Microsoft has packed its latest Lumia 640XL mobile phone with a powerful QualcommSnapdragon 400 1.2GHz Quad Core processor. With a maximum retail price of Rs. 16,999, the Windows 8.1 phone is available online and in stores between Rs. 13,500 – 15,900 in India. But should you buy this phone? Well, first let us look at the features –
VERDICT:
If you have used Windows phone, you are definitely going to love this phone and the overall experience.
CAMERA & VIDEO
The ZEISS optics 13MP camera is really good as far as outdoor photography is concerned. In low light, the camera is unable to handle the noise issue in the photograph, however in both circumstances, the quality of output is really commendable. Videos can be recorded at 1080p HD resolution (30 fps) . You can understand the depth of the video recording once you play it back on your computer, as the phone can give you a maximum display resolution of 720p.
The front camera is a 5MP camera with clarity in photographs & the best part being the sharpness. Bundled with the Lumia Selfie software, editing selfies and sharing on social networks is just taps away.
Overall quality of both the cameras are really impressive with a lot of options like Aperture, Backlight, Click on Touch, etc.
MULTIMEDIA & GAMING
The 1.2GHz Snapdragon Qualcomm 400 Quad Core Processor makes it smooth for you to play HD videos or shuffling through music. If you have a lot of music in your SD card, the library gets updated in few seconds, even while playing your music files from the phone memory.
You shall experience a little lag while playing videos of 1080p resolution especially while fast forwarding or rewinding the video. However, playback is normally smooth without any lag and in proper AV sync.
If you are a heavy gamer, this phone is not for you. Graphics output is superb and full HD. With the 5.7 inches IPS LCD Capacitive display, you get to see every shadow clearly. But, as far as performance is concerned, you might be a little disappointed while playing heavy games. Especially if you have an active app update from the Store in the background, you might face pauses during game-play.
Sound is simply great. It is loud and clear during music playback, video playback, game play and also during calls. The volume rockers are placed at a calculated distance from the power button which enables the user to effectively use the volume rockers without getting confused. It also comes with the functionality of popping the music player from the top side of the screen for quick access.
Microsoft Lumia 640XL is also equipped with FM Radio. Yes! You can listen to your favourite FM stations.
CONNECTIVITY & NETWORK
The phone has Wifi & 3.5G connectivity for internet access. The 3G connectivity is fixed at a maximum of 42.2 Mbps HSDPA & 5.76 Mbps HSUPA. The Wifi sense is a great feature that catches nearby Wifi networks into its radar for a possible connection and the phone is pretty quick as far as network discovery and connectivity is concerned.
The Wifi Hotspot enables upto 8 simultaneous Wifi connections to be shared from the phone, which is great.
The Dual SIM 640XL gives you clarity in cellular transmission. Network reception for both the SIM slots are good.
As complained in the previous versions of the Windows phone, about the lag in connectivity with the Windows app store, you have nothing to worry. 640XL comes with the Denim update which connects to the Windows app store in no time.
BATTERY
A 3000 mAh removable battery is fitted into the Microsoft Lumia 640XL. You can use the phone with all day internet access, general amount of calls, a little gaming while sitting idle, 2 – 3 hours of music, 2 hours of video, fair usage of camera & also complete you documents for your on-the-go business requirements. After all this, you would still be left with a decent amount of battery power at the end of the day. In a nutshell, it almost does what it says – 31 hrs of 2G talktime & 23 hours of 3G talk time.
Standby is also great and can be configured to restrict background apps to save more energy, especially when you are travelling.
MEMORY & STORAGE
Depending on your purpose, you might either be satisfied or get disappointed with the storage, especially at this price point. The phone comes with 8GB internal storage & 1GB of RAM. Although around 5GB is usable, however, after installing & updating the frequently used 3rd party apps, you would be left with only around 1.5GB of internal storage. This is because, most apps can be installed on a SD card, but the most popular apps like Whatsapp and Facebook Messenger would be installed on the phone memory.
The external memory can be upto 128GB of micro SD storage which is a good thing, considering the Windows operating system.
Although the processor makes sure that everything runs smoothly, at some points, you would definitely think of having a 2GB RAM instead of a 1GB.
You also get OneDrive free storage of upto 1TB to sync your phone locally or remotely with other Windows devices under your Microsoft account.
OVERALL VERDICT
If you are looking for a productive phone and you want your work PC to be synced with you phone, so that you never have to miss out of urgent documentations, etc. and you also like photography, this phone is for you. Animations, transitions, app loading, exit and everything else are smooth and display is crisp. The built quality is also good, however do not expect premium quality feel which you get in some competitors. But this is a gadget which you would love, once you know, what it can do for you. Last but not the least, you have Cortana, your personal assistant.
So, if you have heard about the troubling experiences with Windows phones, give this model a shot. You won’t regret!
