The tech community has been largely anticipating Microsoft to make its shift to mobile that truly felt like the company is really serious about the future of mobile computing, so it made sense when Microsoft acquired Nokia for a deal that struck US$7 billion.
Longtime purists can now see this future as the Microsoft Lumia 535, announced last week, the first ever phone that represents a step in that direction. It iterates from a previous generation Lumia, but this time it doesn’t come with a Nokia branding, meaning this is the first wholly Microsoft device yet.
Interestingly enough, the Lumia 535 doesn’t come with the most high-end internals that you’d think a phone holding this legacy is supposed to have. It is as low-key as it gets, a slightly bumped up 5-inch display that was previously 4-inches, the resolution topped at 960×540 as to the 854×480 of the previous Lumia 530.
The screen is also protected by the latest Gorilla Glass 3 and it now uses an IPS display. In the performance department, the processor remains the same, a 1.2Ghz Snapdragon 200 processor being coupled by RAM that doubles at 1GB. (The internal storage doubles too, peaking at 8GBs)
The largest upgrade to the Lumia 535 might as well be the camera. The rear facing shooter reportedly houses a 5MP standard that may not sound like much but it’s not enough that people will have to worry about. It could cost you a shot or two but it may not be that bad. And a slight upgrade also includes support for autofocus and an LED flashlight.
Picking at Nokia’s ashes
Even without a word from either company, all signs point to Nokia. And if you where keeping your hopes up that maybe the Finnish company could make a return to mobile phones, think again.
A piece I covered some time ago highlighted how this was bound to happen and now that it has, it can only leave us to wonder how else this could turn out to be.
What was Nokia then is just Microsoft Mobile now, and it’s funny because Microsoft isn’t even marketing this device all that much. It’s almost like a laid back approach to what was once a great mobile phone empire, but it’s Microsoft’s world now and we’ll just have to live with it.
Image Credit – Microsoft
Do you think Microsoft should have thrown everything at this phone, at least for Nokia’s sake? Leave it in the comments below.
13 comments
I think microsoft deliberately “low-specd” their smartphone to make sure that the market does not perceive them as competitors with Apple, Samsung S5… The phone is probably targeted at the low income segment particularly in Africa and Asia where Nokia enjoyed a large share of the market
How much.
€110 or US$135 elsewhere, but when it becomes available it could be priced circa US$ 150-300
Why are you calling this Microsoft’s first smart phone?
Hi, WindowsPhone Enthusiast
That’s a good question. See, Microsoft has never been a hardware company as far as WindowsPhone goes. When they purchased Nokia the never really changed all that much to truly indicate that their smartphones were meant to be Microsoft’s. Also, all the other devices you may have seen before (some even branded Microsoft at the back) like some Sony devices were actually part of a licensing deal which didn’t mean they were wholly Microsoft’s.
With that being said, the Lumia 535 is the first device that embodies everything about Microsoft from the branding to the software and the hardware itself.
I hope I answered your question
Cheers
in 2010 Microsoft release smartphones
Microsoft Kin TWOm
Microsoft Kin ONEm
Microsoft Kin Two
Microsoft Kin One
Hello, Collen
Thanks for noting those phones. I believe Microsoft tapped Sharp to make the Kin line of phones, like I mentioned to WindowsPhone Enthusiast this was part of a licensing deal (same as what Google is doing with the Nexus line of phones). That makes Microsoft a software company (in mobile) up until they purchase Nokia which they did.
Its a bit hard to accept, I understand but this is quite literally the first wholly Microsoft smartphone.
i think the price for this will be comparable to that of the lumia 525, since it is the 525’s upgrade, pegging it in btwn 150-200 bucks
“it’s funny because Microsoft isn’t even marketing this device all that much. It’s almost like a laid back…” You are doing the marketing for them!
I’m not too keen on selling off more of my soul to access another ecosystem, but this phone definitely runs a few circles around my current midrange Samy especially considering the price.
Where can l get the Microsoft phone and for how much?
isusu tinotaimira zvinhu zvachipa yakuita marii manje
Something that is cheap doesn’t last fir long time. For me personally I prefer to use Microsoft Lumia