Back in October at it’s Nokia World event, the Finnish smartphone manufacturer showed off two devices that were meant to capitalize on the trend favoring larger screen sizes. Packed with 6 inch panels and some special Nokia bits baked into Windows Phone 8, the two devices were intriguing to say the least. Fast forward to today and we’ve spent some quality time with both the phones. A few days back we brought you our review of the Nokia Lumia 1520 and here’s our take on the Lumia 1320.
Video Review
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBStzZBFTPg
Hardware
There’s a basic design identity that is very evident across the entire line of devices that form Nokia’s Lumia series. Yes, it is getting long in the tooth and isn’t as exciting as it once was. We however maintain that the design does stand out compared to most of the competition and the quality of materials remains top notch.
As with other Nokia Lumia devices, the front has a gigantic 6 inch display with relatively small bezels. Below the screen are the three capacitive buttons. Over on the right side you get three buttons that correspond to the volume rocker, power key and the camera button. All three provide very good feedback and are placed ideally to facilitate one handed operation. Yes, it is just about possible to navigate the Lumia 1320 using one hand.
A 5MP camera can be spotted over at the back with a single LED flash next to it. In the middle is subtle Nokia branding while the speaker grille is at the bottom. Two nubs flank the speaker grille so that sound isn’t completely muffled when you place the handset down. The back of the phone is made of soft touch plastic with a matte finish. While this feels fantastic when held, it is also very slippery. The 220 grams weight doesn’t help the handset in this regard and makes it even more susceptible to slipping out of your hand.
Overall we feel that Nokia has played it safe with the design of the Lumia 1320. It doesn’t particularly stand out from the rest of Lumia series, yet it manages to look different enough from the crowd. The use of quality materials and the legendary build quality are evident and help the device stand out from its competition.
Software
If you’ve seen or used Windows Phone 8 then you know what to expect. Changes as expected are minimal. The Lumia 1320 ships with Nokia’s Lumia Black firmware preinstalled which adds some additional capabilities on top of Windows Phone 8 Update 3.
The latest release of Windows Phone adds an additional column of tiles. Users also get an option to close applications through the multitasking menu. The complete list of changes are included below:
- Accessibility: Several improvements have been made for users who are visually impaired.
- Storage. Now you can easily free up storage space on your phone and manage temporary files. New categories show what’s taking up space.
- Driving Mode. Driving Mode allows you to minimize incoming calls and text messages to help you focus on the road.
- Screen. You can now lock your screen orientation so it doesn’t shift when you move your phone around.
- Wi-Fi. It is now possible to set up your WiFi connection before going through the start up process.
- Internet sharing. Now you can use your phone’s cellular data connection from your Microsoft Windows 8.1 devices by pairing them over Bluetooth.
- Bluetooth. Several fixes were made to address known issues, and improvements were made to connection quality for Bluetooth accessories.
- Ringtones. Assign ringtones for text messages, so you’ll know who’s texting you without even looking. Use your custom ringtones for more things—text messages, instant messages, emails, voicemail, and reminders.
- App switcher. Now you can use the App switcher to quickly close apps when you’re finished with them.
All said and done, the update brings some much needed tweaks and improvements but there is nothing groundbreaking in there. That is reserved for the next big release of Windows Phone.
Performance
Windows Phone based devices have never really wanted for power. In fact, the fairly consistent experience across the board works in its favor. Users are guaranteed a base minimum performance benchmark of a fluid and lag free interface. This is true for the Lumia 1320 as well. The phone is powered by a 1.7Ghz dual core Snapdragon 400 processor paired with 1GB of RAM.
Real life usage puts the device right in the middle of the Lumia 1020 and the 1520. The difference is however minimal at best. The Lumia 1320 manages to shave off a fraction of a second or so while launching apps and is generally a second or so slower than the 1520. We put the device through some of the Windows Phone specific benchmarking tools but given the lack of counterparts for some on Android, it is difficult to put a number to comparative performance. The way the two operating systems operate also makes it hard to make a direct comparison. We’ve included the scores below:
- WPBench: 302
- AnTuTu: 14,378
- SunSpider 1.0.2: 723
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=770PvOvNYxg
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSQz9peHOtc
Display
What is clearly the USP of the device is its gargantuan display. The 6 inch 720p panel is what sets the Lumia 1320 apart from most of the competition, both within Nokia and externally. Is it any good? Yes and no.
The panel on the Lumia 1320 is far from the worst that we’ve seen but it isn’t exactly a stunner. Black levels are quite disappointing and are mostly hues of grey. This is disappointing given the ClearBlack monicker. Stretching 1280×720 pixels over 6 inches does take a heavy toll on pixel density as well which comes in at 245 ppi. Text appears just a bit but blurry and colors aren’t as vibrant as you’d want them to be. That said, it does fairly well in its own class of devices and given the price point it’s not exactly justified to be so critical.
Camera
Nokia has equipped the Lumia 1320 with a 5MP camera module alongside an LED flash. The camera can shoot video in up to 1080p resolution. A 0.3MP VGA front facing camera is also present on the device but we’d refrain from using that given the extremely low resolution.
Despite the lowly resolution, the Lumia 1320 manages to hold its own with the Nokia Camera application helping you get more out of the hardware. Images in brightly lit conditions are fairly noise free but automatic white balance selection isn’t ideal.
Noise levels are kept under control and dynamic range isn’t completely lacking as is often the case with cameras on mid range phones. We did notice the oversaturated colors but this can be toned down in the camera application. Over all, day light photographs are above average.
The real challenge however is in less than ideal lighting. Unfortunately this is where the Lumia 1320 does suffer. The F2.4 aperture is hardly sufficient for flash free low light images. Since there is no image stabilization onboard, low light shots are often blurry and grainy. Getting a focus lock too proves to be rather hard.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjWAerahw_M
Battery Life and Connectivity
Nokia has been quite generous with the battery on the Lumia 1320 and has equipped it with a 3400 mAh cell. The battery is not removable despite the fact that you can remove the shell. The phone manages to last well over a day of active usage thanks to the low resolution display, mid range components. We managed to get about 12 hours of active usage with a healthy mix of social services, music playback, calls and a few photographs. Your mileage may vary depending on usage but we doubt you’ll be disappointed by battery life on the phone.
Connectivity options on the phone include the standard Bluetooth 4.0 and WiFi b/g/n protocols. The phone also has support for Bluetooth LE which means that you’ll be able to use it with low power devices like wearables, heart rate monitors. In built storage is just 8GB but you can expand that via the microSD card slot provided below the rear cover.
Conclusion
The Lumia 1320 is a very good contender if you’re in the market for a 6 inch device. Excellent build quality, decent battery and a sweet price point definitely stand out but we’re skeptical as to how many people actually want such a gargantuan device. There’s no mincing words here that the Lumia 1320 is a massive device that will not fit most pockets. But hey, if you’re read the review till here, we’re assuming you are in the market for such a device.
The Windows Phone running handset is essentially competing against the several local upstarts that are selling high specced (on paper) devices with large displays and questionable support. In that regard, the Lumia 1320 certainly wins. The sole reason the handset stands out is because of its large display. If a large screen, reliable performance and decent hardware is what you need, the Lumia 1320 priced at Rs. 23,999 should make for an ideal purchase.
Pros
- Great build quality
- Performance
- Price
Cons
- Average display
- Camera