablets, Lumina 2520 is not free from some drawbacks even among its varied features. Even though it has a strong design and low price, the Windows RT underpowered and slightly unbalanced design are its major drawbacks. However, the several positive factors like great build quality, plenty of power, stunning screen, a good camera, useful apps, amazing keyboard case and selection of ports together make Lumina 2520 a great device for Microsoft to get Windows tablets a level of publicity. It has plenty of perks such as the built-in LTE radio, the pre-loaded Microsoft Office package, the full sized USB 3.0 port, the audio library of Nokia Music and HERE maps by Nokia with offline navigation.
As Lumina 2520 struggles due to the limitations of Microsoft’s Windows 8.1 RT operating system, Nokia has outdone competitive manufactures by stuffing the device with full of its own features whether it is camera tools, custom application lineup or quirky design including the firm’s Here mapping service.