Tech Review: Nokia Lumia Icon #VZWLife

Disclosure: I received a Nokia Lumia Icon at no cost for review. I am a Verizon Wireless Buzz Lifestyle Blogger. I did not receive compensation for this review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

(Picture credits):  Verizon Wireless.

I’ve been working with Verizon and I was given the opportunity to review the Nokia Lumia Icon Black. Nokia has definitely stepped up their game with the Icon. It has the ability to do things that no previous Nokia can.

There are so many features that make it worth buying, but the best one is the camera. I’ve never seen a smartphone with a better camera. Even the Galaxy S4 is only 13 megapixels while the Icon is 20 megapixels.

The Nokia Icon pulls ahead of most other smartphones in some ways. The Nokia Icon is jam-packed with futuristic, cutting edge hardware, including a 2.2 GHz Quad-Core CPU. This is definitely the perfect windows phone that everybody has been wanting.

Specifications-

• Windows Phone 8 Update 3, build 10521
• Lumia Black firmware
• 5” full HD 1080p OLED display, ClearBlack, Sunlight readability, Glare-free, Super sensitive touch, Gorilla Glass 3
• Pixel density: 440 ppi
• Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 Quad-Core processor, 2.2 GHz
• Adreno 330 GPU
• Camera: 20 MP PureView, ZEISS optics, OIS, 2x lossless zoom, oversampling, dual LED flash
• 2 GB RAM
• 32 GB internal storage (no micro SD)
• Bluetooth 4.0 LE
• Display features: Brightness control, Orientation sensor, Sunlight readability enhancements, Corning® Gorilla® Glass 3, Easy to clean, High brightness mode, Lumia Color profile, Sculpted glass, Wide viewing angle
• 2420 mAh internal battery with Qi wireless charging
• Dimensions: 5.39 x 2.79 x 0.39 in
• Weight: 166g /5.86 oz
• nano SIM
• Networks: LTE: 700MHz; SVLTE Band 13; Band 4; CDMA: 3G EVDO 850/1900 Rev A with Rx Diversity; Global Ready: GSM (850MHz, 900MHz, 1800MHz, 1900MHz)  UMTS (850MHz, 900MHz, 1900MHz, 2100MHz)

Design-

There aren’t any creative or bold design colors available with the Icon. It is only available in white or black. So if you were hoping for green, yellow, or blue.. you won’t find it. Nokia tried to keep the Icons design as conservative as possible and since most people buy cases, phone color shouldn’t matter anyway. Or at least to me it doesn’t.

It definitely feels sturdier than other smartphones. I needed something that could withstand the torment of my 5 year old and seven year old. I needed something tough and the Google Glass screen makes it just that. The phone has already fallen out of my truck onto the concrete and it didn’t even scratch anything (WITHOUT a case).

Size-

Plenty of people skipped out on buying the Nokia Lumia 1520 because of its enormous size. The massive size made it awkward to hold the phone comfortably. The Nokia Icon has totally changed up the game with the size, it’s only a hair taller than the Lumia 928. Fits perfectly in my hands, and I have small hands.

Homescreen

The Homescreen is fully customizable with Live Tiles and apps that you check the most, such as email or social media. I absolutely love it. I love that the tiles flip and show my updates and notifications. I don’t have to constantly click anything because my homescreen lets me know if I have a new email, message, or Facebook update.

Screenshots

Each smartphone is different in which buttons you should push to get a screenshot. With the Nokia Lumia Icon:

To capture a screenshot, press the Start button and the Power button at the same time.
To view the screenshot you've taken, navigate Photos > albums > Screenshots from the start screen.

I love how easy it is. It’s even easier to screenshot with the Icon then it is the Galaxy S4. With the Galaxy I was having problems getting the home button to push in as the same time as the power button. The home button gets stuck sometimes. With the Icon, the windows button responds very well to my touch. It didn’t even take me a second to get it right. With the Galaxy I’d have to try a couple times before it would work!

Apps

I have been having tons of fun playing around with the apps. There are so many different apps in the Windows Store. There are apps for everything. The Store is an amazing place because you can search for exactly what you’re looking for. I personally think that the apps at the Windows store are somewhat better than regular Google play apps.

I love that I don’t have to keep scrolling through all the available apps and games. I can just jump straight to whatever it is I’m looking to download.

I also love the fact that the apps are alphabetized and can be searched through. I don’t have to spend time searching through the long list. I can just hit the search button and have the app right there. Makes things 10x easier.

Camera & Videos

The 20 megapixel camera puts the icon at the top of the list for the most powerful cameras. It never fails whether you’re in a light or dark place. The pictures are always sharp, never dull and fuzzy like some night pictures are. It also allows rezooming and reframing pictures after they’ve been taken.

There are also a ton of apps that you can download that takes amazing pictures, lets you edit, and lets you add filters. I love the fact that I no longer have to pack around a heavy camera to get high definition, beautiful pictures!

You can record full HD Video with the amazing visual and audio qualities. This is because the Icon has Nokia PureView Imaging. It comes with 4 microphones, which are all high performance. This allows the phone to capture true stereo sound with impeccable accuracy at cutting out most of the background noise.

It doesn’t matter what you’re looking for in a smartphone, the Icon definitely has it. There is no better choice and you’ll love the feel of the Windows 8 interface.

The Nokia Lumia Icon is only available at Verizon Wireless.

There will be more app reviews and such to come..

 

-Jessica