Review - Nokia Lumia 800

It’s peculiar when the most appealing aspect of a new handset, particularly one from Finnish phone gurus Nokia, is that it’s NOT an iPhone. It’s not an Android either for that matter.

But that’s human nature, innit? We all want to stand out from the crowd. There’s a deep-seated need to be individual... But we’ve also got to be trendy right? You’d only be morto otherwise!


Pointedly ignoring the mutual exclusivity of these two terms, it’s more pertinent to simply advice you to purchase this phone! Nokia’s Lumia 800 is neither Android nor iOS, but it performs exceptionally and is priced competitively.

We can thank Windows 7.5 OS for this triumph. Admittedly there’s an initial adjustment period, clumsily customizing Live Tiles and arranging colour schemes. But ultimately, the system is sleek, speedy and its every facet is a deliberate attempt to streamline the experience.

We recently pitted the three major operating systems against one another in mortal combat. Windows 7.5 emerged the victor, tallying up more points than industry behemoths iOS and Android. It’s that funky!

The presence of MS Office mobile software such as Excel and Word lend further credence to the ILLUSION of ‘working’ on your Smartphone.

Meanwhile, social networks happily populate the home screen, with updates from Twitter, Facebook and Linkedin available at a glance. However, thanks to Microsoft’s looming shadow, Xbox Live now joins them, permanently diminishing your chances of ever ACTUALLY getting any work done.

Thankfully bloatware is minimised, while Nokia’s own brand apps, specifically Drive and Music, impressed us by being both functional and easy to use. Unprecedented!

Physically, the Lumia 800 is a svelte 116.5x61.2x12.1mm, weighing only 162g and featuring a 3.7” AMOLED Gorilla Glass ClearBlack display. While this may be considered meagre in the wake of HTC’s aptly named 4.7”TITAN, it’s certainly crisp, vivid and makes the most of its real estate.

With 512MB SDRAM, 16GB disc space and a Qualcom MSM8255 (WCDMA) 1400MHz processor, its innards are hardly heavyweights. Still, the Lumia 800 sports few noticeable flaws.

As usual, the Carl Zeiss 8mp wide angle lens cam is a blast. Sadly, HD video capture is an ass-pain while the irregular absence of that front facing camera limits Skype to audio. The lack of microSD card slots will disappoint media-junkies and the necessity of credit points to purchase from Zune adds an unnecessary, unwanted step to transactions.



Still, they’re no escaping the Nokia Lumia 800’s success. If you’re one for needlessly dramatic expression, you could certainly insist it’s the first LEGITIMATE Windows Phone. Few would argue. Nokia and Microsoft have joined forces, and with Windows Phone 8 in development, there’s no telling how this juggernaut will rattle the industry.

If nothing else, it’s great to see Nokia back at the fore of the industry it so dominated a decade ago. If a true revival follows, there can be no doubt the Lumia 800 is the spark.