It is late 2012, and Nokia has just released a handset that feels like it was milled from a solid block of the future. The Lumia 920 is the flagship for Windows Phone 8, and it is a technical heavyweight in every sense of the word. At 185g, it is noticeably ‘chunky,’ but that mass is the result of packing in more imaging and display technology than any other phone in the UK. Finished in a high-gloss, vibrant polycarbonate unibody, available in a striking yellow or red, it is a bold aesthetic departure from the sea of black and white rectangles.
The technical headline is ‘PureView’ photography. The Lumia 920 features an 8.7-megapixel sensor with a true mechanical Optical Image Stabilisation (OIS) system. While other manufacturers use software tricks, Nokia has suspended the entire lens assembly on tiny springs, allowing it to physically move to compensate for hand-shake. This makes it a low-light monster, capturing clear shots in conditions where other phones see only black. It also records 1080p video that is eerily smooth, even while walking. The screen is equally impressive: a 4.5-inch ‘PureMotion HD+’ IPS display (1280 x 768) with a 60Hz refresh rate. It features ‘Super Sensitive Touch,’ which allows you to operate the phone while wearing thick winter gloves, a technical godsend for the British winter.
Under the hood, the 920 is powered by a 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4 processor and 1GB of RAM. While these numbers look lower than the Android quad-core giants, the Windows Phone 8 OS is so light and well-optimised that the ‘Live Tiles’ interface feels smoother than almost anything else on the market. It includes 32GB of internal storage and features integrated Qi wireless charging, no extra covers required. It is also a 4G-ready device, perfectly timed for the UK’s LTE rollout. The Lumia 920 is a statement of Finnish engineering pride; it is a rugged, incredibly advanced, and brilliantly unique device that prioritises real-world utility like photography and navigation over raw spec-sheet wars. It is the definitive ‘Third Way’ flagship.